John was my first coach that helped me bridge the gap in my surfing from an average to highly competitive and successful surfer. It’s hard to summarize the positive impact he made in my life, but I owe him much credit for helping to teach me the foundations of surfing and what it takes to be successful.
I admired him as a coach because he taught me, along with all of his other students, to have an open mindset to surfing all conditions – rain or shine, we were out there. It seemed like he was always ahead of the curve with his coaching technique and style, and I admired that he could easily out paddle any student, in any condition, and execute impressive maneuvers in the water. He instructed and demonstrated what hard work and determination against adversity looked like, which highly influenced my many successes. Starting from age twelve and on, as I earned a seat on the USA Surf team for a number of years, won two Surfing America Championship titles, a first-place medalist in the Corona Pro Surf Circuit and a very proud moment becoming a bronze medalist in the 2013 ISA World Games. I am grateful to call him a lifetime friend and for his wonderful family. They bring love and a positive impact to the community.
Nikki Viesins
Our daughters were looking for someone to help them to increase and advance their level of surfing. But they are still young – 9 and 11. John is the perfect combination of nurturing, humorous and fun, but he still pushes them in his own calm quiet manner. It was incredible the progression we saw in even just the first couple months. They come out of every session trying new maneuvers and succeeding. It’s awesome!”
Leslie and Jack Fleming
I started doing coaching with John back when i was probably about 11 years old and just getting into the competitive scene. He was my coach for about 5 years and he completely shaped me into the surfer I am today. Everything from good fundamentals to highly technical surfing, Holeman knows it all! John is an exuberant individual who will be there for you through thick and thin, even outside of the surf scene. Thank you John for everything you’ve done for me!!
Johnny Wallhauser
My son (age 14) and I were visiting Cocoa Beach and wanted a surf “experience.” We live in Colorado, so we are never going to be advanced surfers. John met with us near where we were staying. He handled everything we needed so that we could have an awesome experience. He selected the best days and times of day so we could have some good beginner waves. He gave us a quick briefing on the beach, then it was out on the waves. He started by pushing us into the wave so we could get used to the timing. By the end of the first lesson, my son and I were both getting up on the board. After our second lesson, my son went out alone and was easily getting up by himself. John took what would have taken weeks of trial and error, and condensed the learning curve down to a couple hours. John’s positive, encouraging style made it an amazing experience, and we can’t wait until our next visit to Florida to get in a few more lessons with John.
Paul Reinhardt
John was able to bring my surfing to the next level both mentally and physically. He improved my skills and my contest results tremendously by breaking down all the details of riding a wave . John helped me improve my bottom turn, rotating shoulders during maneuvers, line up positioning, heat tactics, conditioning, and my personally favorite, doing big airs!
Everything he taught me about surfing has stuck with me after many years. During my younger years, he was a huge part of my sponsorship achievements, contest winnings and better results. He helped my raise the bar to a much higher level of surfing. John is an amazing surfer himself! He’s a great, easy going guy who truly has a passion for teaching and surfing . I would recommend him to anyone of any skill level! He will help you reach your goals! Thanks John!
Mike Persichetti
I was referred to John a few years ago through a friend who had recently started taking lessons with him. Being an intermediate surfer, I was eager to learn some new skills and fix some bad habits. The experience with John, through multiple lessons, was nothing less than 5 star! Professional, friendly and knowledgeable coaching was the reliable and welcomed result to each one of our sessions. Many different methods were used to aid me in honing my skills and understanding how they could be improved. I am a better surfer because of the time I spent with John and will always be thankful for the ability he saw in me and the extra mile he was willing to go to help me reach my potential. There is no other surf coach I would recommend.
Nick
I highly recommend John Holeman as a surfing instructor. He is supremely qualified having over 20 years experience as a professional surfing instructor, coach and mentor. John is thoughtful, concerned and committed to passing on the best possible surfing experience to everyone he works with, at all levels of surfing ability.
Due to his ability to create and successfully execute never before seen maneuvers back in the early 1980’s, John is recognized within the Sport of Surfing as one of the great innovators in the advent of aerial maneuvers . He was inducted into the East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame in 2012 in recognition of his contributions to the progression of the sport.
Hunter Joslin, INDO BOARD Balance Trainer Inventor
I am honored to know and work with John as he acutely understands the value of Balance, Posture and Breathing as it relates to the Surfing experience.