I'm happy to say that on this occasion, I can report something straight away that I have already done, rather than something I shoulda coulda woulda will-probably-hopefully-maybe soon be doing. (Maybe it's just because I was too lazy to write about it sooner, but I can't be perfect.) I spent yesterday afternoon surfing. And it was scary and fun and just plain awesome.
My friend came home from his Costa Rica vacation raving about how fun it was, and when I expressed interest in trying it, he suggested I come to a lesson with him. So off we went. And I knew even as we drove down to Narragansett in the morning that I had no idea what to expect. The actual lesson with instructions lasted about 5 minutes or so, covering some basics; the next lesson was get into the water and surf.
My very first time paddling out and trying to catch waves was not exactly a fantastic success. It was pretty overwhelming when I started walking and then got on the board and started paddling -- especially as the waves were quite tall, 6 feet and more. I had a minor victory in that I avoided any kind of panic attack relating to being tossed about by 6 foot high waves. I did make it out there. But then I got my ass tossed around and flipped over. I was so exhausted that I was forced to stick to the basics: get on my board, get it pointed toward the shore, get paddling a bit, and actually ride a wave or two. But then I had to sit on the shore for 10-12 minutes to get my breath back -- and get my head together!
After that, I stuck to the shallower water, and just worked on the basics of paddling and catching waves. Still wasn't doing a particularly great job, but I had a lot of fun. And I'm ready to get out there again next weekend and give it another try.
Sorry Excuses: "I'm not comfortable with that," I guess? (Kind of a water phobia.)
Verdict: scared
Prognosis: Already cured, I think... (or at least the treatment is in progress)
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