Bodyboarding

Learn bodyboarding in Cornwall and prepare to get highly addicted!

Not only is it super fun, but you’re guaranteed to catch a wave within the first ten minutes of your lesson! We coach all standards from complete novice to top level competitor and everyone in between, using only top-quality kit.

Check out our range of bodyboarding lessons and find the right one for you.

Check out our range:

Price
Price - slider
£0£250
Group Type
Group Type

At Newquay Activity Centre, Rob Barber and his coaching team offer tuition tailored to your ability with fully insured qualified instructors. Our coaches are all experienced lifeguards, some have 20 years of bodyboarding experience in Cornwall and beyond. These include 15 years of worldwide surf travel with British Team Bodyboarding Coach, Rob Barber.

 

From family friendly lessons, to adult and kids groups, to advanced-level lessons for aspiring groms and pros. Our bodyboarding lessons in Cornwall are open to anyone who can swim, wants to learn more about the ocean or just wants to have heaps of fun!

 

WHY BODYBOARDING?

Bodyboarding is easy to learn, but hard to master …this means that it’s accessible to everyone and it’s guaranteed instant fun. You’ll be riding a wave within the first 10 minutes of the lesson with Newquay Activity Centre’s expert instructors, and that’s a promise! While at the same time, there are an abundance of technical tricks and manoeuvres to master if you wish to take it to the next level.

 

WHAT KIT?

Whether you’re bringing your own kit or using the top level bodyboarding equipment that we supply you (included in the price), you’ll need the following:

  • The right size bodyboard

The length of the board should measure from your knee to your chin when held in front of you, with increased width in the board for larger riders.

  • A leash

The main choice is between a wrist or bicep leash. Ensure the Velcro attachment is padded, comfortable and well made. A top of the range leash will offer brass swivels on both ends of the leash to ensure it does not tangle when you’re bodyboarding.

  • A pair of fins

If you’re going to take bodyboarding seriously, then a decent pair of well-fitting fins will be essential. You get what you pay for with fins, the more expensive pairs offer unrivalled comfort and propulsion. Fin sizes typically come in XS, SM, M, ML, L & XL, but each brand varies slightly, so make sure you try before you buy. You want a fin that is snug but not tight.

  • A wetsuit

Don’t skimp! The difference in enjoyment between surfing in comfort against feeling too cold or suffering from rashes is huge. What’s more, the more you pay – the more features your wetsuit will have. When you are trying on a suit, check for baggy areas in the back, under the arm and behind the knees. There shouldn’t be much slack in these areas.

  • A pair of wetsuit socks / finserts / heel guards

These all offer protection from nasty fin rubs, a must if you don’t get in the water all that often.

 

WHERE WILL WE SURF?

Newquay is blessed with 7 beautiful surfing spots (Fistral, Towan, Tolcarne, Great Western, Porth, Lusty Glaze & Crantock) These all provide a variety of waves in all conditions and for all levels – there’s something for everyone in the UK’s no.1 bodyboard town.

 

TOP TIPS IN THE WATER

When you’re out in the water, there are a number of important ground rules you should follow:

  • Don’t drop in! Bodyboarding is a fun sport with few rules but it’s fundamental that you don’t share the wave with other riders. The rider closest to the breaking part of the wave has the priority for riding that wave.
  • Don’t bodyboard directly after a meal.
  • Don’t bail your board when paddling out through the waves. There may be somebody right behind you who won’t appreciate getting a board in the face.
  • Don’t bodyboard alone. If there is nobody in the surf it normally means that the conditions are not favourable. But if it is pumping and uncrowded, call a mate to join you.
  • Don’t enter the water before warming up. Cold stiff muscles and ligaments can easily be wrenched by a wipe-out.
  • Don’t run straight in. As tempting as it is when the waves look good. Take the time to check the beach for rip currents, where other surfers are sitting, the time between sets, the wind direction and the best spot to paddle out. 5 minutes of patience will reward you with more waves.

