“First there was a theory lesson on the beach before everyone took to the water, where each participant managed to stand up and catch a wave.
“The first session also saw the younger children playing in the waves with NZ Surf Bros instructor Yaz, along with some of their parents and grandparents, while the other instructors Ben and Rangi helped with the adults.
“I am absolutely thrilled with our first event and the enthusiasm that was shown.”
According to SFF, pressure on the rural sector was greater than ever, with New Zealand farmers continuing to take their own lives at an alarming rate.
SFF was launched in 2018 in Gisborne by farmer Stephen Thomson, giving farmers the chance to step away from an often all-consuming business to get fresh air, exercise and an opportunity to interact with other farmers, rural families and industry professionals.
Herekino beef finishers (farmers) Sarah and John Hammond have around 900 cows, with John’s father also a farmer and John having farmed for around 25 years.
Sarah said she’d been aware of the programme for some time and had hoped it would eventually come to the Far North.
“It was an awesome experience, we were very excited to attend,” Sarah said.
“I think it is really important to get farmers off their farm, and if you talk to any farmer’s wife, they’ll say that’s a hard thing to do.
“This programme creates a novel and fun way of doing that because it’s easy - you just turn up and get to hang out with a great bunch of people.
“We’re very grateful to everyone who helped organise this.”
Sarah compared SFF to other initiatives previously available to support farmers, saying that in her opinion, it was the only practical example she could think of that helped support both mental and physical wellbeing.
She said while farmer wellbeing was top of mind for people in the industry these days, SFF was different in that it allowed participants to turn off from the world of farming for a few hours and just be present.
“No one sat around moaning about farming, they talked about other things, which was great because the surfing gave them a different focus,” she said.
“We’ve gone to various dinners about mental health before which still felt like you were turning up to a farmers’ thing.
“This programme allows you to forget about the farm for a while and in a relatively simple way.”
With the inclusion of Ahipara, SFF is now surfing in 28 locations across Aotearoa and provides everything including wetsuits and surfboards, meaning participants can get out on the water and ‘de-stress’ for free.
The Ahipara SSF initiative is sponsored by a range of local partners, with the next session to be held at 4:30pm on January 31 at 27 Kaka Street, Ahipara.
Morrison said the group would love to see more farmers come along and join in on the fun.
Towels and togs not included.
To register, visit www.surfingforfarmers.com/locations or follow the Surfing for Farmers - Northland Facebook page.
For more information, text or phone Peggy Morrison on 021 102 3669, Alison Whiteford on 027 499 9021 or Bruce Brereton on 020 404 37739.
