Whether I’m feeling frustrated, hyperactive, hungover or just had a rough day at work, setting foot into the ocean for a spot of surfing has never failed to cure all my ailments. Every time, I seem to emerge with a beaming smile on my face even if I’ve just spent the past two hours being hammered and hurled into the sand by the stunning force that is Mother Nature. It is a feeling akin to any other.
Managing the Star Surf villa on Fuerteventura has given me first-hand insights into the intrinsic relationship between health and surfing. Here on Fuerteventura, I’ve come to understand that a surf camp offers people a form of escapism, be it from a stressful job, daily Uni workloads or just a cold and dark winter – surf camp holidays help people shake off the monotony of everyday life! The ocean and surfing allow people to break away from the ever-present consumerism and to connect back with the raw power found in the ocean. While managing the Fuerteventura surf camp, I was truly astonished to see how even a day’s surfing affected people’s attitudes and altered their perspective on life.
After attending Star Surf Camps’ decompression week for soldiers, my friend Jimmy explained to me how surfing affected him: “The process of entering the ocean and feeling the water wash over you must have some physical and/or psychological effect – you’re washing away hangovers and troubles alike. It’s a powerful cleansing experience! I like the feeling of emerging from a duck dive, straight through the face of a powerful wave, the feeling that squeezes every bone in your body… All of this is before you even get going, the anticipation of paddling for a set, taking off and then the adrenaline, the rush which you will never get enough of!”
