Scotland, Fall Surf and Starting Winter
We just got out first real morning of snow here in the Northeast, but we’ve had a beautiful stretch of fall weather. Warm days, great surf, and lots of time outside before winter began.
St. Andrews, Scotland
For over 18 months I’ve had plans to go golfing in Scotland with my Dad and two family friends. We flew out on a Monday evening, landing in Amsterdam on Tuesday morning and then connected into Glasgow. We were picked up and immediately taken to Royal Prestwick, the home of the first ever British Open. With no sleep and no opportunity to warm up, the first round was a little shaky, but the course itself was tons of fun.
We then drove up to St. Andrews where we stayed for the rest of the trip. We played St. Andrews New Course, Jubilee Course and the Old Course. We then ventured off to Carnoustie, Kingsbarns and Dumbarnie before hopping on a plane back home.
The town of St. Andrews was such a cool place to stay. On one side is the ocean, and we were lucky to have some beautiful and sunny days while we were there so the views were incredible. On the other side is the town and University of St. Andrews, so the town felt active with all of the college students out and about. Then, on the final side you have the St. Andrews Golf Courses. Closest to the town is the Old Course, the birthplace of golf, and one of the most storied courses in the world.
What I didn’t know is that on the property there are four other golf courses all adjacent to the old course, and another course just a few miles away. It’s really a golfer’s paradise, filled with history and plenty to do. The trip was an absolute blast and it was super special to play so many incredible courses with my Dad.
Fall Surfing, Progression and Mobility
I’ve been surfing a bunch more. The late summer and fall is the prime time for surfing in New England. Generally the waves in the summer are quite small because there aren’t many storms. As the fall begins, storms work their way up the coast and kick back larger waves. We’ve had some great runs of swell over the past couple of months. The other nice thing is that the ocean water stays relatively warm in the fall, so you can comfortably surf for a while without needing a super thick wetsuit.
They say that 90% of surfing is paddling. And depending on the day, it can be even more than that. If you can’t paddle into position and paddle into waves, you won’t be doing any surfing at all. In the past, when I’ve gone out in a bigger wave day, I’ve barely been able to paddle into position. But over the past few months since I’ve been surfing a lot and building my paddle fitness, I’m feeling stronger than ever on the board.
Like a lot of things, the better you get, the more fun it is. So now that I’m paddling better, I’m catching more waves which is fun. And now that I’m getting better at riding, I’m riding waves for longer and doing more.
It’s starting to get quite cold though. The water just dropped into the 40s and the air temps are in the 30s so now I have a full 5/4 wetsuit with a hood, plus boots and gloves. Even if there’s snow on the ground, you can still surf and be plenty warm with the right gear. And I’m far from alone out there. On the Friday after Thanksgiving there were 20+ other people in the water at 8am.
Surfing may be the first time that my lack of mobility has been actively detrimental to my development. In basketball, tennis, soccer, golf, snowboarding etc. I’ve always been able to make do. But my ankles and hips are incredibly tight which poses problems in surfing because you need to be able to move your legs in dynamic ways. My mobility is bad enough that I should have always been stretching and training to improve it anyway, but surfing has given me more motivation to actually do it.
Other updates
With the good weather, long days, and general fun of the summer it’s a season of constant activity. Now that it’s gotten cold, we’ve started to hunker down, make more meals at home, and find new ways to socialize. Trivia nights, rock climbing, and networking events have all been back on the table now that it’s dark around 4:15pm.
Work is busy as ever. We’ve pivoted (a few times) but this one seems to be working and we’re gaining traction quickly. I’ve been traveling about once per month for work which keeps things interesting, and helps build relationships with key partners in our network.
It’s been a crazy fall - starting with a family reunion in September, then trips to Washington D.C. and Buffalo, NY (and Niagara Falls). Then in October we went to NYC with friends, and I went to Las Vegas for the Money 20/20 conference. In November we had a family wedding in Massachusetts, then I went back to NYC for a conference. Now that we’re in December, the travel has slowed down and we’ve been able to settle in for the past few weeks.
Coming up
It’s going to be a busy few weeks with the holidays coming up - lots of family parties all across New England. I’m turning 30 in early January which I haven’t quite come to terms with yet, but I still have a month to figure it out. Then, Sophia and I are going to Florida for a few weeks in late January through February to get away from the cold and see her family.
Until 2025,
Zack
Happy almost 30th birthday, Zack!! Don't worry we are still young at heart and can hoop with the best of them.