Surfs Up!

As I sat stretching on the beach in the pre-dawn light the other day, I thought through the metaphor that surfing is (in some ways) to the world of venture capital. There are those that simply woke up and decided to go surfing and then did – determining that they would simply figure it out along the way. Some do, some don’t. I took a more deliberate approach to the sport over the past ten years or so and am just now starting to truly appreciate it for what it is and what I’ve learned. I have a lot more to learn, but the bullets below are simply my shorthand for what I’ve experienced thus far so I thought I’d share them with all of you to see whether you see the similarities I see.

- Randomly encountering surfing through friends and classmates

- Becoming, for some strange and unknown reason, fascinated with it

- Passing fascination turning into avid enthusiasm

- Regularly watching the sport in awe and wanting to “do what they do”

- Beginning to spend time with surfers

- Spending time at the beach and in the ocean just to be in their element

- Finally going surfing for the first time

- Stretching and preparing to ride

- Spending a fair amount of time just watching the waves and sizing up the challenges and opportunities

- Taking the initial plunge

- Paddling out without first determining where the channel is

- Watching where others paddle out to find the channel

- Paddling out to where the waves are

- Waiting in the line-up with others that have also discovered “the secret spot”

- The mad scrabble charge to catch a wave in a crowded line-up

- The first wave you catch

- The first successful pop-up while on a wave

- The tightening in the pit of your stomach during your initial drop-in as you begin to race down the face of your first wave

- Feeling pure exhilaration while riding your first wave

- Catching more waves

- Catching waves more consistently

- Truly learning patience between sets

- Appreciating the fortitude required to paddle back out after a nasty wipe out

- Learning to surf with style

- Learning there are surfers who respect and appreciate the sport and there are those that don’t

- Knowing when you’ve had enough for the day

- Knowing when it’s the best it’s ever been… and staying out longer to take advantage of it

- Losing all track of time on the best of and worst of surf sessions

- Respecting something that is far greater than you can generally fathom

- Appreciating the skill and timing (and luck) required to catch the perfect wave in the perfect conditions

        - Beginning to research and theorize where to find perfect waves

- Learning what the perfect conditions are and where and when to find them

- Traveling to numerous (often remote) places searching for the “perfect” wave

- Not always catching the “best wave of the day”

- Learning there will be others – there always are.

- Catching waves that you later wish you hadn’t

- Catching the perfect wave in the perfect conditions

- Reliving that perfect wave and those perfect conditions over and over in your dreams

- Continuing to search for that feeling again…

Happy surfing!