For Immediate Release:

It’s saturday night and Jen and I just got back from our Friends Ed and Brenda’s house.  Ed works for CAMA and every year they get the CAMA and DMF crew as well as some other great people together for an oyster roast.  I missed last years because of our Tortola trip so we were stoked to be able to go this year.  If you like to eat oysters there is no better place in the world to eat them!

We only have 4 days untill we leave for Tortola and I am counting the days.  Although I worked all day today and will have to put in some crazy hours untill I leave for several weeks it will all be worth it.  I talked to my friend Owen in Tortola on Friday and got the update on how the waves have been.  I surfed in Wrightsville Beach on Friday and had a great session, believe it or not the water felt great (except for the two dozen straight waves I had to duck dive on one occasion)  good thing I was wearing a hood.  For Christmas I got a new Rip Curl E-bomb and I must say it is fantastic and makes winter surfing so much fun.

Every year I look forward to heading back to see my Caribbean friends.  I have not had a great plate of rice and beans since last year so I will be sure to get my fill.  I am super stoked that Eddie, Debbie and Eileen are coming again this year.  For sure they get the hard charger award as they just went to Costa Rica with us last month.

I must say the thing I am most looking forward to is having my family with me for the first week.  How stoked am I to be doing a surf camp for my family!! My parents  came to camp with Ben Bourgeios mom in 2002 so they are really excited for a tropical Surf Camp experience.  I am also really looking forward to getting my sister and her family in the water and have Jen do some relaxing.  I feel very lucky to be getting our son Vincent’s passport stamped at 1.5 years old!  I so look forward to just spending some time with him building some sand castles and splashing around in the warm water.

- Rick

It has now been a full week since our Costa Rica Surf Camp has ended and the first signs of my tan starting to fade are showing.  Getting back to reality last week was pretty tough.  I have taken so many surf trips in my life and the last 10 days I spent in Costa Rica were just incredible.  I guess that is what happens when you put together a great group of fun loving people and a 5′ - 6′ 218 degree SSW swell running at 14 seconds with consistent offshore winds for your entire stay.  It makes me wonder if some of our clients could even begin to appreciate what we just experienced.  The shear quality of surf that we had truly made it one of the top trips of my life. All of us who live-to-surf have at one point in our lives been really skunked on a surf trip.  I can remember one trip to Puerto Rico in the dead of winter and seeing it dead flat for a solid week.  Yes, that is the exception but it sure makes you appreciate when a trip really comes together.   

I put off delaying the inevitable and today vacuumed out the sand from my luggage and put it away.  I only have three weeks until I leave for our Adult Caribbean Surf Camp but I’m sure it was getting old just sitting by the TV in our living room. At least the weather has been warm here in Wrightsville Beach, NC since my return but a cold front is moving in tonight and it will be cold in the morning.  I have not surfed since getting back as it has nothing worth getting wet for in comparison to the warm water perfection and 6 hours a day we were spending in the water.  I need to scrape the tropical wax off my Merrick and get some cold water wax back on and hope for a swell some time this week.I am going to try to put together some video clips of our trip.  We have some pretty funny footage of us zip lining and getting salsa dance lessons form our good friend, Raffa.  I am also going to make sure we get our pictures posted in the photo gallery so you can check out our trip. 

Sitting here on a Sunday night, I am wondering when the new season of 24 will be returning.  Not that I am a huge TV fan but that show is the best on television and I am really missing it.  I am also looking forward to the new season of Entourage and my boy Vinny Chase and crew! Until then I will have to be content with my daily Tivo of Jim Cramer and my FUEL TV.      

-Rick