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...blimey we've done localism 😆
I quite often shout "locals only!" when someone paddles over. I'm just worried that one day I'll do this to someone I don't know.
I actually do feel a bit of a local about some of my local trails, when people come from far and wide to trash the peat and wind up the walkers. I'd certainly never put anything on strava. It's a similar thing about using a scarce resource, I guess, and a feeling of this is my back yard. Not saying this is good and I have been laughed at in the pub for pushing this line. But hey.
as old dog says, generally if you are a nice friendly person you will be treated well and if you act like a dick you will be treated as such. I think that applies with most of life. People generally bring bad experiences on themselves.
Bringing it back to scary things, I got threatened by a big Hawaiian local for daring to paddle over to his peak many years ago, before id even caught a wave.
The same trip I got pulled out of a wave by my leash by a local for paddling for a wave (which the local had already missed) He was pretty cool and friendly though once i'd apologised.
Localism taken to the extreme!
There is a guy called Chris Burtish who set off this morning to cross the Atlantic on a SUP...
Morocco to Miami..
Mentalist.
I wish more SUPers would follow his excellent example...
Trip with the missus up the west coast of Ireland, landed at Easky sometime in the afternoon watching a few surfers in small surf, out of the corner of my eye I spot splashing, get the bins out and it's a whale breaching (saw it a fair few times to confirm it) . How ace is nature.
A few days later surfing a reef break down the coast, inky black water, only me out, couldn't stop thinking about it and got the willies and had to get out.
Scariest thing though was mistakenly dropping in on Maurice Cole one summer in Hossegor. Fair to say he didn't take it well.
You know I've never had a decent surf at Croyde but Putts round the corner taught me a valuable lesson in respect for the ocean a few years ago. That is a heavy wave on its day.
Seal freaked me out at Rhossili on a very early morning paddle out. Just came to say hi but I really wasn't awake properly and he had my heart going.
Scariest thing was an intentional attempt to hit me. Paddling out on a big ish day at fistral, shirt birder coming down the line toward me, I angle right so he can carry on past and , at the last moment, he cuts back on me. I mean RIGHT at me. I only had a split second and tried to roll my board to protect myself but I lost grip and I hit some poor bugger who, unwisely, was following me out. To be fair he acknowledged what had happened and forgave me my poor form even though his mouth was a bit of a mess.
Knobs in every walk of life I'm afraid. Lots of good guys too mind.