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The Days of Yore

I grew up in the water. Seriously, my Dad was an Olympic-class swimmer and he dunked me in the Atlantic before I was three. By the age of five I was body surfing. Our family moved to California and, naturally, I wanted a surfboard so I could really ride the waves like the cool kids. For some unknown reason, my parents obliged and I spend all day every day during each summer on one surfboard or another (begging proved a very effective way to coerce a new board out of my parents).

Fast forward an undisclosed number of years and a number of desk jobs. I somehow forgot about my surfing passion when I went to college, being more interested in deep philosophical thinking and other things that absorb college students. My work took me out of Southern California and surfing didn’t make the short list of things I felt I had to do. Wrong.

Finally, because of ready Internet connections, I am now able to spend a good deal of time in California again, so I employed my most successful tactic: I begged my wife for a surfboard. After she stopped laughing, she started to get into the whole idea and I bought a board. And humiliated myself whenever I paddled out.

Whatever I knew, I had forgotten. Whatever arm strength I had then migrated to my belly. I thank the person or people who attached leashes to surfboards for saving me a lot so swimming.

Getting Serious

Friends and family were starting to get wind of this new obsession of mine, so my Holiday gifts (quite by coincidence) from several of them were gift-certificates for a local surf shop. When I added up how much I had, it looked like close to enough for another board. Not that my previous board wasn’t good enough — I just wasn’t good enough for it.

I found a nice 9′ board and plunked down my gift certificates. All waxed up and ready, I paddled out into the winter surf and was amazed at how much easier it was to get into the surf lineup on a 9′ board than a 7′ one. I began to enjoy some success. Still taking ungainly dives off the board, but much better results.

Gathering Momentum

Having spent about a year with my 9′ board, which my wife has dubbed the “banana board,” largely because of its color, I felt I could use some help getting to the next level. For some reason, golf lessons and tennis lessons are considered de rigeur, but who actually thinks about surf lessons? I mean, isn’t it more fun to bang your head against the wall while you figure it all out?

I thought not. One evening, my wife suggested a particular local surf school: Linda Benson’s SurfHER. For those not in the surfing cognoscente, Linda is a five-time world champion and did screen work doubling for actresses who couldn’t get their feet wet, much less surf. But more than that, Linda is a great person who cares whether people learn to surf and surf right. But I’m getting ahead of myself. I exchanged email with Linda for about a month, trying to find a day when the surf would be reasonable and one of her instructors would be available. Finally, the day came, and we met at an undisclosed location (no, you can’t have my waves…). After talking about what I thought I could do and what I wanted to learn, we hiked down the cliff to the break.

I spent nearly three hours that day, and followed it up with another three-hour session. The things I couldn’t see about my surfing were subtle, but so significant that they were holding me back. Once pointed out, I began to incorporate them into my surfing. But more importantly, my wife and Linda talked the whole time I was out and now I get a special critique (and I mean this in a good way) from my wife each time I finish a session.

And Schools… And Camps

Since then, we’ve become good friends with Linda and watched her teach a number of people how to surf. It’s great to know that someone’s been taught by SurfHER because they understand who has the right to a wave, when one is theirs, and what to do when they have their wave. Linda runs private coaching, which is what I did, as well as surf schools and kids’ camps.

This summer the camps have been impressive. They are sponsored by two of the biggest names in the business: Roxy and Quiksilver. Kids spend a week at Encinitas’ Moonlight Beach learning to surf, learning about the ocean, and having a generally great time. The instructors are patient, encouraging, and above all, safety-conscious.

If you’re thinking about surfing, just do it. And save yourself the grief of learning at the school of hard knocks. Linda and her instructors will show you what you need to know and you can start having a great time right away. You can find her site here.

And My Career Advances…

Now that I’m oh-so-confident, I’m planning to go on some organized surf trips with Linda to breaks that I wouldn’t have attempted since I graduated from the young-and-immortal corps. First up is a Mexico trip and then, who knows?