THE BOARDS OF EDUCATION SANTA MONICA'S SURF ACADEMY OFFERS LESSONS ON HOW TO CATCH A WAVE.Byline: Bill Becher Special to the Daily News SANTA MONICA Santa Monica (săn`tə mŏn`ĭkə), city (1990 pop. 86,905), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1886. Tourism and retailing are important, and the city has motion-picture, biotechnology, and software industries. - If you've ever had the desire to hang 10, or even one or two, the Surf Academy is the place to get stoked stoked adj. Slang 1. Exhilarated or excited. 2. Being or feeling high or intoxicated, especially from a drug. about Southern California's signature sport. Classes in surfing are available seven days a week in the summer. The school offers group and private lessons at Huntington Beach Huntington Beach, city (1990 pop. 181,519), Orange co., S Calif., on the Pacific coast, across from Santa Catalina Island, in an oil-producing area; inc. 1909. It manufactures aerospace vehicles, aircraft parts, optical instruments, and heat transfer equipment. , El Segundo El Segundo (ĕl sēgŭn`dō), industrial city (1990 pop. 15,223), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1917. Its products include navigation and computer systems, aircraft parts, office machines, telephone apparatus, and and Santa Monica. Wet suits and surfboards are provided. All you need to bring is yourself, a bathing suit, some sunscreen sunscreen /sun·screen/ (-skren) a substance applied to the skin to protect it from the effects of the sun's rays. sun·screen n. and a willingness to look silly at first. ``It's a rush,'' said Alex Fink, 13, of Pacific Palisades Palisades, cliffs along the west bank of the Hudson River, NE N.J. and SE N.Y., extending from N of Jersey City, N.J., to the vicinity of Piermont, N.Y., with a general altitude of from 350 ft to 550 ft (107–168 m). who took a lesson this week at Santa Monica. ``All your problems fade away Verb 1. fade away - become weaker; "The sound faded out" dissolve, fade out change state, turn - undergo a transformation or a change of position or action; "We turned from Socialism to Capitalism"; "The people turned against the President when he stole the , you're concentrating on catching a wave. You're just happy.'' Mary Setterholm, founder of the Surf Academy, said what you get after a few lessons is a feel for the sport and a healthy respect for the sea. The classes attract many first-timers - tourists and locals who want to find out what surfing's like. Lessons, offered twice a day, start with some dry-land practice with the boards, which are large and soft to prevent injury. The students learn to roll over when a wave is about to break over them and the ``pop up'' - how to stand up on the board. Then it's time to head into the water. Instructors wade out, pick a wave and launch students with a push of the board and help with timing the pop up - which is the tricky part. Bad timing, bad balance and you're in the soup. But it's all part of the learning curve. ``We're proud of wipeouts,'' said Setterholm. ``They're a measure of your devotion to surfing.'' Students can also learn some surf speak, which can be as much about inflection as vocabulary. Take, for example: ``The waaaaves are sooooo good,'' as surf speak. ``Sick'' can mean good. The instructors, mostly college age men and women, kid Setterholm in surf speak, calling her ``Moms,'' as in, ``Moms scored a sick wave.'' ``Hang 10,'' a somewhat old-school term, refers to running out to the end of your board while riding a wave and hanging the toes of both feet over the end. One foot over is ``hanging five.'' ``Grom'' - short for ``grommet'' - is a young surfer. This is not necessarily a put-down put·down or put-down n. Slang 1. A dismissal or rejection, especially in the form of a critical or slighting remark: "Such answers were, perhaps still are, a . . . . Groms pick up surfing quickly - more quickly than adults. Lack of fear of getting hurt, natural athletic ability and a board that's bigger in proportion to their bodies are all factors that help kids learn to surf. But adults can pick it up, too. Kim Clerx and Jennifer Johnson are elementary school teachers who enjoy learning to surf. ``We get depleted de·plete tr.v. de·plet·ed, de·plet·ing, de·pletes To decrease the fullness of; use up or empty out. [Latin d during the school year,'' said Johnson. ``We need to replenish our spirit during the summer. This is one way to do that.'' Once students learn to paddle, catch a wave and stand up, lessons concentrate on picking waves and positioning to get the best ride. ``We can only teach so much,'' instructor Rimmon Fay said. ``You have to practice.'' Practice involves falling down a lot. Surfspeak is rife with terms for this. Everyone's heard of a ``wipeout,'' but there is also getting ``worked, drilled, dominated or rag-dolled'' by a wave. This often results in ``eating a sand sandwich.'' But Santa Monica is an ideal spot for first-time surfers because waves are consistently gentle and the bottom is all sand with no rocks, according to instructor Greg Montgomery. After learning the basics (and some surf etiquette) a good spot for beginners is Sunset Beach where Sunset Blvd. meets the Pacific Coast Highway Pacific Coast Highway may refer to:
It seems that, if you live here, you should at least try riding a wave. ``We're in Southern California,'' said Melissa Bachrach, whose 13- year-old son was taking a surfing lesson. ``Isn't this what kids are supposed to do?'' IF YOU GO Two-hour Surf Academy group classes at Santa Monica cost $50 and are held near lifeguard tower No. 28, located one mile south of the Santa Monica Pier The Santa Monica Pier is located at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California and is a prominent landmark. Attractions The pier contains Pacific Park, a family amusement park with a large ferris wheel. , at 9 a.m. and noon. Reservations are required on weekends. For more information visit, www.surfacademy.com or call (877) 599-7873. CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box Photo: (1 -- 2) Above, Jennifer Johnson successfully performs a ``pop up'' on her board during a lesson with the Surf Academy. The West Los Angeles
Bill Becher/Special to the Daily News Box: IF YOU GO (see text) |
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