Fresh Friday is a *ahem* 'weekly' updated article by

We Are Water's editor, David Reid

Fresh Friday for May 27, 2005

As we stretch into Memorial day weekend, the unofficial start of summer, it’s a good time to reflect. Speaking for myself, I have found the 2005 Winter/Spring surf season was fantastic. East Coast of Florida had some very memorable sessions. Being a Floridian and a surfer is challenging. We are mostly written off in the major surf media as having gutless and inconsistent surf. However, from my experience, leaning on pure optimism, Florida had some pretty good swells this year, so far.

Of course, many others, from distant places may laugh or be slightly amused on the notion that Florida does indeed get good surf. But, in my opinion, the Winter/Spring of 2005 was one for the history books! Maybe it was El Nino, or just a slight fluctuation in global weather patterns, but Florida was on the receiving end of some great and consistent surf.

However, Memorial day fast approaches and the typical doldrums of a Florida summer are setting in place. June is a hated month to be a Floridian surfer. I’m not trying to curse any swells in June, however, typically we all know that June is a dead-beat month for surf. So, we have photographs, stories, and lore to talk about until the next swell arrives! (June first is also the official start of the Atlantic’s Hurricane season!)

2005 started out pretty fun. The first week of January and we had consistent surf coming from a good December (remember Otto? Then Christmas swells?). Also, the ASP came to town and had a very successful contest at Sebastian Inlet. The contestants along with the throngs of people who participated in the Sebastian Pro were blessed with a great week of small, fun, and glassy surf. Corey Lopez beat out Kelly Slater in the finals to take home the win.

We then had a meaty swell for Martin Luther King day (See photo on top of page). Water temps had dropped to the lower 60s and South Florida was getting good swell as well.

January was a pretty consistent month. February continued a consistent and productive North swells with, I think, a week long flat spell mixed in. March was consistent as well, with April providing that anomalous mack daddy NE swell (Quikscat image above). May was so-so, with a few scattering of small rideable swells. So, here we are in the first days of summer. The kids are out of school and it has been semi-rideable up to now. Are we entering a new realm in Florida surfing? Do we now have consistent rideable surf? Is it a change in perception (overly optimistic)? Or, has there been some kind of global weather shift that has resulted in Florida’s swell frequency to increase? Who knows? Whatever it is, it has been fun for me…I hope you are experiencing it too!

We Are Water Happenings

Progress on the overall design of the website has been slow. I’m mostly trying to build content and awareness of the site. The hit counter has steadily increased and the readership is climbing. The E-commerce portion of the website is in the works for next month (June), but probably will get pushed out to July. I’m working with a local T-shirt factory to get custom shirts made up. I keep reading other large surf company’s bios about how they had humble beginnings of selling T-shirts out of their garage…Well guess what? You are experiencing We Are Water's meager start in the same path! We Are Water's concept is to have artistic looking surf T-shirts…Not an original idea, eh? (Quiksilver move over!)

Logjammer has written a new article for We Are Water's Drifting. Some may see it as a rant, or, a lunatic waving his arms relentlessly and saying, "The End is Near." That may very may be true or not, but logjammer's article is an eye opening viewpoint of Florida's not so distant future: Surfing in Flower Land

There will be no Fresh Friday articles for the next two weeks…I have been inspired by Jack Kerouac’s, On The Road, and feel the great need to drive off into the great American Highway and have an adventure. Maybe I will write the great American Novel while I’m out there!

For Memorial Day, Thanks for all that have given the ultimate sacrifice in protecting and defending the freedom we all share! It really boils down to being able to do what we want to do, when we want to do it. The past, agree with it or not, has offered us newfound freedom. Our thoughts, our work, our religion, our family and friends, all owe the deepest respect to our past generations. For their errors and success are the basis for our future.

Adios Amigo, I’m On The Road, Next Fresh Friday article June 16th.

David Reid
sales@WeAreH2O.Com

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