Questions people actually ask

A bit, yeah. Thats the first lesson. We put you on a foamie, in the wash, with Tane if you booked him or with a very clear chat from Maree if you didnt. You will stand up or you wont. Either way you get a pie after. Dont hire the shortboard to impress anyone. There is nobody to impress and the ocean is not the audience you want.

Cold. Southland cold, not Wellington-on-a-nice-day cold. Count on a 4/3 most of the year and a 5/4 plus booties when the southerly has been around. We hire steamers. If you own a spring suit from a holiday somewhere north, leave it in the car and borrow ours.

Yes, thats the normal booking. Group lesson is $75 a head and the board and wetsuit are in it. Private is $140 an hour, board included. Details are on the boards page, down the bottom, under the shortboard lecture.

Tell us when you bring it in. Dont hide it under a towel, we will find it and the conversation gets worse. Small pressure dings happen and we grumble and fix them. A rail you snapped because you left it on the road is a repair bill. Its written in the book. Existing dings are noted when you take it out, so youre not paying for Petes Saturday.

Theyre the same two machines, different words. Pokies is what people say in the shed. Slots is fine if thats your word. Gaming machines is what it says on the little notice Maree taped above them. 18+ only. Coins, not cards. No hanging on them in a dripping wetsuit. If youre not 18, the answer is no, including if your uncle said it was fine.

Pie, chips when the fryer behaves, coffee, soft drink, beer after youre out. Its not lunch in a restaurant sense. If youre fussy, bring a sandwich. There is a table. We dont mind.

Park at 10 SH 1, Bluff, Southland Region. Gravel pull-in, not the ferry queue. The shed and the beach you surf are a short walk from there — yellow buoy on the gate. Map is on the come by page. If the GPS tries to be clever and dump you at the lookout, ignore it and look for the highway pull-in.

Togs, or buy boardshorts off the wall. A towel. Something warm for after, because the car heater in a wet togs situation is a sad invention. We have wetsuits, leashes, wax. Leave the nice sunglasses. They become a donation to the Pacific.

Yes. Up to four in a lesson is comfortable. More than that and youre waiting on each other and Tane gets short. Bucks days and kids birthdays, ring first so we know how many foamies to pull down. Theres a line on the form for it.

Ring in the morning. If we call the water off, a lesson is off and you dont pay. Board hire you already started is a different story — ask, dont just vanish. Plenty of people still come for the deck and a game of pool. Tuesday is usually our day off, except school holidays when we sometimes open if the swell is small enough for learners. The footer says Tuesday is shut. Both can be true. Ring.

Boardshorts, yes. Rashies, leashes, wax, booties, hoods. Small wall. Sizes are a bit of a lucky dip in the tub under the counter. List is on the gear page.

In the water, under 16, with an adult who is actually watching and not on their phone in the car. Foamies and bodyboards. The gaming machines and the beer are not for them, and we will be boring about that on purpose.