 

LEARN THE LING – THE GLOSSARY

Aerial: An explosive manoeuvre where the bodyboarder launches themselves into the air off the top of the wave

Barrel: The tubular section of a wave within which a bodyboarder can find the meaning of life. Also referred to as a tube, a pit and the green room.

Prone: The laying position when riding a bodyboard

Dropknee: Half kneeling, half standing position when riding a bodyboard.

Right-hander: A wave that breaks towards the right as seen from the line up, (and vice-versa for a left hander).

Set: A group of larger waves that arrive at the beach on a regular basis

 

TECHNIQUES, TRICKS AND MANOEUVRES – WHAT BODYBOARDING SKILLS WILL YOU LEARN?

Beginner

  • Walking in fins
  • Paddle techniques
  • Duck diving
  • Catching a wave
  • How to brake
  • Body positioning and hand placement
  • Trimming
  • Bottom turns

 

Intermediate

  • Cutbacks
  • Forward spins
  • Reverse spins
  • Cutback to forward spin
  • El Rollo
  • Re-entry
  • Introduction to Dropknee

 

Advanced

  • Reverse floaters / reverse off the lip
  • Tube riding
  • Invert air
  • Cutback reverse spin
  • Air forward
  • Air reverse
  • ARS
  • Backflip
  • Dropknee

 

HISTORY OF BODYBOARDING

Bodyboarding has Tom Morey to thank for tinkering with a block of foam in 1971, and effectively modernising what ancient Polynesians had done for thousands of years.

 

On arriving in the Big Island of Hawaii, he bought some nine-foot blocks of foam with the idea of shaping a board he could ride prone (lying down). His first creation was a failure but after deciding to cut the second block of foam in two, bodyboarding was born!

 

Bodyboarding grew steadily throughout the 70s as people the world over discovered the joy of riding a bodyboard and groups of keen riders sprung up in Hawaii, the East & West coast of the U.S., Australia, South America, and more recently in Europe and Japan.

 

OUR CENTRE

Newquay Activity Centre’s Bodyboarding School is centrally located in the surf capital of the UK – Newquay! We are just a short walk to either Towan or Fistral beach, meaning we can have the pick of the conditions on any given day. We are suitably placed to provide beginner, intermediate or experienced lessons to people of all abilities and ages.

 

Our state of the art HQ has everything you need for an enjoyable day of ocean activities. We are equipped with male & female toilets, heated changing rooms, hot outdoor showers, safety lockers for valuables and storage for clothes and bags. We understand the importance of time in the water after learning something new, that’s why we boast a well-stocked hire centre for any consolidation you may wish to do after your lesson.

 

We want you to have the best day possible in Newquay even after your bodyboard lesson has finished. So we’ve opened up our doors to our customers for the whole day while they’re with us. Feel free to use our centre as a base while you’re here and make the most of our lockers and hot outdoor showers!

 

YOUR BODYBOARDING LESSON WILL INCLUDE:

  • A range of boards to use as you improve
  • Allocation of wetsuit, bodyboard and fins
  • Small group lesson for maximum progression
  • Comprehensive tuition and feedback
  • Heated changing rooms and secure storage for valuables
  • Hot outdoor showers and male & female toilets
  • Assessment of ocean conditions and identification of hazards
  • Full beach and ocean safety briefing
  • Introduction to board handling & prone riding
  • Familiarisation with bodyboarding terminology and equipment features
  • A lively warm-up on Newquay’s stunning Towan or Fistral Beach
  • Discount card for apres bodyboard food and drink at local eateries
  • 10% off further Newquay Activity Centre activities
  • 15% discount at Newquay’s Rip Curl Concept store
  • Please allow roughly 3 hours for your total visit

CONTACT US

We’ve partnered with awesome local businesses including Rip Curl, Loafers and Walkabout – so our visitors get some amazing discounts, priority bookings and super service …ssshhhh don’t tell the others!

 

So what are you waiting for? Get in touch and try the best adventure activities in Newquay.

 

SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? GET IN TOUCH AND TRY THE BEST ADVENTURE ACTIVITIES IN NEWQUAY!

 

OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, ALL YEAR ROUND.  BOOK ONLINE OR CALL 01637 877722