Surfing Waves

so i just started surfing 2 weeks ago. went to the coast of NC to visit my family for a week and decided i would rent a board for the week. being a climber, surfing seems like the perfect complement to my climbing. with in a half hour of paddling out i was hooked. i got completely destroyed, couldn't catch a wave to save my life, but i loved it. by the weeks end, i was catching waves (despite how small they were, i stood up, which was a huge advancement for me).

so now im back in western mass and have been checking surfline daily to hopefully see some positive conditions in narragansett bay in RI. but nothing thus far.


should i just go ahead and drive down and paddle out regardless of what the conditions look like? im thinking yes as the more time im out there, the better ill get.

also im looking into boards....whats a good east coast all around board? i also am eventually moving out west after college and would like whatever board i buy to be good out there as well.


so obviously i know jack shite. anything you can add is more than welcome.

thanks in advance.

blake

Have a look through the tuturials first , gather as much info as you can and then feel free to post relevant questions to all but do checkout the tuturials first as theres heaps of useful info in there

And welcome onboard

thanks,

yeah, ive been pouring through all the info. i think the board they gave me when i rented was way short for the wave type i was riding ( around a 6'6 board on ankle-knee ht waves). might be why i found it so hard to stand?


tons of info, really helpful. kind of overwhelming , but in a good way.



last week...when my gf realized how bitten by the bug i was with surfing her reply was,

"thats all you need is another sport that fosters the bum lifestyle" (referring to my obsession with climbing, climbing trips, and living out of my car)

Depends on the season you're surfing in. RI in the winter, like the rest of the Right Coast can get pumping that all you want is a shortboard. But year-round, or just May to October, you might want a longboard.. say 9'.

Of course, we have shortboard conditions duing the summer, too.. but if you want all around for Naragasset, or 1st and 2nd beaches, I'd say 9' longboard or a funshape or egg over 7' and wide, like at least 22".

When Ruggles hits, and you get up to the level that you'd be able to risk going out over those rocks and live after a wipeout, you're talking anywhere from a good shortboard to a gun, depending on the swell.

Shear, it sounds like you had a very similiar experience your first time out as I did. I also went to Outerbanks NC (Nags Head) last week and rented a board although I got an 8'4'' BIC recommended to me instead of the shortboard they stuck you with. If you haven't already and have some free time, you can read my length post for some laughs.