Surfing Waves

Hi, I have been out a total of 3 times on a longboard. By a fluke, our first day out landed us in perfected learning conditions. Big period, small waves, gentle offshore wind and long whitewash. At the end of the lesson I was hooked!

The second time we went out it was all wrong. Wind the wrong way and heavy, short period and violent waves with a strong current- but remembering how fun the first time was we were unphased! The third time out was better again, but big and there was a congregation of experienced surfers sitting off the 'good spot'. I tried to make use of waves breaking away from the experienced people but was having a lot of trouble telling if, or where the wave was going to break.

Watching the waves pass under me regardless of where my weight was on the board was getting to me. Exhausted and at the end of our time at the beach I got a bit bolder and waded out chest deep in the white wash where the experienced people were floating farther out and managed to ride 2 waves in on my belly, standing on neither.

My brief surfing carreer peaked early!

I assume my problem is recognizing the good areas for learning. can anyone share any advice to make my next time out more fun and less frustration?

Make a note every time you go out of what the conditions are reading on the surf forecast site of your choice. Magicseaweed is probably the best laid out, but wind-guru is also good. Not sure about surfline or any of the other ones. You should eventually be able to tell roughly what the swell conditions will translate to on the beach, but beware, it's not an exact science.

Also, don't just rush in. Watch the break for a while first. See what the sets are doing. Are the biggest sets closing out? Where are the good sets breaking? Is the tide having an effect?

When you have chosen a spot, watch a couple more sets come in, taking note of how long it was between them (not essential but helps to stop you becoming impatient if there is a long wait.) "Mind surf" each wave to see what sort of ride you can expect.

When you get a bit better, know the breaks a bit better, and are more confident in the line up (knowing you won't be getting in the way etc.) you can forego a lot of the above, but it's always a good idea to watch what's going in before you get in.

Bear in mind also that surf breaks tend to change with tides etc. so what you see from the shore may not stay that way for the whole sesh. If it starts to suck, don't be afraid to get out and try somewhere else.

Thanks for the tips! I will do more observing next time we head out for sure. I do tend to keep an eye on Magic Seaweed, it's an easy site to skim through but I was told it could be more reliable though it hasn't steered us wrong yet

I wonder about something etiquette-wise... if there is one good spot on a beach, and that's where the "pros" are, are newbies expected to paddle out beside them to get in line for whitewash? and if so, how? Hold them all up while I frantically paddle back to shore to find a nice little froth to catch in? From watching the pros, most of them dropped off their boards farther out than where the foamy lines of whitewash were rolling in. Is it frowned upon for a newbie to make use of the foam inside of where the real surfers are waiting, rather than waiting your turn?

This is a fascinating sport, I wish I had discovered it years ago I'm an old newbie
Thanks again

Generally, if you're surfing a clean face, you'll get off it before it turns into a line of whitewash (otherwise you end up 'stuck inside' trying to paddle out back again).
So you can usually surf in the whitewater with no problems... BUT...
...keep your eyes open. If someone catches a small wave it might end up being clean all the way to the shore. Keep out of their way.
...If someone is riding a crumbling face, there might be whitewater, but its not your wave. keep out of their way.
...If someone has caught one out back and, for whatever reason, is still riding the broken wave, keep out of their way.
...if the break is a bit of a shore dump (ie breaking close to shore) the difference between you in the whitewater and the 'pros' out back may only be a few metres. Keep out of everybody's way

Basically, yes, you can normally surf the whitewater without any dramas, but its up to you to keep your eyes open, and get out of the way in most circumstances even if that means being beaten by a big wall of whitewater.

And dont get frustrated - learning takes a long long time.

thanks guys! This is something I hope to get some skills at.

I'll throw one more question out there, sorry if it's all over the boards but the last time I was out the rental guy put me in a 4/3 wetsuit and I trusted he knew what I needed. The water was 12 degrees. Even with boots and gloves omg, it was cold! I'd like to think my learning season isn't over, is it simply a matter of the right thickness suit to keep the season going? and at what temp do you start needing a hood?

Buttertoes wrote:thanks guys! This is something I hope to get some skills at.

I'll throw one more question out there, sorry if it's all over the boards but the last time I was out the rental guy put me in a 4/3 wetsuit and I trusted he knew what I needed. The water was 12 degrees. Even with boots and gloves omg, it was cold! I'd like to think my learning season isn't over, is it simply a matter of the right thickness suit to keep the season going? and at what temp do you start needing a hood?

I applaud your determination and courage , facing the cold water, there are thermal rashies that can hold more warmth in your wetsuit to prolong the time before hypothermia sets in. Cold means less crowds and possibly more power in the waves, so strong whitewater, sheltered beaches and coves may be your best bet, plan a reward of a surf trip to a warmer climate. We don't know where you surf now let us know there may even be someone who will be a mentor to you! most reasonable people love to see others getting the stoke and moving up the food chain.

I'm in Nova Scotia, Canada. I'm told the season starts in the fall, and I've seen them out there paddling through slush in the winter too! Maybe once I know what I'm doing, I'll be hooked that firmly but until then I'll still call them crazy lol

I'll see what I can find to put under a wetsuit, and insist on at least a 5 next time. Food chain indeed... must move past "plankton"

BRRRRRR that's almost in conceivable to me here in Australia, I'm only an hour from our Ski fields and the water temp here only goes as low as 13c. My wife is 1/2 Austrian and when we go back to Austria she expects us to swim in her ancestral glacial lake. BRRRRRRRRRR

Winter here on the sunshine coast, we have warmer water temp than air! Sometimes if i feel too cold sitting on my board I do a little dive to warm up... That's one of the reason I don't live in the UK any more...

Buttertoes wrote:I'm in Nova Scotia, Canada. I'm told the season starts in the fall, and I've seen them out there paddling through slush in the winter too! Maybe once I know what I'm doing, I'll be hooked that firmly but until then I'll still call them crazy lol

I'll see what I can find to put under a wetsuit, and insist on at least a 5 next time. Food chain indeed... must move past "plankton"

Look at it this way man, if you get used to paddle and pwer thorough in those 5/4 or 4/3 mm suits, you would become a really strong paddler, and when you do go in warm water, and wear a rash vest, you'll probably padder faster than anyone

If we could all surf in Australia huh? yeah, water temperatures around here range from 2 degrees to 20, and the people with skills like to take advantage of the fall hurricane season. Still, it's probably not as bad as a glacial lake! Hope you had wetsuits for that

yea but australia also has the most venomous crap in the water
and everybody surfs in australia =(
frack that ill stick to cold waters =D

plus you could try those heated wetsuits
they should work well for ya =)

Heated wetsuits.... well you learn something new every day don't you?
Hoping to get out again very soon in some decent learning conditions. I'll see about layering up a bit under the wetsuit and hopefully we won't freeze Yeah, I do enjoy that the worst wildlife in NS is a blackfly or mosquito (barring weird coyote attacks...) I am not sorry we lack poisonous snakes and jellies!

hooray for winter surfing!!!
Im a beginner, learning all my roots in long island, and im having tons of fun in the cold water. plus the fact of there being no crowds makes me feel alot better so I dont get in anyones way, and so i know nobodies watching

How goes the buttertoes or are they froze, who knows, so tell us how you are getting on.

fortunately living in San Diego has its perks, on Saturday the water temp was 57deg F. Not bad for March. I finally work out a schedule where I can go out once every 2 weeks, all year round (hopefully). Since I'm still a newbie all the practice is definitely needed...