Surfing Waves

I just picked up a longboard yesterday and I'm determined to go learn , I think I'm gonna go to bolsa Chica or San O this Saturday or maybe even tomorrow if I'm off work early enough . So how is it to learn to surf on your own and is it a bad idea ? Figured enough trial and error and ill get the hang of it eventually right ?

I learned on my own....watched a lot of youtube and mined/milked this site along with a lot of practice....probably would have learned faster if someone showed me but I went the solo route.....watch this, it will start you off:

I can probably learn how to be a French chef, a Kendo master, a F1 racer, etc. if i put in the time.....eventually ?

But seriously, Surfing isn't Baseball or Basketball. Our court/field is not stationary. You have to learn the Wave and THAT takes time.

The worst thing teaching half-goods / beginner-intermediates is all the bad habits I have to make them forget or stop using. If you learn by yourself, no one is there to correct you before those things become bad habits.

Well........predictable polarized opinions from a self taught surfer and a surf instructor.....anyone else?

There's a lot to be learned and said and experienced in surfing but the key is: are you having fun?
If yes, continue ur quest. If no, reconsider.
Your lucky, in this internet time it's easy to find info. That's the big difference when I started learning.

Back in the days when men were men and balsa trees were frightened, there were no surf instructors schools only the other guys at the beach, there were some dreadful styles.

The older guys were imitated and some of each generation got better a lot wallowed.
Modern times instructor exist use them , they speed up the process , the other guys cannot punch etiquette rules into you anymore or take you under their wings.

Unless you understand the surf itself , learning is a risk by yourself!

Save some time and serious stink eye thrown your way. Get an instructor, learn etiquette, the how to basics and then work on those on your own. Progress some, get instructor learn some more, practice on your own. Etc. etc. I would think this method would be the next best to having a full time instructor along the way which would be costly. Finding an instructor that works well for you and someone whose services you periodically use as you grow would be ideal. 1st thing 1st - learn surfing etiquette, especially as a newbie is the best advice I can offer right now. You don't want to be that person driving 55mph in the left lane causing hellacious traffic and road rage. good luck.

waikikikichan wrote: If you learn by yourself, no one is there to correct you before those things become bad habits.

I agree with WKKKChan. Beginning with an instructor will save time and bring you a lot more fun! I have been working alone for the last year and plan to hire a coach to help me cross step and nose ride.

If your budget it tight, start with the video Big H posted and move on to the Surf Simply tutorials. They helped me alot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVyatMUYwZw&list=PLOCtke92OW_Uv__KAZ1pbBDqSjGV_nqtu

Surfing is an individual sport but you often do it with others around. The main thing you need to learn from others is how to keep from bothering the other people around you in the surf. Then you need to know how to go out in the ocean without drowning or getting injured/rescued. As far as surfing skill goes it depends on what it is you want to accomplish. If you want to be the best surfer you can be then get some lessons or go with friends who can help you learn. Otherwise just enjoy yourself and if you don't enjoy it then go get some help. However as I have heard frequently here learning is more fun with lessons. I however learned without lessons and continue to learn without lessons or youtubes. I enjoy surfing so if I am doing it wrong I still enjoy it so how could it be wrong?

I agree with the others that it would best to get a surf instructor, at least your first time out. They'll be able to teach you some proper ettiquette and get you started on the right track. Once you get the basics you'll have enough knowledge to go out and progress on your own. There are a number of surf schools that run in Bolsa along with the surrounding area and there are also surfers that offer personal coaching that you can look into as well(seen some posted on CL and they seemed reasonable $-wise, can't speak for how well they teach but the aspect of 1 on 1 instruction is appealing).

Or you can always go out and see how you get along by yourself. I would recommend that you soak up as much content on the internet before doing so(surfsimply / beginner vids etc) so you kinda know what to expect. However this will definitely be the harder route and I have to agree with Wakiki that you will pick up some bad habits that you'll have to go back and fix later on to get to the next level in your progression.

Bolsa is a pretty wide open beach so you should be able to get a spot to yourself, just don't park/go out in the lots that have loads of cars and surfers getting in and out, find one of the emptier lots towards Warner(go right when entering the beach). SanO is a good longboard spot, but might not be the best to start off at, as it will be way more crowded and at this stage you'll be riding whitewater so you run the risk of breaking a fin or damaging your board on the cobblestone bottom. But once you get the hang of things you should definitely try it out,the vibe is awesome there, the rides are long and the break is perfect for longboarding.

