Great Waves at the West Coast of Crete
Full day of surf lessons at Kalo Surf surf school in Crete. The swell at the moment arrives from the west so we take our lessons to the west coast to the beach break of Falassarna. The waves are just right for beginner surfing lessons.
The lesson of the morning group started bright and early with a warm up, followed by the theory part of safety rules and communication, specifically surf terminology and signals. After that we practiced the surfing maneuvers on the beach, such as the pop up, the turn and paddling. In the water we tried to apply everything and paddled right out, learning how to overcome the waves and position ourselves in the lineup. For Vanessa and Martin it was the first time paddling and it is amazing what one can achieve during the course of a single surf lesson with on point instructions. After some time of catching waves further out the instructor suggested to go back to the inside section to catch white water waves while pushing & jumping. This helped them getting back into the flow and on the second round of paddling out, they surfed with confidence. The wave was heavy in the morning, so Andy assisted at all times with choice of wave, positioning and timing and did not have time to take pictures of the session.
The second group arrived on the beach around lunch time. The course started with the first day theory for our first time surfers Kamil and Marta. Then we had a short interval and celebrated Thomas' birthday. Happy birthday Thomas! He and his partner were kind enough to bring refreshments for all to celebrate the occasion. Unbelievable how many versions of the birthday song we were able to come up with.
Then we headed to the beach where the surfboards where waiting from the previous group. With the surfboard in the sand it is time for the dry runs. For the beginners this means popping up on the surfboard and stalling & trimming. For the first timers this means positioning on the surfboard and the prawn position. They later learned the pop up in the second part of the first day. In the water Andy taught the push & jump technique of catching a wave. He also demonstrated on three different waves what to goal of the day is. For the first timers he showed catching a wave and gliding in the prawn position. For the beginners catching a wave, popping up and finishing the ride by stopping OR falling correctly. Then everyone practiced catching as many waves as possible. All participants were able to pop up on the surfboard and have a ride. Luca and Fabio also learned how to turn the surfboard towards the end of the lesson.