About RTW · Since 2018
The Ride the Wave Foundation was set up on the basis of a single conviction: every talented individual deserves a chance – regardless of their postcode, school results or home circumstances.
How it all began
Ride the Wave grew out of personal experience: the realisation that a single first wave can change more than just your relationship with sport. On the water, you learn to deal with uncertainty, failure and starting afresh.
In 2018, that experience became a charity with one clear aim: to make surfing and kitesurfing accessible to young people aged 14 to 23, regardless of their background, income or academic performance.
The ocean doesn’t ask for a qualification, a postcode or a perfect plan. Everyone starts from scratch – and that is precisely where there is room to grow.
Where we’re heading out onto the water
From Scheveningen to Ouddorp and soon Costa Rica.
Are you coming too?
ScheveningenRoute
The Shore is a household name in the Scheveningen surfing scene and is committed to people and nature. Located by the harbour head, this sustainable surf school provides a welcoming venue for Ride the Wave. View The Shore.
Partner: Gemeente Den Haag
ScheveningenRoute
For kitesurfing, Ride the Wave in Scheveningen is working with DownUnder on the Black Trail. View DownUnder.
Partner: Gemeente Den Haag
Noordwijk aan ZeeRoute
Beach Break is Ride the Wave’s regular venue partner in Noordwijk aan Zee. The surfing and kitesurfing school at beach exit 21 brings water sports enthusiasts together and offers a cosy spot on the beach. View BeachBreak.
Partner: Gemeente Noordwijk
OuddorpRoute
Natural High is Ride the Wave’s regular venue partner in Ouddorp. On the North Sea beach at Brouwersdam, it’s all about freedom, action and that Natural High feeling. Check out Natural High.
Partner: Gemeente Goeree-Overflakkee
Location to be announced in 2027Route
Ride the Wave is preparing a surf site in Costa Rica. The final location and partner will be announced in 2027.
Together we create the wave
Ride the Wave is growing thanks to organisations that bring young people, sport and new opportunities together.
Ride the Wave didn’t start with a grand plan, but simply by getting started. With a board, a group of young people and people who believed that opportunities aren’t automatically distributed fairly.
What started small grew into a programme spanning several cities. The core principle remained the same: we look first at what a young person needs – and only then at what the system expects of them.
How we started
From an initial group on the beach to a growing movement. This timeline can be managed centrally and can be updated as Ride the Wave reaches new milestones.
The first wave
The first group of young people is heading out onto the water. Small in scale, but big on conviction: participation remains free of charge.
A foundation becomes a team
The support is becoming more professional, and the first former participants are progressing towards a role as a coach.
More locations, the same core
Ride the Wave is reaching more young people and is adding kitesurfing as a second programme.
The next stretch of coastline
New local partnerships make it possible to roll out the approach in several locations.
The movement is growing
More coaches, new venues in the pipeline, and still the same promise: no participant pays for their opportunity.