Paddling and Prolonging your Ride in Surfing Greece
Sunday morning in Falasarna Crete, glassy waves and empty surf. Today we had a mix of first time surfers as well as more experienced surfers.
The first time surfers were first introduced to the most important part in surfing: safety. Protect yourself and others from injury or worse. Then our surf coaches covered the basics, such as board parts and gave them the first exercise. First on the beach and then in the water. We need to find the right position on the board and learn how to catch those waves.
Our more experienced surfers were introduced to stalling and trimming, thus being able to prolong their ride, as you can see Anita performing in the picture. We also learned how to paddle for the wave in addition to the push & jump technique. Choice of wave was also an important topic today. Maybe the hardest part in surfing. This comes, by observing many many waves and trying to estimate how they will build up. Then you also try to surf them and "feel" if your estimate was correct or if the wave broke differently than anticipated. Larissa focused her attention on the turn today, and was able to perform a couple of front side turns. Great job!