Beginner surfing hotspots: six perfect locations to catch your first wave
You will feel no greater freedom then riding your first wave. Getting to the point where you can actually stand on a board, however, can be a bit tricky. Here are six places that are perfect to learn the sport
As American surfing legend Phil Edwards once put it: “The best surfer is the one having the most fun.” In other words, you don’t have to be an expert to enjoy the waves.
Mastering the sport can be hard at first, but if you keep at it, not only will you get fit, but you will also eventually get to enjoy the thrill of paddling for a wave, rising to your feet as the swell muscles your board forward, and then gliding smoothly along a glittering wall of water as you ride one of the most powerful forces in nature.
How surfing suddenly became cool in Hong Kong, and its ’70s expat roots
You can make learning how to surf a little less daunting by being taught how to do it correctly.When I began surfing in the 1980s there were no surf schools or beginner boards, but that has changed. While it’s possible to teach yourself, you can make the process quicker and easier by signing up with an accredited surf school.
Lessons will teach you the basics of surfing: how to “read” the waves and the sea before you paddle out (thus avoiding potential dangers such as rip currents and submerged rocks), how to paddle your board and get to your feet efficiently, and how to master simple manoeuvres such as duck diving (paddling through an oncoming wave) and turning the board once on a wave.
You’ll also learn how to avoid fundamental errors such as kneeling before you stand, and the cardinal sin of surfing – dropping-in. This is when you surf a wave already being ridden by another surfer, and if you “drop-in” on the wrong person at the wrong surf break, you may find yourself in very stormy waters.
