As golfers ran for shelter from the storms of '98, surfers on
the West Coast charged some of the biggest waves ever—and
wondered why anybody would try to play golf in such weather.
"Are they crazy? This is the rainiest time of year," said Sean
Collins on the eve of the Buick Invitational. "In fact it's the
only rainy time on the West Coast."
Collins, 45, is the surf world's No. 1 weather dude. He runs
Surfline/Wavetrak, a Huntington Beach, Calif., firm that
provides forecasts for surfing events and wave carvers
worldwide. Collins even plays travel agent for daredevils like
Laird Hamilton and Brock Little, the Tiger and Shark of the wet
set. He predicts where and when storm-driven surf will reach
land; then the big-wave riders hop on planes and outrace the
waves to their destination.
Two weeks ago there were howls of "Awesome!" at Maverick's, a
cove not far from Pebble Beach, when waves the size of six-story
buildings roared ashore. Meanwhile PGA Tour officials bemoaned
their bad luck when rain washed out the Pebble Beach AT&T and
shortened the Buick.
Surfcaster Collins is surprised anyone was surprised. "I keep
looking at my monitor and seeing back-to-back swirls lined up
all the way to Siberia," he says, hunched over machinery that
can measure the height of any wave on the planet within four
centimeters. "I mean, these storms are no secret. Beach cities
have been building berms and reinforcing piers for weeks."
According to Collins, this year's Wet Coast weather is nothing
but "our usual stormy February, with El Niño throwing gas on the
fire." He estimates that a West Coast swing anytime after
mid-March might have a 5% chance of rainout; this month it's
closer to 30%. If the Tour must visit California in February, he
says, play should never be suspended when the sun is out, as it
was at Pebble while organizers decided what to do next.
Now for even more radical advice: "Those pro golfers might want
to stow their clubs and pick up surfboards for a few weeks,
because this time of year the West Coast weather is rockin'."
Issue date: February 16, 1998
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