How often do you get hit hard by your board

[oldmansurfer]

I am just wondering how common a problem is this for you all.
Daily like ever time you go surfing
Once a week or once every 7 times you go out
Once a month or once every 7 to 30 times you go out
Once a year
Once in a blue moon as in almost never
you might already figure I almost never get hit by my board in any significant manner no bruises no cuts and almost no unintentional contact. But Rachelle wants to know what is the likelihood of damaging a cell phone so if you could all respond then we might be able to figure out if it's likely that her phone will get damaged

[Big H]

Once in a blue moon.......but it was a good one.

[oldmansurfer]

I have been injured by a SUP that was swept back into me as I was riding a wave that the SUP rider was going through. My toenail on the big toe of my left foot still has not gone back to normal and it's been a few years now. That was a bad time for me and SUPs. One week I got my shin banged by an SUP riding a wave and going around an SUP as it was trying to go through the wave. I think I actually did a cutback and got hit once I came back around. Then the next weekend I got hit in the shin then it dropped onto my foot and split my toenail. Both times I didn't really think anything about the incident till I got home and noticed I was sore over there.

[Oldie]

As a beginner I wipeout often, and while it has gotten less, I still get hit maybe every fith session. But then I am big with a big board, so good opportunities for both to meet I feel that I get cuts from my fins in my feet at least as often as that.

[RinkyDink]

I definitely have been hit by my board a few times. I suspect that the longer your board is the greater your chances are of getting slapped by it. I was hit by my board a lot more when I first started (gotta love the foamie). I noticed I risked getting hit by my board more often when I was practicing angled takeoffs and tried to abort a takeoff. In fact, I think aborted takeoffs have been my number one cause of getting into situations I don't want to be in with my board. All of the times I was hit by my board, as far as I recall, were when I attempted to pull out of a wave, but got sucked over the falls with my board (gets ugly if you're in an angled takeoff position). It hasn't happened to me in a long time though. Aside from bad takeoffs, the other most common way of getting hit by your board, in my opinion, is surfacing after a wipeout and discovering your leash slingshotting the board at you.

[waikikikichan]

"IF YOU AIN’T RUBBING, YOU AIN’T RACING !" quote from Days of Thunder. I get a bruise or a cut every single time I go surfing. A lot of times it due to a kook getting in the way and I awkwardly come off my board or in my attempt to not hit the kook, miss the grab and get a rail to the knee or chin.

[dtc]

I feel that I get cuts from my fins in my feet at least as often as that.

How do you do that?

(as a start, maybe think about sanding down the edges of your fins...)

I havent had too many major bangs but there have been plenty of times when I've gone A over T and no idea where the board is, so there is probably more luck than skill involved so far. Although I'm a coward when it comes to pain so do follow the mitigation actions pretty well (cover head, kick away, stay under until you know where your board is, never paddle behind someone etc)

[oldgrom22]

Once every few months or so. *knock on wood*

[BoMan]

I do follow the mitigation actions pretty well (cover head, kick away, stay under until you know where your board is, never paddle behind someone etc)

Well said! I plan my sessions to avoid the busiest days and times, and make a point not to lineup in the middle of a crowd. If I don't have a clear line to take off or I'm sitting in someone else's line, I move. Of course I surf a NorCal beach break with many sand bars and there's always a plan B if you are willing to paddle.

Put me in the "once in a blue moon" group.

[LostAtSea]

I've been at it for only just over 2 yrs - surf regularly at least once a week. I am almost injury free, maybe caught the board in the shin a few times.

Once when I was walking on the beach a strong gust of wind caught the board and it came up and whacked me in the face real hard. That was super cool.

However, I've been off work and out of the water for over a week now due to a nasty collision with my own board after a bad take-off. My ankle is still bruised and I have some tendon damage from the fin slicing open the side of my foot.

[IanCaio]

It also depends on the kind of wave you're surfing. I think it's easier to hit your board on a hollow wave than it is in a chubbier one.

You can try to kick the board away, but once in a while you just realize you're about to get tossed a bit too late or you're trying to get back from a maneuver and wipe out. On those cases I do my best to get a bit away from the board and try to protect myself the best way I can, usually covering my head with my arms and getting in sort of a fetal position.

[dtc]

My ankle is still bruised and I have some tendon damage from the fin slicing open the side of my foot.

sand down those fin edges....

[LostAtSea]

My ankle is still bruised and I have some tendon damage from the fin slicing open the side of my foot.

sand down those fin edges....

Will do. Thanks for the tip.

[BaNZ]

I'm always worry that one of these days I'm going to end up with the board crashing down and the fin hitting me in the head.

[oldgrom22]

I'm always worry that one of these days I'm going to end up with the board crashing down and the fin hitting me in the head.

This happened to a mutual friend recently. It was a tiny day(0-1 ft) and he was riding the inside on a LB. He takes off on a small peeler, wipes out over the nose, the board tombstones and gets tossed up in the wash landing fin first right on his head as he was coming up from the water. Horrific cut on his head, had to get an ambulance to take him to the hospital. The way it happened, he probably would have been hurt even if he tried to cover up, but at least it would've been mostly his arms/hands that took the brunt of the hit. It was all caught on the Surfline Cam too.

[saltydog]

I haven't gotten hit by my own board after the raw beginner phase. I try to stay underwater until I feel things have calmed down (board flat on the surface.) Crowded lineup with beginners is another story. But those bashings come from theirs not mine. I suspect steeper, hollower waves can cause serious injury, but clearly that's not the only time. Makes me think about having a Gath helmet down the road...

[oldmansurfer]

I got hit by my board long ago when I was learning to surf including a hit in the head which fortunately didn't damage my board. But I have developed a style of surfing and wiping out that results in little contact with the board. As I wipe out I often think about where the board is in relation to the wave and me and react accordingly. But more than that I try to wipeout in a way that leaves me safe from the board. I think for me the most dangerous thing I do in terms of getting hit by my board is hitting the lip too late (doing an off the lip maneuver). Generally I know there is a good chance the board will come flying back at me and ready for a board in the face and have been able to dodge it so far but certainly a dangerous thing I do relative to everything else including tubing waves which I don't think increases my risk much.

[LostAtSea]

Been seriously considering a Gath. Cant think of a good teason mot to.

Im not cool anyway.

[dtc]

Weight and peripheral vision seem to the the downsides. I've said before that we need head protection somewhere between none and the gath's level of protecting your head from a reef. Just something that protects from board impact - even a really light foam (like a bike helmet).

The other issue with a gath is that it won't stop the broken nose or jaw. It's more to stop the really bad impact, not the pretty bad

[waikikikichan]

Ah.... you haven't seen my Gath helmet. It has a retractable blast shield Luke Skywalker would be proud of.