New board help :)

[MattG]

Sup guys,
so I just recently got a shortboard and I am finding it hard to paddle into waves.
The board is 6 ft 8 and 19 inches wide. I'm 6 ft 4 ish, is it a bad board to have or
should I just stick at it as I'm not exactly great at surfing yet.
Cheers guys
Ps sorry for the text wrote this on my phone

[IB_Surfer]

Well, not grat for a begginer if that is what you are asking. How about giving us your weight and ability to help out more

[MattG]

Well I can get onto waves on a longboad and go straight so I'm not that great and I probably weigh like 14 stone being so tall. Just got the board cheap, so if it's possible to use with my height and stuff I'll just try harder haha
cheers if you can help

[garbarrage]

seriously recommend a much longer board until you can at least ride along the face. 9ft+, bigger the better. you'll get there much quicker and have a load more fun on the way.

[MattG]

Kinda got money problems at the moment, any cheap places to buy boards?
Also if not should I just be paddling slot harder to catch the waves? Any tips at all?
Thanks for helping too

[IB_Surfer]

Lots of tips, the main one is that you are starting over, start with baby steps again. Take it to chest high surf and try catching waves without paddling to get used to the popup. As to paddling, yeah it will be harder than your longboard, remember head high and paddle down, not out.

As to size, it's the right size for you, you just might not be ready for it. If you can't handle it put it away and try it when you get better, but if you already own it then might as well try her out. It won't be easy, but if you want to make it work it's big enough to float you, just not good for a begginer.


Hey, you already bought it, have fun!!

[MattG]

Nice one man helps alot. It just seems even with bigish waves I just could not paddle onto them at all but I'll stick at it deffinatly. I know this will sound really bad but can you give me a kinda guide to catching a wave on a shortboard if you get me, because on a longboard it seems to just do all the work for you.
Thanks again

[IB_Surfer]

There are just a few differences between the two, but the important thing is that a longboard is more forgiving of your mistakes, a shortboard isn't

With a shortboard, and I mean just when paddling around, you have to be exactly where you can make the board the flattest, too far back you will push water and not go anywhere when you paddle and the wave goes right under, too far forward you pearl. You know when you are perfrect as you paddle, if you are too far back you go nowhere, too far forward it starts to sink the nose. Get used to having it plane on top of the water.

To paddle a shorboard more effectively hold your head high, arch your back, this does two things: First, you will paddle down,not out, scooping water back, using your arms, shoulders and lats to paddle. Second, when you are catching the wave it will counteract the pearling effect, keeping you on the wave curl.

Lastly, go back to my prior post and practice your popups, no use getting in the lineup if you can't stand on your feet. Wait for a nice strong whitewash, throw yourself forward and on top of the board as opposed to just flopping on the board, then pop up, right away, even if you don't surf. You are practicing popups, not surfing. All begginers start this way, it's just easier on a longboard because they don't sink LOL

[MattG]

Yeah makes sense man thanks alot for the help really does help. Feels so weird when like all the board is under water except the tip. Going on sunday I think so I'll put it to the test and stick at it.
Thanks again

[garbarrage]

learning to pop up on a shortboard in white water is a bit of a waste of time IMO.if the whole board is under the water the board could be a bit thin for you. could probably do with a bit more volume. getting to your feet is only going to sink the board. if you can find an empty peak somewhere and practice on small unbroken waves. chest height at least, shoulder to head at most. (asking a lot i know).
one other point that might help catching waves...
switch around longboarding and shortboards a bit myself and always find going back to a shorty a bit hard mostly because you are looking for different things in a catchable wave. on a shortboard the wave needs to look quite a bit steeper than a longboard, dark and nearly like its going to flatten you but not so much that the lip is going to land on you or pitch you head over heels. this is the main reason taking off on a shortboard has much less room for error. on a longboard there is a much larger window of oppurtunity to catch the wave.
next time you are out try sitting a bit closer to the peak and a little bit further in towards the beach. as the wave gathers behind pump hard as you paddle and angle a little bit along the face away from the peak.

[MattG]

I think it's too small aswell but yeah I'll keep trying man when I next go. What would be my like ideal board for my height and weight? Because the board is like always underwater exept for the top like quater of the board. Thanks again to the two of you who replied really has helped.

[garbarrage]

ideally you should probably stick to a longboard until you catch more waves (getting onto the face) than you miss at least and preferably until you are doing floaters etc. the extra time you will spend on the face will teach you heaps about reading what a wave is doing. this will help enormously when you move onto a shorter board. something in the 9ft+ range would get you going pretty quickly. personally i'd go for a 3 fin setup with an adjustable centre fin. start with it at the back and move it forward as you get better.
if you really are hell-bent on shortboarding something about 7' long- 2 1/2" thick - 20" wide like a fatboy hybrid should do the trick.

but definitely the longboard route will be the more fun of the 2 approaches and get you trimming the wave face sooner.

[IB_Surfer]

Everything so far is correct. If you are asking our opinion, then yes the board is too small for a begginer. Since you already bought the board we gave you some advise on how to ride it in case you want to give it a go. A thicker one would be easier to learn on, especially if you are still a begginer

Lastly, to answer the question about the board being underwater, a shortboard should be, it's not the same as a longboard. Here is a pic of me in the lineup. I'm ugly like the ass end of a rotwiler, I know it, but look at the board and not my ugly mug, and at 14.2 stone that's my 6'6" step-up, not even my smallest board, almost completely underwater. And in case you are wondering if I can ride it, there is a followup a few waves later. Shortboarding is not easy, you have to transition down from a longboard. Either you will have to invest a lot of time and frustration on the board or get yourself one in between for the transition.

[MattG]

Right I'll try get a bigger board If I can find one nice and cheap thanks again for the help. 13 ft swell on Sunday so will try and get there and try out what you've said

[IB_Surfer]

Wow, 13ft surf, you'll need a gun for that

[MattG]

Haha I'm going to die arnt I.