Surfing Waves

Hi my name is muxz0r and i'm 25, 5'8", 185 pounds (losing weight steadily) and only ever surfed closeout beachbreaks in Trinidad. I have been surfing since October 2010, i started going out with a surf school every week until May 2011 starting with a 10' and eventually working my way to a 8' with them.

The summer flatness, school and foot surgery interrupted my weekly surfing from May 2011 til Jan 2012 but i still managed to get in 2 paddle sessions a month on average on an oversized shortboard (undersized for me at the time) on a 7'2" x 20" x 2.5" with only a few rides in those times.

In January 2012 i ended up with a brand new Super Brand Superhuman 6'8" x 20.5" x 2.75" shortboard that i got for a great price and i have been going out every week with it for an average of 3 hours. Every session i get noticably more and complete rides down the line. And as of present i can duck dive, paddle to an open face and turn and catch 25% of the waves I attempt. I cannot carve a turn yet.

Do i really need a bigger board? I know this would be ideal but in my country taxes and customs apply to S&H as well, so 7'6" NSP could run me upwards of 800US and a brand new Lost or Coil up til 7' costs 600US max. I wish i could afford to a bigger board but I also hope i can progress with the equipment i have already.

Cheers

A 7'2 to start is a little small, but do-able. A 6'8 is a good progression board, and you're progressing. So, no, you don't. Just keep on practising. It takes time for all of us.

thanks for the encouragement, the situation is so bad here that used funboards are very rare and still expensive. Ill keep trying but if a 7' something" comes up at a good price sometime i will buy it.

After 2 years of surfing catching 25% of your waves is normal. Keep at it, you might get to 30% by end of month, then...