Endless Session, Day 123: Surf’s up, SJ!
SJ and Morgan on the hunt for rideable waves. Photo by Jose Bacallo
Sometimes the ocean needs a break.
Even just thinking about the vast amount of energy expended by the great sea is enough make anyone tired. Knowing that the South Bay Boardriders surf contest was cancelled today, I met my favorite mermaid SJ and her awesome dad Jose Bacallo at Topaz St. in Redondo Beach, only to feast our eyes on what looked like a beautiful lake instead of the Pacific. Our search for any rideable waves brought us to the Manhattan Pier, where we thankfully found a few gorgeous peelers to play around on. Jose, a friend and a very inspiring role model in my life, was ripping on his SUP while SJ and I played around in the small but fun surf.
My favorite thing besides surfing is teaching people how to surf. You’ll never see anyone with a bigger smile than the first time they stand up and feel the thrill and rush of riding a wave. When giving SJ lessons, I get reminiscent of my childhood and all my magical summers spend at Chevron (now Hermosa) Surf Camp, and I think about how grateful I am to have found something that became my passion at such a young age. I’m excited to see this wonderful little girl (who is so incredibly smart and is without a doubt going to be President one day) progress – she’s agreed to do 20 push-ups a day to start building up her surfer muscles.
Surf’s up SJ!
Morgan Sliff on Day 92 of her 366 day surf quest. Photo by BumpSetSurf.com