heeeeeeelp!

[angie]

hi!

i´m angie from argentina (south america) and i´m going to hawaii in december for three months! i´ve never surfed in my life, but i´m planning to learn there, cuz i´ll be able to surf almost every afternoon of the week.

but i need help!
first of all, i´m not sure which are the best beaches for learning (in oahu and maui) and i don´t know if to take surfing lessons or just try to learn on my own (i´m not sure if i´ll have surfing mates or not). plus, i´m not sure if it´s worth to buy a board or just rent one. and if it´s best to buy one, which one to buy! if a begginers one or not, cause maybe i´m a fast learner, or maybe not but i´ll have plenty of time to practice. and if a new one or a second hand one. and last, if boards in hawaii a less expensive than boards that are sold online... and in any case, which should be the lenght of the board: i´m 5.10 and i weigh 128 pounds.

as you see, i´m really lost, so if someone out there can help, i´ll really apreciate it!

thanks!

[gdude335]

you can surf about anywhere to learn. Just take the whitewater. Renting a board would be smarter because their are two paths (shortboard or longboard) Getting a shortboard right away can be a bad idea because it is hard for people who just started to stand up on shortboards. Rent something size 7.9 or over then go down if you want to shortboard and go up if you want to longboard even though u can start on a longboard. Lessons are usfull at the begging and they will teach you to do things right. I would consider 1 to 3 lessons then renting a board. If you live near the beach i would buy a board once u have mastered the bigger ones. Once your at that stage ask for advice.
hope this helped.

[kitesurfer]

Hey dude.
If you're planning to surf in hawai then taking a lesson will give you the opportunity to talk to your instructor about suitable local breaks for beginers etc. Also don't be necessarily be tempted by a cheap local second hand board if you see one. There will undoubtedly be some largish cheap boards in hawai which may well be guns or semi guns which are boards designed for the powerful waves you get there and are not suitable for learning on even though they're quite long. Also those types of boards will probably be no good for you when you get back home. Definatley get good advice before purchasing a board from say the shops and an instructor and be honest about your surfing skills and where you intend to surf.
Rent out some different boards and get a feel for it and most importantly, have lots of fun.

KS

[Kate - New Oxygen]

hi - i would definitely hire a board first - it could be a pricey mistake if you buy the wrong kind before you have figured out what suits you best.

have a blast!

[angie]

thanks!! it was really good advice you gave me there. sorry for not answering before.
i would like to know, though, more or less the cost for surfing lessons and for renting boards. do you guys have any idea how much could it be?

[angie]

plus, i was thinking of starting to work out! i´m terrible at sports but because i´m lazy and i random move a leg.
so i´m about to start swiming every week, but i guess it´s not enough... what´s more important to work out so that learning to surf´s easier?
thanks!!