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Chase Stodden

Mr. Robert Arnold

UWRT 1101-073

September 14, 1015

Literacy Narrative

I am from the Outer Banks, North Carolina. Me being from the Outer banks, one could

assume that I like the beach and that I go all the time; they would be totally correct. Ever since I

was child, I have loved going to the beach. I mean who doesn't like the beach? Actually, there is

a surprisingly large amount of people who do not care for the beach, but that is beside the point.

Because of my many beach ventures, starting when I was a little boy, I could not help myself in

loving the ocean. So as I got older, I took upon the sport of surfing.

My interest for watersports started when I was young. Just like any other child at the

beach, I loved to ride “boogie boards” or also known as body boards; especially when the waves

would break just before the shore and the wave would carry you all the way to the dry sand. It is

a thrilling moment to ride a body board as a child and, as an adult, I can still say that I

thoroughly enjoy grabbing a body board every now and then to take to the waves. Body boards

never fail to excite and are always fun no matter what the conditions may be.

Throughout my constant beach outings, I always paid close attention to the people with

the unique fiberglass boards, surfers. I describe surfboards with the word unique because every

board is different. A quality surfboard is handmade my shaper; therefore, there is no way for a

good board to be the same as another. Surfboards come in different shapes, sizes, colors, and

have different fin configurations. I like to think of surfboards as a surfer’s weapon and every

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surfer chooses their preferred weapon to take on the waves based on the conditions for a

particular day.

My first board was nothing special nor was it manmade. The company who made it is

called Channel Islands and they manufacture boards with the use of machines on a huge scale

making them one of the largest mass producers of surfboards. Now the quality of their boards is

nice, but they do not compare to a board made by a professional shaper. My Dad was the first

person to take notice to my interest in surfing and him being a bit of a surfer himself, he loved

the idea of me getting into the sport and also he sparked my interest in the sport as well. My first

board was a 6’4” gun with a three fin configuration which is typically used by people who have

been into the sport for a while; With that being said, I think my first board should have been a

longboard because, compared to a short board, it is much easier to stand up on and maintain

balance.

It was early spring when my Dad and I took to the beach for our first time surfing

together one early morning. I wanted to go really early to avoid the chance of lots of surfers

being out in the water due to my fear of others watching me fail at surfing. I had checked the surf

report the day before to make sure it was even worth our time going, which it was with waves

getting up to about chest to head high. When we first arrived at the beach my first thought was,

there are way more people here then I though there would be at seven in the morning. Due to the

water temperature of the ocean being so cold, wetsuits were a must. After putting our wetsuits

on, we went straight into the water. My wetsuit was a spring suit, meaning that it only went

down to my knees and it was not the thickest of wetsuits, but it was the right suit for the job. The

water was only numbing to my legs, feet, and hands; fortunately, the tingling goes away and the

feeling in those parts of the body fades. I was out in the water with my Dad for a total of about

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two hours, but it felt like I had been out there all day. As I was out in the water paddling around

on the board some and sitting on it as well, I was very timid to go after a wave. My Dad would

tell me that there was nothing to be afraid of and that I would do fine, but I wasn’t afraid of the

actual surfing part. I was afraid of failing and letting other people watch me fail scared me even

more. Then as I lay on the board I thought to myself, everybody out here in the water that is on a

surfboard was a beginner at some point in their life. Thinking this helped me tremendously. I

then set out for my first wave, looking in the distance for quality sets. When I spotted one that I

wanted to take on, I started paddling as hard as I could. Hard enough to the point where I could

really feel a soreness in my shoulders and back. I had caught my first wave! Prior to catching

that wave, I did not think about what I would do after I finally caught the wave. I realized that as

soon as the wave started to propel me forward and there was no way off of the wave. It was all

happening so quickly and I had little time to think about what I would do next. So what did I do?

Absolutely nothing. I remained in the laying down position on the surfboard and rode that wave

as if I was on a little 50” body board. I was so embarrassed after that happened and did not want

to be out in the water any longer. Along with being embarrassed, I was disappointed in myself. I

promised myself that the next time I took my surfboard out, I will catch a wave and I will stand

up.

The next time I ended up going to the beach, I stood up. Although I was not standing up

for long before I fell, it was the best feeling in the world. I felt accomplished and I was proud of

myself. I did not stand up the first wave I went after, but I attempted and fell. That gave me

motivation to want to get back on the board and get it right.

It was not long after that day that I was wanting to go to the beach every chance I could.

It is such a thrilling feeling when I am out in the water seeking for waves and just feeling the

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ocean is something special. The steps that I took to actually being able to surf sound so easy in

my mind when I think back, but it was very difficult and I did not succeed at first. Although, not

succeeding helped me in a way. It made me become more literate in the sport of surfing and it

helped me realize that failing is almost necessary to learn.