Learning to tame the ocean waves

Luyolo Mkentane

THERE is a fresh surge of interest in surfing in and around Port Elizabeth, says new surf school owner Matthew Calitz, 38. Young and old are bent on mastering the ocean waves. Calitz is the owner of Soul Surfing surf school where one and all can learn to emulate the men and women of the championship circuit.

Calitz, who grew up in the surfing mecca of Jeffreys Bay, said he opened the school in December last year.

One of the school‘s youngest members is Mohammed Laher, 12, from Summerstrand. Laher, a Grade 7 pupil at Cape Receife, said he decided to learn surfing “for the fun of the sport”, adding that he was enjoying it a lot.

“I tried to bring my friends along but they wouldn‘t budge, but that didn‘t put a damper on my spirit because I love surfing. When I told my parents I wanted to learn how to surf, they told me about the dangers involved,” laughed Laher, who joined the school nonetheless and hasn‘t looked back since.

Laher‘s goals in joining the surf school are clear. “I want to become a professional surfer and take part in surf competitions. So far, I‘ve learned to stand and ride on white water and also learned to paddle.”

Laher praised Calitz for being a good surf teacher because “I came to Soul Surfing not knowing anything about the sport, but now I would be able to teach others a thing or two”.

“Just a few more lessons and I‘m going to beat Kelly Slater.”

Slater, of the US, is an eight-time world champion and is considered to be the greatest competitive surfer of all time. That doesn‘t seem to deter Laher at all.

Calitz described Laher as a “very confident and a very committed learner” who wanted to go to surf competitions.

Calitz himself was only eight when he started surfing in Jeffreys Bay. When, all these years later, his girlfriend, Delene Dunsomre, broached the idea of a surfing school it rang all the right bells.

“She brought the whole concept up and painted the picture for me. It was an idea and everything just fell into place.”

Calitz has been surfing for 28 years and has a level one surf coaching qualification from Surfing South Africa. He‘s also a qualified surf lifesaver and uses yoga as a stretching exercise before getting into the water.

His passion is to introduce surfing to anyone who wants to surf. “I started working with teenagers in 1991 in church youth groups so I have a real concern for teenagers who don‘t have such a passion to live for,” he explained.

He runs beginner classes from the beach next to McArthur Pool. There are morning classes aimed at housewives or others who have their mornings free, afternoon classes for students, and also Saturday workshops for the “more advanced and for those who can‘t make the weekday classes”.

The office where he does his paperwork is a blue VW Kombi camper, emblazoned with bright surf photos.

Calitz said Soul Surfing and the phrase “beauty, truth, love and life” epitomised an intensely personal outlook on life and “summarises in the fewest possible words the essence of what I‘d like my own life to exemplify”.

Life