Off and under

Lesson 9 – 40 minutes

Attempt or perform rolling under a wave on a board

If you are not confident coaching the skills in this lesson, bring in a surf sports athlete or coach to help deliver the lesson.
Discuss the surf conditions and safety considerations before entering the water.

ROLLING UNDER A WAVE ON A BOARD

As wave approaches, move forward and grab front handles while lying along the board.
Just before the wave hits roll the board over and hold on tight.
While under water keep your body parallel to the board and pull board forward and down as the foam hits.
After wave has passed turn the board back over.
Get back on the board and quickly start paddling.

Draw the shape of a board in the sand.
Demonstrate to the participants the technique for rolling a board while talking them through the steps.
When you get to the part where you roll over, you will just pretend to have the board come over top of you etc, this demonstration can be fun when the participants start getting all sandy.

Position the participants in a semi-circle and ask them to draw the shape of a board in the sand.
Ask participants to position themselves on their board as if they were paddling.
Talk the participants through rolling a wave and ask them to demonstrate what they should do.
Tell them that a wave is approaching (they need to move forward on the board).
Tell them that the wave is about to hit them (they roll over holding the board).
Tell them the wave has passed them (they roll the board back over, get back on and start paddling again).

Turn the first activity into a game.
Have the participants start by pretending to paddle their board.
When you say ‘WAVE’ they need to roll over onto their backs.
When you say ‘BOARD’ they roll over and start paddling again.
Start by calling them out slowly, then speed it up so they are rolling all over the place.

Have participants practice their skills in small waves in an area close to shore and marked out by Water Safety Personnel.