I'm a special case. need advise

[DreamSurf]

man man man i live in a shizzy place at the moment(belgium holland). you guys are surfing back to back need to go back to my original country(morocco). benelux is a dead place. you will survive with a skimboard but as a surfer it is a life of depression.

The North Sea is not good, too shallow and the UK is in the way (as so often ) and Waves will almost always require some kind of onshore wind. So no comparison to the European or African Atlantic or some of the truly great destinations like Indo.

But you can learn to surf there. Belgium and the South of Nethlerlands are very often flat, but Scheveningen and Wijk can have acceptable days. And in both locations you can rent very decent equipment, so you can get just get started, no need to wait for any shipment. Next Sunday may be one of those days I go myself. Hart Beach and Aloha in Scheveningen have good teachers, too. Check MSW, read surfveer, look at the webcams and you will find enough days to get started.

i will continue in english out of respect to the forum members.

scheveningen? better go early with all those cars. or take the train. it has been a while for me. by the way i remember hoek van holland had decent waves. not hawai or moroccan. but you can go ahead with them. but you have to go winters. summers its flat most of the time. so how are the lessons? im a social person and im really not a fan of coconut baja beach club kind of people.(with all respect i give their right for happiness) what kind of people subscribe there?

i went to kano one time and there were these people like what u see in mtv all muscled and riling up themselves for the chicks. and they ended up doing jokes on the kano and carrying the girls on their shoulders like they are the god of war kratos and so the kano riding became a swim and throw girls thing.

[DreamSurf]

what if i pop up on first or second and actually know how to carve n steer? how occasional is that? really sat 17 im gonna get wet first timeand on purpose ill be takin the shorboard as well. so what if you know. is that really out of the zone? i read it is more then possible. theres even shortboards with no fins made by the hawaians that use their own freaking feet to mimmick the fin and that is their first board at the time. seriously what if. surely imma take the videocamera with me for just in case. i got it all figured.



1. is the skateboard. when you put the pressure on the side it will steer depending how loose your trucks are.
2. is steering like a skater on the water which results that you will go so sharp you cant adjust for the next curve
3. is the way to do it. in the curve you have to adjust early to make the next curve happen.

all with all skateboarding is not for nothing. the dropping is simmilar. the nose deserves pressure to a certain extain so that it wont dive in the process. you could imagine it like a wheelie. once you go you go. and the reading of the wave is very important. and that somehow is hopefully ok since i swim back to back in oceans with waves and no waves. but it is a different way of anticipating.when is the wave going white water? what is the perfect speed depending how fast the wave is?

are there any more tips that you guys can give that will come handy. im just pretending waikiki dont hate participate.

[oldmansurfer]

Imagine that you are skateboarding and you want to drop down a ramp but in order to get to the ramp you have to lay down on your skateboard and pull your self up hill with your arms to get to the edge of the ramp and then stand up quickly as you go over the edge then imagine that the ramp is moving and changing shape and has currents that can sweep you away to never be found. That is about as close as I can get to a skateboarding analogy

[RinkyDink]

1. is the skateboard. when you put the pressure on the side it will steer depending how loose your trucks are.
2. is steering like a skater on the water which results that you will go so sharp you cant adjust for the next curve
3. is the way to do it. in the curve you have to adjust early to make the next curve happen.
.

Why are you asking these questions? None of them are applicable to your first day of surfing. Skateboading is not equivalent to surfing. They're very different sports. You're gliding and sliding in one and rolling with friction and traction in the other. Skimboarding is closer to surfing than skateboarding and from your earlier post it sounded like skimboarding wasn't really your cup of tea. Wait until the 17th and give actual surfing a try. There's a chance you may not really enjoy surfing. In that case, your next post will be about how to get the best price on selling your surfboards.

[DreamSurf]

1. is the skateboard. when you put the pressure on the side it will steer depending how loose your trucks are.
2. is steering like a skater on the water which results that you will go so sharp you cant adjust for the next curve
3. is the way to do it. in the curve you have to adjust early to make the next curve happen.
.

