Later in life beginners

[Strela17]

That thread makes me feel much better as a late starter, I've already have a kid and am just barely able to surf! But hey, after all, as long as my legs can hold me and that my head can remember things, I can learn new activities
And speaking of holding your breath, it's fortunately something I've learned to do a while ago, as a child, when I went to the swimming pool. I even got "rescued" a couple times by friends who got worried while I could still hold for some time!

[jaffa1949]

I’ve turned 70 this year, old legs but very surf experienced.
Surfing is great to start at any age, surfing with your children even better, Russia to meaningful surf may be your greatest difficulty.

[Yamabushi170]

Hi Everyone

I'm 44 year old newbie surfer who was very recently turned on to the sport by a surfing holiday in Porto. I thought I would struggle with my first attempts to pop up, ride a wave etc, but to my great surprise I found that I am in fact absolutely bloody awful at this sport! To add insult to injury I did a great job of pulling or possibly tearing a muscle in my rib cage on day one so every single day of surfing for the duration of the holiday was an exquisite lesson in pain management. But despite this I still fell in love with the sensation of being on the sea, clad in my wetsuit and being rocked by the waves on my board. On my return I made a beeline for the best surf shop I could find and splashed out on all the kit I need to get started. My Bic Magnum is getting delivered today and now I just need some waves!
I'm about an hour away from the Kent coast so it's not ideal but still perfectly achievable. I'm looking forwards to my first session on the UK coastline and hopefully making a couple of friends along the way.
In addition to the thrill of the surfing itself I'm feeling motivated to get myself in better shape so I've taken up swimming again after a lengthy hiatus and I'm hitting the pool for an hour most days so I'm benefiting in other ways from this experience.
The main thing is that I'm glad I've found something to give me a reason to keep going in life. I recently lost my brother and sister to cancer, leaving just me and my elderly mother behind. My fiancee headed out the door a few months later, presumably not wanting to share the burden and since then I've just been finding it harder and harder to keep going for any reason other than the thought of breaking Mum's heart completely. So surfing has been something of a Godsend to me and I really intend to keep it up for as long as I possibly can. See you on the sea.

Excelsior!

[oldmansurfer]

Yamabushi170 very good post. I also got into better shape for surfing. I hope you don't get discouraged at first. It can be a bit of a challenge. If you run into problems post about it here or if not post that too

[Yamabushi170]

Yamabushi170 very good post. I also got into better shape for surfing. I hope you don't get discouraged at first. It can be a bit of a challenge. If you run into problems post about it here or if not post that too

Thank you!

[dtc]

Yep, as a fellow 40+ person, surfing has been one of the motivations to stay in shape - and it’s a sport you can continue to do (well or otherwise!) when other sports fall away or your ex team mates all become old and ‘large’. Plus just having an interest outside of the day to day stuff of life means there is always something to look forward to

Surfing is hard to learn. It looks easy but it’s not - as I always say, optimism and persistence are key requirements for learners

[tomthetreeman]

Hi Everyone

I'm 44 year old newbie surfer who was very recently turned on to the sport by a surfing holiday in Porto. I thought I would struggle with my first attempts to pop up, ride a wave etc, but to my great surprise I found that I am in fact absolutely bloody awful at this sport! To add insult to injury I did a great job of pulling or possibly tearing a muscle in my rib cage on day one so every single day of surfing for the duration of the holiday was an exquisite lesson in pain management. But despite this I still fell in love with the sensation of being on the sea, clad in my wetsuit and being rocked by the waves on my board. On my return I made a beeline for the best surf shop I could find and splashed out on all the kit I need to get started. My Bic Magnum is getting delivered today and now I just need some waves!
I'm about an hour away from the Kent coast so it's not ideal but still perfectly achievable. I'm looking forwards to my first session on the UK coastline and hopefully making a couple of friends along the way.
In addition to the thrill of the surfing itself I'm feeling motivated to get myself in better shape so I've taken up swimming again after a lengthy hiatus and I'm hitting the pool for an hour most days so I'm benefiting in other ways from this experience.
The main thing is that I'm glad I've found something to give me a reason to keep going in life. I recently lost my brother and sister to cancer, leaving just me and my elderly mother behind. My fiancee headed out the door a few months later, presumably not wanting to share the burden and since then I've just been finding it harder and harder to keep going for any reason other than the thought of breaking Mum's heart completely. So surfing has been something of a Godsend to me and I really intend to keep it up for as long as I possibly can. See you on the sea.

Excelsior!

Dude that is epic. Best thing I read all day! Keep at it bro!

