Mindfulness & Surfing

It is good that people question all this mindfulness, yoga, meditation stuff. As Buddhist teachings tell us, the first thing you must do is ask yourself "is this right for me?".

Unfortunately or not all Internet forums are subjected to bored people manufacturing mostly bland arguments.

Interweb arguments are serious business.

OOPS, funny as, Trolls, Bland arguments, Yoga, Buddhist teachings, very little mindfulness happening around here!
I dont think this is manufacturing a bland argument, I think this is manufacturing an open discussion about "Mindfulness and Surfing" in an openly opinionated forum.
Trippygreenfeet you have to come clean on how you got your nick name? Or avatar name, its got me wondering. I haven't missed any of your previous posts, I've actually enjoyed reading your vast knowledge on this subject. In my last post I was openly asking a valid question about your sometimes non-mindfulness acts in the surf.? Don't get upset there champ we are all not perfect and I suppose the only way to perfect ourselves is by making mistakes :)
Stu could be right though, maybe I am a Troll, I"m a supernatural being, I live in the mountains, I live together in a small family unit, typically having a very ugly appearance and are rarely helpful to human beings. So TGF be afraid be very very afraid this one could jump out from underneath your own keyboard bridge and say hello.

WallyBinLaden.

"I suppose the only way to perfect ourselves is by making mistakes"
I new I was close to perfect. And all all from the power of absentmindfulness.

Welly, none of my troll comment were directed at you...IMO you've been nothing but respectful in your line of questioning.

OK, first up the name. Going back many moons when I used to drink too much piss, me and the missus arrived home after a big night out. It was a cold evening, so getting comfortable I put on my green, woolen knitted house socks (thanks grandma). I came into the kitchen and a tripped over my own feet, got up and tripped over em again. The missus was looking on, and as she's a cheeky bugger, comes straight out with trippergreenfeet.

As for using it as my username, way back I was joining a forum and having trouble coming up with a username that wasn't already taken, then it dawned on me, who else in this world would have a name like trippergreenfeet as a username...and just like magic, my username was born.

As for my non-mindfulness act, you didn't upset me on calling for an explanation, like I replied to Shaun, that was not a proud act, but I felt it necessary at the time.

I'm an advocate of universal justice in all facets of life...this is something that one cannot always personally control, however in some situations we can have an influence. I'm the kind of guy in the surf who watches everyone, not out of some sick voyeuristic way, I just love watching crew surf (voyeuristic on it's own level), no matter what their ability. In doing that, I'm very aware of who is getting waves and who isn't, for whatever reason that may be. So when I see guys who are patient and waiting their turn, and then to see them get burnt, I kind of get the universal justice hat on.

Man, I'm the dude who'll tell you to pick up ya rubbish if I see ya chuck it on the ground.

I guess after 30 yrs of surfing, all over Oz and OS I've seen a few surfing scenarios played out. I have verbaled plenty of guys in the water for their shitty behaviour towards myself and others who did not speak up for themselves. What I have found from verbaling is that the longer surf culture has progressed, and the more crowded the waves have become, the less crew take notice. I even had a bodyboarder a few years back who kept paddling to the inside on a shallow reef tell me I was full of shit for saying there was an inside rule at all, go figure!

In the situation of my mindless drop in, I made, quite literally a split second decision to drop in to drive the point home that what he did was not cool...sometimes a little action is needed to wake someone from their stupor. The act itself, it is what it is, no excuse or opt out from me. This was in an average beachie mind you, if it was on a smoking, serious piece of fuck you up ledge, I would not have put myself or the snake in danger by dropping in.

Another point, I've done a fair bit of work in 3rd world countries, so I guess when I see people acting out 1st world problems I just need to say, wake the fuck up, chill out and breathe. Dropping in itself is a 1st world problem, let alone the etiquette of surfing, so why am I getting upset at a drop in...butterfly wings flapping in the rain forest.

Mate, I'm just a homo sapien doing my best to survive in a world of trials, tribulations and contradictions. And then to paddle into a lineup on top, well, that just complicates things a little more:)

Another novel from me, writing is the mainstay of my job after all.

