My experiences trying to learn the art of surfing

I am five months through a six month journey to improve my surfing with the sole (soul?) intention of surfing waves comfortably that will get me in the green room. I've spent three months in Indonesia and have been scatting around Central America surfing the El Salvador, Costa Rica and Nicaragua. I'm travelling with my fifth board, Zak (6'3 / 18 3/4 and 2 3/8).

I thought I'd blog about my experience learning to surf as its such a tough, long journey. Somedays you get it, your timings perfect and you zip down the line, most days you don't. Surfing has been so good for my ego. I've never been so bad at something, despite trying so hard but something just keeps me out there, no matter how bad I am. The sea, the ocean, the soul.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Line up?

It took me a long time to move from the white wash to 'out back' and I think that is why it took me so long to committ to surfing proper. The line up, the unknown rules and boys club all made 'out back' seem so intimidating! I finally made my move on Anzac Day, 2006 in the Kiddies Corner at Palm Beach, the stars aligned and I shared a heap of green waves with some little monkeys on shortboards.

I was at the Cove in Cottesloe, WA yesterday sharing a wave with a bunch of 14 year olds that I started to think about the line up. Maybe its because I'm a girl or maybe because I'm such a crap surfer but I've never honestly surfed at a break where there has been any semblance of organisation re who gets what wave (other then the very clear no drop ins), to me it seems to be whoever it the most aggressive or whoever knows the wave the best.

The rules of the line up where crafted in concrete by Surfing WA in the early 90s to control the level of surf rage going on out at popular breaks. The 'rules' which are on display at popular breaks talk about dropping in, snaking, waiting your turn as well as a number of other regularly committed offenses. Of all, snaking - when a surfer paddles around another surfer to sit in the better position to get the wave - seems to be the most regularly committed sin!

The worst offenders seem to be the 14 - 18 year olds who have been surfing since they were knee high and have their local breaks wired. They seem to have no compassion for old farts and just want to get on every wave. Its almost like they believe that their surfing for their life and their future is full off flat spells if they don't get every single wave possible!

I found surfing in Indonesia a real eye opener. The worst localism came from the Aussies who had perched in and set up camp for several weeks! The real locals, the Indos surfing on old boards layered with gaffer tape, treated all newbies no matter what skill level with a respect almost unheard of in the west. Interesting. Maybe it will all become clearer as I progress and start surfing better quality breaks.
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