New board - Tips!

[Nagilles92]

Hey all,

So as most of you know-surfing is pretty addicting. I've been pretty athletic most of my life, and when moving to southern California I got hooked on this sport.

I took a lesson on a foamie longboard, got up quick and fast and was able to ride pretty quickly. Granted, anyone can do this on a long foamie and I by no means think I'm special. Anyway. I bought a 7 ft 6 fiberglass as a means to start getting better. I know this is harder to learn than a longboard but I enjoy a challenge. I will drink salt water for a year if that's what it takes to make a wave here and there comfortably.

I am 5 ft 9 200 Ibs in very good shape. Lift weights frequently, run, hike, whatever it may be outside. Looking for starter steps to work on form and ride a wave comfortably on this board. I've gotten up on this board, but have spent a good deal of time working on my pop up and balancing. On a two hour session I may catch one or two waves and faceplant the remainder of the time. I'm cool with sucking while progressing, just want some pointer tips as to how to progress! Any advice appreciated!

[dtc]

whats your 'exact' problem eg are you catching waves and then falling over when you pop up? Or is your board nose diving? The first is probably pop up technique, the latter is generally paddling technique (and body positioning on the board)

[Nagilles92]

A bit of both really. I can catch the wave, but am having trouble balancing on my pop up

[waikikikichan]

but am having trouble balancing on my pop up

1) stop looking at your feet.
2) sometimes the things one does to try keep balance, make you UN-balanced. Relax.

[oldmansurfer]

How many times and for how many hours have you surfed the fiberglass board?

[RinkyDink]

Use the bulk of your energy to get out of other people's way or to paddle around the long way, if you have energy left over, use it to surf. After your session, congratulate yourself on how well you stayed out of the way as well as how well you rode your board.

[Nagilles92]

Only a handful of times. I usually go about twice a week with a two hour session each time. I know it'll take time.

[dtc]

as waikikichan says, probably the most common error is people looking down at their feet 'just to see' what is going on. This compromises your balance, as your head is very heavy. You should look where you want to go (down the line of the wave), but to start off you can practice looking at the beach. Just not down. It seems weird not to look, but looking doesnt help. Your board wont disappear, or if it does then you will realise it pretty quickly even without looking.

the above assumes your pop up mechanics are relatively good. The fact you can stand up at times suggests its not appalling, but you may (for example) be slow to your feet (eg go to knee then one foot then both feet) or be pushing your body backwards and up, instead of just up etc. My tip is move your hands further down towards your waist - if they are at shoulder height then thats way too high. Make sure your hands are flat on the board, not gripping the rails.

After you pop up, stay low. some people say 'keep your hands touching the board' but I cant manage that. But, in any case, keep your knees bent and springy (just like skiing, your knees are the part that does the most movement up and down, and your head/upper body stay relatively still). Go with the wave, dont fight against it. Yes you will be going down hill, yes you will be at an angle and it might be bumpy and fast and a bit out of control. Just acknowledge this is how it will be and accept, dont fight. dont stand straight up

Most of the above can be practiced on land and also in the white water (white water is a bit better because there is some movement, but land allows you to practice more frequently). After you pop up on land/white water, take a glance down at your feet positioning - are they centred along the stringer? Make sure your feet are pointing in the right direction - back foot at 3pm (or 9am if a goofy) and front foot at 1pm (11am ie approx 45 degrees to the stringer)). If your front foot is also pointing to 3pm then you will wobble a lot for some reason. Dont glance down on a real wave of course, do it during practice to get the muscle memory working.

I say this often, but the pop up is a bit like riding a bike. At the start you struggle and wobble and fall over, but eventually it 'clicks' and then you rarely ever think about the mechanisms of popping up again

If you are nose diving, then usually you arent paddling hard enough/fast enough. That can be related to being too far back on the board, which causes drag and slows you down. Search this forum for 'nose diving' or 'perling' (same thing), you will find quite a few threads. Happy to answer any questions that come out of it

hope that helps. think about how you are surfing at the moment and see if you can identify anything you are doing wrong - thats easier than trying to implement 8 different things at once. If someone can film you, all the better. If not, and you can't figure out exactly what is happening, then start with waikikichan's advice - look up and relax. Once you have done that, if things are still not working, then look at other stuff