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| Solid Surf House in Bali |
Surf schools abound throughout the world now but if you're looking for a deeper dive into surfing, try the Sōleïa Surf Academy Instructor Course (or, SSA, for short) in Bali. Through 1-3 months of "zero to hero" style training, Sōleïa Surf will provide you the tools to become an ISA-certified surf instructor. Just add waves, motivation and, during rainy season, patience. Passing the ISA surf lifesaving, instruction, and skill assessments at the end of the course is not guaranteed, but at least you come away with a wealth of knowledge*.
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| Learning the 5-man lift transfer for suspected spinal injury |
I'm doing the 2-month course from January-February 2025 and will be sharing my experience through a special Surfdump series. Note that I am doing this course backwards: I already completed the ISA assessments back in November 2024, so I write from the perspective of someone who already knows what's on the test and can review how well this course actually prepares students for the exams.
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| November 2024 cohort for the ISA L1 Surf Instructor Course |
School Supplies
The SSA package offers great value for the money. It includes accommodation, surfboards (or bring your own), guided surf sessions with english-speaking local and foreign instructors, video analysis, transportation (airport transfer plus scooter rental), daily breakfast, daily surf theory lessons, daily yoga classes, weekly BBQ, a Finns gym membership**, and the second coming of the Messiah... almost everything you need to surf your brains out!
Since lunch and dinner are not part of the package, you will need to bring money for personal expenses. Thankfully, Bali is easier on the budget compared to restaurants in Europe, America, and Australia. If you prefer to cook, there are some grocery stores nearby and you can cook in the communal kitchen.
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| I recommend Sista Dumpling for soup dumplings by a rice field |
Schedule
SSA students get 5-6 guided surf sessions per week. After surfing, we attend theory courses on land, such as pop-up workshops, surf skate drills, a presentation breaking down the bottom turn, and an apnea course on how to hold your breath for long hold-downs. Every other day, we do video analysis of our surf sessions, which really helps you see what you're doing wrong (or right).
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| Video analysis of our surfing |
Note for digital nomads: the daily schedule is so packed, there's no time for a full-time job while attending the SSA. I hardly have time to myself. My skin is itchy everyday because I have to put off a proper post-surf shower (with more than just freshwater) until all my classes are done.
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| Looking forward to my date with this shower |
Once a month, we leave Bali for a few days to explore breaks on other islands, such as Java, Lombok, or Nusa Lambongan. Transportation and accommodation on other islands are included in the package.
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| Solid Surf House trip to Lombok |
Accommodation
Your home for the SSA is at Sōleïa Surf, a surf camp in the Canggu area of Bali. It's split into two buildings: the Main House and The Castle. Both have pools and are located down a lane from the main street, where there are many shops and restaurants to explore. There are a variety of rooms to stay in - private or shared, standalone or attached, ground floor or upstairs. All rooms have bathrooms, hot water showers, AC, and wifi.
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| Spacious private room at the Main House |
The Castle is a set of townhouse-style rooms and standalone cabins one block away from the Main House. It is primarily reserved for SSA students but you will occasionally find the odd non-SSA surf camp guest.
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| Surf lifesaving class at the Castle |
The Main House is where most of the action is because it hosts social events, theory lessons, and all surf trips depart from here. It houses the bar, yoga room, a small pool table, surfboards, and TV monitors used for video analyses and presentations.
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| Main House of Sōleïa Surf |
The Main House is also where you can mingle with the non-SSA students of the surf camp - folks who are taking ad hoc surf lessons instead of a more structured and comprehensive program like the SSA. Get to know them. As part of the SSA, you may be teaching these folks in the near future. A 20-hour internship of supervised instruction to beginners is required to obtain the ISA L1 Surf Instructor certification. You will be supervised by an ISA-certified surf instructor.
Sōleïa Surf impromptu karaoke
Surf Spots
Well, surf spot (singular), really. All my surf sessions this week took place at Kedungu, a wide beach with a variety of breaks stretching from the lefthander Playgrounds on the inside of Front Cliff Peak by the rocks on the left (when facing the ocean) to an A-frame in the middle to the rivermouth channel on the right side of the parking lot. We drove through what seems like the last stretch of rice fields left in Canggu then paid a 5,000 IDR entrance fee to access the beach. There is plenty of parking and a few small shacks that serve food, board rentals, and a shower.
What to bring
Bring patience. My first day, we arrived at the beach too early - the tide was still low and winds very strong. So we hung out in the parking lot or cafes for an hour before beginning the lesson. On the second day, we waited for other schools to finish and a storm to pass before we entered the water.
