Stories from the 2024 surf clinic

Original Publication: 9/16/2024

I am so grateful to have been able to participate in my first Surf Clinic with Blind Fitness this year, as a bout with Covid forced me to cancel my joining our first Surf Clinic a year ago.

Santa Claus Lane Beach was a great spot to host the clinic; the waves were well-formed and powerful, and the weather was a perfect, sunny day. One of the more challenging tasks for me was walking from the parking lot to the beach through a rugged and “unblind-friendly” path; it was uneven, with humps, dips, jutting rocks, and extremely narrow in places, requiring that I walk closely and directly behind my guide, and he helped me exactly and carefully where to step. A particular treacherous area was navigating the railroad crossing, stepping over the rails and either onto the ties or the dirt between them, and I am fascinated how the tracks have been constructed along this stretch so close to the ocean.  If this is a popular surfing beach, I am somewhat surprised that a safer and more accessible path has not been created.

That said, all the preliminaries were well-planned, and the tents were in place upon the arrival of us participants and volunteers. I was captivated by how much detail goes into preparing us to hit the water, let alone atop surf boards, and how quickly I had forgotten how SAND invades EVERYTHING! I already was aware of the challenge maneuvering my arms and legs into a wet-suit, but it’s actually a fun challenge, and  I received lots of help and encouragement from volunteers on the surf team. Before we hit the water, Chris from Surf Happens gave us a talk about embracing nature, the ocean and its waves, and our bodies as we interact with water, wind, sun and sand, and I am so impressed by him, and his entire team, and how knowledgeable they are of wave formation, angles, size, shape and overall flow according to the type and size of a specific beach. They were so patient and helpful to me, and to all of us participants.

When it came to my turn to hit the water and surf for the first time, I was gun-shy about climbing onto the board, and chose to lie down both times and not stand, as my balance now has lessened than in my younger days. With the movement of the water, I did not feel comfortable riding on it, either lying down, or propping myself up on my knees, it felt really awkward. The volunteers did a great job holding and guiding the surf-board, so the discomfort really was on me. I was humbled to hear that there were some stud surfers standing up on their boards,  out there on the water, WAY MORE advanced than I probably will ever be.

 Regarding balance, I even discovered this when body-surfing, as I used to be more sure-footed walking along the sea-bottom and dodging waves when paddling out to catch another wave in. Since body-surfing is probably my favorite participatory sport, I dove into the water and waves literally head-long. I had the most fun body-surfing as I have had in probably 40 years, as the waves were bigger and more powerful, and I again got to embrace the ocean and feel its might, enjoying the ride of a wave; hearing a wave breaking directly ahead of me, then ducking under to dodge it as it rolled over me was thrilling! I felt so liberated going out onto the water again, with a new realization how powerful the ocean and its waves are.

The real high-point of my day had nothing to do with surfing, body-surfing or the ocean, but the chance I got to meet and talk with Frankie for the first time. I took the opportunity to encourage him, tell him how capable he is and will be to adapt to his sight loss, and so proud I am of him for his growth and ability to adjust and regrip his life since I first met him in our Braille Institute Men’s Support Group probably more than a year ago. I look at Frankie and realize how much more he has suffered than I have, and with all the blessings and opportunities I have been given through my entire life, I am called to pass those blessings and opportunities forward as much as I can to a brother like Frankie.
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In summary, the surf clinic was a blast, and I’m so grateful I was healthy this year and able to attend and participate. I deeply appreciate the hard work all our volunteers put in to enable the entire surf clinic to run so smoothly,--to the Goleta/Santa Barbara Lions Clubs and Kyle’s Kitchen for providing our lunch, Surf Happens, . . and any other partners or organizations I inadvertently have omitted.​

Respectfully,
Bob Burnham, 
Blind Fitness Board Chair/President

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