The board feels weightless, and all you have to do is stand up as quickly and smoothly as possible. I dropped down the front of the wave. It wasn’t curling very well, but it was big and solid enough to keep me moving toward the beach. I carved up and down the front of it, cutting back and forth across the face. I spotted the giant black rocks on the reef closer to shore. The wave started breaking behind me, losing its momentum. Soon it would wear out and slink in to shore. I cut hard across the top of the wave and lay down on my board, but the wave carried me toward the rocks. Alana was ahead of me, paddling through the surf. I paddled toward her and immediately hit rock. When the water rose, I quickly paddled away. As I reached the other side of the reef, another wave came in. I duck-dived through it and watched it smash on the rocks. The pull of the ocean yanked me backward, and I paddled hard into the next wave and ended up over the reef again. Alana was cutting across the incoming waves, duck-diving as she went.
