As Dawn Approaches
Words by Kurt Henson, photo by Patrick Gorbunovs
As dawn approaches the soft purple and orange light filters into my dreams, triggering my body to awaken.
My mind instantly activates initiating and executing my personal system BIOS, key weather elements are quickly processed subconsciously. Wind direction is the crucial factor when determining if I will get out of bed at all.
As I sit partially immersed in salt water and gaze toward the horizon with an unobstructed view I watch as the sun rises out of the dark ocean, I feel the cold damp air hit my back and rush past me. The moist air smells as though it was extracted from the earth itself by the sun’s all consuming heat. As the air rushes past me it grooms the face of the oncoming swell aligning and creating order out of chaos.
The largest swell approaches the beach, it changes shape. Effected by the contours of the ocean floor it appears to slow down and increase in size as the cold air rushes up its face. I feel excitement as I turn and paddle whilst getting drawn toward the lip of the wave.
Every wave is different; some waves allow me to create different lines by drawing long sweeping turns on their face, while others constrain me, only allowing the creation of one line. Every wave is memorable, some more than others. Some waves are life changing while some are life threatening, others are shared with friends and some I have surfed alone with no witness. Waves consistently leave me energized and revitalized, and though only for fleeting moments I feel at one with my surroundings.