Hey Nick, sucks about the shoulder! 

For a low budget good enough quality cam I also recommend the Sony HDR-CX405... It's the one I use, very compact, great zoom. The footage I upload is shot with the cam and the distance between can be up to 100m away. The quality suffers a little the further out it zooms. Still good enough to provide feedback. 

I would recommend getting a spare battery set -depends on how long your record times will be- because the Sony battery does not last long.

I also recommend a tri-pod... One with a fluid head. It is difficult to follow moving things smoothly with the standard photo camera tripod, and you WILL miss a critical moment because the tripod jerks as you try pan or tilt to follow the action. There are low budget options, like Velbon.

Heal up soon... sure the extra beach time is going to help as well 😀

Thank you... Was surprised I actually made this one... Starting to get luckier with these... 😉

oh why thank you. 😁

Thank you... Although, with the narrow nose of that board, it kinda just happens. lol I can't take full credit 😂

Hey Matt, and welcome. I think paddling in the pool will help a lot for your fitness as well as body conditioning, as in the position of your body. Muscles from your neck down to your hamstrings will get a workout while in the paddling position which will help a lot for stamina. 

I second Dean... Wish I had that setup 😉

Tom Tebbatt this pic also shows that your weight is too far back. You're stepping on the breaks, then you hop to try get speed. Push your hips forward and your coffee cup arm.

Thanks Hayden... Bookmarked for movie night 😉

I think your compression is good here.

May you have a smooth operation and get well soon :)