More on Sean O'Neil. His set up on the board is so unique it just blows me away. He began the process for making his set up with a bunch of foam, some glue and a creative mind like none other. So here we are at the beach hanging out with Mickey Munoz. Mickey has taken a liking to us and has lent us his SUP board for Sean to dial in the mounting point for his foam padding. The first attempt we found we needed to move the foam further up the board. One of the other things we discussed was the size and shape of the board. The Stand Up Paddle (SUP) board proved to be the best option. Mickey lent us another board for a few days which was a pretty standard 9ft longboard. This was more unstable but it worked and it was FREE. Key operating word in adaptive sports. So the kneeling is a pretty good position for a para to be in on a surfboard. It allows them to look around easily and see when the waves are coming, as well as be in a more comfortable position. The interesting thing is that, like skiing, different set up's are necessary to accommodate different people.. Unfortunately in adaptive surfing right now, the programming is almost entirely focused on prone surfing and one day experiences. Most of the people out there are running adaptive "day at the beach" or "they will surf again (for a day)" programs are not 'teaching' people how to surf. They, for the most part are just shoving people into waves who are laying on their stomach. My goal is to take adaptive surfing to a new level of 'instruction'. In skiing, we start off the process with an in depth evaluation of the student. We determine their strength, motivation, and goals, then we figure out which set up, or equipment, will work the best for them and their goals. Then, we take a methodical and step by step approach to teaching them skills to become as independent as possible on the slope. This is the direction adaptive surfing needs to go! This is my goal!
