Epic Fail: Fitness Influencer Attempts Rowboat Surfing (Video)

Originally posted on SURFER | By Dashel Pierson | Last updated Nov 10, 2025 12:46 PM ET

The history of surfing is filled with accounts of boats, not surfboards, being some of the early crafts preferred by the pioneering practitioners of riding waves.

While surfing’s official origins are somewhat nebulous – read more on that here – boats played a role. From ancient Polynesia to Peru, accounts of canoes or boats fashioned from reeds have been documented. And still today, the practice of outrigger canoe surfing is honored in places like Hawaii, carrying on the tradition into modern times.

Other types of boats, however, aren’t typically well-suited for surfing, or “wave sliding” as the ancient Polynesians called it. Like rowboats – see below.

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The video comes from fitness influencer, Michael Holland. This one, in addition to a handful of others he’s uploaded, shows him attempting to row into a wave via boat, flip around to the stern once he’s caught the wave, then use an oar as a fin as well as his weight to navigate the boat successfully across the breaking wave.

In this instance, though, Holland is unsuccessful. As the wave approaches its breaking point, it doubles up, leaving Holland and the boat on top of the lip. Appropriately, he bails out the back. The boat then goes over the falls.

“This doesn’t end well…” the video chyron reads.

Then, rather ominously, the text continues: “If you want the ultimate, you’ve got to be willing to pay the ultimate price. It’s not tragic to die doing what you love.”

An iconic quote from Patrick Swayze’s Bodhi in Point Break.

As for Holland, himself, he’s a ridiculously chiseled health and wellness guru, focusing on a “mind, body, energy” approach. According to his website, he offers a guide filled with movements including lymphatic hops, ballet squats, golf swings, and more.

How boat surfing factors into the program? Unclear.

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

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