I have often wondered why these dudes into this eastern philosophy,zen master,yoga,
type crap are usually total kooks with very little of the balance and mastery that they
carp on about.Seems all a bit self indulgent to me.The real surfers are too busy getting pissed and having a good time to give a shit.To me mindfulness is thinking you are ripping when you are crabbing.Cheers.

"The real surfers are too busy getting pissed and having a good time to give a shit"

Party on Garth and leave that eastern philosophy to kooks like Gerry Lopez and Wayne Lynch.

Self righteousness leaves a taste in peoples mouths sourer than pink unicorn jizz.

The threads on this forum usually start out as an interesting topic, as this one, but get get taken over by some self proclaimed guru f'wit commenting 3 times a day to enforce their worldly experience and opinions on the rest of us hopeless souls. Got nothing better to do? A real farrken job maybe?

Most of us just surf because it's fun and don't need to analyse it any further, perhaps a little more experience and education would enable me to question myself a little more. Should this be something to strive for?

Amusing though.

"Party on Garth and leave that eastern philosophy to kooks like Gerry Lopez and Wayne Lynch."

I know nothing of Gerry Lopez apart from what I have seen in the media, but I have had many a surf over the years with Wayne Lynch, not a bad bloke but prone to hissy fits and yelling and screaming. If that is mindfulness then I owe you all an apology. Maybe Gerry likes a beer and occasionally gets frustrated and tells people to fuck off.
Stu surfing god/guru is a brand, it's not the real person.

What I find interesting is the way words get interpenetrated, and people take on board offence that was never there in the first place. What really shines through is the of fear of the different, unknown and/or unusual, and the fight back that is so readily fought.

In my ramblings, I never once declared I hold the secret to life, or the manual on how to live it. And I never once stated that any readers here must follow the path I have. It's not like I was writing the new J.Smith Book of Mormon or L Ron's Dianetics.

I wrote about my experiences and thoughts, of which the OP asked for.

e wrote:

Any thoughts, comments or slander?

. We certainly got our monies worth, with all three requests being met.

Old school / new school?

Thanks mundies for the insight from the english language, as sometimes it delude me! Yes, I did study Latin at college, you wouldn't believe it though, I hated it and it made no sense at all.
Awareness is a big part of life, Ive always known this and as you state above, being non judgemental about various things in life is a big asset for all to be aware of. Being mindfulness to me, that is about being happy with yourself, body and soul as well as being happy and content with what you have.
Mindfulness and awareness is a journey of this life, which I believe takes time.

This topic has had me thinking way too much so what follows may only make sense to me ....

Early on Wellymon raised whether mindfulness was possible at Superbank with 400 out. And then later a few replies mentioned Gerry Lopez and Wayne Lynch as surfers who followed some sort of yoga practice. I have no knowledge of Wayne Lynch's practice but have known about Gerry's for a long time. I'll add Shaun Thomson.

So Gerry says the best surfer in the water is the one having the most fun while Shaun asks what have you given back to surfing? No mention of wave caught here.

Its not often I surf with groms or a group of women but when I do its always super fun with all that hooting and big smiles. The best part of these surfs is calling complete strangers into waves and hooting when they make it.

There are waves and crowds I just avoid because of the negative human energy but I wonder what would happen at a place like Superbank if a one, two or ten surfers just started hooting and calling others into waves. Maybe that would be mindful and would the vibe of the place change?

Finally, I would like to acknowledge an Aboriginal surfer who called me into many waves during a cracking session on the mid north coast of NSW a few years back. First good swell in two months: his land, his waves, he didn't know me from a bar of soap but he called me time after time in with a big grin on this dial. Thanks brother.

@stunet,Wayne Lynch,Gerry Lopez,you forgot Cheyne Horan.I never said ALL space cadets were kooks and anyway these guys were all exceptional surfers well before they got a bad batch and went all spiritual on us.When I was on the trek through the Himalayas to meet the guru in the 70s he told me "Before you judge someone you should walk a mile in their shoes that way when you judge them your'e a mile away and you have their shoes."
"Never forget you are unique,like everyone else."
"Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day,teach him how to fish and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day."
"If at first you don't succeed avoid skydiving"

Don't forget, "Two wrongs don't make a right but you can always try for three."

@rattle was the aboriginal gentlemans name Richie ?

