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Some people love the ocean from a far but would
never step in, others don't mind venturing in as far as they can
stand... However, a minority like to jump onto flimsy boards and
head out into the deep dark waters where large toothed creatures
lurk.
They cover themselves in rubber for safety rather than kinky reasons
and deal with numerous bouts of cold and maybe even pneumonia just
to do something they could easily do on land… lie there for
a few seconds.
Trying to asses whether this is just a dare gone wrong or whether
there is genuine fun to be had in risking a watery grave, Loay El
Hady, caught up with one body border to find out more.
Carly Wilson is a 17 year old student at
college in Nottingham.
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First things first, there aren't any seasides
in Nottinghamshire so where do you have to go to body board?
There are loads of places nearby where you could go, but Cornwall
is the place to be for surfing in Britain. The waves and climate
are perfect for water sports and it's where the majority of professional
surfers are established. Plus you'll find dozens of shops there
where you can buy all kinds of body boarding gear.
Tell us a bit about body boarding...
It's a relatively new sport, which has spun off from surfing. Bodyboarding
is similar to surfing in that the aim is to 'ride' the wave. However,
a bodyboard is much smaller than a surfboard and usually without
spikes or fins underneath. The reason for there not being spikes
is that with bodyboarding, you simply lie on the board, with your
stomach touching it. You then actually 'jump' onto a wave at it's
highest point-just as it breaks, which, if you do it correctly,
will 'push' you to shore at a rapid speed.
But you start off on shore, what's the point of getting wet,
just to get back there?
The rush of riding a wave is awesome, there's a lot of skill
and patience involved; you can't just lie there and expect to be
boogying like a pro.
Boogying?
That's what we call body boarding, and those of us that do it
are called 'boogers'
Boogying and boogers? (An idea crossed my mind to do my first
interview on myself. My first… early ending interview due to
crazy interviewee. But as ever the show must go on). So what do
you need to do to get good at body boarding?
The main trick is timing! You have to choose your waves real
carefully or it's instantly a wasted attempt and you mess up good!
A skill all 'boogers' need to require is patience. You will instantly
find that experienced surfers and body boarders will not catch the
first wave they see. They will bob up and down in the water, clinging
onto their board, looking out to sea and observing all the waves
that come in. You have to look out as far as you can and check out
which wave you think will be the best to catch. With experience
and practice you get to know the waves on a certain beach and how
big or small they will be.
So you wait for a wave and then just lie on this board? Sounds
pretty lazy to me. At least surfers have to try and balance themselves
on their boards, you guys sound like your just giving a fancy name
to a sea hammock.
Lazy? Why don't you give it a go? Oh, you can't, you're scared
of water.
Not so much the water, as the sharks that are in the water.
You watch too much telly.
Well, apart from the shark attacks you're not telling us about
what other dangers are there?
Most annoyingly, overcrowded sea's in the summer. It bloody
kills when someone comes shooting into your back at an amazing speed!
I've been almost knocked unconscious twice by fellow surfers! Also,
good beaches have strong and violent waves. They can pull you under
the water, knock you clean off your feet and stuff like that. And
you've got to be a strong swimmer if you are going onto the good
beaches.
Anything else?
Always board within the yellow flags on the beach, which is where
the lifeguards patrol. NEVER board when a red flag's up!
Why?
Because you will die!!!
Sounds like fun… any other seaway code regulations prospective
(ahem) boogeyers should watch out for?
A black and white chequered flag means Malibu boards only! Don't
venture into there with a body board unless you have a death wish!
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With the mention of death in the last two sentences,
I felt the more I asked the less I'd want to know so brought proceedings
to a screeching halt.
As with any extreme sport, it's the rush you get out of it that
keeps this activity fresh to its followers.
For me however, the risk of being sucked under by a strong current,
getting knocked unconscious by a fellow surfer's board and the unmentioned
shark attacks which are surely being kept under wraps in some water
sports conspiracy, is enough to keep me in the shallow end of the
local swimming pool.
For the braver, body boarding is an up and coming sport cheap to
start and apparently worth mastering. But when you lose a limb to
Jaws… don't say I didn't warn you.
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