Watch: Orange County Does Its Best Puerto Escondido Impersonation

If you know, you know.

And judging from this raw and recent clip from Jimmy "Jimmicane" Wilson , pretty much every surfer in Southern California knows.

"This spot is the gem of Orange County , as seen during Hurricane Marie back in 2014," writes Wilson alongside this upload. "I can understand why it’s such a spectacle. The potential to see waves this size and shape are limited in Southern California, and it’s well-known when conditions align.

"It kind of reminds me of a swell in South Beach, Miami where you have hoards of kooks, but you also have legit locals, and world-class surfers chasing the wave of their year, or simply IG/TikTok/Surfline fame. It doesn’t break frequently enough to establish any kind of order in the lineup. At a certain point, the crowd implodes on itself, diminishing the chances of someone riding a perfect wave to its full potential."

The catch with tropical swells like this, they're selective about the spots they light up. While some parts of northern Orange County were pumping, down at the southern end of the county, it was considerably smaller and less powerful. Like most things in surfing, it all comes down to being in the right place at the right time.

"You can look back decades ago and see the best spots/days packed with people, but with better swell forecasting and the basic reality of surfing becoming more popular worldwide, it’s only going to get more hectic into the future," continues Wilson "I was on the fence if I should even upload this one. The make ratio was low and it was not a classic day by historical standards, but for this summer it’s probably the most memorable we’ve had so far. Some hilarious wipeouts and overall, some entertaining moments."

For better or worse (but mostly for worse), this is a snapshot of surfing in 2024. Too many surfers, not enough quality waves, zero etiquette, shameless burns...it's wild what happens on overhyped hurricane swells at waves that only break a few times every year.

While this looks absolutely maddening to surf (even for Championship Tour stars Griffin Colapinto and Caity Simmers ), at least it's an entertaining watch.

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