Royal Caribbean Cruise: FlowRider

After we got back on the ship from Belize (where the baboon pooped in my hair), my brother rented out the FlowRider on board for just us to use. It was amazing, even though I wasn’t about to try my hand (or feet, or any other part of my body) at surfing. I had a great time watching everyone else.

We started with my uber-athletic brother. I’d like to take a moment and brag about this guy. Last summer, he rode his bike all the way from Canada to Mexico in an unsupported bike race/tour. 2,000 plus miles in 23 days. This summer he’s doing one that goes coast to coast. He’s a bit crazy (okay, a lot), but I’m insanely proud of him.

Everybody got a bit of instruction from the FlowRider guru guy at the beginning, but maybe his instruction wasn’t so great at first, because my brother immediately wiped out.

And he’s back up and running!  Definitely enjoying himself by the looks of it!

While we wait for the next candidate to receive instruction, who is this cutie patootie?

Definitely nothing cuter than a 4-year old curly head with a grape juice mustache at sunset.

Here’s some people discussing who will go and who will not. I’m pretty sure at this particular moment, my middle brother (Harley shirt) is teasing my 10-year-old daughter, who was pretty sure she was NOT going to try this surfing business. And how can I blame her? Of course, that brother himself had decided he’d rather watch…

Here’s my sister-in-law, my niece, and my mom enjoying the fun.

And here’s one of my favorite pictures of the night. My middle daughter and her cousin. These two were born just a week apart and they adore each other. Unfortunately, he lives in Seattle and we live in Michigan, so they may as well live in different countries for how often they get to see each other. I love seeing them together. 

Here’s the view the surfers had. A Caribbean sunset. Gorgeous.

Now my youngest brother is up and hanging loose. 

Ah…ah….ah…

…choo!  Better luck next time!

And there’s the sunset again. I love the sunset.

Here we have my dad. Raised in Southern California, he was quite the avid surfer back in the day. Looks like he’s still got it!

Bwahahahah….

Wipe Out! (Feel free to sing some Beach Boys tunes right about now…)

Now it’s my nephew’s turn to try. First piggy-back with the surfing guru….

…and now he’s heading out all on his own.

Woo hoo!

My husband is up. Amazingly, he stays up longer than anyone before him, despite never having surfed before. I attribute it to his Hawaiian ancestors: Even though the hula gene seems to have skipped right over him, the surfing gene seems to be alive and well in this guy.

I think he knows it, too. Here we go with all the hot dog antics….

Oh, but honey?  Don’t you know?

Pride goeth before a fall.

You should have kept your hands out.

Ouch! That had to hurt!

Remember how my daughter was not about to try?

Well, she did!  And she had the time of her life!

And in the process overcame yet another fear.  Maybe I’ll try it next time. We’ll see.