Surfing

Scuzi

Scuzi

Scuzi

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Is anyone here into surfing? I've always wanted to try it out and now that I think about it I have some awesome surfing spots on my doorstep. At home here in Ireland we apparently have some of the best surf in the world a couple of hours drive away and when I'm at work in England, Bournemouth is half an hour away. Apparently in Bournemouth they have something in the sea to make bigger waves?

So if I want to try out surfing what do I need? It looks really difficult to get to a reasonable standard. Is it the sort of thing that takes a long time before it can be enjoyed? If I do try it out and like it, is the kit expensive to get started?

Any advice would be much appreciated.
 
Bournemouth isn't great for surf - you'd be far better going somewhere on the West coast, Cornwall, Wales, Scotland, not sure about Ireland, although I've heard it's pretty good.

IMO the best thing to do would be to go to one of the typical surf beaches and find somewhere you can hire the kit - I went to Polzeath beach and was able to hire a longboard and wetsuit for a long weekend for something like £40. Then just give it a go and see if you like it. These places usually do day/half-day courses, so if you want to learn some of the techniques that might be an idea.

Alternatively, get yourself a bodyboard (you can pick up a half decent one for £25-30) and get the idea of how to "catch" the waves, since the technique is pretty much the same as with a longboard.
 
I tried it for a couple of days when I was in Cornwall, In the 2 days I tried it, I found it very difficult and only managed to stand on the board for a few seconds at a time. from my experience, a lot of time will need to be invested toi get to a decent standard, I did thoroughly enjoy it though and would have definately done it again if I lived close to a suitable beach.
 
I tried it in australia and new zealand. I had a 2 hour lesson with a group, the place was called 'surf camp' the board was about the size of a door and it was pretty easy to stand up.

I rented a board that was at least half the size when at bondi beach. I stood up a couple of times but the waves were killer at bondi and I got tossed about like I was in a washing machine! Great fun though and VERY good exercise. In new zealand I borrowed a guys board who was a surf pro in japan. That was even harder to use but I gave it my best and stood up once I think :)
 
Guest2 said:
I tried it in australia and new zealand. I had a 2 hour lesson with a group, the place was called 'surf camp' the board was about the size of a door and it was pretty easy to stand up.

I rented a board that was at least half the size when at bondi beach. I stood up a couple of times but the waves were killer at bondi and I got tossed about like I was in a washing machine! Great fun though and VERY good exercise. In new zealand I borrowed a guys board who was a surf pro in japan. That was even harder to use but I gave it my best and stood up once I think :)
Click to expand...

Did you do your surf camp at Spot X?
 
Bodyboardings my thing ,board was about £100 and fins £30 ,winter suit £120 and a cheapo summer suit ,the main thing is my seasonal pitch in St Agnes easter till october, but id say get some lessons and second hand gear ,major life and attitude changing hobby:)
 
Kayak surfing > surfing.

Polzeath beach has some lovely surf, its just hard dodging the surfers with your boat and paddle...

See, aren't I a nice guy? :)
 
its a good few years since I last surfed but I found it enjoyable from the get go -

Somewhat frustrating to start catching the waves but the euphoria of doing it easily lasted till I was standing up.

Again it took a while to start properly controlling the board on the wave face but really just getting pushed along standing up is fun enough to keep you going while you learn that.

I'd go with some lessons to get you started tbh, shouldn't be too much for a 1/2 day and that will include board hire :)
 
Infrequent bodyboarder here...very easy to learn and because I don't have the chance often enough, I haven't bothered learning surfing (yet).

My brother though lives and works in Cardiff and goes surfing pretty much every day in Porthcawl. He became pretty good very quickly, like in 6 months went from barely standing up to getting up every time and only falling off when he'd finished with the wave or the wave trashed him. He's not majorly sporty so I'd imagine most people that aren't complete gimps could become fairly proficient at surfing...the key thing will be, how often will you be able to do it?

By the way, I saw an article about that Bournemouth man-made wave shelf they installed for £3m or so...they implied that it was a waste of money, as without the necessary swell, you can have all the shelves you like, you still won't get decent waves. Ireland however...seen some incredible documentaries about surfing in Ireland, but you'll need a high quality wetsuit!

Finally, it's a very therapeutic and healthy sport. Outdoors for hours on end, seawater and sunshine, promotes good stamina and stronger arms and legs.
 
I used to go surfing a bit but haven't been for a while though. I want to try and get back into it this summer though. It is great fun and you should give it a go.

If I wanted to get a board and wetsuit how much should I be looking to pay for both? Also any suggestions as to a particular board would be good. I'm not a complete beginner but I haven't had a lot of experience.

(Sorry for the slight hijack but the question is similar to what was asked in the OP so the answers should be similar)
 
\o/

I've just got back from a week surfing down in San Diego, chest to head high surf - it was, needless to say, awesome :D Love surfing it's so awesome :D

A half-day of lessons and an 8ft soft-top board should see you catching a few waves and wobbling along enough to get the gist of it :D I warn you though it is bloody knackering especially at a choppy beach break.

Equipment-wise - I just picked up a decent soft-top board as a spare for visiting mates for $150, not sure what it'd be in the UK though, but proper boards are $$$$s, again I'm not sure of the UK market but here the epoxy/fibreglass boards ran to between $700-$900. If you're a clumsy sort, an epoxy board is definitely what you want - fibreglass boards pick up dints so badly, lol

If you're in Bournemouth keep an eye out for 2nd hand boards maybe? There's a reasonable surfing community there so I'd imagine there's a decent second-hand market if you want to get your first 'proper' board without the worry of ruining a $900 one on a rock :p
 
I like to bodyboard at the min but Im intending to take up surfing this Summer now my son is old enough to actually like the beach.

Loads of spots to choose from here (In Queensland), I use to live on the east coast in England, cant imagine surfing in that brown sludge of the north sea while you dodge condoms.
 
I've had a go at surfing twice, once years ago while at school and recently on a stag weekend. In both cases i found it impossible to actually stand up on the board but it was great fun trying. I would give it a go again.
 
Surfing is awesome when you can get a day where the waves aren't zoo'ed by hundreds of people, getting run down by idiots in kayaks is never fun either, 'ohhh look at meee I can turn on a dime! ooops no I can't so I'll just run you over instead!'

Used to be awesome fun when I was in my twenties, these days it's a lot of frustration unless you go out on a 'big' day when 90% of people cannot get out to the line up :)
 
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