Never put off until tomorrow what you can avoid doing altogether.

hey udo, never got his name, he rode one in and took off over the dunes.

Rattle and old-dog thats all for real in my eyes or mind!
We are all human and should enjoy a buzz, given the realm we are in.
"Never forget you are unique,like everyone else."

"its good to have realisations like that occasionally that aren't the result of tripping off your face on acid.
I also have a theory that practicing this improves your ability to attend / concentrate.

Was Albert Hothman mindful when he experienced his first dose of LSD!

"The Bicycle Day."

Does LSD give people that haven't experienced "Mindfulness" a foresight of Mindfulness in some form....?

Just food for thought.

Whoolie Jumper Mon :)

Thanks for the link Rattle.

"mindfulness must be engaged. Once there is seeing there must be acting. Otherwise what is the use of seeing"

So yes Trippergreenfeet you are right, you saw and you acted...? "mindfulness"

I love the avartar name due to your cheeky wife, sounds a lot like mine...?

Good old grandma, is she still alive!

Wooleymon as a pair of knitted socks..?

Wellymon, grandma is about to turn 89 yrs young, walks 12kms a day and is sharp as can be. Unfortunately she has gone blind in the last few years so no more knitted socks from her. But my mum knits em too so no cold feet for the family. I can still slip and slide around the house with my green feet on!

Done many retreats JWithay? I've done a few ten day retreats at a centre in the Blue Mountains (BMIMC) that were well worthwhile. In fact a friend of mine is now the manager there. There's currently a retreat on and the practitioners are being severely tested by the constant noise from fire brigades and smoke.

I've done a couple of ten days Stu, my first being in Dehradun when I was last in India and a follow up at the Melbourne retreat in Woori Yallock. Not that the fires are anything to be laughed at but there's something comical about a group of people sitting intent and focused on breath and sensation with wailing sirens and smoke all around. There was a military barracks nearby the retreat in Dehradun, so we'd be sitting to the sounds of automatic weapons certain days and on one afternoon we were treated to the sounds of what must've been a large and lavish Indian wedding, with bells whistles horns and drums banging on in to the night. Not to mention the monkeys! Much to the chagrin of the managers a big pack of them would charge through the centre from the surrounding hills each day as part of their daily routine, swinging from the trees and bulldozing the fence that divided the mens and women's dorms. They'd then get right up on the roof and bang on the water tank til they managed to get it flowing, drinking and carrying on until one of the locals barked them away.

Then there was the earth tremor when I sat at Woori Yallock. We were sitting the final session of the day when a low rumbling begun to emanate from the hills over the back of the retreat, which then rolled right through the building causing a few of the girls to scream and general bafflement (not that anyone could speak up!!). Classic Buddha curveball.

Ha ha...challenges alright. One morning at the BMIMC I was outside doing walking meditation as a couple of tradesman worked on the roof of a building being constructed. They knew what the deal was with silence, but nevertheless, being builders they had to fire up power tools. At 7am, through the chill of a Blue Mountains morning a power saw began wailing. For 30 seconds it split the air before the builder cut it off.

Then, in the profound quiet that followed, I heard one builder say to the other: "That'll fuck their silence."

Something I have been doing while sitting on the board waiting for a wave (when I remember) is to try to breathe in while rising on the swell and out while falling. I found this does help to push out the other shitty internal dialog usually going on in my head.
Does anyone else do this?

Yeah scroty, I do sometimes involve myself with that motion.

Deeper inhalations and exhalations with, the bigger swell and the longer the period. Good focus.

I appreciate this is a really old thread, but just stumbled across it. For all those who are interested in the connection between surfing, mindfulness and altered states of consciousness, there are others out there, and some dedicating their lives to exploring this connection.

www.flowgenomeproject.co is a mob in the US who are dedicated to exploring how humans can use the flow state to achieve higher performance in ever area of life
www.flowstateadventure.com (full disclosure- this is my company) is also dedicated to teaching mindfulness, but also looking at surfing, and other activities as almost alternate forms of meditation.

ive been surfing for over 30 years and in that time a lot of things have gon through my head, sometimes I rip sometimes I feel like a gonk. Does mindfullness help your surfing ? ....you bet it does. During the last 30 I have been into sculpture , tai chi and surfing and in all three the notion of being 'loose' is important. When youre mind ( especially) and bodyare moving freely, when you are focussed on the job at hand and not the lovely women youre are going to shag tonite or the guys who are surfing like Kelly around you. Mindfulness sets in.You have to map out the scene before hand , a big demand and poor supply of wave in the line up an every wave Dave who keeps paddling inside of you, may affect your mindfullness .ready for the wait ?are you ready to get burnt ?....who cares theres always tomorrow...However with the right mindset the people you meet usually seem cool and the wave seem to fall in your

......lap

Just bringing this back to the fore.

