CINDY, INCIDENTALLY:

Even though I love living by the beach, I’ve never had a desire to learn a water sport, which goes for surfing, scuba diving and paddle boarding.

If it means having to get out into the middle of the ocean, I’m just not game.

The truth is that while I do love looking at the ocean, I fear actually getting in it.

I blame “Jaws,” which I watched when I was too little to understand it was cinema, and I also blame my overprotective mother, who warned me that the ocean could kill me if I wasn’t careful.

Needless to say, beach time involves lots of reading and toe dipping in the water.

Lately, I’ve been talking to a friend about possibly learning to surf.

My girlfriend, a prototype surfer girl who loves the scent of surf wax on her boyfriend and feels most comfortable in a wet suit, told me my first lesson was going to be investing in a body board, since this was the best way to learn the rules of the ocean.

Conveniently, I found out the Bodyboarder International Association (BIA) was holding its annual competition in Huntington Beach this past weekend, and it allowed me to get a crash course in Body Boarding 101.

I got up early and headed down to Ninth Street and Pacific Coast Highway and was introduced to the subculture of competitive body boarding.

People from all over the world were in town to watch the championship, which was broken down into several categories including masters, pro, juniors, drop knee, beginner and women.

“We’re kind of like the little brothers of surfers,” explained Raymond Green, the official timekeeper for the BIA.

“We get drowned out a lot by surfers, but body boarding is actually really, really big.”

The competition was fun to watch after Green told me what to look for in a good body boarder.

He explained that it ranged from skills of maneuvering through waves without falling off, showmanship and some old fashioned shredding from plucky competitors.

“This is often the stepping stone to surfing,” Green explained to me. “It’s an easier step than trying to get your moves or learning to drop on a surf board.

“Once you get your paddling balance and board control, you can go onto surfing, if you want.”

Body boarding seems like a great way to acclimate to the ocean and learn the rules of sharing waves with surfers who I heard can govern with an iron fist.

But, maybe getting into the actual world of body boarding, learning how to do a 360-degree spin in the waves or having someone tell me I did an awesome “el rollo off the white water” is not as important as just getting into the ocean and not fearing for my life.

Life — it’s all about baby steps.

CINDY ARORA is a freelance writer. She may be reached at paprgrrl@gmail.com.