Luckily, we're not as equipment-heavy as, say, skiing or windsurfing. You're going to need:
1. A board:
A used board is generally your best bet when starting out. Chances are good that you're going to ding it up just carrying it around. There are different types of surfboards.
2. Something to wear:
For the extremely brave / extremely stupid, a pair of cheap shorts will do the job fine. But if you can afford it, a new wetsuit can be a pretty good investment. I would add for the gals interested in surfing - stick to one piece suits when starting to surf, unless wearing a wetsuit (in which case it doesn't matter.) You can quite easily find yourself wearing a one piece suit after a wipeout if you insist on wearing a two piece suit as a novice.3. A leash:
Once upon a time, boards had no leashes. If you lost your board, you swam to shore. Only the best surfers could venture out to some breaks because losing your board could mean the destruction of you or your board. Surfers were stronger swimmers and more all-around watermen. It also meant that there were loose boards flying all over the place at some breaks. For good or ill, those days are gone. Just a word of advice for the beginner: Treat your leash as if it were not there. Do not rely on it to always bring your board back to you. If the section you're riding starts getting gnarly, pretend you're going to have to swim to shore if you bail.
4. Some wax:
You can usually wheedle wax out of a surfshop owner if you buy anything there. Some surfers pride themselves on never having bought a bar of wax. If the deck of your board has some form of traction pad, you might not need the wax.
5. Sunblock:
Maybe not here on the Emerald Isle, but certainly in most places in the world sunblock is often necessary - the net.wisdom on this is Bullfrog, with Aloe Gator also getting favorable reviews. Most of these can be found at your friendly neighborhood surfshop. Generally though, any decent factor 15+ from your local chemist should do the job.
6. Finding a Partner:
One of the most important things to have in learning to surf is someone to surf with. Aside from the obvious safety reasons (it cuts your chances of being eaten by a shark in half) a partner will give you moral support, keep you stoked when you get frustrated, keep you from sleeping in when its good, talk you into paddling out when its big, and mostly be a friend. There are two schools of thought here:
1.Find someone good to teach you to surf.
2.Find someone else who wants to learn and teach each other.
I subscribe to the second approach, because that's how I learned and because when one person is better than the other, someone is usually not having a very fun session. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy teaching people. But if its cranking on the outside, either I'm gonna be bored on the inside with the beginner, or he's gonna be in over his head on the outside.
If you're new to the scene, and weren't brought up in Tramore or somewhere, it can be hard to find your surf bud at first. The best thing to do is give one of the twelve clubs a call. They'll be friendly and helpful, and there'll probably be someone you can borrow a board from. Go out for a session, and explain your surfing virginity - don't try and talk like you're a pro, surfers are a friendly lot and will generally help you out with advice and that. At this session there is bound to be someone else learning. Talk to them, share ideas, and help each other along.
Your friend you must choose carefully. He will become your brah, and over time will mean more than anyone else on this planet. Besides surfing, you will drink copious amounts of beer, smoke pounds of pot, and chase boxcar loads of women together. You will lend each other money when times are tight. You will never ask each other for gas cash. You will inform him when his ass crack is showing over his pants. If he doesn't like the woman you are seeing you will drop her like a hot rock. Conversely, if your new woman thinks your brah is a jerk, that's a sign that she's a bozo and should be avoided. Boards and wetsuits will be shared. You will hoot for each other on fine days. You will badmouth anyone who drops in on him. People will come to view you as a team. Surf nazis will avoid you because they know that to fight one of you is to fight both of you.
And, years later when you are 40 years old and you and your brah are sitting on a break somewhere listening to the younger guys yacking it up, you will smile and know deep in your soul that there is nothing finer than surfing and the people you do it with.
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