Surfing
County Line Oct 2006 Made this one to the beach!
Wellfleet '07 Sunrise Air:32 Water:59 Overhead and Empty. Sweet!
- NEW!! An illustrated PDF account of a recent surf-trip to Isla Natividad, Baja Sur.
- “HEADING:SOUTH-BY-SOUTHEAST AUGUST 20-23, 2010” 14-Page illustrated article by Michael W. Barnard
Michael has been an active surfer since his teenage years. He tried to start surfing in the 50’s on Cape Cod’s Ballston Beach  with an old Hawaiian hollow-core paddle board. This had been left in the garage of an old sea captain who had sailed to “Sandwich Islands” many times in his career. Must have been a souvenir. In any case, this first attempt at surfing didn’t go too well, the old, dried-out paddle board took on lots of water through its open seams and sank rather quickly.
Some years later Michael moved with his family to the Bay Area. While walking on the beach at 26th Ave. in Santa Cruz with a friend, he saw some guys sitting in the water wearing (primitive) wetsuits. He asked his friend what they were doing. His friend dismissively said they were surfers. Then one of the surfers caught a wave. Michael realized this was what he had been dreaming of doing for many years. He immediately set about learning to surf at Cowells Beach and the Rivermouth, renting  a board from Otto’s, a rather crusty board rental shop near the Santa Cruz Boardwalk. That was many waves ago…
A Sketchbook entry from 2007
At Zuma with a new kneeboard! Shaped by Dean Cleary - 2008
Sketchbook entry detailing a curious wipeout at Topanga (Boomers)