Latest Surfs...

[oldmansurfer]

I only surf at the beach next to where I live. There are a bunch of breaks within that area but it is basically a sand break in the middle which has several peaks usually and reef breaks along both side of the bay which also have multiple peaks. I don't have time to look for surf so I just go there and deal with whatever there is. The bay I surf in can have almost any kind of surf but typically it is head high and stormy (except for lately). When it is small, there are often surf lessons going on. When it is big and nice, a crowd is there but most often it is just me a maybe a couple other surfers or just me and the kite surfers.

[oldmansurfer]

Well there were some overhead waves today YAY! However on my first attempt I not only pearled but hit the bottom too Minor kind . It was great to have some waves but they were fast and the sets were really nice maybe even double overhead but I didn't manage to lineup any of them properly. Got my sinuses flushed out really well and my saltwater massage. Had a few steep drops one even as steep as the one that I pearled on. I think the pearling had to do with me only surfing one 30 minute session last week due to my anniversary and wifey wanted to skip the normal Sunday beach run. I had to do a couple warm up waves plus the waves were jumping up suddenly as they often do in that area. well that's my excuse anyway

[oldmansurfer]

It was a little smaller today and less consistent. The waves were even trickier to figure out. The swell seemed more north and the majority of waves were doubled. Still got my exercise and had some fun. After I came in a bunch of waves were breaking at the peak we call Crookeds it's a shallow reef break but lately has been covered in sand. Kind of wish I went there instead but that might have just been a freak set since I didn't see anything nice when I was looking originally

[IanCaio]

Ooh Pearling, that feeling that the wave showed you paradise and right after pulled your carpet under your feet

Today I pearled once or twice and felt like I was about to pearl a few others, but got enough speed to get the nose out of the water again. Maybe I'm still figuring this board out, body positioning, or the conditions didn't help.
It was like 1' to 2' hawaiian, weak waves. Those sessions kinda frustrate me, really hard to keep speed, who to say even maneuver in those waves. I've seem one guy in the water that was shredding, could snap, carve and cutback those small waves. I guess you can see the ones who really nail it on those small days, how he can use every bit of energy of the wave.
I could get some short rides, but was happy that I got 2 good (for the conditions) backside waves: bottom turn and snap, repeat. A friend said I'm throwing a little spray. I was losing confidence on my backside surfing, really need to work it to feel as much in control as on frontside. I'll do some "imaging" exercises in dry land for backside pumping, like getting used to the movements my body will need to do.

There's a swell about to arrive on wednesday, predicted to be even bigger than last one. Gotta say I'm in a mix of expectation and concern, felt like I gave a step forward last time, but I'm not sure if it is too soon for another step up. Gonna have to wait and see what the swell looks like when it arrives.

[oldmansurfer]

Ooh Pearling, that feeling that the wave showed you paradise and right after pulled your carpet under your feet

It was my first wave and I was in the right place exactly at the peak and I probably should have made the drop but was just a little off and pearled for no good reason. I mean it was a lurching up wave sucking water up the face and getting steep really fast but it often is in that area and it was a hairy steep drop but I usually don't pearl. In fact if I pearl I will post about it here so if you want to see how often I pearl you could look back over my posts. in this thread. What was odd was that usually I pearl because of backwash or too late of a takeoff making me airborne and unable to alter my trajectory but this time I was right in the right place and I don't think there was backwash but I just wasn't ready for it. I caught a couple other waves just as steep and made the drop

[IanCaio]

Hangover brought by a cold front hit the coast today giving stormy conditions and really strong onshore wind. I was walking and barely could hold my board. If I put it on the ground the wind would throw it up. Despite the waves being not that big where I was (2ft-3ft hawaiian I would guess) there was lots of water moving, foam everywhere, no lulls in-between series, so I wasn't really commited to paddling out. The result was me going on water for less than 10 minutes, paddling a little, not finding a place to wait for waves (shifting peaks and an undefined line up) and giving up to get some really cold wind on sand.
Tomorrow I'll go in for real, gotta make up for today!

[IanCaio]

Well, I did go for real the other day (thursday)
Got a couple good lefts, but the cold (and possibly the lack of streching/warming up ) made me have some heavy cramps on my left leg in the middle of the inside. I forgot how bad those hurt, I took a belly ride to the sand (was about to leave anyways) and had to wait on my knees for a while. Until today I still feel a little soreness in my calf.

Today I went in again, 2-3ft hawaiian, but I got tired quite quickly: the John was already making me tired faster then I wiped out in a bomb that dragged me inside, so I took this invitation out .
I only had 3 waves: A set-wave left that didn't open a nice line, a right that I misread and went left (shame!) and an intermediate inside-wave left that was opening a nice line, but a guy paddling on my way made me have to bail out of it.

