Dealing With Imperfect Surf

[pmcaero]

I get drained during the paddle out on bigger days. For the most part I can duck-dive my shortboard, but then it's hard to catch waves with it , especially now with the 6mm wetsuit, and extra gear. I haven't had a good day on the SB since early fall
I think I could duck-dive something with a bit more volume than my current 6'8" shortboard, and also catch more waves.
So I'm on the lookout for something like that in my area, if I see a good deal on CL.

Then, the Bic, when I turtle roll it it usually flies off my grasp. I know what I am supposed to do, but in almost 5 years of surfing I think I managed just one good turtle roll. A combination of a longer, thinner, lighter board should help me get the nose under better and wrap myself around it to keep it from rolling from its upside-down position.

[Big H]

Substandard conditions occur most of the time but waves may still be surfable.

Do you limit your sessions to when quality waves break or do you often go out to get what you can? Are there "deal breakers" that keep you on the beach? (Too crowded, polluted, small, mushy, sloppy, inconsistent, closed out)

As a longboarder who drives well over an hour to get to my break, once I'm there...I'm all in. I always learn something from riding junk that I can use when good conditions arrive. When it's closed out, I work on floaters. When it's sloppy, I practice crouching. And when it's crowded, I watch what people do right and wrong.

What do you think?

Color me spoiled.....living on a small island with consistent swells even if small sometimes means very few flat days and a multitude of choices, each spots viability depending on the swell size & direction, tide at the moment and winds.....there is always somewhere that is working at a given time. That being said, there are definitely better days than others and often even though a spot may be firing, there are 100 people with the same idea so in the end I'm better served by going to a somewhat imperfect spot that is less crowded. Longboard is the usual board I use for most less than perfect conditions.....it's wider error margins make catching short period waves, onshore crumbles, hollow closeouts easier and earlier, so that I've got a chance to make the most out of the wave.

But with such close proximity and access, there have been more than a few times when I go to the beach, have a look and decide to do something else........just not worth it to go out..........reminds me of a time when I was on my way back to my car after 1.5hours in waist high waves with crap shape.....passed a guy who was in the parking watching the waves and he said to me "What's the matter? You out of good books to read?"

[BaNZ]

I remember asking the same questions a few years ago.

These days I don't go out when surf is not perfect. Simply because of many reasons- water too cold, no easy access to beach. When I was living in tropical weather, I would go every day unless it is completely flat.

[Brian]

I am pretty spoiled living across the street from the beach. but I get out whenever there is any swell. This winter, good swells (in my opinion) have been pretty few and far between. When it's small (like right now...) I try and go out closer to low tide. I'm actually biding my time, waiting to go out today... 11am high tides are the worst. The HB banks have not been very good, maybe because of the recent storms. I went out yesterday and there just wasn't much breaking despite there being some decent bumps in the water.

[pmcaero]

Let's define imperfect conditions better. I am discounting completely flat days.

-Really small but clean: with a longboard you can have a few fun rides. I prefer the beater, rides are shorter but I like the looseness.

-Really small with onshores: not worth it

-1-2-3ft with onshores. A high volume board might give you some enjoyment , depends how the wave breaks.

-Smallish closeout / shoredump: on a shortboard you might be able to get a few short rides and pull over the lip. Depends how tolerant (young) your bones are to hitting the bottom

-Bigger closeout:: if you can get outside, and have a longboard, you might be able to catch some before they break.

-Big with onshores: no point going out.

[oldmansurfer]

Onshore winds aren't going to make big waves bad. Nearly 99% of the time I surf it has at least partly onshore winds. When it's offshore I have to readjust the way I surf because the walls will hold up much better. In small waves it can make them entirely weak and crumbly but the bigger the wave the less wind affects it. In bigger waves having onshores make the faces nice and smooth because the wave blocks the wind. I would say this everyone has different skills and different tolerances so you have to find your own joy in surfing. I surf knee to waist high waves with onshore winds on either my 7'6" or my 8 foot board and I can have a lot of fun. I surf all conditions with those two boards and have lots of fun. On smaller waves I prefer the shorter board but if it's really inconsistent then I like the 8 foot board because I can catch more waves that I am out of position to catch than the 7'6" board does. On bigger waves like double overhead I like the 8 foot board because it gets me into the waves sooner. For me big waves with onshores that is the best time to go out. It will be fun and exciting and most people will be thinking it's not worth it.

[pmcaero]

I guess it depends on topography. And how strong the onshore winds are. Up to 5 knots won't be a big deal.
I think for most breaks though, more than that would create crumbly waves. Haven't polled, but , I think the majority of the surfing population lives near a beach break.

[BaNZ]

For me, I don't do anything more than 10mph onshore.

10-12 if I'm really desperate and haven't been in water for a few weeks. It all depends if it is clean or not.

