MY DAD, TOM, was one of the first surfers in the country, and with my mum, Simone, he set up Perfect Day Surf School, in Strandhill, Co Sligo, 11 years ago. I’ve recently taken over from them and run it in tandem with studying marine science in NUI Galway.
On work days the first thing I do is get up at 7.30am to check the surf and text people who are booked for a lesson to let them know we’re going ahead. What I’m looking for is a nice gentle surf with waves of about two feet. We never hold lessons if it’s flat or if it’s in any way rough. Safety is paramount, which is why we have an instructor-to-pupil ratio of one to five.
Lessons begin at around 10am, and so we meet up with our surfers, give them a rundown of what we’ll be doing, hand out wetsuits and boards and head out to the beach.
I’m obsessed with the sea. I always wanted to be a mermaid, and I guess this is the next best thing. When I finish college the aim is to work in shark conservation, which I guess is a funny one for a surfer.
Lessons last around two hours, and start and finish times are dictated by the tide. People are always amazed it’s so intense physically, but it’s a full-body work out. When we’ve finished I rinse the wetsuits and boards with fresh water and hang them up to dry.
After lunch during the summer we run kids’ camps from 2pm to 5pm. We do a workshop on ocean awareness and focus on some element of safety before going out. Today it’s about rip tides and what to do if you’re caught in one – basically, stay calm, stay with your board and paddle at an angle to the current. Yesterday I had to rescue a free surfer who was caught in one and drifting out to sea. He wasn’t with a surf school. We always advise beginners to surf with other people. If you go to a beach, always surf where the other surfers are. There’s usually a reason why some parts of a beach are deserted.
Now that I’m concentrating on coaching I don’t compete so much, so I don’t train as hard as I used to, but if I’ve a spare hour I’ll always pop in the water.
During the summer I give evening lessons, too, mainly to people working in offices who love to get out. We’re really popular with women surfers, because we give women-only lessons, with female instructors, and a lot of women appreciate that when they’re starting out.
On those days I’m finished by about 9pm and heading home. I sleep like a log after that. All that fresh air and salt water just knocks me out.
- Elisha Hickey owns Perfect Day Surf School in Strandhill, Co Sligo
- In conversation with Sandra O'Connell