When talking about flow (getting in the zone) and how to trigger it, surfing is luckily for us one of these, along with say cooking, listening to music while hammering out work in the office etc.

Japadoggg above would be able to explain it more clearly, but have you ever been out in semi-challenging surf or conditions (this is the key - if you're not challenged it's hard to get into a flowstate) and caught an amazing wave or pulled off a maneuver which you were really stoked with, getting an instant shot of adrenaline and switching you into this mode where for the next half-one hour you just keep nailing it and have a session you're absolutely frothing on and can do no wrong.

This is flow.

You can't stay in flow forever though, and you'll notice after sometime the adrenaline levels backing off along with your performance, and this is probably the time to get out of the surf.

During flow, nothing else matters, it's just you and the task ahead of you, totally in the moment and this is what increases your performance.

This is why surfing ticks nearly all the boxes needed to get into flow.

There's a lot to research about in this area, but yeah I thought I'd point out these kind of scenarios you feel when out in the surf.

One other thing, if the conditions are too challenging and a too bigger leap for your ability you won't reach flow, and you'll be trying to find a way out of the situation, ie sit wide, paddle back in or out to sea and catch nothing.

Really interesting stuff.

mundies wrote:

I've noticed that mood / head space seems to be a factor in whether or not you have a good surf - regardless of conditions, sometimes I get into a good rhythm & sometimes not. I have noticed over the last few years - especially after being exposed to the concept of mindfulness & applying this to surfing (when I remember to...) - I've improved my ability to get a good rhythm happening. A basic definition of mindfulness is something like 'remembering to bring your attention to present moment experience in a non-judgmental manner'. Angry surfers can definitely be in the moment but it is far from being non-judgmental. I've always thought that angry/aggressive surfers tend to express this in their surfing style & rhythm & this style doesn't appeal to me.
Whilst I live in hippie territory I remain fairly cynical & overly earnest hippies give me the shits. But Mindfulness-based stress reduction is now a fairly mainstream & well accepted psychological treatment modality. So there's something in it at least partially to do with regulating stress & also purposeful attention. I'm sure this kind of thing is done in pro surfing even if not called the same thing, but in my opinion it's highly applicable in everyday life for everyone. Any thoughts, comments or slander?

........ Yes mundies ....... I find that mindfulness and deep inwardly soothing contemplation while you stay fully aware of your aura is
creatively fulfilling as the universe generates good vibes all around you. It is in fact , the inate sense of inner peace that maintains a flow of equilbriam and balance of conscious and subconscious mind. I find...that while I am surfing, all else diminishes into peaceful oblivion in hues of aqua blue clarity. ...... Then I go to McDonalds and have a burger.

geeez not even Tones Abbott repeated himself 3 times!

Yeah he'd just eat an onion, or stand there and twitch and shake!

Just tidied that up for Davy fellas.

Craig wrote:

Just tidied that up for Davy fellas.

Thanks Craig. Actually your tidying up for me is timely today , for you see, I'm a house hubby, and Saturday mornings I do tidying up on a regular basssssiiiis. And so therefore , it's appropriate.

Craig wrote:

Just tidied that up for Davy fellas.

Thanks Craig. Actually your tidying up for me is timely today , for you see, I'm a house hubby, and Saturday mornings I do tidying up on a regular basssssiiiis. And so therefore , it's appropriate.

Craig wrote:

Just tidied that up for Davy fellas.

Thanks Craig. Actually your tidying up for me is timely today , for you see, I'm a house hubby, and Saturday mornings I do tidying up on a regular basssssiiiis. And so therefore , it's appropriate.

Craig wrote:

Just tidied that up for Davy fellas.

