It was another unusually warm day today (in the high 50s!), so why not go in the ocean? The water temperature is still quite cold - about 42F - but that didn't seem to bother a friend of mine (pictured above). He just wore a cotton shirt, shorts, and the obligatory life jacket (apparantly he's not that crazy - thankfully he wears the life jacket). I don't know how he can stand the cold water. I completely bundled up in a cold-water wet suit, thick rubber boots, gloves, a waterproof jacket, etc.
The surf was pretty good - we had lots of fun riding the waves and getting dumped in the water. It's very tiring though. We only stayed on the water for about an hour and a half. By that point our arms were exhausted. The tiring part is mostly the paddle out. To get out far enough to ride a wave back in, you have to paddle head-on into a series of waves that crash over you.
All in all, a very fun time. The one nagging thing is it just seems so wrong for it to be so warm this time of year. It felt more like May than January. I miss the winter weather.