"Give yourself a chance to line-up and play again." The voice of Ronny Lott, All Pro defensive halfback, the scene is the UH practice field. Lott is speaking to a group of high school football players about the mental aspects of being a cover guy. "No matter what happens on the play that has just happened you need to let it go. That play is history, you need to focus on the man in front of you and react to the ball. If you are thinking about the fact that you were beat on the last play you are history. To be at your best you must be thinking about the play that is about to happen." Then Lott made his famous quote. "Give yourself a chance to line up and play again." Lott is describing the essence of a skill called "letting go," a skill that you must master in order to become the best surfer that you can be. The skill of "letting go" comes in two versions: "back-burner" and "delete."

Back-burner
The short version, to be used during intense situations; imagine that you are surfing in the finals of an important contest: You are lined up perfectly for a set wave and you blow the take-off. You are upset and frustrated with yourself, and worse yet, you are out of position for the next two waves. As you finally catch a wave you are forcing every move and surfing tight. As you paddle back out for your next wave you are UPSET, you are seeing "red." "Back-burner" describes the act of putting an experience that is making you hot out of your mind.

Action: Take a deep breath; repeat a command like "stop," "relax" or "end" to put the experience out of your mind. Focus on your breathing and feel relaxed and confident as you paddle back out. Visualize being in position for the next wave, nailing the take-off and surfing with fire. Note: With practice you will be able to put upsets and distractions out of your mind and get back to the business of surfing at your best.

Delete
The long version, to be used after intense situations; imagine that you are back on the beach and you discover that the wave you blew caused you to lose a very close heat and the contest. The more you think about blowing the wave in question the more upset you get. To hold on to this upset will create a toxic file on your hard drive (sub-conscious mind). "Delete" describes the act of releasing negative emotions, acknowledging how upset you are with yourself for blowing that wave and perhaps, how upset you are with the person who beat you and let it all go.

Action: Take a deep breath, review what happened and ask yourself a question like "what do I have to do to accept this upset?" or "why can't I accept the fact that I blew a wave and lost the contest?" The answers to questions like these will provide you with a deeper understanding of your upset.

Combine this understanding with activities that help you to:

Relax
Exercise, listen to music or do something constructive, like your schoolwork.

Be at peace
Write about your experience or talk with a friend or your coach.

Feel good about yourself
Surf hard, train hard and surf hard some more.

Learn an important lesson
Develop a strategy for surfing in contests that allows you to handle upsets.

Note: With practice you will be able to release the negative emotions related to your upset, acknowledge your feelings, learn an important lesson and get back to the business of surfing at your best.

Summary: Negative emotions can prevent you from doing your best, fester and create a toxic condition inside of you. Negative emotions are helpful if they serve as a reminder of what is important to you and you continue to learn and grow and become the surfer/person you want to be. The skills of backburner and delete will allow you to focus on surfing at your best.
Note: In a recent conversation, Dr. Bruce Eliashof, Psychiatrist and HiLevel Team Rider, underlined the importance of letting go. "Letting go, namely the skills of backburner and delete should be taught in every school, at every level. Learning these skills will help you to perform better in every area of your life."