ususbaby.com Blog

Annoyed at my lack of guts (and body warmth), I’d convinced myself, no matter the weather, I’d rent a board around Torquay, Australia’s surf capital, and get out there.

Arriving at the start of Oz’s Great Ocean Road and already wearing my swimsuit, I found Torquay just like everyone described…the place for surfers. The city’s shopping center is called Surf City and for good reason…all the shops sell surf wear/gear and many are outlets as the manufacturers are in the area. There’s even a museum dedicated to our Aussie-adopted sport.

But, back to me and surfing…the surf report said the swell was at 6…so I headed down to the water to check out the waves and find a rental shop. Looking down into the ocean, I realized how much of an idiot I am. I am in Australia; the swell report said 6 meters, not feet. Doh! So, basically I’m saying, there’s a good chance I won’t see myself facedown on a surfboard until I hit Western Australia.

Being the surf capital of Australia, though, there were obviously people undeterred by the 18-foot waves, especially at the beautiful nearby Bells Beach:

I have to say, one of the things I find awesome about the US is the fact that we don’t whore out our sports teams. OK. We totally do…but it’s not quite as obvious as teams abroad. American pro and college (and even high school) sports teams don’t allow logos on uniforms (heck, even the Cardinals got reprimanded for remembering Darryl Kile and writing his number on their hats after his untimely death). But everywhere else, it seems that’s alright.

Geelong, the team that just won the Footy Finals is clearly sponsored by our own American company Ford…which probably is a thorn in the side to Toyota, who sponsored the week-long activities leading up to the finals…oh the drama of sponsorship.