I can officially say I have been humbled by the ocean, and nearly every part of my body can vouch for me. But I can also say that every ache, pain, and amount of water up my nose was one hell of an exciting experience.
Since moving to San Luis Obispo from Salt Lake City, I have wanted to explore a territory I never had before. Sure, I’ve hiked 13,000-foot peaks and skied in some of the world’s best snow, but never have I really spent any time in the ocean.
If I could be brave enough to encounter a bear on the trail or ski a black diamond run, why couldn’t I try of surfing?
I called up Sandbar Surf School, a company with great reviews that promises to teach you the basics of surfing with qualified instructors. I spoke on the phone with Jonny, the shop owner, who immediately scheduled me for a one-on-one lesson at Pismo Beach.
Jonny’s level of stoke made me all the more stoked. He told me they’d have my wetsuit and board ready for me by 8 a.m. so we could be out in the water to catch those beautiful morning waves.
“We hope you get hooked on our sport as much as we are,” Jonny said.
That Sunday I woke up nervous. I asked myself, “What have you gotten yourself into? You can hardly swim without plugging your nose.”
I put on my comfiest swimsuit and sweatpants like Jonny suggested and started toward Pismo Beach.
My greatest fear wasn’t the surfing itself, being swept to sea, or even the possibility of seeing a shark—I was genuinely dreading the cold water.
“Maybe I should just fake being sick,” I told myself as I kept driving.
I parked in a lot near Addie Street and found Sandbar Surf School’s van. One of the instructors was helping a child get in a wetsuit.
“This child is totally going to show me up,” I thought to myself.
The instructor handed me a wetsuit and surfboard and I stripped down and shimmied into the wetsuit. Ready to go, I looked up and saw surf instructor Mollie walking toward me with a big smile.
Mollie said she has surfed for about eight years and had some experience snowboarding in Colorado too. I knew I’d be in good hands.
We grabbed our boards and headed to the beach where Mollie led me in some stretches (no pulled hammies for us) and taught me the parts of the surfboard: nose, rails, deck, fins, leash. Then she had me lie belly down on the board. Ensuring my toes hung off the end of the board, she told me that this is how I’d lie when preparing to start paddling for a wave.
“Paddle, paddle, paddle!” she said as I practiced my scoops in the sand.
Once you’ve caught the wave, you move your hands on the board right next to your chest, you curl your toes on the board, and you push up into a plank—easy enough. But what’s tricky is getting yourself to stand up from there. In plank you move your back foot up a step in an angled position. For me, this was my left foot. Then, you swing your hip around to get your right foot to the middle of the board so that both feet are balanced.
“Now you’re ready to surf,” Mollie said as she walked me out to the water.
“Wait, what?” I said.
Remember, I said I was terrified of the cold water? Wearing that wetsuit, I had no idea where my body ended, and the water began. Pure magic—or maybe it was the nerves.
We got to about waist deep water where Mollie held the board steady as I positioned myself belly down and got ready to paddle. When I caught that first wave on my belly, there was nothing like it—I was weightless.
My next try, Mollie said to practice standing up. That’s where things went far from graceful. Wave after wave I tried to stand up, but really just nose-dived, flipped, and fell. It felt so foreign, yet oddly fun, and I hardly felt nervous anymore. Despite my body becoming 80 percent sea water, with water up my nose and in my mouth and ears, I was becoming stoked.
After about an hour in the water, my session was up, and I was tuckered out. My muscles were exhausted, and my nose just ran with salt water. But I was absolutely thrilled.
Not only did I find a continuing friendship with my instructor, Mollie, but I feel like that morning ignited something in me that I haven’t felt in a long time. I felt challenged both mentally and physically, as well as connected with something so much bigger than myself.
So, if you’re ever at the coast and see a surfer absolutely face plant it every try, that’s me. Please come say hi.
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Get Outside – Summer/Fall 2025
This article appears in Get Outside – Summer/Fall 2025.