Why are you asking these questions? None of them are applicable to your first day of surfing. Skateboading is not equivalent to surfing. They're very different sports. You're gliding and sliding in one and rolling with friction and traction in the other. Skimboarding is closer to surfing than skateboarding and from your earlier post it sounded like skimboarding wasn't really your cup of tea. Wait until the 17th and give actual surfing a try. There's a chance you may not really enjoy surfing. In that case, your next post will be about how to get the best price on selling your surfboards.

ok cool i skimboarded and actuall went into and caught a wave and i was doin it. even did boardslide and floater on a wave. the reason why i ask these questions because it is a journey within myself that may be good or distorted and a lot of forum members here are cool with that and try to bring me on a better path then what i suggest to myself. i am fusing all my experiences and before thoughts with experiences and achieved skills of real surfers( which i am not). my next post will be a video u seeying me popping up and go boss on that surboard and under it put a meme that says haters gonna hate

[DreamSurf]

Imagine that you are skateboarding and you want to drop down a ramp but in order to get to the ramp you have to lay down on your skateboard and pull your self up hill with your arms to get to the edge of the ramp and then stand up quickly as you go over the edge then imagine that the ramp is moving and changing shape and has currents that can sweep you away to never be found. That is about as close as I can get to a skateboarding analogy

you are bringing it to a better and real dimension. funny how you explain it i was actually thinking of it that way. the ramp changes and you need to adjust to it. to bring it up we had this old santa cruzz board that is much wider then the average of nowadays and we had this game long before surfing. we needed to make full speed and lay down on the board with the stomach. and just before the miniramp 1.5 meter approximately you had to stand up without touching the ground and drop in. we all achieved that.so without really knowing anything about surfing i was popping up on a small 31 inch board with 9 inch width.

the changing shape of the imaginable ramp(the wave) is one of those reasons i have so much respect for surfers. but i like that challenge. adjust adjust adjust. there are similarities and also great differences which if you do not acknowledge u'll fail hard.

[Oldie]

are there any more tips that you guys can give that will come handy.

Get wet. Get a lesson. Get real.

[DreamSurf]

As real as can be. Salut

[saltydog]

I think most guys/girls here are just trying to give you a realistic view of what it is like to learn to surf. If you are that good a skateboarder you'd have little trouble riding a wave. BUT dealing w/ ocean, paddling for and catching waves, then popping-up is not something skateboarding can help w/ unless you are a rare surfing prodigy or something. Seems like you are gearing up for your first session. Let us know how it goes.

[waikikikichan]

Advice from a pro wakeboarder to me, " after you do your first Invert, do another one immediately". It was so it gets ingrained in your brain/muscle memory. Don't pump your fist and celebrate. So when you pop up on your 1st-2nd wave and carve, carve back again. In the case of surfing, you're not getting pulled along by a boat, so if you do your first carve in to the face of the wave, you need to then carve AWAY from the face. If not you'll be turning off the road course. You'll either shoot off the wave or get mowed down by the lip.

[jaffa1949]

Skim board slides= no fins.
Stop the theory stuff, talk is cheap, you have the boards there is a Nederlandish beach hopefully nearby , you don't need epic surf. GO SURFING FFS!

[RinkyDink]

put a meme that says haters gonna hate

I prefer: Knowledge makes people humble and arrogance makes people ignorant. You're not a special case; you're just like the rest of us beginners.

[benjl]

i'm just playing catch-up on this thread- when are you actually going to get in the water and send us the vids?

I'm struggling to tell if these posts are for real or whether this is a massive trolling?? It would be like me saying despite my snapped achillies at the moment, I will be an olympic sprinter in 3 months haha it's physically not going to happen, if ever.

Like everyone else has mentioned in this forum, surfing is not something you can just pick up and shred. Like yourself, i am an accomplished athlete in multiple sports and surfing is hands-down the hardest and most frustrating sport i've ever tried. Like yourself, I wanted to be good straight away but it just doesn't work that way.
The ocean is ever changing and always testing whatever skills you thought you had previously gained on a different day,

Get your paddle fitness up, get your ocean skills up, get totally familiar with your minimal and then take a plunge on a shorter board. While it will aid with doing snappier turns, it sure as heck won't help with paddling / wave catching and it won't magically enable you to be a pro.
Get out there, have some fun and let us know how you get on. We've all been there!

ps. I started almost straight away on a 7'6 after never surfing before., i went down to a 6'2 fish in about 6 months of surfing 2-3 days a week and with a heck of a lot of persistence like you. Bare in mind I had a background of swimming, top physical / cardio ability and was nearly 20kg lighter than you. 3 years later, in surfing terms I'd still be an intermediate. My current board is a 5'9 but I still like my 7'2 minimal equally the same in the right conditions.
Just get out there dude and have some fun!

[DreamSurf]

i'm just playing catch-up on this thread- when are you actually going to get in the water and send us the vids?

I'm struggling to tell if these posts are for real or whether this is a massive trolling?? It would be like me saying despite my snapped achillies at the moment, I will be an olympic sprinter in 3 months haha it's physically not going to happen, if ever.

Like everyone else has mentioned in this forum, surfing is not something you can just pick up and shred. Like yourself, i am an accomplished athlete in multiple sports and surfing is hands-down the hardest and most frustrating sport i've ever tried. Like yourself, I wanted to be good straight away but it just doesn't work that way.
The ocean is ever changing and always testing whatever skills you thought you had previously gained on a different day,

Get your paddle fitness up, get your ocean skills up, get totally familiar with your minimal and then take a plunge on a shorter board. While it will aid with doing snappier turns, it sure as heck won't help with paddling / wave catching and it won't magically enable you to be a pro.
Get out there, have some fun and let us know how you get on. We've all been there!

ps. I started almost straight away on a 7'6 after never surfing before., i went down to a 6'2 fish in about 6 months of surfing 2-3 days a week and with a heck of a lot of persistence like you. Bare in mind I had a background of swimming, top physical / cardio ability and was nearly 20kg lighter than you. 3 years later, in surfing terms I'd still be an intermediate. My current board is a 5'9 but I still like my 7'2 minimal equally the same in the right conditions.
Just get out there dude and have some fun!

There is no reason to troll honestly.

[DreamSurf]

I think most guys/girls here are just trying to give you a realistic view of what it is like to learn to surf. If you are that good a skateboarder you'd have little trouble riding a wave. BUT dealing w/ ocean, paddling for and catching waves, then popping-up is not something skateboarding can help w/ unless you are a rare surfing prodigy or something. Seems like you are gearing up for your first session. Let us know how it goes.

I know that. But maybe i give you guys the impression that im naive or i am u derestimating it. I am really not. I say what i think on that very moment and it slightly changes trough knowledge. Waikiki said something about the carving which is great. It adds to my knowledge. That way i can abandon my before thoughts that might be distorted. And add his experience to my thoughts. Ofcourse it is theory. But its imprtant to try to put that into practice.

Let me assure you i am not blindly believing in myself nor am i naive or seeying walking chairs lol. Im stoked. And very driven. And once i go paddle im happy. I hope we can leave the sarcasm to the side. It adds only a laugh in my face.

I need to get wet i get it lol.

[DreamSurf]

put a meme that says haters gonna hate

I prefer: Knowledge makes people humble and arrogance makes people ignorant. You're not a special case; you're just like the rest of us beginners.

I was joking. Its give and take here. Nothing has to do with arrogance. Just happy and stoked.

[Big H]

are there any more tips that you guys can give that will come handy. im just pretending waikiki dont hate participate.

Yeah....here's some tips....

1. Practice swimming
2. Practice paddling
3. Lose weight
4. Try your shortboard on the 17th then wrap it carefully in bubble wrap, sprinkle some salt on it and pack it away for a couple years.
5. Be properly humbled by your experience on the 17th, learn about safety and the ocean, practice swimming, practice paddling, get in better shape and try to surf as often as you can, ideally more than once a week.

Don't worry about toe pressure one way or the other.....you aren't going to catch anything on that shorty in weak north sea windswell conditions Oldie posted up.

