Why We Gather: Bay Area Surf Meet Up at Ocean Beach SF

On Saturday, December 13, about twenty of us gathered at North Ocean Beach in San Francisco for a Bay Area Surf Meet Up. This meet up was long overdue and I try to call these meet ups on when my schedule is free and conditions line up.

It was brisk that morning. Ski jackets and gloves were worn, coffee and tea in hand as we watched the beautiful offshores groom fun little waves.

We were a diverse group of surfers - shortboarders, longboarders, mid-lengthers – you name it. Different styles, different approaches, different life paths. And yet, all of it felt secondary to the simple fact that we were there together.

That was the point. The waves were just bonus.

Often times as surfers we roll up and immediately start thinking about conditions, performance, or something we’d like to work on. But mornings like this are a reminder that the real value of surfing isn’t found in how well we ride a wave. The real value is found in the community that forms around the act of showing up, having fun, and just sharing the ocean together.  

Donuts and croissants made their way around the parking lot. Stories were told. Laughter came easily. Some surfers reconnected after years apart - two of them realizing they hadn’t seen each other in eight years, ever since a Surf Simply trip. Others crossed paths again after traveling together on previous surf adventures, picking up conversations as if no time had passed at all.

These moments matter.

Friendships formed through shared experience - especially shared experience in or around the ocean - carry a depth that’s hard to replicate. That challenge that is embarked on together bonds us all.

We paddle out together. We sit in the lineup together. We get worked together. We share frustration, joy, humility, and the quiet moments between sets. Over time, those shared moments become threads that weave themselves into our lives in meaningful ways.

Yes, the waves were fun. That always helps. There were smiles coming out of the water and a few well-earned hoots were thrown out there for good measure. But even if the surf had been poor the morning still would have been a success.

Because what we were really doing was building something less tangible, but far more lasting: connection.

In a world that often pulls us apart or keeps us rushing from one obligation to the next, carving out time to gather - to simply be present with one another - has real value. Surfing just happens to be the excuse. The ocean and beach is the meeting place.

The surf meet up wasn’t about who caught the best wave or who surfed the longest. It was about showing up, reconnecting, and strengthening a community that extends far beyond the shoreline.

And that’s something worth paddling out for, every time.

Thanks to all that came out. 

Until next time, I’ll see you in the water…

Photos by James Yasuhara, Yin Chaosantia, and Rob Case. Many thanks!

If you live in the SF Bay Area and didn’t get notified of this meet up via email, and want to be placed on the notification list, simple sign up below with your name and email. Notifications typically happen a few days before the meet up. And we meet up anywhere between Santa Cruz to Sonoma. Never an obligation to attend, and there’s no cost. Just show up and say hi, or paddle out, or go surf somewhere else. It’s all good.