Surfing with Huey: the Surf God

Surfing - finally! I've decided my ankle is well enough to brave the challenge. Yesterday, we signed up for a refresher surf lesson with Style Surf, as it's been a year since we learned to surf in Kauai; and, personally, I would like to know the rules of the ocean. Our instructor, a surf dude named Gaz who could well be Spicoli's second cousin, takes us to Clarkes Beach where the swells are small and forgiving. After a brief prayer to Huey the Surf God, Gaz goes over rip tides, ocean etiquette, and how Grandma mounts a board. Apparently we learn the cool way later. He shouts the stages of standing while we all lay face-down on our boards on the beach: "one, two, three four" and then it's "rock and roll" as you ride the wave in.  Chris and I have fortunately remembered what we learned and both stand up on the first wave. We start off on 10 footers but I'm rocking an 8' longboard by the end of the 3.5 hour lesson. By the end of the lesson we're both feeling a little cocky. Today, we mastered the ocean. I walk away thinking I will definitely be a surfer girl in no time. I'm living my dream right now.

Today, we scored some free surfboard hires from a local travel agency and took them out for a spin. We decide that with all the ease and grace we exhibited yesterday, we would try Main Beach and the bigger swells, even though we both have 8' boards today and had barely gotten accustomed to them at the end of our surf lesson. We spend a few minutes spotting landmarks on the beach and checking out the waves, plotting a course to enter the ocean. We run into the surf with excitement and anticipation of our first real wave. As I paddle out past the break I can definitely tell these waves are bigger. I try not to think too much and spot a goodie. I paddle as fast as I can, kicking my legs in alternation with my paddles as Gaz taught me, and spring onto the board once the nose rises out of the water. To my great surprise, I stand up and I'm surfing! I am giddy as I turn and race back into the waves for more.

Sadly, this is my only good ride all morning. Once I got back I tried to catch two more waves, leaned too far forward and executed a proper nose dive into the whitewash. A few more waves pummeled me in quick succession and I surface with nostrils full of salt. Not to be deterred, I paddle out past the break, exhausted and ready to sit and watch for awhile. A group of local guys are nearby and they catch every wave, making it look so easy. I wipe out a few more times, and now I'm just embarrassed because the locals are watching and I'm drunk paddling on my narrow 8' board and my hair is everywhere from all the waves I was recently buried beneath.  I'm too tired to paddle and Chris is equally frustrated from riding a board that is just too small for his stage. We both paddle to shore. I drag my board and myself to our towels, realizing the whole beach probably witnessed my failure with great amusement, and pass out face down on the sand. I now know what surfer hair really means.

Don't worry, no great loss here. We've simply discovered we can't be cocky and must return to the baby waves until we've truly mastered them. And the salt will leave our system soon, we hope. I am still super excited to surf again. Were thinking of renting boards for a week, so we can surf every day in succession and learn from our mistakes. I will get good at this.