I can honestly say, aside from basic life functions, surfing is one of the hobbies I have done longest in my life. I was introduced to the sport at 11 and did not once look back. Never being really good, I found myself in some heavy lineups because I was a strong swimmer and could dolphin dive out to the break. My first dramatic wipeout was going over the falls and landing on the tail of my surfboard. It cut me across my stomach and completely knocked the wind out of me. As I washed ashore, a lifeguard was hurrying over to see if I was still alive. I dragged myself up to my towel to recover from my embarrassment, catch my breath and ended up paddling back out. Glutton for punishment… a pattern in my life.
My first surfboard still lives.
I mowed my yard for several weeks to buy it used from my best friend’s sister. I stuck stickers all over it to make it pretty but finally conceded that while it was ugly, it could float me really well. We nicknamed it the canoe…and I hold its memory near to my heart. 🙂 She ended up buying it back. How Funny.
Looking back at this cracks me up!
The sport of surfing inspired me to move to California and travel to Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Barbados, Trinidad and Mexico. It has been the reason for some great life experiences and awesome travel stories (looking forward to sharing soon 🙂
Now that I have matured ((giggle)) I still get excited about a surf session but I’m definitely more selective about the days I paddle out. This means much less surfing, but glassy, clean conditions are far more fun than sloppy wind swell chop, especially when I’m still hoping I can pop up to my feet.
To be honest however, I feel the last few years I have had my best days of surfing, maybe because I finally started paying attention. So while I am now getting older, wiser and better at surfing, I really love being able to share that stoke with my kiddos… and who knows, maybe one day they will appreciate it. Cheers!
This photo was from today.
It wasn’t the best day of surfing but having both the kiddos out there made me feel awesome!
These are the two best and only photo sequences I have ever had taken — Thanks to Monique Sirois Futch
MIT Photography 🙂
