Crappy day at the beach


I woke up fairly early this morning to go and buy a body board. I have been to the beach quite a bit lately, and I was jealous of all the people who had them and seemingly glided across the waves. Meanwhile, I would catch a wave and end up eating sand from the sea floor and lose my swimsuit at the same time. So, I thought it was high time to pick a board up.

The water was cold, but I insisted in getting in and going further and further out. The board worked great at first, but then, it worked TOO well. One minute I was talking to this guy about the seaweed and the next, I was all alone about 60 meters from the shore. EEK! So, I tried to do what I learned when caught in a rip- swim parallel to the shore then body surf your way in. Well, using the body board made it really difficult to, uh, SWIM- so I was kicking my legs like mad, but not getting anywhere. The buoyancy of the board actually prevented me from going anywhere. At this point, another body boarder (obviously more experienced than me) saw me and kept me company, encouraging me to stay afloat and be calm. I told him that I was okay, just tired, but he recognized a stuck idiot when he saw one and called the lifeguard. I felt like a right fool, but unless I let go of the $80 board that I JUST BOUGHT, there was no way I could get back to shore without killing myself (I tried to swim with it next to me, but it just hit me in the head a few times). *sigh* The lifeguard surfed over and towed me into the middle of the flags (at 25 meters) but then this huge wave came and dumped over both of us. Luckily, we were both in area where your feet touched the sand and I tiredly walked back to my towel.

So, that's my story for the day. I am also ever so grateful for the Dee Why surf club for helping me out- they rock! I am also grateful that he didn't have to drag me all the way to the shore. That would have been waaaaay embarrassing.

*Update- then I get home and read the news and see THIS. SHARKS?!?! Narrabeen beach is just north of Dee Why Beach. sheesh.