Aloha Kane & Wahine o ke kai… I was asked if I’d be interested in writing a surf column and happily said yes! In my mind I ran thru a few topics that would help many of you surfers and people new in their endeavors surfing over one of the most beautiful parts of our earth the “Reef”...

REEFS are all over the earth and create amazing waves to carve and enjoy but if you don’t have a personal affection or knowledge about her, surfing on a reef can be quiet daunting. Sometimes people have so much fear that they aren’t capable of enjoying her beauty and what a special gift the reef is to mankind. If you ever get the chance of flying out of Oahu going to Maui, Molokai, Big island or just heading east sit on the left side of the plane in front of the wing, you can get an amazing view of the earth’s reef off our south shore of Oahu, especially if its glassy.

In sharing and playing in the ocean the main and most important thing to always bring into your world is being RELAXED.

This is the number one  factor in surfing and something that we have always taught in my schools of surfing internationally. Whether you are in the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Samoa, Palau, Marshall Islands, Japan’s Nijima Island, parts of Australia or any of the Hawaiian Islands, YOU must relax and breath. When your body is relaxed when you are surfing over a reef there is a much greater chance that you will not touch the reef. If you hesitate when you drop in or tense up your body when you are cutting back because the reef looks close, DON’T, this tension causes dead body weight and there’s a good possibility that because of that tension and weight, you may touch or hit the reef because your mind is focused on it. If you fall off your board just relax and feel like a feather. That way the chances of your touching the reef will be low. 

TIDES:A good rule of thumb when you are preparing to go surfing is check your tide chart which can be picked up at local surf shops or check the Net for the tide time tables. Over the years I have met people from all around the world, I find it interesting that so many people are unaware that the moon changes our tides and how often. For instance, did you know that the tide changes four (4) times a day? Each day the tide can move around 50 minutes at a different time as well. It is interesting to note that the tide can be low tide on one side of the island, say on the North shore at 9:45 am and on the South shore it can be low tide at 11:20 am. Our islands or land all have different heights and tide moves accordingly, before you go, know what the tide is doing and get used to checking it. As surfers we benefit from knowing the ebb & flow as the waves are affected at different spots and different times of the day by the changing tides. In Hawaii, the South Pacific, or other locations where there are reefs, surfing at high or medium tide is best time to avoid a close call with the reef. If you do come in contact with the reef be smart and take care of your injury as soon as possible to avoid further problems. If your cut has any depth or length, get it looked at and sewn up to avoid a long healing process. 

On the reef you might unfortunately step on wana (aka sea urchin) as we call it in Hawaii while at your favorite surf spot. For best results get out of the ocean right away and either use your own urine or ask your friends to go shi shi or pee into a cup so you can soak your foot, hand, etc. in urine. Yeah! Yeah! No worries mate! This is the best way to go and it will heal the fastest as well. Urine is a very old natural healing remedy and will dissolve the material ‘wana’ in your body. Second best use white vinegar but what ever you do don’t try to dig the wana out. And if people or doctors try digging it out, then they do not know what they are up against, as the wana will go deeper. Soak the part of your body at least three times a day to have it dissolve faster. Trust me on this I know personally and from helping many over the years. Get out there and have a surf and remember RELAX and you will enjoy so much more.
Until the next column of Smooth Surfing, Happy Surfing!
Aloha and a hui hou! Nancy Emerson(& Cherokee)

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