What is it like to SUP Surf at Lost Shore?

Lost Shore, situated just outside Edinburgh is an incredible surf destination. Opened for less than a year, it is attracting surfers from across the World to sample its wares. Indeed, many surfers are flying in to Edinburgh for the day, grabbing a few sessions and flying back the same day, such is the quality of the waves on offer. 

It consists of two wave pools, side by side, one making left handed waves, the other rights, along with accommodation, cafe, bar, surf shop and changing facilities. You can easily spend a day here after your surf session, with good views and vibes around. It is situated next to one of Europe’s largest indoor climbing walls too, turning Edinburgh into one of the continents premier adventure sports destinations overnight.

The wave pool (powered by Wavegarden technology) offers different types of waves, so that you can book in for a session tailored for your level, or to work on upskilling your surfing. From total beginners learning to pop up in small reform waves, all the way to the barrels setting. The website offers a really good explanation of what each wave setting will provide, the suitability for certain surfboards and what skill set you require in order to make the most of it. 

For each session, before entering the water, you are given a short, land based brief on what to expect, safety instructions, wave pool etiquette and where to locate yourself to paddle into the waves (with numbers on the wall to help you work this out). Near the take off zone is a electronic screen which handily provides information relevant to surfers such as the number of waves in a set, time in between sets and rest times between sets. Halfway through the session, the wave increases in size, so as to help facilitate progression.

For all sessions that are bookable online, you can only surf on a regular surfboard or a bodyboard, meaning that Sup Surfers and Kayak Surfers do not have access, however the sessions are able to be block booked, making it possible to get on the water with similar watercraft.

Ali Findlay from Glasgow Paddleboarders (and the SUP representative for the Scottish Surfing Federation) has a Whatsapp group for interested SUP surfers and is the conduit for making the SUP surf sessions happen. Sup Surfers in the Whatsapp group travel from all over Scotland and England to make it to Lost Shore, so it is a great way to meet fellow surfers and share the stoke.

So, what is it like to surf on a paddleboard?. Well, different, but amazing, they would be my two overriding takes from my first session at Lost Shore. The differences are felt straight away with the wave pool being fresh water rather than salt water, so there is less buoyancy than on your board in the sea. The small take off zone is the biggest difference and the short period of time between waves in a set means that you only have a short time to turn your board and get the board up to speed to catch the wave. I would definitely recommend spending some time on your board, even in flat water, getting it dialled to turn your board 90 degrees and start to paddle hard, so you waste less waves once at Lost Shore. Being built with primarily prone surfers in mind, it is certainly a more involving and intense procedure, this turn and paddle on a SUP. Expect to miss a few waves and even take a tumble while getting this technique dialled, but don’t worry, you will get your fill of waves during the hour long session.

I surfed the Cruiser Plus setting on the right hand wave pool, as a regular foot surfer this meant I got to surf the wave on my forehand. This wave starts about chest high and then mellows into a really clean waist high wave. As the name suggests, cruiser, it is a long green face which is perfect for Sup Surfing on a variety of SUP lengths and shapes. On the sessions there were longboard style boards all the way to performance shortboard sups, everyone found something on the wave to tap into, whether aggressive turns or long carves on the face. 

Once the wave loses power, it is an easy paddle back to the take off zone, helped by the strong rip. From there, just rejoin the queue and wait for your next wave. It is a pretty intense and tiring session. Intense, I think from the fact that, to start with at least, you feel like you don’t want to miss the wave (but this changes once you work out the take off). Tiring, simply because of the sheer amount of waves in the session!. An hour will fly by, and by the very nature of the repetition of being able to surf the same wave over and over again, progression is inevitable. You can really dial in maneuvers, work on certain aspects of your surfing and test things on the wave over and over again. Being a skateboarder, it reminds me of going to the skatepark and being able to refine things, minus the random aspects of ocean surfing.

Once your session is over you can head to the Lost Shore website where they film with their AI cameras, every surfer and every wave, Their cameras shoot in super high definition, following you along the wave. You can then purchase the videos (and still photos) from them for £25. It is a great way to help you self coach yourself, analyse your surfing and aid your future progression.

Overall, I had a total blast on my first SUP Surf foray at Lost Shore. It is a slickly run operation, a superb venue and a great way to meet fellow Sup Surfers. Thanks to Ali for organizing, if you are interested in Sup Surfing sessions at Lost Shore, contact him via Glasgow Paddleboarders.