I went straight down. I had no idea you were supposed to go back and forth, side to side. I’d seen snowboarding before, but clearly I hadn’t focused on technique.
And no one bothered to tell me I wasn’t supposed to just go straight down the hill.
Apparently that’s how you crash.
The only time I’ve ever been surfing, I was so excited because I had wanted to do it my entire life. I had a borrowed board and no real instructions. Only, “stay in the white water and you should be good.” That was it.
After many tries, I stood up and rode a few waves in toward the shore. It was super fun. Even if it was only on baby waves, I had finally gotten to surf. And I was loving it.
But it wasn’t exactly how I had imagined. I had no idea what I was actually doing once I got up. I had no idea how to maneuver or steer. I could pretty much only go straight. And when I saw a little boy and girl playing in the water in front of me, I had no idea how to get out of their way. They were right in front of me, and if I didn’t do something, I would run right into them.
When I was a kid, I had a skateboard, but despite what movies portrayed, water doesn’t work the same way as asphalt. It doesn’t work the same way as snow either. Navigating a board through the water does not equate to leaning into actual ground to move to the right or left.
And did I mention I am super coordinated and really good at sports?
Not knowing what else to do and not having time to think, I bent straight forward into the board, slamming my left knee onto it hard, and was then able to take control with my arms like it was a boogey board. I barely missed the kids.
I knew my knee hurt. But until I took the wetsuit off, I didn’t realize how swollen it was. I didn’t know how badly I had screwed it up. I definitely didn’t know it would eventually require surgery, and that I would limp down the aisle on my wedding day once I was finally off the crutches.
I’m sure there’s a lesson in there somewhere about being careful what you wish for and blah, blah, blah. But if I had the chance to surf again, and someone to actually teach me some basics, I wouldn’t even hesitate.