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"I saw an article in a magazine entitled 'The Sport of Kings' and it was from there that I thought to myself: 'I'd like to surf'.

"The nearest place that sold surf boards was Newquay, and they were £20 each, which was far too much, so I went to the library and learned how to build one.

"The method of building a board was fine, but I couldn't get hold of the correct foam – I needed polyurethane, but I got polystyrene and managed to shape that.

"People would always stop and stare at the sight of a surf board on top of my car.

"It was so new that one guy looked puzzled and said to me: 'how does that move? There's no propeller!', and I had to explain that we were surfing on a wave.

"Initially it was just me, but a friend said he knew a guy who was a diver and was building a board as a platform to dive from.

"I went to him and said I was building a board too and asked if he wanted to try surfing, and he did.

"Another friend was interested and so I sold him my board, and made another board with the money I made from the sale.

"We felt like Gods. When you're stood on a board and flying along at what feels like 60 mph you feel immortal – it's an unreal, dreamlike situation.

"I remember we had people from the Nottingham Surf Club come up to Saltburn when they heard about the waves.

"Everyone was looking at them and wanted a go for themselves, and when the public saw it all taking place they got keen to try it as well."

You can hear more from John by clicking on the link above.