at 4:16 PM by Mallory Schnell

Surfing “The Wedge”

With Hurricane Marie churning in the Pacific, California surfers are getting out and enjoying the massive swells hitting “The Wedge”. Thousands of onlookers were said to have flooded Newport Beach to watch experienced surfers take on the 20-foot waves earlier today. ABC News’ Colleen Currey reported on the subject in a recent article. Here is a snippet of her piece:

Newport Beach’s The Wedge is known as one of the more difficult breaks on the West Coast for its power and shape: the wave breaks right on the beach, posing a danger to surfers who fall off their boards.

Tara Finnigan, spokeswoman for the city, said the waves had attracted about 3,000 to 4,000 spectators at The Wedge and another 500 at another break in town called The Point.

Gnarly waves are not the only thing Marie is bringing with her; coastal flooding has affected the area during times of high tide.

Although Marie has been weakened to a Category 1 hurricane, large swells are expected to continue to affect the coast of southern California for another day or so, as forecasted by the National Hurricane Center. There may be additional lifeguards on duty for obvious safety concerns, but I’d say surfing “The Wedge” should be left to the professionals.