My Experience with Surfing

For the next couple of weeks the topic I will be writing about will be surfing.

It was a childhood dream to learn to surf. I lived on the beach and my parents would take me down to play in the sand with my shovel and spade however, it was surfers that had my attention. I would say to myself one day I would be out there do that exact same thing. From that point in time, surfing has been a major part of my life from the moment I saw a person stand up on a board and ride the wave. There is a certain aspect in surfing that draws people to want the same experience as the surfers.

I remember my first surfboard I got when I was five, and it was everything I wanted. I would be so excited when I could just stand up on a wave. That experience was life changing and I knew that I wanted it to be a major part of my life. I would look at websites for good swells, check out future surfboards that would suit me, and would read every surf magazine I could get my hands on. Surfing was something that changed my personality too; I would be calmer because of the time I would spend by myself out in the waves. Then I got my first real surfboard, a 6-foot 6-inch fiberglass, short board the board I had always wanted. That’s when surfing got that much more serious, because the beach was down the road any day with good waves I would be surfing. The weather was never an issue me, as there are wetsuits for the different conditions. So any day with waves for me was perfect.

Surfing also holds one fear of mine; I have always had the fear of drowning, seeing other surfers get dumped and being held under for long periods of time. But seeing these same surfers come out of the situation safe helped me build confidence. I still remember the first time I got dumped really bad, it was as if I was in a washing machine tumbling left, tumbling right, not knowing which way was up, hitting the sand until I finally pierced the surface and gasped for air. This stuns anyone for a while, until you catch another wave that give you that joy and experience of surfing. The thrill I get from surfing out does any fear that I may have.

Without surfing my life would not be the same, I would not be the same person, which is why I still find time for it when I can. I am always training and keeping fit for when I have the chance to get back in the water and reading up on the latest news in the surf world. So until the day that I get back in the water and experience the thrill of surfing, I can only close my eyes and imagine sitting in the sand again and watch the surfers inspire me.

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