C’mon…even if it’s small you know you want to. Photo: Shutterstock
I love night surfing. This list could be the five hundred reasons why night surfing is completely awesome, but you wouldn’t really care to read that. Tonight, however, is one of the rarest lunar events known to man. And it just so happens this Super Moon is also a great opportunity to get some nocturnal barrels. Plenty of people will be taking the chance to rock glowsticks in the lineup tonight and here are five reasons why you should join them.
1. You’ll get reacquainted with your favorite wave.
We all have a wave or two that we’re far more familiar with than others. It might just be proximity that finds you surfing there more often than anywhere else. Through repetition you learn that spot’s moods and every nook and cranny of the wave itself. But much of that you owe to the lovely gift of sight since you’re probably only there during the day.
Surfing a familiar wave is usually the first recommendation in Night Surfing for Dummies, and this is your next evolution in that familiarity. Whether it tests your feel for finding the best take off spot or the new focus you’ll give to the wave itself once you’re up and running, you’re going to use your senses in a whole new way trying to sniff out waves.
2. Just cross it off your bucket list already.
Whether this becomes your new thing or not, you have to give it a roll at least once. And stop freaking about being eaten because, well, you already frickin’ surf. Maybe even a lot. You kind of gave up on the whole shark safety life guidelines a while ago. Plus, the odds are still wildly in your favor of making it back to shore with a big grin on your face and no extra holes anywhere. So get out and enjoy the moment.
In all seriousness, it really should be a bucket list item for surfers. Riding waves has a beautiful way of handing out great memories. And we tend to leave those moments with a “look what I can do” sense of empowerment (sometimes). But this is one of those times you’re almost forced to keep that confidence to yourself. Let me tell you why…
3. You’ll impress yourself…but only yourself.
“Did you see the wave I just caught?” That’s not something you’re going to hear a lot of in this scenario.
I vividly remember my first Southern California evening sesh. It ended with one of the best waves I’ve ever surfed and not a soul to watch it. Some of the best turns, the best late take offs and all around “did you see that” moments in my surfing life were a result of surfing without inhibitions. No longer worried about how great my next turn looks means I tend to just go for it and surprised myself with the end result. Confidence breeds more confidence and before you know it you’re pulling off moves you weren’t so sure were in your arsenal to begin with. All of the sudden pleas of “Did you see that wave I just caught?” turn into prideful little pats on your own back.
4. Everybody’s way nicer in the dark.
I’ve done exactly zero hours of legitimate scientific research on this point. I have no quantitative statistics to present that will back up my point, just the glaring observation that whenever I surf at night the people I come across are significantly nicer than what I’m accustomed to. Surfing at night is a novelty, and full moons bring out the weirdest of the weird. So it’s only fitting that for surfers, instead of turning into werewolves, we just become nice.
5. It’s going to be the best (and hopefully safest) front row seat in the universe.
You do know the world is ending tonight, right? This blood moon super moon lunar eclipse full moon ordeal has plenty of believers shouting apocalypse, which is exactly why you should be in the ocean. If the world is going to end I don’t want to spend my last few hours in a sports bar listening to drunk Broncos fans scream at Peyton Manning like he can hear them through the television screen. No, if we’re gonna go. Let’s go while getting barreled.
The Super Moon, Full Moon, Lunar Perigee trifecta is going to be a rare occurrence everybody will be watching tonight. Wouldn’t you rather stare at it over rolling waves than your instagram feed?
