Reflections on A Surfing Loss
by Paul Costales

Like a whole lot of other sports and activities we do in our spare time, surfing is a way to get away from the real world for a few hours. Problems at home, big exam coming up, tired of paying taxes, lady/man troubles, boss has you down at work, your 401(k) has taken a beating, all these are things to get away from when seeking the cool and cleansing waters crashing off our shore. In fact it can be such a release from these stressors that the lineup is mostly filled with silence or hushed talk, devoid of what many of us are getting release from for a few hours.

Which makes it all that much harder to deal with when the real world comes crashing into the little temple we've created while out bobbing around in the ocean. When surf news is news. What happened the evening of April 1st at Sands Beach, just West of Isla Vista, was one such news story, which brought the real world through the firewall protecting surfing from real life. On that tragic evening, 15 year old Lindsay Rose lost her life while surfing out at Sands.

The details are murky, but this isn't necessarily about the details. A weather hound would tell you it was a windy day that brought in some windswell out of the NW. The Harvest Buoy was checking in at 8 feet, 11 seconds, at 320 degrees. Into the evening the winds started to lay down, and Sands was offering head high sets, on some short to medium period swell. It was high tide, but being a neap tide that meant it was only at 2.9 feet, about the middle of our tidal range. It was crowded. One of the more crowded days seen out there in a long time according to some. We don't know what happened to Lindsay out there, but she was found unconscious, a rescue attempt was made, and in the end it proved unsuccessful.

Lindsay's family has, understandably, kept a low profile and we are trying to honor that by not digging deep on details. The sad part about seeing Lindsay leave is to remember the other surfers who have also left us while surfing in Goleta. This marks the 3rd surfer we've lost along a 2 mile stretch of coast since 2003.

On January 5th of 2003, we lost 45 year old Steve Issaris to a heart attack while surfing at Deveraux. On January 15th, 2006, we lost 29 year old Michelle Housego while surfing at Poles just down from Campus Point. Both of these days are still strong in the minds of those who were there or surf there often. This new tragedy triggers old emotions and thoughts, and briefly turns surfing from an escape into wrestling with emotions long buried.

Michelle's mother Diane recently got in contact with us when she heard the latest news. Offering her condolences to the Rose family and her support for the community. She passes along news that Michelle's 5 year old daughter is already learning to surf from her father. She also shares a poem Michelle had written a few months before that sad Campus Point day:

I heard your calls from miles away
Playfully you pass by and I rejoice like a child with a new toy
Arousing my playful spirit I call to you my brother dolphin
To show me the mysteries that lie beneath your world
Teach me to love without boundaries in the ocean of existence
Like the crashing of the waves pounding
I heard your voice calling
Calling me back
Back to the peace of the sea

To see my vision unfold with prayer in my heart
and a shimmer of hope in my eye
At moments I felt alone
But all the while I knew I had to answer your call
The waves will lead me home.
- Michelle Housego

As surfers and members of the community, we keep on surfing, yet do our best to preserve the memory of those who left us while surfing amongst us.

News From the Surf will be back in two weeks, and we'll be back to getting away from the real world, probably featuring something light-hearted such as surfing dogs or the best wax to use in the Spring.

The photos here are from a swell that came in today (Tuesday) at Sands.

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