A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A SURF INSTRUCTOR

Who: Natalie Fox
Where: I work for Surf Maroc, Taghazout, Morocco.
What: Surf Instructor, chief candle lighter and commis chef on occasion!

I get up in the dark as I’m on dawn patrol and take a couple of intermediates to surf their first reef break. We leave at 6.30am in order to beat the wind and the crowds — although unless you’re at Anchors you can hardly call it crowded! We have an hour on a cracking two-foot lefthander with no-one else out and get to watch the sun come up over the hills in the distance. We head back to camp at 8am and grab some breakfast. Pancakes today, which go amazing with banana and amalu (Moroccan peanut butter)!
Once the guests are ready we head off to Crocs beach as it’s good for this small northwesterly swell and has a long stretch of sand so it’s perfect for beginners and intermediates. At the beach I unload the boards, lunch and people and everyone gets suited ready for an intermediate lesson. It’s so enjoyable to coach people who are super keen to progress and it’s is an amazing feeling when they get their first green ride or do their first bottom turn.
After the lesson we all chill on the beach, digging into lunch and soaking up the sun. For the afternoon we move somewhere a bit more challenging for a free surf. I keep my eye on everyone and head out for an afternoon session myself – I’m stoked ’cos it’s two- to three-feet and peeling! Around 5pm we start packing up, everyone tired and happy after a full day in the sea and sun.
Once back at camp I’m feeling a bit achy after all the surfing so I opt for a yoga workout on the roof as the sun goes down. I then have a quick shower and prepare the communal area for dinner at 7pm. I light the candles, crank up the stereo and then lay up the large table situated under the stars in the courtyard. Mena the Moroccan chef has cooked up a feast which I place on the table for people to help themselves to. The staff also sit down to eat and everyone swaps stories of their day in the surf.
After food and clearing up I almost manage to sneak off home to bed but there’s a party atmosphere in camp and any way of escape is barred! Several hours and beers later we get the dressing-up box out, put on some ‘80s disco tunes and party like it’s 1999! I finally make it to bed in the early hours, eternally grateful I don’t have a dawnie booked for the following morning.

Nat’s surfing story:

This year, I have had the amazing experience of coaching for SurfGirl Magazine in Newquay, Spain and Morocco.

I grew up landlocked in the Midlands and didn’t begin surfing till I was 21 so I am truly grateful (and astonished) that I have managed to land my dream job – I still have to pinch myself sometimes!

I’m also a former SWAG (Surfer’s wife and girlfriend) so know how hard it is to make the leap from wannabe surf girl to actual, real life surfer.

I was always stuck filming or taking pictures, having to sit through the ‘Occumentary’ on repeat while the boys “got amped” or being woken up at dawn (in order to beat the wind) every single day on holiday. I was experiencing the wonders of the surfing world without getting the waves to make all those little nuances worthwhile. I never knew or fully understood what I was missing, until I finally took the plunge.

The sea was an unfamiliar entity to me – beautiful, scary, powerful, however, on my first surf lesson it was like finding the first piece of the puzzle. For once it all started to make sense. And slowly, painstakingly but with perfect timing the rest of the pieces are finding their way to me.

Believe me, I was no natural! After the initial buzz of standing up, I came face to face with the next stage, the hard stage, the one that seems to last forever, the one that requires real perseverance and dedication. It didn’t help that I was also scared of EVERYTHING! For those of us, not born with the natural skills, guts and talent like the Stephanie Gilmores and Coco Hos in this world, surfing is something that is a real struggle (not that these girls don’t work their asses off!). What are we struggling towards? For it to feel natural, for the knowledge that we know what we’re doing and the feeling we also look like we do… I guess it’s a yearning for these things that keeps us going, plus a desire for more.

Steph rips

If there’s one thing I’ve learnt, through my own journey, as well as coaching the female of the species – is that it’s our confidence holding us back. Confidence is such a fickle creature, it can take an age to build up and a second to knock down; some people are born with it, some people fake it and others are continually searching for it. In terms of surfing and confidence; guys seems to possess it right from the word go, whereas ladies tend to be a bit more tentative when it comes to getting out there.

Girls are lacking the apparent “balls” (literally and metaphorically) needed, not just to get wet initially, but to get better at surfing in general. Well, it’s actually that when it comes to surfing we let our heads rule.

We simply over-think things. We think about things too much, we think about what might have happened, what has happened and what could happen… Whereas the key to surfing is forgetting all thought processes and letting our natural instinct take over. Don’t worry though, at least we don’t over-talk things (like guys!) and there are people out there to give us a helping hand through these barriers.

Of course there are the revolutionaries like Layne and Maya taking on new challenges, pushing the boundaries of the industry and following their hearts. Hopefully their amazing accomplishments will be able to filter down to us mere mortals, showing us that the impossible is possible, and we can follow their lead!

Thanks for listening, I’d love to hear your comments, and if you want to check out some of my tips on being a better surfer, click here!

Tags: surf, Surfing, Travel