Surfing Waves

i've been surfing for a while now and am at the point where i feel comfortable paddling out to the lineup.

one thing i'm still uncertain about is what part of the wave i should be taking off at. i've found some sites that talk about it, i think, but they use terminology like being in the inside or outside or taking off deep...what does all that mean?

so basically, what part of the wave do i want to be at when i'm paddling, catching, and standing up on the wave?

and what part do i want to be on when i turn?

thanks a ton

You want to start taking off at the shoulder and when you get better on the peak or behind it. Most of the time when you do a turn you want to hit the lip, but for other turns like cutbacks you use the face.

What part of the wave you want to be on depends on what board your riding. the less volume, the later you have to paddle. As far as catching, I always found it easier to paddle for the unbroken peak rather than going for an already breaking wave. When its bigger and hollower, looking into a gaping barrel as im about to catch a wave freaks me out every time.

'inside' usually refers to being inside the break - so the wave is already breaking and taking off on open face ahead of the breaking part.

outside usually refers to being beyond the typical lineup spot. The lineup is usually right on the peak, just outside the peak, actually, and then you paddle with the wave as it starts to break.

Taking off deep is when the wave is already about to break and you take off basically inside the lip, or even behind the breaking part, but have enough speed that you can come around the flats or inside the peak to race onto the open face ahead of the break.

So - if you weren't in the lineup surfing, where were you? If you've mainly been taking the whitewater, I'd suggest sitting off on the shoulder and taking some shoulders in, then slowly getting closer and close to where it's peaking, and where the bulk of the lineup is.

So - if you weren't in the lineup surfing, where were you? If you've mainly been taking the whitewater, I'd suggest sitting off on the shoulder and taking some shoulders in, then slowly getting closer and close to where it's peaking, and where the bulk of the lineup is.

Its amazing how many people drop in via shoulder hopping