Summer is over. Let’s talk about surfing.

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When I walk outside these days, there’s a bluster in the air. It’s not often warm. Sometimes… I shiver.

It wasn’t always like this. Just last month I could run around town in shorts. There was no chill, no shivering, only heat and sweat. Times have changed, and so has the weather. I’m left feeling nostalgic.

To indulge this nostalgia, I’m sharing with you an account of the time I spent earlier this year representing the SCA at the US Open of Surfing. It was late July/early August. The sun was high and the waves were higher. Equipped with an iPad and an android phone, my mission was to craft a series of 140-character dispatches that would let you, the reader, feel like you were right there on Huntington Beach, cheering on SCA spokeswoman Lakey Peterson as she attempted to triumph in the country’s largest pro-surfing competition.

Can you smell the sunscreen? Can you feel the sand in your toenails? Not yet, my friend, but read on. WARNING: You should probably don some shades before you click here to read my full coverage of the 2012 U.S. Open of Surfing.

For those of you who forgot your shades today, here are a few highlights. You’ll have to make do with squinting:

 

One last thing: To celebrate our involvement with the Open, we teamed up with Lakey to give away a surf weekend in her hometown, Santa Barbara. Read all about the lucky winner here.