[oldmansurfer]

Overhead waves maybe 4 foot Hawaiian at the biggest. Only me out in that area with my 7'6" board. At first I had a hard time lining up the break, then every wave I caught was too fast for me but then I put it all together and caught a couple waves. One pretty fun wave with multiple turns speed turns and snaps off the lip all smoothly transitioning from one to the other. Then my time was more than up so I caught a small left in to the beach, nice bottom turn to speed turn to bottom turn to almost a speed turn but the wave was pitching up too fast so I laid down in the turn and brought the board to point to the beach and just stayed in that position while the wave broke on me

[oldmansurfer]

Waves a bit smaller today maybe 3 foot Hawaiian still a little overhead on sets. There were 4 other surfers nearby. The waves were crumbling at the peak and then sometimes walling up after. You have to be right at the peak to catch them or catch the inside part because the shoulder has no power and won't let you in. I did some off the crumbly foamy top of the wave turns and some foam climbs but no really good rides but one I did a bunch of turns on.

[oldmansurfer]

I forgot to mention one wave where I took off on the far side of the crumbly section that broke all at once at the peak. I jammed a bottom turn to get around the section and noticed my hand touching the water and thought "why am I touching the water?" Just a reflex I guess. Thinking about it though I jammed some really powerful bottom turns and didn't touch the water with my hand. I wonder if making a powerful bottom turn on an not so powerful wave makes you lay down more than you would on a powerful wave? I made a bunch of turns on that wave but they were all just making work of the wave, nothing special because it was kind of a slow wave. Near the inside I turned too high and the wave was too thick and I couldn't make it back down and caught a rail and fell

[IanCaio]

Sunday it was around 2-3' hawaiian, I guess I finally did a backside snap of respect! I watched some instructional videos from 110% surfing and remembered about one (Off the lip video) where they mentioned about weighting the tail so you can make a sharp turn. So I dropped on this set right and lock my rails as I pop up (not as easy for me as on frontside waves). I bottom turned, facing a lot up (probably not vertical, but close to it) and I kinda let the board go up leaning back down, so my weight would be more in the tail, and just did that sharp turn, gaining speed again as I was just entering the wave

Yesterday I went out with 2 friends from work. Probably 2' hawaiian. I don't remember some wave that stands out, but I felt like I was close to get a chandeleur/head dip (that's how you write it?) on a frontside wave. The current was pulling us close to the rocks and I had to be careful when I tried to go for some lefts (frontside) and kick out or bail before getting close to the submersed rocks. I even let a perfect left go, because I was in front of those submersed rocks and was not sure how far they were. I tired my shoulders (and body in general) really hard.

Today, around 2' hawaiian, with sets that took a little longer but in my opinion a better formation. I guess those last days were meant to get me confident about my backside surfing again! Today my best waves were backside, lots of snaps (not vertical, just sharp turns) and I felt more in control of my board.
Downside, I almost run a beginner girl over today . I got this backside wave and was so concentrated on it that I didn't realize the girl was paddling on the wrong direction. I did a snap and once I faced down again saw her paddling to the wave line. I tried to turn the other way, but probably my weight was bad distributed because the board didn't respond fast enough so I managed to get it away from her, but just around 30cm or 40cm distant. She apologized, and I said smiling "it's alright, just be careful!". I've been there and even though I'm much more aware now than before when paddling out, there are still some tricky situations to manage. Also, being self-critic, I think I should have been more aware before doing the snap to realize she was clueless where to paddle. I just thought she would go for the foam when I saw her.
There were other really raw beginners, like another girl who ditched her board on an intermediate wave. I wasn't behind her though (taught myself not to be behind other surfers when a set is coming!);
But it was a really fun day and I got some really cool backside waves to remember!
Now time to rest. My back hurts, my shoulder is tired and I gotta work tomorrow

[drowningbitbybit]

Turns out a double-sausage sandwich breakfast isn't the best idea before a surf at a fast barrelling beach break...

[oldmansurfer]

Yesterdays surf could be described in three words....shoredump closeout tuberides .....ok so that is 3 double words so maybe 6 words. The long version is paddle hard, popup quick, steep drop, quick turn, tuck in, get covered up, get pounded. I did manage to stand up during the pounding on one of the waves and ride it out a bit. Today I went to the reef break along the left side of the bay and it was nice head high to slightly higher lefts. I only caught 3 waves the first one I pearled on. Took off steep drop but there was this ridge along the wave and I hit it at the bottom with my legs fully extended before I started to bottom turn. I figured I would just hop over it but it slowed my board down and my center of gravity went forward putting all my weight on my front leg and the board pearled and I couldn't put any pressure on my back leg so I wiped out. The other 2 waves were a lot of fun making several turns up and down forward and backward nothing spectacular but fun. The waves were not consistent and my usual lineup which is a boil wasn't happening making me out of place for the sets which were maybe 4 foot Hawaiian.