Tom

[312T4]

Hi Everyone

I'm 44 year old newbie surfer who was very recently turned on to the sport by a surfing holiday in Porto. I thought I would struggle with my first attempts to pop up, ride a wave etc, but to my great surprise I found that I am in fact absolutely bloody awful at this sport! To add insult to injury I did a great job of pulling or possibly tearing a muscle in my rib cage on day one so every single day of surfing for the duration of the holiday was an exquisite lesson in pain management. But despite this I still fell in love with the sensation of being on the sea, clad in my wetsuit and being rocked by the waves on my board. On my return I made a beeline for the best surf shop I could find and splashed out on all the kit I need to get started. My Bic Magnum is getting delivered today and now I just need some waves!
I'm about an hour away from the Kent coast so it's not ideal but still perfectly achievable. I'm looking forwards to my first session on the UK coastline and hopefully making a couple of friends along the way.
In addition to the thrill of the surfing itself I'm feeling motivated to get myself in better shape so I've taken up swimming again after a lengthy hiatus and I'm hitting the pool for an hour most days so I'm benefiting in other ways from this experience.
The main thing is that I'm glad I've found something to give me a reason to keep going in life. I recently lost my brother and sister to cancer, leaving just me and my elderly mother behind. My fiancee headed out the door a few months later, presumably not wanting to share the burden and since then I've just been finding it harder and harder to keep going for any reason other than the thought of breaking Mum's heart completely. So surfing has been something of a Godsend to me and I really intend to keep it up for as long as I possibly can. See you on the sea.

Excelsior!

Just keep going. I also have drive 1hour at least every bloody weekend. But it's not too bad.
Also, in England you now have 2 wavepools you could use to speed up the process!
Keep going!

[ianmckpw]

Hi late starters. Firstly good vibes to you all who started later in life. Not so easy but your own fitness, core strength and flexibility all will have an impact.

I am writing here for a couple of things. Just found this site so this is hopefully the best forum topic to start posting.

I starting body surfing at an early age as I grew up on Freshwater and then Avalon beach in Sydney. At age 59 I still ride the waves at every opportunity, I think bodysurfing should really count in this forum yes?

Unfortunately I can't go surfing as often as I like, as I live in the Middle East with no surf beaches. Luckily we have a holiday house in Sri Lanka 5 minutes walk from Mirissa beach, great for body waves, and just a five minute drive from Weligama, a great beach for beginners. I have seen many people my age and a bit younger on the waves there. Mirissa has a good rock reef break in the right swell which is ok as well.

Even if it is breaking big out the back, there is usually a second break closer in which is ok for beginners. November to May are the best months in Sthn Lanka.

I have a question if anyone can assist. My kids are now learning to surf in Weligama whenever we get there, however every summer beckons us to Europe.

Can anyone recommend a good place in summer in Europe to surf? For the kids as beginners, and somewhere civilised where we can get good food and restaurants? Any bodybreaks are a bonus for me, but it's the kids I really want to get going at every opportunity.

And warm enough not to have to suit up would be ideal.

Cheers

[jaffa1949]

Talk a little more, when the southern end of Europe opens up crowds at the learner beaches in Portugal and Spain will be horrifically crowded with everyone riding everything!.
not necessarily warm enough to be wetsuit free, also absolutely no awareness of traffic rules in the water.

I’m thinking of Baleal, near Peniche in Portugal, several safe bays tomsurf, good accommodation around and good restaurant at least 5 right next to each other.

the learning beach

[epicmark01]

Hi just curious how many of you have taken surfing up at an older age rather than younger, and how you've found your progression and what drew you to it then and not earlier? I'm 41 and took my daughter for a lesson as some bonding time together. We both fell in love with it, though I'm more obsessed than her. That was about 3 yrs ago and I still cant believe it took me so long to try it, especially as I use to scuba dive and skateboard so you'd think surfing might be a natural step to take. My progression is spasmodic as I only hit the water every 2-3 weeks in between downtime due to work injuries. Popping up is no problem but still aiming for more consistent wave face time and not just white wash. I've found it to be frustrating at times but the greatest stress reliever too, not too mention easing my mind re the big biteys out there. What about anyone else?

[oldmansurfer]

I used to surf. Learned when I was 18 but grew up in the ocean bodysurfing and bodyboarding. Then I quit for 12 years and during that time I got in really poor shape. Figured out I needed to go surf again because there seemed to be no other exercise that I was going to stick to. It was just like learning all over except I knew the waves and what to expect. Initially I only surfed 30 minutes a week and learning was really slow then I increased it to 60 minutes a week and my learning doubled It is a great stress reliever as well as good exercise however I injured my shoulder not surfing and this messed up my learning to surf. Unfortunately the less you surf the slower the learning will be. The bitey things? Mostly the big bitey things don't want to eat you. I try to keep aware of the ocean and alert to any big biteys that might be around and if they are too big or too close I go in. In order to stay in shape without going out more often I do daily stretches and exercises.

