College Admissions Essay: How Surfing Changed My Life

Imagine yourself laying on your surfboard in the cool ocean water with the hot sun beating down on you. Surfing is a sport as old as time. Created in 1,000 A.D surfing caught on quick and never left. As surfing grew in popularity, more and more people began competing. By 1930 surfing competitions started but wasn’t popular until 1978 when the first place winner got a cash prize.

As I looked backed at what seemed to be a decent sized wave, I started paddling with all my might, digging through the water, deeper and deeper. The wave came closer and I felt a push from my cousin as I caught the wave. “Stand up” my cousin yelled behind me as the monstrous wave began to swallow me up. I stood up, rode the wave all the way to the shore, and fell in love with the sport of surfing. Since that day, I have loved everything one could ever love about the sport: The salty water as it touched my body, the push of the wave as it stood me up on my smooth yet sticky board, and the exhilarating rush that I felt after every perfect ride. But not quite everything about the sport came easy to me, it took a long ride to find the love I have for the sport today. When I first started competitively surfing, I

Imagine you are at the beach. You are laying down a towel and setting up an umbrella when something catches your eye. Out in the ocean you see a surfer catching some waves, and it looks so fun and exciting that you almost grab a board and join in. However you don’t know how to surf and would rather not embarrass yourself in front of all these beach goers. Surfing, however, isn’t complicated at all and can be accomplished in these simple steps.

As any cliché artist would say, “I started drawing a lot when I was younger;” but not me –I can’t remember when I started to enjoy the arts. I have always been driven to create and express myself. I painted scenery to calm my nerves, draw intricate objects to focus on details, and draw dynamic poses to allow development of my eye. The mountain of used sketchbooks fills its’ own bookcase, dating back to early elementary years when I would create little stories much like a comic book. Despite my deep love for the arts, I always loved animation much more. Animation is the perfect blend of drawing and creating visual aid, while elaborately designing a storyline and plot to engage the audience –animation lets the average audience member to feel

My eyes are closed. I can feel my heartbeat in my ears, beating in time to the bass drum. Is this a spiritual experience? I stand in the crowd, surrounded by hundred of people feeling the same vivid emotions as I do. The music is what connects me to these strangers. It’s the common thread running from my veins into theirs. We’re all having a life changing experience, right there in that small music venue. But for the band on stage, it’s just another night on tour, going through the motions, playing songs they wrote years ago. And yet, my heart is telling me one thing: This is what I want to be someday. I want to change people’s lives. I want influence the dreams of individuals everywhere, just like those musicians who have influenced my dreams.

Some would say it's like snowboarding, whereas others would say it's like skateboarding. I, on the other hand, believe surfing is unlike any other sport. Besides it being loads of fun and freeing your mind, it is also a great workout. Problem is, though, many people wonder how to get started and learn what to do. That's where I come in.

In the first grade, I picked up a clarinet. It was my sister’s, collecting dust while waiting for me to play it. From the moment I produced my first sound, an ear-piercing squeal that frightened my dog, the path of my life took a turn for the better. I began teaching myself for the following three years, along with learning from my sister how to properly play the beautiful instrument. The music pushed me out of my comfort zone: concerts that forced me onstage, tests that made me play difficult songs, and teachers that pushed me to be an exceptional player. From the shy elementary school student I used to be to the outgoing band member I take joy in being today, music has shaped my everyday life.

Surfing: Cardio, conditioning. Surfing requires constant core balance and upper body strengthening by paddling. It's similar to an interval-type workout because you are paddling for waves, popping up on your feet, and maintaining full body motion with balance. This activity strengthens and requires various muscle groups.

She persevered. Surfing was Bethany’s passion, her life-long dream. Failing to get back in the water was not an option. Bethany trained hard, hurdling over her life-obstacles and soon was back on her board, competing.

Her parents were passionate about surfing and they passed along their love of the beach to Bethany and her brothers, Noah and Timmy. When Bethany was eight, she joined the competitive surfing circuit. Her whole family became involved in her training. Her dad taught her techniques and surfing tips while her mom, Cheri, homeschooled her. Cheri was a strict teacher and made sure that Bethany never fell behind on her work while her brothers toughened her up for all her competitions. Bethany’s family taught her that it was okay to lose sometimes because there would always be a next time when she could win. Bethany’s attachment to surfing was in her blood as she said “Surfing is a force that moves your body and soul.” (Hamilton, 122). She practiced for hours everyday and loved everything about her surfing world especially her friends. As she began winning competitions, Bethany’s brother Noah started sending pictures of her surfing to various companies that manufactured clothing. Soon after that, the company Rip Curl sponsored Bethany and gave her free clothes and equipment to use while she surfed. Bethany was a rising star in the field of competitive

It isn’t clear how the Polynesians actually discovered surfing, but we can all conjecture. Assuming that these ancient people were familiar with paddling in the ocean, they surely understood that while paddling with a swell, one could feel the next wave building behind them. As the wave begins to peak, it pulls you down, and then draws you up, then allowing one to fall along the face of the wave, skipping forward across the surface. It seems to be the best guess that surfing started much like that, a fisherman catches a lift to shore

The most important skill in surfing is learning the correct paddling technique. A good paddler catches plenty of waves while poor

The actions of surfing are paddling, standing up, holding balance, and maneuvering the board along the wave. The first action, paddling, engages many muscles all along the back and into the arms. Paddling works your Latissimus Dorsi (found in your lower back), your Trapezius (found in the upper, back of your neck) and your deltoides (found in the shoulders) (Tessa Bolter, personal interview 1). According to Hypervibe.com; “Paddling out uses deltoides, biceps, and triceps, which is all upper body and found in the arms and shoulders” ( ). From my observations of surfers, paddling takes up the majority of the time on the water. Paddling out to the spot on the water you would like works all of these muscles for long periods of time. Likewise paddling away from the wave as fast as you can in order to catch and stand up on the wave is another chunk of a surfers time. Popping up on the wave and riding it as well as maneuvering the wave can be a mere 30 seconds of working your muscles. Pushing yourself up on the board while on a mo While so many muscles are engaged  In just standing up it takes more than just strength to

One of the motivators paddle boarding can be described as is Intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is the performance of an activity for the behaviors itself and the feels that result from the activity. People want to go paddle boarding because they want to feel peace, happiness, and a boasted self-esteem just like how I felt. They want to paddle board because they have experienced that the result of this activity leaves them feeling good. The second motivation would be Identified motivation. Identified motivation means people participate because they see the value and get something out of it (skill building or increasing physical fitness). While I was paddle boarding I what kept me getting back up on the board was the fact that if I kept getting on the board I would improve my skill. As well as myself, people want to keep paddle boarding and getting back up on the board because they believe that if they continue to not give up not only will their skill improve, but also their physical

Ever wanted to try surfing? Well now one can begin with these simple steps. This essay will teach the basics of surfing along with the equipment needed. Surfing is very simple and can be done with four pretty simple steps and a little prep.