Not long ago surfing was a sport for the young and hardheaded, because surfing instruction proceeded like this: Excited, you walked into a surf shop and informed the dude behind the counter that you were a beginner. He rented you the worst surfboard in the place and gestured vaguely in the direction of the ocean. You returned to the shop at the end of the day, noodle-armed and defeated, the board even worse for wear having bounced several times off your face.
Times have changed.
When it comes to learning to surf, says Ed Guzman, "there are three critical elements. Good wave conditions, good equipment, and good instruction."
Guzman should know. As head of Club Ed International Surf School and Camps in Santa Cruz, California, he's part of a revolution that's making surfing accessible even to those of us who aren't buffed, tattooed, and 19. Right now, Guzman is beaming because, after a 10-minute tutorial on the beach—pop up quickly, crouch low, feet wide, weight over the center of the board—one of his beginners stands, albeit shakily, on her very first wave, her face an open book of surprise and elation.
Guzman smiles.
"Another life ruined," he says.
"It's easy if you take it step by step"
Any surfer, beginner or expert, will tell you that riding a wave is one of life's finest pleasures. As Guzman, a surfer since 1969, informs us on our first day of camp, "It's going to blow your mind."
First, though, your mind has to remove a roadblock—the fear that you won't be able to do this. "Even if you're over 40, if you're reasonably fit," says Guzman, "you can surf." Club Ed's clients have ranged from age 4 to age 70.
The weeklong camps work simply: You eat, sleep, and breathe surfing. But there's a paradox involved. Once mastered, surfing is freewheeling improvisation, a dance between wave and rider. But learning to ride a wave requires a methodical bricklayer's approach.
"You have to learn how to stand up," instructor David Schulkin tells us. "But you also have to learn where to sit to catch the best waves, when to paddle to catch the wave, how to paddle out through waves. There's a lot to learn, but it's really easy if you take it step by step."
On our first morning we line up our surfboards in the sand. Unlike most surfboards, which are made of foam coated in fiberglass (i.e., very hard), the surfboards Club Ed employs are made of soft foam. They are also long (9 to 10 feet), thick, and wide, making them easier to paddle and nearly as stable as the Queen Mary (element number one, the right equipment).
We stand in our wet suits watching the small waves. They well up, then crumble gently, making it easier for beginners to stand and slide down their fronts (element number two, the right conditions). Some campers are itching to get in the water, but Guzman stops us in the sand (element number three, the right instructor).
First we move through a series of stretches. Then we lie stomach down on our boards, shifting and squeaking until we are where we need to be: head, hips, and legs (pressed together) aligned, a neoprene arrow running straight down the middle of the board.
