Learning to Surf: Playa Tamarindo Costa Rica

Mi y mi profesora de surf: Augustin. Photo Cred: Kelly’s Surf Shop

A winter of new adventure sports ya might say! If learning to ski wasn’t enough in February I decided that for the month of March 2022 I would learn to surf. And I learned to surf in Playa Tamarindo in Costa Rica.

It was back to back months of jumping headfirst into activities I had always been interested in but had never had the chance to immerse myself into. Ultimately I had never lived by the mountains or the ocean long enough to be able to try either of them out, let alone learn them. Since we are living in Costa Rica all of March and Playa Tamarindo is one of the most well known spots in the world for accessible beginner surfing I thought “It’s about time I learn to SURF!” Now I guess I wasn’t a total beginner. I did do a two hour lesson with my brother almost ten years ago in San Clemente California but for all intensive purposes this was the beginning of my surfing story!

Learning new skills and ways of being can challenge and sharpen us mentally, emotionally, and spiritually I believe. Learning a new sport like this is not just a physical endeavor, it can push our Minds & Souls just as much as our Bodies.

Photo Cred: Kelly’s Surf Shop.

Here are six surf tips I have acquired that might be interesting to you:

1. It is physical!
   Skiing is not. At least comparably speaking. I was a little surprised by how little physical effort was required in downhill skiing. From my experience in snowshoe hiking I figured it would exert more effort. I felt it was fairly easy from a physical standpoint, a little exertion but certainly not a high intensity workout. Surfing, for me, has been a different story. From getting the wind knocked out of you by the waves to needing to do 50-75 pushups, then frog hops, and finally swimming in the ocean current with a surfboard my body was a good sore every single night. I slept like a baby every day I hit the waves.
   

2. Yogi’s that hop can surf!
   Here’s how you get your feet on the board. Getting up on your board is pretty straightforward but if you are a yogi it can feel more natural. You paddle. You do a pushup. You bring your left foot forward on the board sideways then your right foot a foot or two in front of your left and parallel to it. Both on the middle of the board. And you look forward and face your hands out the same way, a la a short Warrior 2. If you are used to the jump hop to the top of a yoga mat or the transition from plank/down dog to Warrior 1 or 2 then the surfing stance might come natural to you!
   

3. Standing straight up.
   This was one thing that surprised me. You really do just stand straight up to balance. I figured you would want to be more in a squat or low base but you get up much higher than I would have ever imagined. And once I figured it out, yeah it turns out of course the surfing experts know their stuff, that getting up higher provides more balance than being low.
   

4. Ducking under a wave.
   Grandes olas? No problema!
   Simply grab both sides of the head of the board and place them at the top of your head like you are gonna do a shoulder press and instead of pressing up dive under the incoming wave. Trust me, when you whack somebody else or yourself with a board as it goes sideways and outta control then you will give the wave dink and duck a practice until you make it perfect!
   

5. They should just call it paddling and floating.
   This one I learned from Kelly Slater when he was on the Tim Ferriss podcast. It made me chuckle but it’s true. You walk in the water, paddle over a few waves, float over a few more, get smacked in the face with a few more after that, and then finally you paddle more before (if you are lucky) several seconds of wave riding. It’s an incredible feeling to ride a wave but if you don’t like paddling, floating, or salt water this might not be your sport! Just like basketball isn’t scoring but rather defense and passing and hiking is walking with boots on surfing is much more than, to quote the late Patrick Swayze and his character Bodhi in Point Break, “The 50 Year Storm!”
   

6. Look for big stomachs as a beginner.
   Big stomachs in the wave. Long torsos, or peeling waves, or as my friend Augustine said big stomachs. If the incoming wave looks like Anthony Davis on the Lakers with his arms up defending Zion Williamson then catching the white water portion of this wave might be perfect for your beginner crash course!

So with all those tips and tricks I have definitely learned to surf.

I won’t be at Waimea Bay in Maui or at the next year 50 year storm with Johnny Utah quite yet. But with the help of my new friend Augustine from Kelly’s Surf Shop I rode two waves on my first day, over ten on my second, and fell off my board several dozen times beyond that! By day three we were moving to bigger waves and I would ride them to shore, I was managing to get up on my board most times even albeit for a second or two.

Practica y practica y practica. That’s what Augustine kept saying during my lessons. Practice, practice, practice. We actually spent very little time on the sand, he feels the best way to learn is just do it.

Photo Cred: Kelly’s Surf Shop.

Augustine would say “Get on Miguel” and smack the longboard.
Then I would ride the wave or fall over and we repeated this for ten hours during my first week of surfing.
Two hours a day in the mid-day heat of Playa Tamarindo, Costa Rica.
Practica, practica, practica.

It was a lesson in humility, dedication, and of course adventure for me. But it worked. As most things do if you apply the dedication and focus to the practice. Even when that practice might feel intimidating. Surfing is very intimidating because my playing field is the baddest and most beautiful mother around: The Pacific Ocean. But that’s how a growth mindset life works. Try something and work at it to improve. Knowing you won’t be a pro in a day. 

Augustine speaks little English so it’s been great to work on my Spanish with him and vice versa. Without his support of learning good technique and proper wave reading I would have been toast.

I highly recommend hiring someone for a few private lessons if you really want to learn how to surf. And of course you should contact my friends at Kelly’s Surf Shop if in Tamarindo!

Just like going downhill on a ski slope riding a wave is truly thrilling. What has always allured me to surfing and ultimately pushed my desire to learn is that no two waves are alike. Ever.

The ocean is such a gift that we have on this planet and surfing is a wonderful way to form a deeper and more connected relationship with the ocean and our planet.

As they say in Costa Rica, Twenties Friend!  And as my friend Augustine said “Wiiiiiiiipe Out Miguel!”

Thanks for reading. If you know how to surf share your beginning story in the comments below, or your growth in the sport.

Pura Vida,

Mike R