We arrived at Spot X last thursday and it was quite the contrast to the almost Jungle like surrounding of the Creasant Head Camp. The place is vast and we found ourselves being lead to a large building with a big pourch in the very centre of the camp, which it transpired was the new 'Academy block'. Its been great having all of the people doing the various courses staying in one place, hanging out on the pourch to listen to music, play cards... or getting a bollocking for creating a 'Shag Pad' (with its own do's and dont's welcome sign) in the spair room! Theres a real family spirit and everyone is looking out for each other the whole time, even the nick names are catching on around camp; E-man (the best Swedish surfer in the world... probably, definetly the best in the camp at Limbo), Sarg (the former German airforce officer who has an unhealthy obsession of getting out the bug spray), Ceaser (a 6 ft 5 German whos name is julias), Frenchie (well he IS french) and Califronia (sure you can work that one out)
So its Friday morning, 3 days till my course starts, a big party night planned the following day with lots of beautifull women shipped in.... the only logical thing to do was to have someone crash into me and mash up my face with their Surfboard fin. I think I freaked out some of the other surf schools on the beach as I jogged past with a cheery wave and blood pouring down my face! Trip to the doctors and that was surfing done for the weekend (he didnt want me back out till the following friday... yeah right!!). Having the worlds largest black eye did have one advantage though, and pretty much everyone round the camp now know who I am, plus I think I got brownie points for having a 'proper' surf injury... and then defying the doctor to go out again 2 days later for the start of my course.
Monday arrived and it was time to start the course with our two academy instructors Rhys and Linton... both highly accomplished surfers, who have several companies who give them free stuff in return for putting their stickers on their boards, for when their photos make a magazine from time to time. The first session we just had to catch a couple of waves and show them what we could do, I was fairly satisfied with mine managing to get 2 on my back hand (going left rather than right) and a normal right wave. We then got a lot of feed back and during the week I started to work on weight distribution on the board and how I have to stop poping up and start letting the board almost fall away below me on the steeper waves, and then swing my legs up to my chest to get onto the board.
We have also started our theory and fitness sessions on alternate days. The theory covers everything to do with surfing; the very first just talking all about the different types of boards there are in surfing, how they are made and what situation we would use them in. Fitness has also been pretty hard, especially in the warm weather, with all of our scores and times being recorded for progress checks. However they have mixed the sessions up and we have done everything from Yoga to 'Surf Rafting'... taking a huge inflatable boat out into the surf and then as a team trying to paddle to catch waves with it. Oars go flying, the boat flips. Chaos ensuses. Lots of very happy faces on the beach. BRILLIANT STUFF!
The first week has been great in all honesty, and I already feel a better surfer and just fitter in general (the food here is very salad based which helps!). I was also taken aback by how seriously Mojo seem to be taking the Academy; it is only very young and they want to turn it into the biggest and best on the East Coast of Australia. Certainly exciting to be part of that!
I'll post back soon about week two, my tough choice about maybe getting a custom board made and all of the gossip from the Brazilian Carnival that went on over the weekend... them Brazilians sure know how to party! Charlie x
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