My buddies and I decided to hit Bundoran for Sea Sessions '09 and what an adventure it was. We took a lesson with Richie on the Saturday afternoon. Though there were little or no waves to be seen, it was our first time ever to surf and Richie assured us it was the perfect opportunity to learn the basics. In fact Richie was rather excited that we had never tried it before proclaiming "you're my favourite people to teach". We knew we were on to a good thing. After a brief yet informative (& quite hilarious) demonstration on the beach he had us in the water before we knew it, giving us the confidence and encouragment to give it a go - right from the off! Low and behold the 3 of us stood up on our boards within the first hour - "pretty awesome" we thought. But now we had the added challenge of keeping it going - Did we? Well kind of. One thing's for sure - Richie was adament that we'd conquer each and every wave. I asked him at one point if he could remember his first wave and he recalled his experience at the tender age of 10. I was surprised he remembered so vividly - but when I got my first wave (granted it was a bit wobbly) I realised this was something I wouldn't forget. As Richie pushed my board forward and I paddled like crazy he said "this is your wave" - and it was!! What a laugh. The sun was shining, the water cool, the craic was ninety - what more could we have asked for of a Summers day? The two hours went by in a flash and we were gutted when Richie announced our last go. As we told him on the day, we were determined to be champions of the ocean by the end of the lesson - and we were - though perhaps he says that to all the girls :)

No doubt Richie is a pro and we'll definitely be back. Thumbs up, I think I've found my new hobbie - YAY!!

Kathryn McKiernan
Occupation: RTE Presenter/Researcher
Home Town: Dublin, Co. Dublin, Ireland
Years Surfing: not long!