[BigDaz]

This forum has made my day, I can't believe it has been active for nearly 10 years now. Your posts are inspirational. I am, without a doubt, the world's worst surfer, but I don't care, or maybe I do care a bit because more skill looks like more fun I guess. I've always considered myself to be 'a naturally gifted "athlete"', who has tried to surf many times but given up pretty quickly because of a million excuses, everything else was so easy in comparison, skiing, snowboarding, water skiing, wakeboarding etc, etc. But now I'm 53 and I'm determined to make it a lifelong commitment. Each Saturday morning I'm privileged to 'surf' with my 69 year old father in law and my 18 year old son, I don't know if I'm the happiest guy at the beach but my lack of ability sure gets plenty of laughs from myself and others. I'm happy to be in the water and am stoked at the slightest sign of improvement (not that anyone but me could possibly notice). I'm currently in year 3 of my battle with cancer but am sure I'll be here for at least another 20, to complicate matters, ultrasounds have diagnosed arthritis in my; ankles, knees, hips, lower back, neck, shoulders and sternum. It's a great excuse for my lack of ability that I'm sticking to. I also weigh in at 220 lbs (100 kg), an advantage during my rugby days but I'm really no chance of ever really 'gracing' the waves in the manner of a Rob Machado, my poor 9'4" log cops quite a workout.
What I lack in ability I'm hoping to make up for in tenacity and perseverance.
Any tips, guidance, advice, will be most humbly accepted.
If you see a 'lump' struggling in the foam around the beaches of Sydney please say hi and don't feel sorry for me if you see me tumbling in the shorebreak, I'm having the time of my life, my wife says she has never seen me happier.

[jaffa1949]

Taking the dog for a walk , ex rugby, 100kg 71 year old ex Dee Why and Avalon surfer, traveled through cancer, what could we have in common?
Will share more later

For real,surfing i have a long board, show me yours I’ll show you mine.
Back shortly!

[dtc]

Any tips, guidance, advice, will be most humbly accepted.
If you see a 'lump' struggling in the foam around the beaches of Sydney please say hi and don't feel sorry for me if you see me tumbling in the shorebreak, I'm having the time of my life, my wife says she has never seen me happier.

Get out of sydney and head north or (preferably) south and get some empty (or more empty) waves! Thats my tip

When travel is permitted again of course (hopefully very soon, I've been stuck in Canberra and its not exactly surf city)

What I like about surfing as an older guy (49 11/12) is that it motivates me to stay healthy outside of the water; instead of slothing around there is an actual reason to hit the gym or go for a run

[Bub]

I'm 49. Started "trying" to surfing at 35. So about 14 years in, everytime I go out I am still always the worst surfer in the water every time! I have still not caught a broken wave and rode down the line...white water only so far

I live 3.5hrs from the shore. There is biggest issue right there. Only get to surf maybe 1-2 times a year on a day trip and then if we go on vacation maybe 1-2 times if Lake Atlantic gets a ripple during the week worth paddling out.

Being lean and athletic (even for a 49 year old) and skateboarded alot in my youth, my main issue is paddling endurance and how quickly I gas out. Longboard/floatie retro fish...doesn't matter. I do lots of pushups and dumbell raises at home, but found those do little help. I think bottom line is you just have to be in the water frequently to build paddle endurance.

Is there any older guys (maybe who surfed alot as a youngster) who can claim they only get in the water a few times a year and have no issues with their paddling endurance? Just wondering if I'm the only one that always seems to struggle in that area. My son and daughter think I'm the only crazy guy who tries to surf a couple times a year, every year for 14 years straight and everyone else does it alot more frequently and in better shape (their theory).

[oldmansurfer]

Try swimming to stay in shape. I need to go out at least once a week to keep my paddle muscles good (I am 68)

[Mackieb]

Great to read all these later in life stories! I'm 45, just had acouple of surf lessons over the summer with my kids and realised I can do this! Well, manage to stand up on a 130litre foamie in 1 ft waves that is but enough to take the plunge, so just bought a 8ft 80 litre softtop Vision board and I think it's just about the right choice for me. Only been out twice since I got it last week but I'm able to get to my feet in the whitewash , enough to think this can work. Now got to start putting in the hours. I just love being in the sea, it's so dynamic, totally takes over all your other (stupid work) thoughts. I'm in Scotland so not too warm but my 5mm wetsuit does the trick.

Always loved board sports, skateboarded loads as a teen, still snowboard when I can,but broke by leg pretty badly 5 years ago when I tried picking skating back up, concrete bowl not so forgiving. So now giving the waves a go instead for any other ex skaters out there though a great read for anyone, just came across this article
http://www.jenkemmag.com/home/2020/08/1 ... e-legends/

[Yoav400]

Is this the geriatric dept?

Then I must be in the right place I am 40yrs old, been surfing for almost 7 months now, although I am coming from 20 years of snowboarding, this is definitely something else, the learning curve is frustrating to say the least, I am just ending my 8' foam period and looking at what's next, after consulting with great guys here in the forum I am in the market for a 2nd hand epoxy 7'6 mini mal, looking forward to winter, although we had a special summer here in Israel(usually it's pretty flat) I am stoked about the winter and already got me a brand new wetsuit

Great to see I am not the only one here trying to surf with a walking cane.

[jaffa1949]

At your age you are perigeri not fully geriatric, I’m 71 just go and have the most enjoyable surf you can and enjoy thoroughly.
You are beyond being fashionable, as for snow boarding, skateboarding or any other board sport, you were already stand and relying on gravity!