Conditions
The first week of 2025 made a weak start to the year. On New Year's Day, no one went out. Waves were too small and everyone was jetlagged or hammered from NYE. January 2, my first day back in the water, the waves were mushy closeouts looser than yo mama that old rashguard that turns into a balloon in the water. "At least we get to paddle and get some exercise" and "at least the water is still warm" were little comforting reminders our surf guides gave us to raise our spirits. I was just glad to be back in the tropics.
The second day saw longer (16s) period waves but kept the lumpiness of the foregoing day. Clean conditions returned on the third day - both clean waves and clean water. The wind died down and the shorter 12s period swell gave us tighter waves with sharp ridges and smooth, 2m-high walls.
Kedungu presents a few hazards: rocks in the water in front of the temple, water pollution from the river and currents, a nasty shorebreak that forces you to run in and out of the water, and sometimes crowds. It's a reef break but the reef is deep enough I've never touched it.
Weather
Don your raincoats and galoshes - it's rainy season in Bali! December to March are the rainiest parts of the year here. Medium to heavy downpours appeared on a daily basis at whatever hour of the day or night. During my first week, onshore winds of >25 kph (15+ mph) battered the west coast of Bali but finally let up for one glorious Saturday session. It's like Bali could tell we were on the verge of giving up on her as a surf destination, so she dropped us a little hope package to remind us of how good it can be. Clean conditions, however, are more the exception than the rule during the wet season.
So what if it's raining? We're already wet.
Water Quality
As at any city beach, with the rains come the trash. Get your tetanus shot and bring antibiotics. Infections are common in rainy season, especially if you surf in the overdeveloped areas like Seminyak. When I arrived, at least half the surf camp was suffering some sort of illness after surfing in the dirty waters around Canggu. At least 12 people had an eye, ear, or respiratory infection, Bali Belly, or some mystery dengue-like illness that the local hospital couldn't name (pray for our fellow surfer, Subash).
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| Kedongnan Beach showing off Bali trash at its worst | Image: Sonny Tumbelaka / AFP |
When the current was flowing from Jakarta, I was wading and paddling through trash. Shore breaks were made even more treacherous by the sharp sticks, plastics, and car parts floating in the water, ready to graze your shins and open you up to infection. The level of water pollution is on par with Dakar, Senegal but at least in Senegal you can avoid the shore breaks by jumping off reefs, boats or platforms, whereas in Bali, the majority of breaks are accessed from the beach.
Crowds
The upside of crap weather and water quality is diminished crowds. Rainy season scares away the sensible, leaving only the most sturdy, clueless, or warm-blooded surfers to come out and play. The majority of surfers are European snowbirds fleeing their frigid countries. Compared to Batu Bolong / Old Man's break, the crowd is generally thinner at Kedungu. Only one row of surfers to dodge, instead of 4. And much friendlier vibe than Berawa. There's no self-proclaimed "king of the peak" you need to kowtow to avoid getting sliced open by his fins.
Conclusion
Living in Bali requires some amount of surrender (as in, surrendering your life to the gods - and there are many Hindu gods here). Scooter accidents, poor water quality, Bali belly, and Circle K signs are all there to walk into*** and slow you down on your quest to become the next Kelly Slater or Carissa Moore. But you probably ended up here because you've lost whatever meager amount of control you had over your life (or you never had any). If you're already here or thinking about coming to Bali, and curious about surfing and/or teaching other people to surf, enjoy the excellent offerings at Sōleïa Surf. As their website claims, it can Change Your Career Life.
Otherwise, join the myriad Yoga Teacher Training retreats up in Ubud to give you direction in your life.
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| Traffic on Jalan Raya Semat, the main road |
Footnotes
* = I, for one, was delighted to finally learn CPR and basic first aid, useful skills I believe everyone should learn. I was able to apply my skills already when a lady sitting next to me had a heat stroke.
** = Because surf lifesaving certification is required for the ISA Surf Instructor certification - and a certain level of fitness is required to perform the duties of a surf lifeguard - the membership pass to the Finns Recreation Club is a key tool to prepare for the fitness test in the ISA assessments. This gym is like the Equinox of Bali, with an on-site cafe serving healthy food and protein smoothies, a sauna, ice bath, and well-equipped gym (squat racks, free wights, machines, etc.). Towels and locker keys are provided at each visit. There's also a lap pool and group fitness classes in boxing, pilates, HIIT, etc. Just don't forget to bring a reusable, non-plastic water bottle. A plastic bottle, though you've reused it a dozen times, doesn't count. The guards will hold the bottle for you outside the gym until you leave.
*** = I was looking at something on my foot and walked into a Circle K sign on the sidewalk today. I'm fine, no cuts, just a small bruise on my face. Classic lolz.
Reviewed by beachplease
on
January 04, 2025
Rating:
