New board - I'm going short! Any tips?

[girlgonesurfing]

Hi all, I recently went from a 7'4" minmal to a 5'9" egg surfboard (its a replica of the Panda Doinker Egg).

I've been so excited to surf it but because of swell conditions here, I've only been out twice.

I find that its super floaty and pretty stable (but obviously not as stable as the minimal). My problem is in the pop-up. I now realise that I have been using my toes to pop up on the minimal, but I clearly can't do that on the much shorter egg.

I've tried the chicken wing method, but it takes me too long to get up, or I wobble from side to side. I'm kinda at a loss as what I should do.

Also, I feel like I need lie further forward on the egg than I did on the minimal - as in I need to lie a bit above the centre to get into the wave. Is that just me imagining things, or is that a transition "thing"?

Thanks so much for all your help in advance

[Big H]

Do this:

[Big H]

Depending on the board and conditions you will lie where you need to....there is no absolute answer....you will know by feel, balance and water resistance whether you are in the sweet spot or not....practice and getting used to your new board; no substitute for that.

You made a massive jump in size; too much IMO. You will have growing pains and you might consider going back to your bigger board to practice popping up without using your toes and smoothing out/improving your pop up speed and balance.

[Tudeo]

You must use the knees or upper legs to do the thing you did with your toes, lift your lower body. Just practise it dry, on the floor. Do it with your toes the way you're used to and then change it up with the knees or upper legs, to see how it feels.

But the popup is a strange thing, sometimes it just works and sometimes it just don't. There are so many variables involved, and no 2 waves are the same.

Also with the shorter board you'll need a more critical wave for takeoff, a wave that is so steep that it is about to break on your head, so you'll need to popup faster then on the minimal.

So yeah, it's a transition "thing". You'll need to put the time in to get it right, but there's a lot of stoke to be had when you get it right, that'll keep you going.

[YungGrom]

Since my board is shorter than me (just) I drag my back leg once I push up and use the little notch on the kickpad as a lever sort of

[dtc]

The right place to lie is the place that lets you catch waves. Whatever works works.

As to pop up, yes you need to find a way that works for you and then memory it into your muscles by repetition. Otherwise your body is going to try the old way

[waikikikichan]

I'm kinda at a loss as what I should do.

Put that 5'9" to the side, and go find a board about 6" smaller than the 7'4" ( so a 6'10- 6'8" big fish or hybrid ). A foot and half is way to much of a jump down in size if you can't pop up easily.

[saltydog]

I hear you. I've recently picked up a 6'8 walden cd and I can't always use the toes to pop up, and now I have some weird 1 knee pop up that makes it slow and a little off balance. I think by doing lots of practice pop up on land along with push-ups and core strengthening workouts should help.

[RinkyDink]

I'm definitely not an expert. If I were going to start shortboarding, then I'd focus on taking off on steeper waves breaking in deeper water. I wouldn't surf shorebreak. I think longboarding is the most efficient path to shortboard riding (assuming the rider is out of shape, intimidated by faster, steeper, larger waves, and still learning how to position their takeoffs in the right place). My thinking is that if you haven't really wired longboarding, then there's a good chance you'll just be mucking up a lineup of shortboarders if you don't know what you're doing. If you have a break all to yourself though, go out and practice it.

[girlgonesurfing]

You must use the knees or upper legs to do the thing you did with your toes, lift your lower body. Just practise it dry, on the floor. Do it with your toes the way you're used to and then change it up with the knees or upper legs, to see how it feels.

But the popup is a strange thing, sometimes it just works and sometimes it just don't. There are so many variables involved, and no 2 waves are the same.

Also with the shorter board you'll need a more critical wave for takeoff, a wave that is so steep that it is about to break on your head, so you'll need to popup faster then on the minimal.

So yeah, it's a transition "thing". You'll need to put the time in to get it right, but there's a lot of stoke to be had when you get it right, that'll keep you going.

Yeah, it looks like in the videos above that the guys are using their knees/front of their thighs to pop-up. Is that pretty standard?

I can pop up fine if try on my knees, although I thought we're not meant to use the knees??

I'm pretty fit, and have been grovelling waves for a few years now, so hoping that I won't have to cast aside the new egg but still haven't been able to get out on it, yet, as the swell is massive! Although I think if I struggle with it for too long, I'll take the suggestions to go a bit longer and put the egg into interim retirement

[saltydog]

When they say to not use your knees they mean don't be using your hands and toes then onto your knees (like crawling) then up on your feet. The clips above show that you'd use hands and knees (no toes) and then hop onto your feet directly. This needs more upper body and core strength as well as getting used to the new technique.

There's nothing wrong with a mid 6' transitional board. It can always be your small wave board or a back up board. Or a guest board... although it wouldn't work for a beginner. You can see it as building a quiver for different conditions as well. The more boards the merrier!

[Tudeo]

When you go from a bigger board to a smaller board you'll have to get used to a lot of new things. If you make a big step in size the differences are big and it will take you some time to get used to it.
It can be a great stimulant to try this, you'll be stoked when there's progress. But, if the step is too big for your current skill level, it can be very frustrating. You must figure out for yourself what works for you.
Now, when you do your popup practises on land it will only give you a part of the experience because of the stable surface. Like I said before with a board this short you'll need a critical wave, a wave that is so steep it is about to break. When you take off on a steep wave the nose of your board will drop down, the moment the nose drops down is the moment to bring your feet up. So there's a very different dynamic than the dry practise.
The good thing is, if you time it right it will happen as by itself.The bad thing is it can take some time before you got it right.
Set realistic goals that are fun to meet, in the end it's not about surfing, it's all about having fun.

[dtc]

Most people dont use their knees doing a pop up, it's an explosive arm and hip press and the feet come underneath. Try moving your hand back ie so they are at the bottom of your rib cage. When you press from here (or lower), you are pressing your hips up rather than your chest or shoulders - it's your hip height that lets your legs come through

But if you need to pivot off your knees, go for it

[icetime]

I had the same transition problem, you didn't go too short, you just haven't adapted yet.
Here's something that helped a lot, paddle as much as you can so you can get lower down the face for more stability and set your rail before standing up by keeping pressure on your inner rail, this will make your board glide instead of a steep drop resulting in you wobbling then getting slammed by the lip or nose diving

[girlgonesurfing]

Thanks for all the tips! They're really useful and give me a lot to practice this weekend when the swell (hopefully) becomes more surfable. Can't wait to try them!

[waikikikichan]

"I'm thoroughly confused on what dimension board to get. I have also surfed a 6'8 x 20 1/2 x 2 3/4 Ripcurl Joystick (only for a day). I was able to paddle out on it and I caught probably the biggest wave I have ever ridden (maybe 4ft?), but I did feel pretty unstable on it whilst in the water."

What ever happened to your friend's 6'8" that you had a hard time riding ? Did your master taking off and turning that 6'8" before you got that 5'9" ?

[LostAtSea]

....you'll need a critical wave, a wave that is so steep it is about to break. When you take off on a steep wave the nose of your board will drop down, the moment the nose drops down is the moment to bring your feet up. So there's a very different dynamic than the dry practise.
The good thing is, if you time it right it will happen as by itself.The bad thing is it can take some time before you got it right.
...

Excellent advice - I am in the "transition" myself and finding out exactly this. Not just what I bolded but all the points I quoted here from Tudeo.

[Big H]

....you'll need a critical wave, a wave that is so steep it is about to break. When you take off on a steep wave the nose of your board will drop down, the moment the nose drops down is the moment to bring your feet up. So there's a very different dynamic than the dry practise.
The good thing is, if you time it right it will happen as by itself.The bad thing is it can take some time before you got it right.
...

Excellent advice - I am in the "transition" myself and finding out exactly this. Not just what I bolded but all the points I quoted here from Tudeo.

It isn't that hard....after a few goes you know that the "feeling" will be coming....steeper waves it isn't about "will I catch" but rather "when"....as soon as you get that feeling that you are in you need to be already moving to get up....so anticipate catching, be ready to get up and as soon as you get there, be moving already......for me, as I feel the wave picking me up I'm going in....there is a rhythm to it....just have to pay attention and feel it.

[girlgonesurfing]

"I'm thoroughly confused on what dimension board to get. I have also surfed a 6'8 x 20 1/2 x 2 3/4 Ripcurl Joystick (only for a day). I was able to paddle out on it and I caught probably the biggest wave I have ever ridden (maybe 4ft?), but I did feel pretty unstable on it whilst in the water."

What ever happened to your friend's 6'8" that you had a hard time riding ? Did your master taking off and turning that 6'8" before you got that 5'9" ?

Thanks for reminding me - I'd completely forgotten about this! No I haven't ridden my friend's board again (I'm not sure she even has it anymore). That post was a while ago, and since then I think I've improved quite a bit (better pop up, angled take-off, can set my rail etc) - but point taken - if I really suck on the new stick even after all the helpful advice in this thread, I will look to move back up to something like a 6'8".