Surfing Waves

I see a lot of literature and video on the topics of popping up, standing and balancing, and riding the wave, but I don't see much on how to properly finish a ride

I'm still trying to master keeping my board with me at the end of a ride. I tend to kick out most times, and usually miss my chance to "exit" the wave cleanly before the whitewater plows through

I understand it takes some foresight into recognizing when a wave has run its course, but what's conflicting with that is desire for a long ride.

Every second I spend on the wave, I'm getting to practice my balance, wave-reading, and footwork. Sometimes I'm so caught up in it, I'm too late to realize that I've been on the wave too long

Any insight on the topic?

Not much to say. You either ride the wave to eke out every inch or you kick out earlier and exit cleanly.

So if you stay on to wave and extra 5 seconds to get a longer ride but it ends up costing you 5 more minutes to get back out, is it worth it ?

waikikikichan wrote:So if you stay on to wave and extra 5 seconds to get a longer ride but it ends up costing you 5 more minutes to get back out, is it worth it ?

Sometimes a wave becomes irresistible on the inside!

Depends on the size of the wave. Really tiny and you might just sit down on the board and grab the rail and pull back. If it's bigger then you might try a tail stall then grab the board as you are still standing and whip it around to face out to the ocean. You can try to do a foam climb off the wave or a standing island pull out where you turn hard and go nose first through the wave or a tuck and grab where you turn the board and grab the rails and push through the wave. Bigger waves don't offer much options kick out first or loose control of your board. All of these take some practice if not just to know when to do them.

I stopped riding waves all the way in after I dinged my board in a 2ft shorebreak dump. I will ride it till it's thigh high then turn around and head back to the lineup