Surfing Waves

So I have been trying on a shortish board for a while. The board I am riding is a 6'6 Firewire dominator, doesn't exactly tick all the shortboard definition boxes I know but it is significantly shorter than boards I rode before.

I get the traction pad attached on the board as suggested by many posts in this forum and I actually followed the instruction to place it as far back as I could. I t looks nice and it looks right.

But when I surfed on it, I notice many of the times, if not every time, that my back foot was not on the pad but maybe 2-3 inches forward towards the nose.A similar position as I would find my back foot on my 7'6 mini mal.But despite that I have no problems surfing it, I can do almost exactly everything I could on my 7'6 (catching waves, going left or right, a bit pumping sometimes.) just tend to get tired more easily. Sometimes I felt like that should be the right placement because if I moved the back foot backward to the pad I would lose drive and then lose the wave.

I then watched some youtube clips and found even some pro guys not place their back feet on the pad either even when they got barreled.

So I wonder: did I place the pad on the wrong place or is it the problem of my habit to place back foot wrongly.

I don't use traction pads but I hear from others who do that at least some of them surf with their back foot off the traction pad and they don't have any problems. Pro surfers move their feet around depending on what they are doing. If they want to go fast they move forward and if they want to go slow they move back but also they go back to turn hard. So if they are making down the line turns where the board is always facing down the line they might be forward but if they are making harder turns it is very difficult to do that from forward on the board

frostless wrote: I felt like that should be the right placement because if I moved the back foot backward to the pad I would lose drive and then lose the wave.
I then watched some youtube clips and found even some pro guys not place their back feet on the pad either even when they got barreled.
So I wonder: did I place the pad on the wrong place or is it the problem of my habit to place back foot wrongly.

Pumping for speed ( which are like quick mini-turns in succession ), your foot should be over the fins. But "Planing" for speed, you need to be up on the board. Most of the time in the barrel, you're driving downwards. You bottom turn ( foot on the pad ), pull up under the lip, set you rail, step up then drive down. You don't need to be on the pad. You TURN a surfboard off the tail and over the fin(s). If you're not turning, your foot doesn't need to be on the pad.

Here is Mick Fanning talking about generating speed. I am not sure if pro's are the best help for beginners but he shows where he puts his feet for speed and it is still on the pad. I guess with really short boards you only need to move your feet a little. It seems skateboarders have this idea they can tick tac for speed and Mick pretty much says what I think (you need to get up the wave and back down and the bigger difference in height the more speed you will get)

I watched this awhile ago and it helped me understand foot movement on a short board better.....



How big are you again? FWIW, I have a 6'8" dominator that has replaced my mini mal....I'm 92kg, 6'1" and the board has 50L of float, can be surfed in waves as small as my mini mal can catch but is more dynamic. To that end, the way I ride is similar to a mini mal in that I spend a fair amount of time forward of my tailpad and have to reach back with my back foot or shuffle forward and back...it is more nimble than a mini mal but still surfs differently than a shorter board, and I was considering removing the pad a couple of sessions ago because of my pre occupation with getting my foot on the pad I was missing what the wave was telling me, where it was telling me to be on my board. When I forgot about the back foot I surfed a lot better and more instinctually, ironically getting back over the fins on the pad. When I paid too much attention to trying to search out the pad with my back foot (not looking down but in my mind to feel for it with my foot), I missed things and would lose the line that I could see and have to make do with leftovers. 6'6" dominator is still a big chunk at 45L.

Look at this one too.....these single fin boards from the 70s have similar dimensions to a dominator (tails are a lot more pulled in though) in that they were commonly 6 1/2" feet long-ish and thick foiled to the rail, nose and tail like the dominator. Anyway, check out their foot positions, how far forward of the rear fin they keep their foot for the standard riding position, how they move on these boards that are longer than rack shortboards of today....I try to surf mine like these guys (hahahahaha, TRY) but it's along the lines of the right idea.

Fanning step up and planing/driving in the tube, not pumping. Notice the back foot way in front of the traction, but when he comes out of the tube he'll move it way back to hack a big cutty.

frostless wrote:The board I am riding is a 6'6 Firewire dominator

Nice board, I had a DOM 606 for some time, I'm maybe a bit more heavy and tall, 74kg 182cm. I used it as a transition to shorter boards.

I remember it took me a long time to figure out foot positioning, the board felt strange in my first surfs with it. Later I found out this board was quite overvolumed for me resulting in problems on bigger surf (the surf we normally get here in Bali..) I think the 608 for the 92kg Big H is a better match.

