Remember when you were a beginner, flapping about in the shorey on a foamy, where unabashed giggles far outweighed any bravado goad? Perhaps you were 10, 20, or 30 years old.
Fast track to now and picture the moments you hit the surf with a seriousness void of any play. You’re frothing about, weaving around any fool who comes between you and your rightful wave with zero empathy and a wad of narcissism. Your fist skims the ocean’s surface whenever you fail a desired turn or—gasp—fall. Those in your vicinity are subject to your stressed-out profanities the times you yank back as someone with right of way enjoys the ride from your inside. And eye contact or a friendly smile exchange with fellow ocean lovers? Forget about it!
Which of those two scenarios evokes the most stoke? And what if we could use playfulness for not only our enjoyment but also our surfing performance?
Belén Alvarez Kimble, former professional freesurfing longboarder, performance coach and founder of Salty Girls Surf School, says that one of the first things she teaches beginners is the power of the giggle.
“I tell them to laugh as you’re falling off your board. To relax as you get smashed,” she says. “If you’re super tense and tight, that’s when you get hurt.”
What is it about the beginner-to-intermediate-to-advance (for some) progression that often sees us losing play along the way? Perhaps the joy-killer components you’re initially oblivious to, like comparison and greed, are to blame. World Tour coach, maestro Glenn “Micro” Hall reckons it might be.
“As a beginner, you know nothing about localism and the entitlement and ego in the lineup. You’re in
