Earl Brings Surfer's Paradise to Easton's

About two dozen surfers were enticed by the first strike of Hurricane Earl, as they rode and plunged into the waves at Easton's Beach just before noon.

Jerry Kirohn, a Stoughton, MA, resident, said it's a primal urge that brought him to Newport. He described it as the perfect intersection of time, waves and location, given the storm's path.

"It's me vs. Mother Nature," he said. "That's that title of the story, man. It's just perfect conditions out there."

With on-and-off downpours and windy conditions, surfers and seagulls were the beach's residents Friday.

Although the Easton's Beach parking lots were closed to the general public, surfers, boogie boarders and curious people snapped up the spaces along the seawall quickly. The surfers stuck mostly to a small portion of the water by the Cliff Walk.

At one point, a lifeguard from Easton's walked down the beach and told all the non-surfers to stay out of the water. Citing the hurricane prep and beach duties, a lifeguard said Easton's Beach personnel were unavailable for interviews.

Kirohn laughed a bit as the lifeguard chased away the boogie boarders, but let the surfboarders stay out. Lifeguards made sweeps of the beach every 30 minutes, roughly.

"He knows we can handle it," he said.

Kirohn said he's been surfing for about two years now and scuba diving for a bit longer, although he wishes he had gotten into both 20 years earlier. His day job is as a custodian at a Massachusetts courthouse.

Because of his relative inexperience, he uses a longboard. While he said he can't do as many tricks as the kids on the shorter boards, he likes it for the greater control it provides. He took care to wax his board for about five minutes before getting into the water, explaining that it reduces the slickness of the board, and lets him grip it with his feet as he stands.

The surfer population at Easton's steadily swelled throughout the day. About 10 were in the water at 11 a.m., and the number increased to 20 by noon and 30 at 12:30 p.m.

Kirohn said the peak surf would be at 8 p.m., although he wouldn't be out of there because of the danger. With no visibility at night, a surfer is in mortal danger if he gets in trouble.
However, he said he would be back tomorrow, when he predicted the beach would be even more jammed with surfers. The combination of sun, 80-degree weather and large waves as Earl cleared out would bring everyone there.

"Tomorrow's going to be booming," he said.