In the last couple of days, the whole family took surfing lessons. Nadia and I had the first part of our lessons together so that we could have more time in the water. Our teacher’s name was Ross.

Ross to Nadia: Stand like a gorilla.

First, we had some dry land instruction. We learned how we were supposed to stand on the board, and practiced getting up to a standing possition from lying down on the board. Ross told us to spring up into the standing position and to stand like a gorilla on the board, with our knees bend and our chests thrown out.

After that, we got to start the water part of our lessons. My turn in the water was first. It was a lot harder to stand up on the board when it was in the water! My first few tries, I fell off before I was able to stand fully up. It wasn’t painful, and the water was nice and warm.

Catching a wave

A few tries later, I was able to stand up and stay balanced for a couple seconds. I was so happy! But I still had alot to learn. When I went back out to catch a ride, Ross would give me tips. He told me to try to stand up more quickly. At first, he started the board for me, but later in the lesson, I learned to paddle myself.

Zoe surfs

By the end of the lesson, I was able to get up much faster and stay up much longer. We rented the surfboard for the rest of the day and for the next day, so I had plenty of time to practice.

After the lessons