One of my favorite questions to ask while on a trail is, “Describe your perfect 24 hours.” Usually, I spring this upon my partner at an unfair time, a large uphill. I wanted to get into the nitty-gritty for what an ideal 24 hours would be for myself, so I figured I would share the day in blocks.
“Heyo! You ready to shred?” It is 4:45 AM and one of three buddies wakes me up with a few solid knocks on the van.
“Woot! Woot!” I shout back.
The starry skies of the Baja blanket the beach we slept upon. The waves have been out of this world and our bodies are sore from the onslaught of surf sessions. The morning's goal, start surfing waves before the sun rises over the mountains.
Crawling out of bed, I kiss my partner. She rolls over a bit annoyed but used to the routine. My contacts go in without any issues, a difficult task in the dark. My camera is already set up in its housing. I slide into my board shorts and put on my 1mm shirt. Grab an apple and plop some peanut butter on top for breakfast. Slipping out the door, I try to close it gently, but realistically I wake my partner from the slam of excitement. Sorry…
The morning light hasn’t started shining through yet, we are right on schedule. The guys look at me laughing. Two of the guys have a partner with them, the other is single. The single one says he prefers it that way. I am the last one out, so, naturally, the target for the morning jokes. In a round-robin format, they jab:
“Hey man, late-night huh?” Nudging his elbow into my ribs.
“Oh Mr. Cameraman, welcome to the party. Glad you could grace us with your presence.” He knows my pet peeve about cameramen slowing down a group!
“Awe, that is cute, she even made you breakfast…” to nobodies surprise, the last guy kills it with a bad joke!
“Are you all ready to catch some waves, or should I get a stage and microphone set up?”
Eating my apple, the sound of the break booms against the shore as our feet sink into the colder sand. Soon, the first light will shine down on us, so we must start paddling out soon. There is a channel to take us out. Since I am the slow photographer with fins and no board to paddle, I am the first one in the water. Dipping under empty barrels, unridden in the cloak of darkness, firing past me. Outside of the waves, the morning is silent. However, each time I dive deep to avoid a wave, my ears go from silence to having a 747 fly overhead then back to silence. The guys pass me by as I work to find an angle on the break in the dark.
My buddy who woke me up gives me a fist bump as he paddles by, “It’s going to be a good morning!”
Looking to land, the cacti are beginning to silhouette under the blue lighting. Soon we will be ripping barrels and getting sunburnt. Filling my memory card with empty barrels, I find my positioning. Throwing a shaky hang-loose to the guys, they send one back. It is time for the morning fun to start just as the yellow-orange sunlight fills the sky!