Volleyball On The Sand, Bicycles On The Strand
I woke up on a Sunday morning to see a group of about a dozen girls hitting volleyballs on a court on the beach.
They stayed for about an hour, maybe more, encouraging each other in an organized practice of drills. After they left, another group took over the court.
During the next several hours, I sat out on a deck at a house on The Strand, a concrete pathway that runs parallel to the sand, and watched a dozen activities take place while I didn’t move an inch.
It was a typical weekend in Hermosa Beach, CA.
I watched people playing volleyball and cornhole on the beach, running, walking, skateboarding and even rollerblading – yes, rollerblading, how’s that for a 90s flashback! – up and down The Strand.
I watched as hundreds of people went by on bicycles. On several occasions, I saw the same people on bikes three and four times as they went along The Strand. This is, after all, one of the favorite activities people do here, ride bikes on The Strand.
I watched as three lifeguard vehicles swarmed on an individual to take care of a “volleyball incident” as a friend who went down to check it out reported back to me.
One thing I did not see were any surfers or any surfboards. To those who are not from here, forming the stereotypical California beach picture can’t exist without having a surfer or two in it, but I saw none.
That’s because I was not in an area where the surf was up; that’s more prevalent at the Chart House jetty at the Hermosa/Redondo border and at the Hermosa Beach Pier. Plus, it’s summertime and surf’s up primarily with the winter swells.
A lot of times, I’m the one out there on the sand or on a bike along The Strand but on this day, I just stayed put and watched the others; it’s really a unique scene.
About the only time I moved was when a gorgeous girl in a bikini rode by on her bike. I must admit this caused me to jump up out of my chair quite a few times!
Sometimes I sit out there ready to greet people who might stop by and have cocktails with them. In this regard, I’m like one of those fish that hides unseen in the sand at the bottom of the ocean, ready to lurch when some bait passes by, but on this day I was a mere observer.
Finally, at about 5:30 as the scene slowed down a bit and several of those people went from The Strand into the bars at the Hermosa Beach pier, I made myself a rum drink. Then I went back on the deck and waited for the next big event to occur – sunset over the Pacific Ocean.
Yes, it was a typical weekend day in Hermosa Beach.
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