yo Eva,
Happy to translate:
- 3 1/2 to 4 in the face: The face, or front of wave is three and a half to four feet tall. (This might also be called waist to chest-high surf.)
- some backwash from the high tide (When the surf zone is full because of high tide, sometimes waves will refract or rebound from the beach or seawall, and cause extra disturbance in the form of backwash)
- wind light-to-medium offshore (this is idea, actually. Offshore winds blow from the land towards the ocean. This usually makes the waves cleaner, more organized, and sometimes, if the offshore winds are really heavy--turn the waves more hollow, or tube-like.)
- still pretty clean in the face (just means that there is still a good open ridable "bowl" to surf. )
hope that helps. sounds like a pretty good day. don't worry to much about surf lingo--it just comes as you learn to read the waves and the ocean. one day you'll find yourself using the words naturally.
Joined: 08-07-07
Today after my 2nd lesson I asked my instructor to describe the conditions for me. He said:
- 3 1/2 to 4 in the face
- some backwash from the high tide
- wind light-to-medium offshore
- still pretty clean in the face, though
This means nothing to me. Anyone want to translate from surf-talk for me? It was a lot harder going than the other day, though I'd also transitioned to a slightly smaller board which was less newbie-proof. I spent a fair bit of time underwater covering my head and wondering where my board (and "up") were. I did manage to turn left, though!