Thanks Craig. Actually your tidying up for me is timely today , for you see, I'm a house hubby, and Saturday mornings I do tidying up on a regular basssssiiiis. And so therefore , it's appropriate.

you got a saturday stutter davy?

Davy, too much caffeine buddy!

Back to basics - not sure if anyone will read this or care, but I'm stoked about it so I'll write it. Seems like the best forum topic to put it on.
I just flew back into aus last night from 5 weeks in the desert. Decided this morning that imma head down to Torquay tomorrow and buy myself a new longboard ( yeah, don't judge me) and just sit in the ocean. I really don't care if I catch one wave, 10 waves or none! For me it's just about leaving my phone in the car and being out there. Forgetting all the bills I've come back to, shitty relationships or the job I need to quit. Isn't that partly what it's about?! Just forgetting all the bullshit and enjoying peacefulness and a moments freedom?!
Just my thoughts today.

@BV, yeah the desert is good that way ... its always about the stoke so good on you.

Bali_vibes thoroughly agree mate. Being out in the water is what it's all about, catching waves is the icing on the cake. Similar concept to lots of stuff e.g.. fishing - the beauty is just to be there.
Yeah don't forget to appreciate the basics. You've got to ask yourself why the materially rich countries like Oz have such high rates of depression and suicide.
Don't buy into the crap that's pedalled out there and don't overlook the beauty of the basics - the wind, the rain, the change of tides, the coming and going of the sand. Life and the world in all its beauty.

floyd wrote:

you got a saturday stutter davy?

sss...ssss...sss... seems that way floyd. Reckon what it is, is that I'm , how they say ? " double clicking " ?
when I press quote to reply to something...what I mean is ( dig ? ) that wh....wh...wh...when I d,d,double click on the quote tab... I rep....repeat my self ..rep... repeat myself ... ?

floyd wrote:

you got a saturday stutter davy?

sss...ssss...sss... seems that way floyd. Reckon what it is, is that I'm , how they say ? " double clicking " ?
when I press quote to reply to something...what I mean is ( dig ? ) that wh....wh...wh...when I d,d,double click on the quote tab... I rep....repeat my self ..rep... repeat myself ... ?

floyd wrote:

you got a saturday stutter davy?

sss...ssss...sss... seems that way floyd. Reckon what it is, is that I'm , how they say ? " double clicking " ?
when I press quote to reply to something...what I mean is ( dig ? ) that wh....wh...wh...when I d,d,double click on the quote tab... I rep....repeat my self ..rep... repeat myself ... ?

floyd wrote:

you got a saturday stutter davy?

sss...ssss...sss... seems that way floyd. Reckon what it is, is that I'm , how they say ? " double clicking " ?
when I press quote to reply to something...what I mean is ( dig ? ) that wh....wh...wh...when I d,d,double click on the quote tab... I rep....repeat my self ..rep... repeat myself ... ?

AndyM wrote:

Bali_vibes thoroughly agree mate. Being out in the water is what it's all about, catching waves is the icing on the cake. Similar concept to lots of stuff e.g.. fishing - the beauty is just to be there.
Yeah don't forget to appreciate the basics. You've got to ask yourself why the materially rich countries like Oz have such high rates of depression and suicide.
Don't buy into the crap that's pedalled out there and don't overlook the beauty of the basics - the wind, the rain, the change of tides, the coming and going of the sand. Life and the world in all its beauty.

That's it ! That's why I'm back in the water even when it's flat. Where I am that's pretty much all the time these days. But ya gotta keep the connection no matter what.

AndyM wrote:

Bali_vibes thoroughly agree mate. Being out in the water is what it's all about, catching waves is the icing on the cake. Similar concept to lots of stuff e.g.. fishing - the beauty is just to be there.
Yeah don't forget to appreciate the basics. You've got to ask yourself why the materially rich countries like Oz have such high rates of depression and suicide.
Don't buy into the crap that's pedalled out there and don't overlook the beauty of the basics - the wind, the rain, the change of tides, the coming and going of the sand. Life and the world in all its beauty.

That's it ! That's why I'm back in the water even when it's flat. Where I am that's pretty much all the time these days. But ya gotta keep the connection no matter what.