Surfing; by Abbie Duffy

One of the sports that I show more of an interest in is surfing. Fortunately while working with mobex, we get the chance to improve our skills in it. On tuesday 25th June, Stevie and Bob drove the 6 of us down to Belhaven for a surfing session. After kitting up with wetsuits, gloves, shoes & boards, we arrived at the car park at 11ish. Luckilly, it turned out to be a really sunny day with 1-2ft waves and offshore winds. I have already had surfing experience of catching unbroken waves before but when Stevie asked us to set ourselves a goal to reach by the end of the session, mines was first to catch some clean waves. After stretching and jogging on the beach to warm-up we began surfing. A few hours after catching some nice waves I decided to set myself the challenge of progressing my bottom turns and going in the direction of the wave breaking. I knew it would be challenging because I usually surf a 7'6 fibre glass and that day I had been using a 9ft foam board which was a lot more heavey weight. Unfortunately, i didn't manage to do bottom turns but I wasn't bothered because I had still had a good surf. After a few hours the waves just weren't picking up and everyone was getting a bit bored, so we left our boards next to the bags on the beach and went in for a swim then headed back to the van at 1ish.

The conservation volunteers by Jaimie Currie.

 (T.C.V) The Conservation volunteers.  

The conservation volunteers is a british chartible origanistion that works to facillitate enviremental conservation through practial tasks undertaken by volunteers.

During my time with T.C.V I have Been using lots of tools, I have lots of experance using tools as my previous job was in the building trade. one of the jobs i found intresting was forestry work, working in the forest is new to me and i enjoy learning the skills that are being offered to me.

I have learned how to use tools safely and how to maintain my tools correctly.

I really enjoy working with T.C.V and I look forward to learning new skills. 

Coasteering 

Coasteering is a combined Rock and Water sport, coasteering is mainly based around the coast normally before we  go out to do coasteering we use internet sources (www.magicseaweed.com) to check the swell and wind speed.  When we get ready to go and do coasteering there is vital equipment that we need to take with us such as, wetsuits, buoyancy aid, wetsuit gloves and boots, helmets and hood. We also take with us a rescue kit which includes throwing line and first aid kit. Coasteering is a sport that you have to push your comfort zones to the limit. It can be a very challenging sport but it can be a really good adrenaline buzz.

John Muir Way

We (The coastal communities group) took part in a three day expeditions on the John Muir Way. We started at Fisher row in Musselburgh and walked seventy kilometers to Dunglass.
As we all did this we noticed it wasn't just a physical push but a mental push as well
. As there were times when emotions were running high but we worked as a team and edged each other to go on and push ourselves to the end.
Completing this expedition gave us a huge amount of pride and something to be proud of!

Scrambling by Connor Kelly

Scrambling

The Coastal Communities Group took part in a scrambling session on North Berwick Law and Traprain Law. 

Scrambling is a mixture between mountaineering and rock climbing. We did the session as a team building exercise as we did not know each other very well.

 It was not much of a challenge or a push as it was really relaxed. We talked about different techniques, looking at dynamic risk assessments and we also had a look at a group shelter.

 The equipment we used were walking boots and helmets.

The skills that were used during this exercise were good footwork, being able to pick out the easiest and safest path to follow. 

At the top of North Berwick Law we all made hot chocolate with a stove and pot.

Surfing by Nick Galloway

As part of the coastal communities group we have to practice a lot of different sports. Having never been surfing before this was a massive new challenge for me. The equipment we use are surfboards and wet-suits. You need to be confident and have good balance.

Never surfing before I had to learn the techniques for lying on the board, standing up and falling off. For standing up on the board you have to get the balance point right. for falling off the board you have to cover your head and your stomach to protect all your vital parts.

When I first tried to stand up on the board I kept falling off and face planting the water but I have a lot of determination to keep getting back up and keep trying. When I eventually managed to keep my balance and stay up on the board I felt a massive sense of accomplishment. Learning to surf has given me a new set of skills and it was a great experience that I plan on getting much better at!