pumping on a frontside wave

Questions and answers for those needing help or advice when learning to surf, improving technique or just comparing notes.

pumping on a frontside wave

Postby Guest » Tue Aug 01, 2006 8:37 pm

Here's a clip of me attempting to pump can anybody give me any tips on what I did wrong?

http://media.putfile.com/surfing-me
Guest
 
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post

Pumping

Postby ken » Tue Aug 01, 2006 8:56 pm

Looks to me like u should try 2 not lean over but keep bending ur legs and try 2 keep ur headup straight.
ken
Surfer
 
Posts: 62
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Sun Jul 09, 2006 4:12 pm
Location: N. Ireland

Postby drowningbitbybit » Tue Aug 01, 2006 9:10 pm

it was too late to pump - the wave had closed out and looked like it was being effected by backwash. The only hope was to go immediately left.

:D
User avatar
drowningbitbybit
Surfing Legend
 
Posts: 6459
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 11:16 am
Location: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia.

Postby Guest » Tue Aug 01, 2006 9:50 pm

ya that clips from early june I used to get up too late but if there was wave you just gotta pretty much go from toeside to heal and keep gonig up and down the wave?
Guest
 
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post

Postby GowerCharger » Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:03 am

ok, few things. firstly - bend you knees, that ironleg stance is a common thing with beginners, you can stamp weight down like that but you need to unweight the board as it comes back up the wave and you cant do that without compressing and then decompressing from the knees.

secondly you need to pump higher up the wave not on the flats so you needed to take off at more of angle to the beach and stay high on a small wave like that. on that wave you should have been on that first section which came down in front of you not heading out in front of it, then it would have given you a boost out to towards the shoulder and set you up for the wave. by trying to drop in and go round it you stalled on the flats and the wave was basically over from there.

you could have taken off earlier if you where paddling a bit quicker too, that would have helped give you a bit more time.

also you need to pump rail to rail up and down the wave rather than just hopping up and down in a straight line, its basically accentuating the drop down the face and minimising the force of gravity as you come back up the face by unweighting which builds your speed.

if you have an old style bathroom scales (non-digital) you can stand on them and practice weighting and unweighting from the knees on them and see the results as the needle goes from above your normal weight to almost zero when you unweight.

sorry im not very good at explaining this type of thing but i hope that helps, when you get it right once youll know it feels different (less forced and more natural)
User avatar
GowerCharger
SW Pro
 
Posts: 901
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Fri May 05, 2006 5:58 pm
Location: Gower, Wales

Postby Guest » Wed Aug 02, 2006 2:19 am

no dude I totally agree with everything you said. I caught it way too late did a horrible ghetto pump and a horrible stance. I went on saturday and the waves were bigger so I caught them way better and it was way easier to pump but I will take everything you guys said into consdieration whenever I go from now on thanks so much :)

I know exavtly what you mean with the rail to rail and unweighting beacuse I longboard skateboard and do it way better than surfing at least. I'm hoping the longboarding will help me surf. I have a video of me longboarding and pumping in it so watch it as well if you have time to see what you think about it. If I am puping correctly it seems like longboard skateboard pumpnig is almost the same as surfing?? tell me if you agree.


http://media.putfile.com/Mike-Kelly--Longboarding
Guest
 
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post

Postby bluesnowcone » Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:45 am

try to look where you want to go not downwards
User avatar
bluesnowcone
SW Pro
 
Posts: 1223
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Mar 28, 2006 4:16 pm
Location: South Coast

Postby GowerCharger » Thu Aug 03, 2006 12:28 am

yes its similar but then saying that i suck on my longboard skate :D you just need to flow up and down a bit more using your weight down through your feet rather than trying to push and pull th board with your soles like you do on a longboard (vertically as well as laterally)
User avatar
GowerCharger
SW Pro
 
Posts: 901
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Fri May 05, 2006 5:58 pm
Location: Gower, Wales

Postby Guest » Thu Aug 03, 2006 2:10 am

ya man I did it today or tried to seemed to work but waves were garbage today.
Guest
 
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post

Postby rich r » Sat Aug 05, 2006 1:33 am

Yep.. no real point in pumping when in the whitewash.

You seem to be leaning your body over trying to turn instead of using your hips, legs and weight.

Probably symptoms of what others already said about not having your knees bent. You should have a good spring in your lower body.. back leg straighter than the front, as that's your stabilizer.
rich r
SW Pro
 
Posts: 533
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Jul 25, 2006 4:01 pm
Location: Middletown, NJ


Similar topics

Return to Surfing Lessons For All