I'm not going to teach you basic techniques that you can read on the forum like turtle rolling and catching waves, just what I know isn't that common around the net to be read.
Random stuff:
[*]Don't surf alone when starting out or when waves are large.
[*]Paddle with your head raised as if you had a ball under your chin, you don't want to rest your head and chest when paddling, you use your shoulder muscles instead of your whole back, you're going to get tired very quickly and have sore muscles the next day.
[*]Never turn your back to the waves.
[*]Never turn your board side ways towards the waves, it'll get flung at you and you'll end up with a blue eye or something.
[*]Give respect to get respect, be nice with other surfers, you don't want any enemies at a lineup, some people will run your over with their fins, key your car, wax your windows, you name it, depends where you live.
[*]Make friends, surfing isn't just for you, it's a community, talk to people at the lineup, get to know everyone at your beach, make some friends, it's great to have a buddy to surf with and have your back incase you get in a sticky situation.
[*]Don't wear neon green or bright pink wetsuits if you don't have the skills to back it up, don't wear flashy clothing if you don't want to be seen.
[*]If you can't swim back to shore without your board, don't even go in, some day it will come, the day your board or leash breaks, you'll have to rely on yourself then.
[*]Don't let go of your board and swim under a wave if someone is behind you, you could badly injure them or ding their board, it's not worth the risk, flip the board over and hold the rails.
Take your time:
It took me 5 sessions to get a hang of my popup and start standing on the board, 3 sessions later I was able to carve and trim.
Stages:
Start out in the white water on a foamie, it's a good way to work on your balance and popup.
Once you got a hang of standing up and your balance, work on your stance, keep your knees bent, avoid the poostance, don't bend over, bend your knees, your upper body must stay straight
Continue advancing in the white water until you feel your stance is flawless and you can catch every single wave without falling off.
Now you can consider going to the unbroken waves.
Surf as often as possible:
If you want to be able to catch unbroken waves, you'll need endurance, you'll need to paddle your butt off for hours at a time, go surfing 4 times a week if possible, even if conditions suck, go out anyways to paddle around, it's a good workout, you'll build the upper body strength needed for surfing.
Learn surfing etiquette:
Don't even think about paddling to a lineup if you don't know the surfing etiquette, surfing has rules to keep order at the lineup and avoid collisions and accidents, like a driving a car, you need to know the rules.
Getting past the impact zone:
I surf at a very chaotic break, most beach breaks you can walk half way to the lineup and paddle a minute or two, where I surf it takes 10 minutes to get to the lineup, it's very far in, waves are big, currents are strong, this is my tip.
Don't go to the lineup if you can't paddle there, if you're not able to paddle your way there, you shouldn't be surfing outback.
Don't stop paddling:
You're almost past the impact zone, you're getting tired, you're telling yourself resting a minute is better than paddling over the set, trust me, you're going to burn 15 minute out of your session instead of 30 seconds.
If you don't paddle all at once to the lineup, you're going to waste your time, resting isn't an option if you're in the impact zone, get out back first, then go sit on your board.
No nos:
This may be obvious but don't touch a shortboard, stay away from these not until you advance past your intermediate stages, I'm not advanced enough to ride a real shortboard with very little volume.
Don't bother trying to duck dive your board, any board you'll use for the next year will have lots of volume which makes it easy to paddle, get used to punching through waves, realistically you won't need to turtle roll unless the white water is very tall, most of the time, getting in a planking position over your board is enough to get over.
In your beginner stages, wear a wetsuit that covers you knees, trust me, wear shorts or a shortie suit and you're in for knee pain and inflammation.
Saving money:
Don't buy a surfboard.
Rent out surfboards at a surf school as you advance, once you get to intermediate, then purchase a board for yourself.
Don't have enough money to be doing sessions 4 times a week?
No problem, spend the other 3 sessions swimming to build upper body strength needed for paddling, endurance is crucial in surfing, you don't want to be exhausted then get held down under water, that's just putting your life at risk.
Live far from the beach?
Just workout to stay in paddling shape, you always want to stay in shape to go surfing.
Buy your own wetsuit, it'll cost you around $180 but it's worth the investment, you don't want to wear a suit bigger than your size, water will get in, the sleeves will become heavy and you'll be just torturing yourself, you also don't want to be putting on a wetsuit people are peeing in, you're bound to catch something this way, just your own.
Buying a board:
Do not buy a fish, I own one, it took me 2 weeks to get used to it, switching from a funboard to a fish isn't something you want to do in your beginner stages.
This was an issue because when you learn on a longer board, when popping up you get used to using your toes as leverage to get your body up, on a shortboard, you lift yourself with only your arms, you need to build upper body strength and relearn your technique.
Buy a funboard, a minimal is the perfect choice for getting started, don't hesitate to ask the forum here before buying a surfboard, it's a big investment, if you buy a good surfboard, it will last you a long time and also leave a hole in your wallet for a while
If you have anything to add, don't hesitate to comment, any information would help out the beginners.
