Local to fly south and find summer

RICK FIGNETTI

After being one of the regular rippers at the Huntington Beach pier

for the past 20 years, one of our locals is taking his board to new

waters.

Chris Pionessa recently stayed down in Argentina for 13 days and

had so much fun in the sun and surf that he decided to head there

next month to stay. While there last trip, he surfed Playa Grande,

which was 2 to 4 feet with good shape, 72-degree water and 90-degree

air -- quite tropical. He surfed some other secret spots with

incredible waves too. One of the highlights of the trip was surfing

an exhibition contest with Argentina’s national champ, Santiago Di

Paci, in front of thousands watching from the beach.

Pionessa also has his eye on a South American Surfing Tour, with

five events -- three in Argentina, one in Peru and one in Chile. He’s

now team manager for Huntington Beach-based Victory wetsuits and

plans to take them south too, opening up new venues. Pionessa’s

putting the final touches on a new surf DVD before he leaves, called

“Running with Scissors.” He teams up with Huntington Beach “Air Man”

Danny Misken and Santa Cruz shredder Zoltan Torkos on some travels up

the Cali coast and down to Baja for some classic surf sessions. The

movie should be out in about another month, at finer surf shops near

you. We’ll miss him, but there’ll definitely be a lot more waves out

there. Ha!

The big storm during the first part of the week left our local

mountains with some badly needed new snow. Six to nine inches came

down Monday night, giving some soft powder conditions. Most local

resorts now have about a 3-foot base depth and are almost 100% in

operation.

Take note, chains were required when it was coming down Monday and

Tuesday unless you had four-wheel drive.

Another big clothing company, M.C.D., has recently moved to

Huntington Beach. The More Core Division, known for its edgy,

hard-core, youthful look, will join the list of other big-name

companies that do business in Surf City. It’s gearing up for a big

summer along the coast, with some big events on tap, and picking up

some local rippers to represent, so stay tuned for some information

later.

The United States Surfing Federation will be at Ventura point on

Saturday and Sunday. With the northwest swells, it could be lining up

with some freight trainers. Last year, there were some big-set rights

and it was a tough paddle out, with lots of drift. It could be a test

to see what kind of shape you’re in. Good luck!

That’s it for now. Fig over and out.

* RICK FIGNETTI is an eight-time West Coast champion. He owns a

surf shop on Main Street. You can reach him at (714) 536-1058.