[oldmansurfer]

Onshore winds create waves. Small crumbly waves are weak so to surf them you need to add power to your turns but big crumbly waves have more help from gravity and the bigger they are the less wind affects the way a wave breaks. I went out one day in the strongest winds I have ever been out in. I think it was at least 40 miles per hour steady wind. It was difficult to paddle out because the wind would blow salt spray into my eyes. I had to be careful not to do a kickout if I was down wind because my board flew away like it was in a hurricane. There were some of the best shaped waves I had ever had at that beachbreak. It was tubing pretty nicely. I was only out for 30 minutes but it was all my eyes could take. My eyes were so red when I came back from surfing my wife wanted me to go to the doctor LOL If it hadn't improved a lot rather quickly I would have.

[oldmansurfer]

I forgot to say I actually had a bit of rash on my legs from the sand whipped into them while I walked along the shore maybe 50 yards to the break and back. It felt like I was being sand blasted.

[pmcaero]

onshore made them tube? could it be due to sandbars? Never seen that anywhere.

for me, at the level I am right now, anything over 15mph, even offshore is not worth going out for. I just can't catch anything.

[oldmansurfer]

I am not sure why the waves were so good that day but I think it was from a large weather system blowing wind all in the same direction (which is the same direction our tradewinds blow). I went out and bought a pair of goggles to use on a day like that if there ever was one but it was so long ago the head strap has deteriorated (I guess it was cheap). I was the only one out that day but some old man warned me to be careful because it was the biggest surf he had ever seen there. I just thanked him for warning me and told him I would be careful but I didn't mention that it wasn't the biggest that I had seen there it in a week much less some longer period of time. It was maybe 8 to 10 foot faces and admittedly bigger on the reef break maybe twice that size but still I had seen bigger waves in the last week. Anyway the point I was trying to make is that individuals have different skills and for some what they might call a closeout is actually a doable makeable wave to someone else. So what you find impossible is not the same as what others find impossible as well as what you find is fun others may not agree with you on that either. I think people have a belief that onshore conditions aren't rideable or fun because they aren't ideal conditions and really I don't know why I am trying to make this point since part of the reason why I enjoy them is because no one else is there because they think it isn't worth it. even if they are surfing they may still think it isn't worth it. But I enjoy it.

[pmcaero]

I don't dispute what you are saying. I'd be happy with onshore winds around here, if the waves actually had faces

[BoMan]

I think people have a belief that onshore conditions aren't rideable or fun because they aren't ideal conditions and really I don't know why I am trying to make this point since part of the reason why I enjoy them is because no one else is there because they think it isn't worth it.

I surfed Dillon Beach on a blown out, short period day and had the whole break to myself. (and for good reason ) I paddled constantly to hold my position. Popups and angled take offs had to be done quickly to get short rides that ended in closeouts. I wiped out a lot but managed to get around a few broken sections with wide bottom turns and foam climbs. The windy sea bounced me into the drink every time I didn't crouch or grab the rails.

To oldman's point, when alone and it's not ideal, I take a devil may care attitude and just try new stuff that ends up being fun. For me, surfing is still about wave count - even "bad wave" count!

[oldmansurfer]

I'm more into learning to read the surf..... looking for the best out of all the chaos. I often have to paddle to stay in the lineup but that is all part of it. Learn to read the waves and how to line them up. Sometimes it amounts to finding an area with less current so you can stay lined up better. I love the challenge and the feeling of being out in all that chaos is thrilling to me. As far as trying new stuff I do that if it comes to me when I am surfing, I let the waves dictate what I do.

[Surf Hound]

BTW Trivia fact....... In the British Navy uniform bell bottoms were a life preserving garment , designed to be tied and inflated as a floaty! [/quote

That is a US Navy thing. The reason for bell bottoms is so you can take your pants off in the water over your boon dockers. You are taught to use your bell bottom dungaree pants as a flotation device by taking the off under water (hence bell bottoms), tie off the leg openings and fill with air by slapping with opening against water and trapping air. We practiced the drill in boot camp in the 80's, not sure if they still do it but I would think yes. You know the British Navy copies everything the US Navy does right? lol

[jaffa1949]

You're right both navies had them , the US navy had some some sailors on some ships ibefore 1815 about 25 years before the Brits.

Glad to see another surfer on the waves of Trivia.
Have you seen the advertised pull through the air outdoor lounge/sofa , same principle, but had an opposite effect (several drunken party goers drowned in swimming pools here in Australia over the Christmas Holidays)
Sadly common sense is becoming more uncommon every year. Or is it increasing Darwinism

[oldmansurfer]

Evolution only has a chance of working when you do something fatal before you reproduce otherwise it's just a sad occurrence that doesn't help the human race.

[dtc]

At first I thought the mountain range (peninsula I guess) in the background was the wave and thought 'thats not a wave I want to surf'

Sadly common sense is becoming more uncommon every year. Or is it increasing Darwinism

And we even have a town named Darwin just to put all the darwinism, but they have started escaping and spreading south...

[YungGrom]

I don't dispute what you are saying. I'd be happy with onshore winds around here, if the waves actually had faces

Haha we have a few nice days and then the rest is about 15 knots with normally a drag to the south. When you get out back your already down the beach ahaha but yes I wish our waves were surfable all the time ):