Ash Lewis

I joined Pen-y-bont surf lifesaving club a bit later than most do – as a junior when I was around 14/15 after being convinced by my auntie and uncle Helen and Richie to escape the black line of the pool and try something different to the swimming club!

It’s safe to say that I haven’t looked back as it’s an awesome sport and some of the best memories I have are from being part of this club!

My favourite events are the surf race and the iron man. I’ve been lucky enough to race for Wales and GB several times over the last 10 years in places like France, Japan, Ireland, Belgium, Germany, Australia, and Italy. Probably my favourite achievements are a bronze medal at worlds in the board rescue, European bronze in the surf race and European gold in the taplin.

Question to Ash from Daisy: ‘What’s your favourite event and why? And how do you train for boards?’.

Thanks for the question Daisy! My favourite event is probably the iron man as it includes all three disciplines, so you need to be good across them all, which can be a challenge especially if there’s surf!

I think Tomi talked about what specific board sessions you can do, but I personally find I get the majority of my fitness from swimming, and then I use board/craft sessions to work on the skill element as a lot of success in board paddling is down to your technique. You can train hard for hours to gain seconds but if you fall off the wave at the end you’ll lose far more time.

There are heaps of gains to be made from just going out there chasing runners and catching waves with your mates. Just enjoy your training, listen to the coaches and you’ll get more skilful and faster with time! Next time we’re down the beach give me a shout and we can go through some tips