Week No 34 - Surfing in Crete in August with Kalo Surf
Surfing lessons from 23 to 29 August 2021 -
On Monday 23 August we started our week with a full day of surfing lesson in Kissamos at our home surf spot.
At the early bird session first the whole group started with catching waves while pushing and jumping in the white water. Later our more experienced surfers paddled out to catch waves further out. Some overcame their fears which is a great accomplishment. Even first timer Dani caught some waves in the end of the lesson in the outside section. Chantal performed backside turns.
The group of the early afternoon was basically all first time surfers. So surf coach Andy took his time to explain board theory and safety of course. The waves in Kissamos were massive and created long white water lines, perfect for learning. After going through all the exercises of the first day, in the end of the first lesson everyone accomplished to catch waves on their own and pop up on a surfboard.
The participants of the intermediate group on the late afternoon surfed with us already several times. In the beginning of the lesson surf coach Andy covered a lot of surfing theory per request of our interested surfers: part of the waves, surfing etiquette, priority, how to overcome waves, and much more. Before tackling the waves, we did a warm up and die exercises on the beach for the pop up the turn. Equipped with new knowledge and the skill on how to perform certain surf maneuvers we had a great session catching waves and making turns. Fabian performed a cutback!
On Tuesday August the early morning belonged to the Young Guns of Kissamos. The lesson started super fun with a crazy kids bootcamp warm up. The waves on this morning were small and glassy and grew in size during the lesson. The first exercises took place in the white water and later on Vanessa, Dimitris, Enzo and Richard caught waves further out with Richard performing turns. In the afternoon we welcomed Katerina and her family for their first time surfing, together with our experienced beginners. The waves were glassy and clean, perfect for learning. After the first half of the lesson, Andy paddled out with the experienced beginners to show them the peak and assist with catching waves further out. Andrea made turns for the first time during this lesson, following the flow of the wave.
After two days of break with no wave - the time the weather needs to make the change - the swell came from the western direction starting from Friday, 27 August which means the surf spot of choice is Falassarna beach!
The morning belonged to the group of experienced surfers / intermediates. The waves were glassy at 8:00 in the morning - every surfer's dream! Knee to waist height. It was possible to catch waves while pushing and jumping, and also while paddling. Andy showed today paddling technique, overcoming waves, getting on the board in deeper waters, turning around quickly with the surfboard and the cork effect. The atmosphere was so special this morning that our participants remained in awe. The stoke is real.
In the afternoon the wave was still great for learning despite a little bit southwest wind. Each participant had their individual aspects to train, some catching waves, some popping up, some choice of wave and some the ideal weight distribution on the surfboard in order to have longer rides. We surfed until the sunset. Magical.
Saturday morning, 28 August, empty beach at Falassarna surf spot. The waves were glassy and just the right size for our advanced beginner / intermediate group! We started the lesson with a warm up in order to get everyone going. On the beach Andy covered correct paddling and performing turns. In the water we had a great time! Vroni, Taja and Mateusz performed front side turns while Laura, Lev, Dimitris and Vanessa managed to perform front and back side turns! These are great accomplishments!!! Making turns is key to further your surfing skills and not stagnate at a certain level!
In the afternoon we had some wind gust from the south-west with knee to waist height waves but still ideal conditions for practicing - surfing into the sunset! Luckily there were little beachgoers on the surf spot and at the end we had the beach all to ourselves. Our first timers learned today how to find spot and catch the wave, find the right position on the surfboard and pop up. Annika and Nick learned stalling & Trimming on their second surf lesson with us. Alina, Alexander and Sabrina were practicing the turn.
And now for Sunday, 29 August: We had big waves with slight onshore wind. The more experienced surfers paddled out while the others were more comfortable on the inside section. Everyone practiced the surf maneuvers that were matching their level of surfing: catching waves, gliding on a surfboard, popping up, paddling out, making turns. What a nice Sunday surfing in Crete!
