Trouble Making it Through the Drop(its called drop right?)

[hotdog.]

ok so you know how if your on the top of the wave and you stand up and you drop down the face and you nose dive and your just like crap. i learned to surf at a beach on cape cod that didnt really curl that much it just got a good wave going but didnt have the drop and was really mellow. so now, im back in florida and im going surfing soon and im afraid i might just nose dive the whole time. i mean trial and error and ill probably get it, but if i get it faster from your guys' advice id be stoked.


should i just stand up earlier? cause then i could just lean a ton, or should i stand up early but grab the rails and direct the board toward the way i want to go before i stand up so i dont even have to hit the drop?

[hotdog.]

and if it helps at all im riding a 7'6 bic

[isaluteyou]

try taking off at an angle that way your nose isnt just diving straight.

[drowningbitbybit]

Weight low, arms spread, weight the backfoot.

And get rid of the mini-mal.

[jon.biarritz]

Hey dbbb, shouldn't he be weighting his front foot during the drop? When it is steep, it seems I need to put more pressure on my front foot whilst going down the wave, keeping low and pushing weight onto the forward foot, leaning into the angle of the wave to be better balanced to make the drop.

Yep, ditch the mini-mal, get a shortboard thruster

[drowningbitbybit]

Hey dbbb, shouldn't he be weighting his front foot during the drop?

Not if the nose is diving under. The weight on the front foot is to get the drive down the face, but the bottom turn (or turning onto the face) and preventing the board from catching the nose requires weight going onto the back foot.

At least thats how I do it...

[jon.biarritz]

True true, back foot for turning, enough front foot to not shoot the board out in front of you, enough back foot to not dig the nose. Anyway I should STFU, I'm such a hack surfer considering how often I'm out there -- improving through

[sebastiansurfer]

just make sure your not facing directly at the beach.this
a.improves your chances of going down the line.
b.makes you look cooler
c.allows you to learn how much rail is needed

[hotdog.]

i had been surfing like twice before that. i mean im ok, but by no means good, i can stand up, ride the curl of the wave (like turn to the side and actually ride it) most of the time but ive only been surfing for like 2 weeks grand total. and its a good begginner board id say. im also looking into short boards


but yea turn into it and stay back on the board? alright any other advice would be great

[sebastiansurfer]

practice being able to read a wave before its coming.this gives you even more time to get facing the right way

[scars91]

are you surfing cocoa?

[crepuscular]

dont really have to take off at an angle, just remember not to lean too foward and take off too late, that's when node dive or pearl happens

[surferdude_scarborough]

Hey dbbb, shouldn't he be weighting his front foot during the drop?

Not if the nose is diving under. The weight on the front foot is to get the drive down the face, but the bottom turn (or turning onto the face) and preventing the board from catching the nose requires weight going onto the back foot.

At least thats how I do it...

depends on the type of surfing. on a longer board with less rocker the nose pearls on a steep wave because it digs into the bottom of the wave when it gets there. on a shortboard with lots of rocker the only time you are giong to bog the nose down is if you have your front foot in the wrong place during the drop. when a shortboard starts to plane then the harder you push down the more the water pushes back up. thus once you are up on a shortboard making the drop is all about being committed and pushing down enough. i think.

[phillwilson]

"on a longer board with less rocker the nose pearls on a steep wave because it digs into the bottom of the wave when it gets there. on a shortboard with lots of rocker the only time you are giong to bog the nose down is if you have your front foot in the wrong place during the drop."

makes me kinda want to give a short bosrd a try... god knows if im physically ready, but could make for a fun afternoon of being wiped out all over

[jon.biarritz]

Good point, that's my case.

On the small boards when it's steep, my problem isn't digging the nose, it's falling off backward after I pop up cos I'm not leaning forward enough and committing down the drop.

Whereas with the bigger boards, the nose would be more liable to dig in on steeper waves and I'd pearl. Different problem.

[hotdog.]

are you surfing cocoa?

yea

[crepuscular]

On the small boards when it's steep, my problem isn't digging the nose, it's falling off backward after I pop up cos I'm not leaning forward enough and committing down the drop.

lol... just lower your centre of gravity towards the board so you can gain your balance, I usually kneel down after I take off

[subasurf]

Weight low, arms spread, weight the backfoot.

Pretty much how I would put it.

[scsurf]

All sound advice above. Key is reading the wave, another point is to paddle in as early as you can and try to avoid the "late drop" until you have mastered dropping in a little better. This will require more strength, endurance and planning, but will raise your level of success.