Learn to Surf in Barbados
Are you looking for an adventure on your next vacation to Barbados? Where better to begin than with learning to surf in Barbados?
For most people, surfing is synonymous with the word ‘cool.’ The sport itself, the people, the surfing culture, and everything else that goes along with it, can be summed up into that one little word.
Ever since the Beach Boys went ‘Surfing USA,’ and films like ‘Point Break’ hit the cinemas, the sport has become something of a cult phenomenon that transcends age, race, and class, bringing people together for a common goal – the ultimate wave.
The Experience
Barbados has long been a favorite stop on any authentic surfing safari, and many a wandering surfer has stood in awe of this little island’s high waves and tight-knit surfing community.
Thus, after living my entire life on this beautiful island and never having tried surfing, I figured where better to begin my new favorite sports search than with learning to surf in Barbados?
Luckily for me, I was able to drag two of my girlfriends along since I was way too terrified to try this out on my own. It’s not like there are tons of female surfers here, and not too many over the age of fifteen.
We were all a bit intimidated by those statistics when we first set foot on the beach. However, our instructors, both of whom are something of superstars on the local circuit, were exceptionally encouraging, and soon, our anxiety was quelled.
We started with some basic exercises on the beach like learning where to lie on the board, how to paddle, how to get up, and how to stand up correctly.
As beginners, longboards are recommended, as the name implies, this means the board is longer and wider than a regular board – much easier for novices to the sport.
The extra surface area of the longboard allows for more stability and therefore is more comfortable to learn to surf on.
Once we mastered the land exercises, the fun began. We headed for the water to practice what we learned on the small waves close to shore.
And what a way to begin! On my very first wave, the board took a nosedive, and I went feet overhead, catapulting straight into the water. However, as I said, our instructors were superstars so any little problem I presented to them, they came back with a simple solution, and soon enough I was no longer nose-diving, I was surfing.
My brave friends also had their fair share of glory and defeat. One of them stood up on the board quite quickly, but the staying up proved to be something more of a problem. My other friend had more of a problem with the paddling, especially getting back out to the line up after having caught a wave. It was challenging for us all in different areas but well worth it.
Between the three of us, I would say we did incredibly well. We initially went into it as kind of a joke, kidding around about which one of us would do the worst. Nevertheless, we were all a little shocked at just how well we did and how easy, with the right instruction, it is, learning to surf. And, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, surfing is a fantastic work out too!
These days, we try to go to a lesson once a week or thereabouts and are considering keeping it up for a bit. Could it be that I found my new favorite sport on the first try? I think not, but it was certainly a lot of fun.
Next month – Yoga!
Related Articles
