Surfing Waves

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 3:11 am**

Heyy.. Im 16 years old.. my first question is.. is it good to start surfing at the age of 16????...... When i go to the water .. i start paddling.. and idk why.. i always tend to stand up after the wave had passed.. may be because i dont paddle too much.. and how long should i have to practice my pop-up stance because i surfed today and i coulnd get up not even once..

Need Help Fast

Thanks

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 11:59 am**

It's good to start surfing at any age!

Practice, practice, practice...

One thing to remember when paddling for a wave...you've got to paddle like you really want it...like you might DIE if you don't make it...it takes effort!

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 12:01 pm**

Driftingalong wrote: when paddling for a wave...you've got to paddle like you really want it...like you might DIE if you don't make it...it takes effort!

Good attitude, like it

Its true though - you dont catch stuff unless you really want to. Ask anyone, including me, who's ever paddled for a wave they were a bit nervous about :roll:

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 12:02 pm**

Just keep at it, get out there as much as possible, and watch other surfers.
And pratice

Best of luck.......

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 8:22 pm**

16 is the perfect age to start!

And yes... everything you are doing and going thro is normal. It DAM hard.

Anyone taught you the PLF method of surfing yet??? See a wave you like... then......Paddle LIke fleshin'!

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 9:17 pm**

yep paddle as hard as you can, and if your on a shortboard kick your feet too. As you feel the wave start to pick you up and grab the rails for your take off, shift your body forward slightly so your weight is over your hands, this will help you accelerate as the wave catches you. Dont lean back as you take off as this stalls the board and youll lose momentum (the wave passes under you instead of you dropping down it). And practice pop-ups, you may be popping up too slowly, once your on your feet you can control your speed and angle on the wave much easier

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 10:21 pm**

thanks.. ill try it tomorrow.. how much does it take to learn the pop-up.. about????

Posted: **Tue Jun 20, 2006 10:32 pm**

It seemed to take a while becuase I was so busting to get it nailed. It takes a few days to pop up and ride, maybe a month to feel a bit more consistent, then a few months again to feel like you can pop up and turn and ride along the wave... catch green ones..

Plus I'd go hang out with a chicks class every so often and get a few pointers each time... which I was really resistent to because I just wanted to practise and practise and practise and didn't have any time to listen... but they really made a great difference.

That's all on a longboard tho. A stable 9'3 made it really a lot easier I think.

My mate learned on a shorter 7'3 and it took her about a year to feel the same sort of comfortable consistency and turning thingee.

I still feel like I suck at surfing tho. I still catch waves and absolutely love it tho.