Surfing Waves

some times, my board will be banking even though I feel I am laying longitudinally centered.
How do I establish some cues to ensure the correct position every time?

I don't think there is really any magic to this other than trying to keep centered on the board and bearing in mind that your feet and legs make a difference - many beginners fail to keep their feet together. This can cause the board to lurch to one side if the feet/legs are positioned asymmetrically, but more importantly creates unnecessary drag and slows down your paddling.

I think beginners frequently lack the core strength needed to keep a consistent position on the board and maintain balance while paddling. I think you will find this issue gradually goes away as you get consistent water time. If it is really a big issue, I would suggest a wider board, and perhaps some yoga to work on your core strength.

You will find the fastest route to learning anything about surfing is lots of time in the water. Your main cue should be that the board paddles well, with minimal drag. The nose should usually be 1 to 2 inches above the water as you paddle. In time, you won't even have to look. You will know before you take your first stroke if you are too far forward or back on a board. When you've gotten used to a few different boards, you'll find the sweet spot in seconds on any board.

garbarrage wrote:When you've gotten used to a few different boards, you'll find the sweet spot in seconds on any board.

Bugger, still can't do that.

Actually, part of a begginer's problem is their feet, they paddle with their legs spread open thinking it will help stability, but what happens is that depending on the angle they are never even, thus you swerve, plus you are dragging your feet so you go slower.

Feet together, or, to remind you, intertwine them at your ankles. Point your tows and lay the top of your feet on the board, it should correct your leaning

thanks for the tips, hope to try tomorrow.

If you can figure out where you are meant to be (by laying on the board on the beach or in calm water), then draw a line in your wax or use a different coloured wax (or even draw a marker pen line on your board) to give you a visual cue.

I have a line drawn across my board in the wax (just use a pencil or your fingernail) that is where I should place my hands in order to pop up in the right spot, so when sitting on the board and turning I can put my hands in the right place straight away. Actually I dont really need this anymore because I can now feel whether I am balanced, but there is no disadvantage to it. Also, if I am perling but laying on the board properly, I know its not because of my positioning.

Of course, for different waves there might be slight differences in positioning, so its not an exact science.

For you with a longitudial problem, if you have a central stringer (running down the middle of the board), then make sure your chin or the middle of your rib cage is in line; and if you dont have a stringer then draw a line down the middle of the board.

If your problem is tilting after popping up, draw a board in the sand on the beach and draw a line down the middle. Then do a pop up and see where your feel have landed. You might just be popping up to one side. I suspect some people have one are stronger than the other (eg from playing tennis or something) and this pushes them too far to the opposite side (for example, if you have a strong right arm then when you pop up your right arm pushes you too far to the left).

Another possibility: you have both hands on the same side of the board after popping up (both hands are in front of you). After you pop up, your leading hand should be on the heel side of your board. So if a natural footer, with your left foot in front, your left hand should be on/outside the left side of your board, which is 'behind you', not sticking out in front of your face. If you have both hands in front of you, its a recipie for tipping over.

If this sounds like you, I highly recommend spending 5 minutes watching this video

Hi dtc, welcome to Surfing Waves, and thanks for your comprehensive posts so far.

Thank you for running a useful forum - I'm a beginner/intermediate surfer but realised I have hit the limit for improvement just from trying things, and this forum has been very useful in teaching me some stuff to apply to take me (hopefully) to the next stage. Hopefully in return I can offer practical tips to others, being a person who is still in the process of learning myself.

What I like about this forum is that while there are people who are obviously very good surfers, they haven't forgotten what its like to learn.

thanks for the replies, I think I'm doing better with practice, but I still end up, sometimes, at an angle from the board.

Your board has a curved top surface or raised stringer ? If so you will have troubles. Get a flat top decked board soonest.

I'm happy to say that as I kept surfing my positioning has improved to the extent that the awkward angling rarely occurs.
Thanks for all the support.
The lesson is, keep at it