After a dismal week of sleeping in the boot of my Peugeot 106, waiting for swell on the Cornish coast for my first ever surf lesson with Max Hepworth-Povey, he persuaded me to head to Spain for a real surf experience with Ticket to Ride.
A couple of months later and I was on the plane to Santander carrying a mixed bag of excitement and apprehension, not knowing that this was going to be the best thing that ever happened to me. The beginning of my surf addiction.
Arriving solo I quickly fell into the routine of life; hauling a gigantic foamie to the beach ready to take on the white water before sinking a few pints of Spanish nectar with Elvis Hips Jessup, Handsome George and Josh Devaney (who quickly became my ‘brother-from-another’)… queue the onslaught of ‘Hit Me Baby One More Time’.
Sliding over the x-rated apres-surf antics, I will always remember that feeling of popping up and catching my first wave. Experiencing the power of water driving me towards the beach with all my new found fellow groms cheering ‘yeeewwww’ as I innocently threw a shakka back at them grinning from ear-to-ear.
Two debaucherous trips to Spain down, one incident with a weaver fish and an ever-expanding crew of surfers lined up in my phonebook, it was time to tackle the tropics and get serious in Sri Lanka with King Julian.
Life in Ahangama was pretty bliss, eating coconut pumpkin curry ‘erryday’ chasing waves in tuk-tuks up and down the coastline and surfing with sea turtles over the reef outside our hostel. But I was quick to learn the quirks of Asia, finding myself holding hands with the locals, romantically looking out over the ocean wondering how it had come to this point and visiting a local medicinal garden where I was unwillingly stripped of my clothes and massaged for a ‘very good price’.
Feeling a little more at home in the water I took my first hardboard for a ride and paddled out for my biggest waves yet. At the time I thought I was surfing, looking back I definitely hadn’t got it yet. Praised for effort, I nose dived my way through Sri Lanka, unsuccessfully being crowned PJ (Premature Johnny) for paddling every wave too early.
Despite my familiarity with the wipeout, I had honed the core skills of a beginner surfer, and by the end of the trip, I was catching more and more waves.
Having only spent one or two weeks at a time trying to progress in the water I decided to make a real go of it, so I quit my job and booked a one way ticket to Asia, of course starting my travels with Ticket to Ride on their first ever trip to Siargao in the Philippines where I spent just over a month with Snow/Surf seasonaire Gwil Thomas and ex-pro surfer Chad Schwab.
“Oh My Wow!” Siargao was mind-blowing from every angle. The food, people, scenery, surf and even the accommodation at Harana Surf. Ticket To Ride pretty much ticked off my entire travel wish list in one month, taking us island hopping, snorkelling with stingless jellyfish, eating in local houses, paddle boarding lagoons, cruising through mangroves, hiking through jungles, meeting local guapas and even booking us on a surf survival and free-diving course with big wave surfer Kyron Rathbone. Not to mention the awe-inspiring tour of Coco Surf where we learnt the innovative way that they make surfboards in Siargao, using basic tools such as an iron to cut through the polystyrene.
Bringing it back to surfing, I finally got the hang of things, learning to read and time the waves as well as turning down both left and right handers – I was so stoked with my progress. Even my paddling improved, now whipping across the surface eager for my next wave.
It wasn’t all fun and games though, just as I was getting comfortable riding reefs, I encountered the joy of stepping on a sea-urchin and wiping out across the face of the reef. Naively I brushed it off and carried on… then came the all-consuming reef infection, what I hadn’t realised is that I had the tips of three urchin spines buried in the bottom of my foot and debris from the reef wedged in my cuts. Luckily, seasoned surfer, Chad was there to teach me how to deal with reef infections and hooked me up with the daily cleaning ritual. But that’s all part of the experience, right? Sure enough, I was back in the water in no time.
When it came to the whole surfing experience in Siargao, Ticket to Ride seriously delivered. But the best moment for me was sharing a bottle of rum with Gwil on a boat in the Philippine Sea, chasing the sunset with Sister Sledge blaring out the speakers when he asked me what my plans where for after the trip. The next morning I received a job offer from Linley Lewis, asking me to assist hosting The Meribel Snow Lodge with Gwil for the entire snow season… Why not? Time to trade the boardies in for some knitwear! From grom groupie to Ticket to Ride ambassador, I am so amped to be part of the team and can’t wait to see what the future holds on both the snow and the sea.
Keep an eye out for some more exciting stuff!
Cheers,
Johnny Colbert