How many instructors teach etiquette? Most of them seem to just want to get people to stand up and go straight, amongst a flock of other learners. They should, and some throw a few lines out about priority etc, but in the lesson itself there is no such thing as priority, there is only perling and falling off in other ways.

That said, I do think having a 2-6hr lesson at the start will teach you skills and some confidence. Doing something the first time without assistance can be hard.

Then go off and practice yourself for a month or two or 12. Then maybe another lesson. Repeat until you are world champion...

Watch others very carefully and for long periods. Watch the waves the same ways.
Helpful hint 1: San O has a lot of rounded rocks in the shallows. They are tough to walk through. You may want to wear booties
Helpful hint 2: San O has 3 breaks. Use the southern one next to the power plant. It's called dog patch because it is so easy to surf that a dog can learn to surf at this break.

I learned a lot by myself. I read many books about how to surf. I watched some videos.

After about 6 months, I became fortunate. I reconnected with an old work buddy who is a great surfer. He became my sensei and came out with me once or twice a month for 8 months. He'd critique me and teach me things. This was tremendously helpful. So, get the basics down, build stamina and muscles, and then find a sensei.

I had a 2hours lesson before I was interested in surfing at that was 80% time-money wasted.

Talk to other surfers, read a lot, watch a lot.
Strictly speaking about riding the board (or the wave?) it's just a matter of time. People can tell you what to do, but you need time to feel what's happening.

I'd say learn to catch a wave and stand up. Learn to ride for a reasonable time, then maybe look for a coach.

I am reading the book "Kook" which is about a guy learning to surf who happened to be an adventure
writer. Between that and what people say here I realize that learning to surf has been entirely
different for me compared to literally everyone else who posts here. For one thing I learned the
rules for surfing a lineup before I surfed. I was paipo boarding near the surfers lineup. I knew
all of them as I had grown up there and went to school with them and some of them were my out of
the water friends. They paddled over to me and invited me to go out in the lineup with them and
they then taught me the rules of the lineup. They basically told me to not drop in on anyone and
then as we caught waves they would tell me if I violated a rule which I did from time to time.

Before I ever started surfing I endured horrendous wipeouts on huge waves bodysurfing and paipo
boarding. I already knew waves and currents and knew the feeling of getting totally barreled on
large waves. To surf I just had to adjust where and when to takeoff along with handling a board in
the lineup.

I learned to surf on a shortboard and did so fairly quickly. Everyone learned on a shortboard back
at that point in time. I learned on a 6'10" board and while it may be long compared to todays
boards I could duck dive it and it was standard length (6 inches longer than your height) for a
board back in those days. I never tried to catch whitewater. I paddled for waves like I did paipo
boarding and tried to ride green waves. On my first day I rode more than one green wave for some
distance until I went off the end of the wave. I maybe wiped out taking off on 5 to 10 waves
(mostly pearling) for every wave I caught but still I caught waves. By two weeks I could do some
small turns and stay with the green wave better and wiped out on takeoff maybe only 1 time for
every 5 to 10 waves I caught.

I never had lessons. Learned on my own as did most surfers back in those days. I already could
surf better than most surfers on my paipo board so I had to accept a lower level of surfing for a
while but I could tell that surfing had advantages over paipo boarding. I just persisted till I
got it down. By one year I could go out in surf as big as surfers who had been surfing their whole
life went out in. By two years I could go out in bigger surf than most surfers wanted to. I did
gradually increase my board size to 7' 2" but still not a gun size for those days but it would be
these days.

After quitting surfing for around 12 years I restarted and this time initially I got a thin 9'6"
gun. It was so thin and narrow I could duck dive it but I was old and so out of shape and
overweight that it seemed likely a longer board would be helpful. Once again I never tried to
ride whitewater and rode green waves the first day. Then I ran into the wife of the guy who used to
shape all my boards and he was retired but she knew of a board that would be good for me so I
bought this 9'6" longboard shaped by my favorite shaper.

Anyway I never realized how different my experience was till I came here to this forum and heard

repeatedly how people have trouble learning to surf on a shorter board.