Best decision I ever made

It’s crazy that when you reflect on your life, you realise certain decisions you made set you on a different path. There have been decisions I’ve made that I thought would have had a bigger impact on my life and others so small that they completely rewrote the future of my life.

I remember a feeling of frustration in my late 20s. I didn’t feel like I was living the life I wanted, something was missing but I couldn’t put my finger on it - I did know I wanted to address that.

I turned 30 during the pandemic and luckily at that time, there was a 2-3 week window where you could travel. With that, my friend and I ran away to hike in the Austrian Alps. It was a perfect getaway to a tiny town. We spent our days doing nothing but riding bikes, hiking and most important of all - being in nature.

When I hike, I usually fall into a deep flow state and start wondering about the inner workings of my life, encompassing of the past, present and future. I felt this big shift coming to the surface. During an epic climb, as we ascended 1200m from a crystal blue lake up into the steep forest, where looking behind you consistently rewards you with striking views - it hit me.

Especially with the move into my 30s. I no longer wanted to daydream about the things I want to do in my life. I actually wanted to do them (when the Pandemic was over).

One of these decisions was to start surfing.

It’s something I’d always wanted to do, ever since I watched grainy surf videos on a tiny TV at my local skate/surf shop when I was a teenager. When I wasn’t skateboarding, I was obsessed with watching skate, surfing, or snowboarding films and daydreaming about an adventurous life. I grew up inland in a working-class family, so this wasn’t really an option for me back then. The desire, however, never left me.

Why didn’t I just do this in my 20s, you ask? It’s funny to think back now and remember how self-conscious I felt about starting something new for the first time and sucking at it. That fear actually stopped me from doing the things I wanted to do. No more would I let this happen. Using the excuse of becoming 30, I could no longer hold myself back and I had to fully commit to living the life I wanted.

In February of 2022, I flew to Portugal for my first ever surf camp. It is fair to say that I did in fact suck. I think I sucked at surfing for at least the first year. The amount of times I would leave the water frustrated for having not caught many (or any) waves was more than I care to admit. The popping up and riding a wave actually wasn’t too bad, I think I can thank skateboarding for this. My upper body fitness just wasn’t there and I had no idea how to read waves. I ended up sitting so far on the inside, I would just eat shit a lot of the time.

My first week of surfing in 2022

In my first year of surfing, I met a group of friends (who I have written about a lot so far). I was so drawn to them for the adventurous life they lived, it’s totally fair to say they were all much better surfers than me. Going out with them was great because I felt like I was absorbing so much experience from them but equally, I did feel like I didn’t deserve to be out there with them because I couldn’t surf at their level.

We were always committed to going surfing and because of this, I spent a lot of time in the water and slowly started finding my bearings with it all. Add in the fact I live next to England’s only wave pool, which I started going to 1.5/2 years after I started surfing, this helped me progress much faster.

When you go away for a weekend of surfing, there is a lot of waiting around, usually for tides to shift or swell to come in, so this created the perfect setting to get closer to my new group of friends. We cooked together, played spikeball, had deep conversations and watched the sun go down and sat around campfires. Our group was bonded and forged in adventure, we had little to no responsibilities and we were just doing epic stuff most weekends.

It blows my mind that had I not started surfing, the people I call closest to me these days, the people I lean on for help and support, the people I have a genuinely an overflowing amount of love for, the people I have shared some of the best days of my life with - they just wouldn’t be in my life in the way they are today.

If I reflect on other ways that surfing has impacted my life, the list grows long.

First of all, finding a sport where I can connect with nature not only keeps my body in better physical shape, but the impact it has on my wellbeing is something I can’t quantify. A bad day can be fixed almost instantly by time in the water. It also allows me to create a space where I can reflect on life in between the sets without any distractions. I am literally a healthier human, both body and mind because of surfing.

It enabled me to make the decision to quit drinking, no longer did I want to wake up hungover on a weekend and be unable to move from my bed until the early afternoon. I wanted to prioritise doing things I love with maximum energy. This simply meant alcohol had to go, there was no room for it in my new life.

It’s thanks to surfing that I have volunteered with The Wave Project charity for the last three years. A place where I am part of a large community of like-minded people, who I have shared amazing memories with. Not only at Wave Project sessions but having chased waves, spent weekends camping and even incredible trips abroad.

Surfing has catalysed me to travel to new and far places. I understand the coastline of my own country so much more now. I have studied beaches in Cornwall, found secret spots and felt a deeper connection to the land I live on. I completed a month of driving my van through France & Spain, trying to surf every day. Surfing also took me to other places like Portugal, Morocco & Sri Lanka (and will take me to new places this year).

It’s not all perfect and there have been days where I’ve wondered what the hell I’m doing - either surfing in terrible conditions, standing freezing cold in a carpark when the wind temperature is 2 degrees struggling to get into a cold wetsuit. There have been times I’ve paid the blood tax to the ocean, left the ocean with a broken ankle and general bruises and cuts.

I always kick myself that I didn’t start surfing earlier in my life. The reality is I just wasn’t ready to start that journey any earlier and it was waiting for me until everything aligned. When I reflect back, I can really see how that single decision has rewarded my life with such richness: friends, family, community, a stronger sense of self, increased self-confidence, experiences in far away places.

After four years of surfing, I still don’t think I’ve become a great surfer but I would say I have a lot of fun surfing in pretty much most conditions. My wave count sits at a number I’m very happy with. That feels like a big win to me. I no longer feel those frustrations from the early days but it took a lot of time in the water to move away from that. I feel confident not only in my ability to read the water but understand what my limits are and what I am capable of.

If I could leave you with a piece of advice, it would simply be don’t be afraid of sucking at something for the first time. Stick to it if you’re enjoying it, you never know how that decision could impact the rest of your life.