[IanCaio]

I told myself I wouldn't go surf today to study a bit more for a college test tomorrow and get things ready for traveling to my college city, but I couldn't say no when a friend of mine called me to surf!

2ft-3ft, series taking a bit long. Didn't surf any extraordinary wave, but I did like one, even though it was a "one maneuver" wave. It was f/s, made the drop, locked rails in the wall. As I saw the section about to close in front of me I carved it, but the timing was so perfect! Like, I could see the lip landing inches from my tail, if I was any second later it would catch me. Maybe I'd be able to stick in the board, but I liked getting the time so right.
Despite that, I got a few f/s waves that didn't stand out, and wiped out good on a b/s right. I tried to make the drop on a really critical part of the wave and as I stood on my feet I free falled landing hard. I'm not sure how but I hit my teeth a bit hard on each other, even thought I broke my tooth bond (I didn't ). The wave hold me down a bit longer than the other ones and after hitting hard it was a little more uncomfortable ride.

By the way, I'm a little confused about how do you call some maneuvers. Is this below a snap for you?


Because here we have a name for that really vertical and quick snap and another one for a more smooth carve. That picture of Mick above would be that smoother carve and this next picture would be the really vertical quick snap:


So are both snaps? Or just the last one?

[dtc]

Snap vs roundhouse? Or cutback

I have always interpreted 'snap' as going almost vertically up the wave and then doing a 180 and going down again. Not that I can do that, but when watching the pros. Whereas a roundhouse or cutback is looping back toward where you came from, and a top turn is going up and then coming down again but entry and exit angles are not vertical

Potentially you could define a snap as a fin turn and a re-entry as a rail turn

Then again, I suspect that everyone has a slightly different thought as to what it means

[Tudeo]

Then again, I suspect that everyone has a slightly different thought as to what it means

Yes I think there's a lot of confusion in surfing, be it about rules/etiquette or definitions of words used.

For me a snap is just a quick turn, like when u come up the face after a bottom turn and don't want to do a full cutback but just do a little snapping turn to prevent outrunning the wave and position yourself in the pocket.

I hope this fits the definition of a snap, and not a trimm. I rather do a snap then do some trimming

[oldmansurfer]

I would say a quick turn that pivots around the tail is a snap but a carving turn like the top picture is not a snap. Just looking at the head positioning I would say that was the beginning of a cutback

[IanCaio]

Yeah, terrible choice of picture, the first one really seems like a cutback being set (arms and torso creating some drive to the pocket), but just imagine he was not setting himself to go back, but just down the line again, or straight down the face, and that maybe the radius was a bit smaller. Would it be a top turn then? Because I'm not going vertical and doing a complete 180, but doing a sharp top turn, sometimes so sharp I could cutback right after. It doesn't feel completely pivoting on the tail though, like a skateboard turn on a ramp (or the second picture).

Dtc, I always thought re-entries and snaps were almost the same . Like, I imagined re-entries were doing this snap and being stationary in the top of the lip so you would drop in again ("re entering" the wave). Dude, those names get me really confused
I guess I'll just call those turns carves and the big tail-pivoted turns snaps.

[oldmansurfer]

I do those kind of turns too where I don't go completely back to face the oncoming wave, I guess I call them a slash back if they involve a snapping turn or a tail sliding turn and a fade back if they don't. I sometimes do a tail sliding turn at the top of a wave that points the board back. I can go from there to a two step cut back or turn back down the line right away. LOL surfing glossaries vary by surfer. If it's off the lip and not really hard then just an off the lip turn but if you are going up and snapping it right back down like in the video it's a snap off the top or off the lip. Long ago fade backs were one of my tube riding skills. I would fade back on slow tubing waves to slow down and finish the turn off by popping up into the pocket and hopefully getting tubed

[drowningbitbybit]

Top notch surf this morning!

It wasn't particularly large, but some nice clean sets were coming through on the beachie. There wasn't even a crowd, although we were sharing the peak with a bunch of pros (Ricardo Christie was one, not sure of the others names) who were being filmed. That was educational

I was very proud of myself for paddling into a wave with a couple of pro surfers to one side of me and making it stick... MY WAVE!