With Tampa Bay dodging the worst of Hurricane Isaias’ wrath, surfers ventured to Sunset Beach on the southern tip of Treasure Island Friday to catch the waves stirred up by the Category 3 storm.
Dozens of surfers paddled into chest-to-head-high waves, some topping out at 5 feet high, as the major hurricane barreled toward Florida’s Panhandle hundreds of miles to their northwest.
The swell was expected to pick up as Friday night rolled on, with the surf forecast website Surfline showing 23-mph winds blowing from the south-southeast just before 5 p.m. Friday.
Wave heights were expected to peak at around 6 feet by 7 p.m., according to Surfline’s forecast.
Federal meteorologists at the National Weather Service office in Tampa said it was dangerous to be in the water on Friday, and advised against surfing or swimming over the weekend.
“It’s rough surf and there’s high risk of rip currents with this storm, too, so you really shouldn’t be out there,” said Paul Close, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Tampa. “Be safe and stay out of the water.”
Those warnings didn’t stop an estimated 50 surfers in the water Friday afternoon. That included Chance Friedman, a 30-year-old who surfs with a “goofy footed” stance (with his right foot forward on the board instead of his left) and is, in his words, also a goofy person.
“The waves were on the cooker. Buoy was juicy. Everyone was havin’ a good time and my DAWG Birchtree was throwin’ buckets left and right. That guy rips,” Friedman said.
Friedman wanted to shout out more of his buddies that joined him in the lineup Friday: Optimistic prime, MietzSticks, and “my dog Urkdro.”
“They were all rippin’,” said Friedman. “Fun day. Hope for a fun winter.”
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