Don't be discouraged on the 18th.......just understand that there is much more, much much more that goes into this than you think. Any opinion you have PRIOR to actually trying surfing is nothing but hot air in a bag. Go get in the ocean and let us know how it went.

[saltydog]

[ I hope we can leave the sarcasm to the side. It adds only a laugh in my face.

I meant no sarcasm.

I personally found that learning to surf was a lot easier than to windsurf. But that might have been because I was using a heavy and cumbersome racing class longboard setup. I was trying to lift the heavy sail (and dropping it) all day long, too exhausted to eat dinner for many days. So everyone's experience is a bit different. Anyway, you are totally keeping me in suspense. This is like waiting for a movie release Make sure you keep this weekend open for surfing, HAVE FUN, and report back to us

[Namu]

If you are looking for advice from experienced surfers keep a few things in mind:

You seem confident that once you are up on your feet riding the wave that you will be able to rip and shred, based on your skateboarding experience you may have an edge in this area compared to most beginners. However in order to be up on your feet and riding the wave you need to accomplish several things first.

a.) Know when and where to paddle out to catch a suitable wave that you can catch and ride.
b.) Paddle out to that spot and stay in that spot as the wind and currents move you in the ocean.
c.) Know how to read the incoming waves to determine which waves to paddle for or pass.
d.) Know how to position yourself to put yourself in the best position to catch a particular wave.
e.) Paddle on your belly to catch a wave
f.) Pop-up to your feet without falling off the board, stalling and losing the wave, or nose-diving.
g.) Angling, trimming, or turning the board to ride along the open face of the wave.
h.) Adjusting to the wave as is steepens, flattens out, breaks ahead of or behind you.
i.) Trim, cruise, turn, nose-ride, rip, shred, bust airs, whatever you want to do, express yourself, the fun stuff.

Once you catch a wave and it finishes you have to repeat from step b. for each and every wave you catch or miss. This means most of your time in the water will be spent paddling and reading waves. If you can't paddle or read waves effectively you will not get the opportunity to even reach step f.

Since most of the physical aspect of surfing is comprised of paddling you should work on your paddle fitness, so work on your cardio, swimming freestyle, or practice paddling on your board if there are no waves. The mental aspect of surfing is reading waves, learn to read surf forecasts, understand the tides, winds, and currents. Watch the waves form and break, watch where they break, understand why they break. No two waves are the same, but understanding the wave patterns will help you on steps a thru d.

About your boards, enough has been said about them already... More thought should have been put into the waves you most likely will encounter in your area. It looks like the summers are flat and calm and generally un-surfable most days. In the fall, winter, spring you get bigger waves but with stormy, windy conditions. If you wanted to surf something short you should have gotten a fish or groveler, but those are for more advanced surfers and you don't need those yet. You should get a longboard to go along with your 7'6" fun-board then you would have the opportunity to surf more days each year. The more you surf the better you get, if you go a month or longer without surfing then you will not improve or get worse. By failing to obtain a board best suited to the conditions in your area you are holding back your own progress. If your goal is riding that 5'11" HPSB within a couple of years, then you need to get a longboard to practice and stay fit on weak small days.

You are going surfing on the 17th, here is the forecast from Magic Seaweed for a spot called Surfer's Paradise:

http://magicseaweed.com/Surfers-Paradise-Surf-Report/142/

Use this guide to help interpret the forecast for that day:

http://magicseaweed.com/help/

Looking at the swell size, wave periord, wave direction, tide, and wind direction, what do you expect the conditions for that day to be? Would it be a good day to take out the shortboard or funboard? When would be the best time to go surfing? What would be the best spot in your area based on those conditions?

Watch all of these videos several times over:

http://surfsimply.com/surf-simply-tutorials/

I'm not trying crush your stoke, just giving you some helpful advice that I learned from others on the forum and from my personal experience.

Let us know how it goes after your first session.

[RinkyDink]

put a meme that says haters gonna hate

I prefer: Knowledge makes people humble and arrogance makes people ignorant. You're not a special case; you're just like the rest of us beginners.

I was joking. Its give and take here. Nothing has to do with arrogance. Just happy and stoked.

It's all good. Go out and have fun.