I recently discovered that I’m not hardcore anymore. Okay, I was never hardcore in a “talented” or “brave” sort of way, but my general enthusiasm for most adventure sports made up for any lack of skill. If there’s an opportunity to ski or surf or bike or…whatever…I’m the kind of guy that’s gonna take it. At least, that’s what I thought, until this past weekend.
My wife and I were in Charleston for a few days hitting up the High Water Festival, and there was a brief, two-hour window where we could hit Folly Beach, outside of town, so I brought the surf board. Folly has a couple of the best surf breaks in South Carolina, and I rarely get to surf anymore so I was excited at the prospect. But when we got to the beach, it was a little breezy. And the water looked downright cold. The waves didn’t look great, but that’s never stopped me before. That’s one of the true joys of being mediocre at something—you don’t have to have perfect conditions to enjoy yourself. I’ve spent hours surfing choppy, mushy beach breaks off the coast of South Carolina, paddling desperately to catch a four-second ride, and grinning the whole time.
But this time, my enthusiasm wasn’t there. Instead of surfing, I sat on the beach and drank beer with my wife for two hours. As far as afternoons go, it was pretty awesome, but it definitely wasn’t hardcore. It was straight up “softcore.”
On the upside, I took the opportunity to discover a new beer, Washout Wheat, from Holy City, which is ironically named for the surf break I decided not to tackle that day. Fittingly, Washout Wheat is not a hard core beer. It’s a light, easy-drinking (5.1% ABV) wheat beer made specifically for sitting in the sand and watching other people shred the gnar. It’s soft around the edges thanks to all the wheat, and has just the faintest hint of banana from the yeast. It’s straight up softcore. Just like me.
Look at the guy on the can. Soft in the middle, a big-brimmed hat because he’s worried about the sun, a shaggy beard…that may as well be a picture of me sitting on the beach, watching other people do their thing.
Sigh.
