GP2K1 Revisited - Pt2 - Launch
by Foontonio
"I never forget a face, but in your case I'll make an exception." -Groucho Marx
"Houston, this is Tranquility Base. The Turkeys have landed." This came to
mind as I rolled up to the Tranquility Base house in Avon almost exactly the
time it was supposed to be open for occupancy. Of course I was greeted with
several hoots and handshakes from those who had already arrived earlier. There
were reports some people were already indulging in sessions in the meager surf
at the Lighthouse point. My trip down had been dreadful. A massive cold front
was moving through the MidAtlantic causing widespread and severe downpours. From
the time I left around 9:00 a.m. and for the next 6 hours, I drove in heavy
rains through all of Virginia and some of North Carolina. Traffic was bad since
this was the first day of a three-day holiday and the tourists near Williamsburg
were thick as flies on shit.Though I predicted the cold winds and low temps of the front would arrive
Saturday, when I arrived the Outer Banks was still cloaked in weak sunlight,
warm temperatures and suffocating humidity. Offloading all the crap I'd
brought, walking up the three levels of the house to the top floor, I was
wheezin and sweating in minutes. I looked enviously at the big 6 person Jacuzzi
that was located right outside my bedroom balcony door.Instead of barging off to surf, I took some time to unpack, set up some
decorations, grab a beer, and get acquainted with some people. I figured there'd
be plenty of time to ride waves and by what I'd seen on the way down, the
pickings were a bit thin all over. The smiles and laughter of everyone who had
arrived were very reassuring to me. The unrelenting stoke of these people would
again serve to wash away any and all uncertainties about the event I might have,
and went a long way to taking my mind off matters that had been nagging me since
I left home. I was heartened to see Sarge, Myron, and Steve, all founding
members of the first GP. I knew Mark would be with us in spirit and it felt good
that through the trials and disappointments of the first two GPs, it still held
its magnetic attraction to keep these men coming back.As is customary at these gatherings, the food, drink, conversation and
camaraderie were literally intoxicating. There must have been 5-6 coolers
stacked in or near the smallish kitchen area. The fridge was already packed with
incredible food, a makeshift bar set up on the kitchen counter seemed to have
3-4 types of rum, whiskey, gin etc. I noticed a suspicious 2-liter bottle of
generic Strawberry soda. My stomach roiled at the thought. The bad news - I
heard from Sarge, Mark Sisom had not provided a copy of the infamous Panamasolas
2000 tape. I was concerned that jb and Ferg would have nothing to narrate for
the Sunday night awards ceremony. Though many were disappointed, it didn't
matter. Jb was a no show. We found out much later he decided to spend his time
up in Jersey with Mark anyway. I know several who very much wanted to meet the
real jb.Early in the evening as people returned from surfing, new arrivals showed up,
and various brewskis were quaffed, the energy level reached the red zone.
Everyone was simply blown away at the spacious and seemingly perfect Tranquility
Base. Accommodations were adjusted to meet everyone's needs. Sarge generously
volunteered his master bedroom suite with private bath, balcony and TV to Todd,
which was probably good since Todd seemed to be working in an entirely different
time zone than most. Everyone found places to put their stuff and crash when the
time came. Meeting and talking to people, putting faces to names on the ng, was
the order of the evening. By time everyone was assembled I marveled at the
collection of fine people who had answered the invitation to come. What a great
crowd.The TV, cd player and VCR were fired up to start showing endless surf videos and
play music. With 4 TVs in the house it was pretty easy to find out the news of
the day when needed. Unfortunately, that day the U.S. began bombing
Afghanistan and the only thing on was saturation coverage of the activity.
Comically, grainy dark views of what was supposed to be the skyline 40 clicks
North of Kabul were shown with an occasional flash of light representing an
explosion of some kind. Someone speculated CNN actually was out on the roof of
its headquarters in Atlanta with a camera and some roman candles.Though drinks and snacks were plentiful it was deemed appropriate that the GP2K1
kickoff dinner be a recreation of one fantastic meal we had last year during the
worst part of hurricane Gordon. Both Sveta and KC came to the rescue by
whipping up their specialty nacho platter. It disappeared in minutes.
That pattern would follow successive nights as new attendees Ferg, Andy and Dee
Dee blessed us with their culinary skills cooking exclusively on the windswept
(15-20 knots) real charcoal grill outside. Side dishes and salads were all
praised and consumed quickly. Dee Dee, bless her soulful heart, presented us
all with fresh flower leis she had hand made. Everyone was very touched by this
gesture from the reigning stoke filled, Hawaiian raised Tita of AS.The rest of the night people stayed up late getting acquainted, talking story
and speculating what the week would bring. At this point my remembrances for the
rest of the week may become fuzzy. I was still somewhat consumed by matters
back home, having to check in with work by phone and laptop to be certain things
were getting done while I was gone and to talk to MrsFoon. In addition, on
Monday night I experienced my own health crisis, which I will relate later. It
was apparently an allergic reaction to a spider bite and somewhat a close call
for me.
I found out later it could have been serious. It put me out of commission for a
full day and somewhat in limbo the rest of the week.If my remembrances are not quite accurate, I welcome anyone from the GP to
correct or expand upon what I've said. Fact of the matter is, there were so many
activities in the ensuing days, no one person could be cognizant of everything
that happened. I know I did not keep a journal and there always seemed to be
somebody coming to or from a surf session at various places. Even the
surfchecks, accomplished in a caravan of 4wd trucks and Suvs took on a bit of a
party-esque attitude."Enthusiasm is the greatest asset in the world. It beats money, power
and influence." -Henry Chester
Next: Sunday Sesh & Awards Night.
-Foon
Posted to the alt.surfing newgroup
From: Foon (foon@newsguy.com)
Subject: GP2K1 Revisited:Pt2, Launch.
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Date: 2001-11-01 11:20:29 PSTSearch the thread at here.