In bigger waves the takeoff often was too hard for me too handle, the acceleration too much and sudden to get to my feet. Often I took off still on my belly and then forcing myself to my feet in the flats, often too late to make the wave and ending up in white water. When I made the takeoff on head high and overhead waves the board rode too high on the water, feeling every little chop and basically felt like the board was riding me instead I was riding the board.

But in smaller and a bit fat waves I was 'king of the shortboards' in the crowded lineups, I could get in almost from longboard positions. And in those waves it surfed so sweeeeet.

All the things the guys told you about foot positioning is true, just stand in front of the trackpad for speed and trimming turns and step back on the trackpad for hard carves. I had great rides on steeper waves where I landed my backfoot during popup on the trackpad to steer instantly up the face, also that felt just right. So I guess the wave shape and size also determine how to place your feet, experience will tell you all this.

I almost forgot, Firewire advised me Large fins, but it was only after I switched to Small fins (thruster) that the board clicked for me.

Good luck, and keep us posted how it goes.

Big H wrote:I watched this awhile ago and it helped me understand foot movement on a short board better.....

How big are you again? FWIW, I have a 6'8" dominator that has replaced my mini mal....I'm 92kg, 6'1" and the board has 50L of float, can be surfed in waves as small as my mini mal can catch but is more dynamic. To that end, the way I ride is similar to a mini mal in that I spend a fair amount of time forward of my tailpad and have to reach back with my back foot or shuffle forward and back...it is more nimble than a mini mal but still surfs differently than a shorter board,

I am only 5'10" and weight 72ish kg. yeah the 6'8" dominator is probably too much float for someone like me, but as a transition board from a minimal and for someone who doesnt have much experience/skills I actually find it good. I can catch waves as little as 1-2 foot but with bigger surf like 4 foot I have not had any successful experience yet. With more time I will get more out of the board I guess and the only thing I can complain is I still cannot DUCKDIVE this board but it paddles a little bit slower than my minimal.

I probably wont transit eventually to a "real" shortboard due to the frequency of surfing and age and other factors in play, so I like to refer these kind of board as "shortboard" by my own definition.

Tudeo wrote:

frostless wrote:The board I am riding is a 6'6 Firewire dominator

Nice board, I had a DOM 606 for some time, I'm maybe a bit more heavy and tall, 74kg 182cm. I used it as a transition to shorter boards.

I remember it took me a long time to figure out foot positioning, the board felt strange in my first surfs with it. Later I found out this board was quite overvolumed for me resulting in problems on bigger surf (the surf we normally get here in Bali..) I think the 608 for the 92kg Big H is a better match.

In bigger waves the takeoff often was too hard for me too handle, the acceleration too much and sudden to get to my feet. Often I took off still on my belly and then forcing myself to my feet in the flats, often too late to make the wave and ending up in white water.

But in smaller and a bit fat waves I was 'king of the shortboards' in the crowded lineups, I could get in almost from longboard positions. And in those waves it surfed so sweeeeet.



I almost forgot, Firewire advised me Large fins, but it was only after I switched to Small fins (thruster) that the board clicked for me.

Good luck, and keep us posted how it goes.

That is spot on. I also struggled to stand up quick in the past morning session(the surf was only 3-4 foot but more pearling style). But in a smaller wave I have had not problems so far. I guess with more time I might be able to adjust the difference somehow.

I knew it is overvolumed in the first place but according to the firewire volume formula that board is not a bad match considering my skill level. And I also did not want to drop the size too drastic from a 7'6" mini mal. I think though I should be able to ride a 6' -6'2 DOM at a later stage.

Glad to hear it needs larger fin because I bought that board second-handedly from a man who works in the surf industry and it came with larger fins, maybe thats why,

Big H wrote:I watched this awhile ago and it helped me understand foot movement on a short board better.....

Which wave is this??? It looks too perfect to be true, is it Kelly's wave pool? It looks too big for that. Also it seems there's a shore behind the wave..

Tudeo wrote:

Big H wrote:I watched this awhile ago and it helped me understand foot movement on a short board better.....

Which wave is this??? It looks too perfect to be true, is it Kelly's wave pool? It looks too big for that. Also it seems there's a shore behind the wave..

Looks like a wave pool or a pier. At the very end of the wave you can see the reflection of an apparent street light and all along you can see pillons or parts of the artificial wave apparatus

I just asked the guy who posted the video and he said it is at Kelly Slater pool. He responded right away and I went and looked at his facebook site and if you click on the watch video button he has a lot of instructional videos that may be of help surfpro techniques on facebook or instagram

Hey thanks OMS, good research! Will checkout that Facebook. HNY!