College Admissions Essay: The Sport Of Surfing

Growing up in a family that Bethany was in surfing was built in her blood. Bethany has two brothers who push her, to be the best person she can be. Bethanys parents inspire her to be the best surfer she can be, because they were both amazing surfers according to Bethany. Bethany is in love with the sport of surfing, she says “once you do it, it becomes an addiction” (Hamilton 10). Growing up she was lucky to have so many family members older than her to look up to and be influenced by.

Growing up competing with my younger brother who is very much closer to my age when I was young really made me competitive. Being really competitive even when I was very young made me even more competitive as I grew up and made me to compete even with my father and it was one of the reasons which influenced me to decide in pursuing my career in science and math. However the major reason which paved the way for my love burgess towards science and math and was really influencing was my father. Being tutored by my father and spending a lot of time with him during my earlier days of my childhood really drew me close to my father and I was able to know how life was hard during his time but passing all those adverse situations he succeeded. So as

Bethany Hamilton was 13 when she was attacked while surfing. She started surfing at 5 years old. She would win major amateur surfing contest by the age of 10. Before her shark attack she was enjoying a day with her best friend Alana, and her best friend’s dad and brother. When out of nowhere a 15 foot tiger shark attacked her, ever since then her life changed. However Bethany got back into the water a day before thanksgiving, reteaching herself how to surf with one hand. Ever since then she’d been an inspiration to people. A year after her attack she won first place at the national championships. After the terrifying shark attack, Bethany Hamilton demonstrated resilience by overcoming the tragedy to achieve her surfing dream.

If you were to adventure around the world and ask anyone to describe what they see when they hear the word “surfing” they would respond with similar answers. The average surfing adventure is pictured with the sun shining, the wide-open beach, the large waves crashing, and the beautiful women chilling in the sand watching their man ride. Unfortunately, they got that last part wrong, for the women in the surf documentary “It Ain’t Pretty” are definitely not cheerleaders. They live for adventure, its the thrill, the danger, the adrenaline rush, it makes life worth living.

Water. One of the world most powerful elements. Waves. Always moving. Always crashing. Always breaking. Something that has always pulled at my attention. Since I was little, I marveled at the waves and their great dominance and the endless amusement they offered. I longed to swim in these waves. I longed to roll with the great crash on the shore, to find the treasures that lurked beneath them, to surf.

My parents tell me that I took to swimming like... a fish takes to water. It is a safe place where I can float free of worries. Driven by passion and dedication, I decided to begin swimming competitively. Competitive swimming requires an intense level of determination and discipline. Forcing myself to get out of my warm bed at 5:30 in the morning to put on a still-slightly-damp swimsuit and stand in 40-degree weather waiting for practice to start. Putting up with limited lane space and irritating swimmers who think they are faster. Making a conscious effort to work on my stroke form, turns, touches, and techniques. The water becomes a whirlpool of injuries, losses, wins, friendships, enemies, and sickness. The water becomes home.

A river has the opportunity to lead to great things; even though, each one begins the same way with a fresh spring. It then, pools into a body of water, and starts flowing. It will keep gaining speed, as it continues to travel downstream until it reaches a lake or an ocean. A river is just like me; I have a spring at my home, a life that is gaining speed, and I have ended up at the great Lake Michigan.

The shore is like my past. Once I get in the boat and launch off the dock, there is no looking back. No regrets, no disappointment, my head clears and all I focus on is rowing. Nothing can penetrate my concentration, not even my mother desperately trying to draw our attention to take pictures of us.

The top surfboard brands on the market today provide you with an exhilarating summer on the coasts of beaches all over the globe. Surfboarding is one of the most popular extreme sports and a very effective way to get ready to show off your summer body. Excitingly, the coasts get crowded as the summer approaches and surfboarding plays a major role to influence the eagerness among individuals and compels them to surf through the waves.

Swimming is unique because the team is seventh grade through twelfth grade. That means I got to become friends with younger girls, but also be a role model for them. I took being a positive role model for these younger girls very seriously. I wanted to be someone they could talk to and someone that inspires them.

In all honestly, surfing is beside the point, surfing has resurrected a part of myself that has been lost for far too long.

On my tenth birthday, November 15 2012, I learned to surf. At the time I lived in Santa Cruz, California on the east side of town, not too far from the ocean. That morning at 9 a.m we arrived at Pleasure Point, a famous surf spot in Santa Cruz. It was a cold, stormy, windy day. A old school professional surfer friend of ours, “Perry”, offered to teach me to surf on my birthday. I had never really liked being in the ocean unless the water was calm and it was a hot sunny day. Today was very different. The wind was howling and caused the waves to be very choppy. Big black thunderclouds waited above. The waves were much larger than I expected and seeing them my stomach started to turn. Only a few experienced surfers could be seen out in the water. In California the water is much cooler than in Hawaii so you must wear a wetsuit. Even then, after a few hours your feet will go numb and your joints will start to lock up. As a

While recalling memories about surfing I began to remember certain events that demonstrated the different mindsets of surfers, one of these was a conversation with my dad when I was younger and we were on the southern California coast. We were talking about how people were starting to surf behind boats, I thought it would be something cool to try since you would be able to ride a wave that goes on forever. My dad on the other hand resented the idea of surfing behind a boat, as he put it “there is a certain connection that you feel when you have paddled all the way out and you are waiting for a wave to come, and then you feel the wave starting to form.” He is the type of surfer where the connection with the ocean is the most important part of

Paddling is one of my favorite passions, and even though I haven’t been doing it for very long, I really love it. I started doing paddling about three and a half years ago, when I first moved to Hawaii from Washington state. The only reason that I actually did it was my parents, who were encouraging me to take part in the sport in order to become closer to Hawaiian culture. I didn’t like it at first, it wasn’t like anything I’d ever done on the mainland. I felt that it was too hard, and unfamiliar, but my parents kept pushing me to stick with it. After a while, I began to notice the things that were good about paddling, instead of the bad. The ocean was beautiful, and full of surprises like fun waves or a rare turtle that we got to see. I had never done a water sport before, and I was just realizing how great it could be. I started to really enjoy paddling, and practiced more, doing exercised off the beach, at home and in the park. Fast forward to now, I have done about five seasons of paddling, and hope to continue it once I’m in highschool, and paddle to represent Punahou’s team! I even paddle two seasons a year, once in winter for the Makalei club, and a more serious summer team, Lanikai. Both seasons I compete in races, and bring home medals for my team!

Swimming, a sport like no other, where you train twice a day, each day, all year. A sport where there is no quitting, no backing down, no losing without a fight. Through hours of hard work, discipline, and plenty of times I’ve failed and gotten back up again, I have learned to not quit, and my team will not quit fighting for our pool, for our swim family, and for our second home.