Mike SciaccaIt was Aloha Friday, the conclusion...

Mike Sciacca

It was Aloha Friday, the conclusion of the first week of surf camp

and the mood at the Surf Academy, set up at 9th Street, was lively

and upbeat despite the absence of the sun.

Taking a break from instruction -- as the sun struggled to break

through the morning gloom -- more than 20 youngsters, ages 7 to 17,

indulged in various snacks and games on the sand before heading back

out into the water.

“Aloha Friday is our way of rewarding the kids for a good week,”

said an enthusiastic Mary Setterholm who incorporated the Surf

Academy in 2000.

The academy has become the official surf school for Huntington

Beach, joining Santa Monica and El Segundo in that distinction.

“These kids have done very well this week and now it’s time to

have a little fun,” said Setterholm, 48 and the mother of five.

“We’re serious when it comes to teaching them about surfing and water

safety but the bottom line is that these campers should have fun.”

On this particular day, they were.

Seven-year-old Natalie Flores, of Huntington Beach, was eager to

show off just what she had learned during the week-long academy,

which offers weekly camps now through the month of August.

She demonstrated her ability to stand firmly on a surf board and

was proud of the fact that she could switch feet in her stance.

“I’m having a lot of fun and learning a lot,” said the Carden

Academy student. “It’s fun to be surfing in the water.”

Giana Sortino, 12, said she has always wanted to learn the art of

surfing, especially since seeing the movie, “Blue Crush.”

Giana, a Marine View Middle School student, was one camper who

mastered the old-school trick, the “dead cockroach,” a board trick

which Setterholm termed “meaningless” but one where the surfer stands

upright on a board, sits, then lies down on his/her back and then

imitates a dead cockroach by putting bent arms and legs in the air.

“That’s the fun part but I’m really learning about the correct way

to surf and about water safety,” Giana said. “I’m glad I’m in this

camp.”

With a ratio of one instructor to every five youngsters, and under

the direction of Setterholm and Sunny Yacenda, 24, a former city

lifeguard and swim instructor, campers receive individual subject

cards that cover such topics as ocean awareness, ocean swim skills,

surfboard handling skills and surfing skills.

Under each of the four subject heads are various related subheads

that each student must master.

“We also play games relating to such things as how to spot a rip

current and we hold noncompetitive expression lesson where we give

them a goal and then they attempt to accomplish that feat, Setterholm

said. “Some of the other things they learn to do is to tread water

for two minutes and the proper way to finish off a wave. We also

hammer home the power of the current and that the beach is just not a

fun place but something to be taken seriously. We cover everything in

this camp.”

Setterholm, who resides in Hermosa Beach, is quite familiar with

Huntington.

As a youngster living in Corona del Mar, she said her goal was to

be the first one out in the morning surfing the south side of the

Huntington Beach Pier.

“I used to ride my bike from Corona del Mar to Huntington Beach,

in the dark, at 5 a.m., just to be the first one in the water,”

recalled Setterholm who, on several occasions, was, indeed, the first

one out. “I also used to work at George’s surf shop on Main Street.

“I have many, many great memories of Huntington Beach and it’s an

honor to give back to the city through this surf academy. I feel this

city gave me so much as a young woman and now they are very, very

supportive of this surf camp.”

Setterholm fondness for Surf City includes her winning the women’s

national surfing championship at the pier in 1972 in an event now

known as the U.S. Open of Surfing.

“Do I see champions coming out of this surf academy?” she asked.

“Sure, I do. But surfing is just one component of this surf academy.

“While instructing them on the great importance of water knowledge

and safety, we’re hoping to infuse in these kids that surfing is,

first and foremost, about fun and fellowship. What’s yours is mine

out here and it’s important that they realize that our ocean is a

blessing that never stops giving.”

* MIKE SCIACCA covers sports and features. He can be reached at

(714) 965-7171 or by e-mail at [email protected].