Who can learn to surf is a question many instructors hear. Surfing is on a lot of bucket lists. Young people and especially teen girls see it as something they can do equal to boys in their new found liberties to play sports. Over 60 adults want to test their remaining abilities and join a culture they have followed all their lives.
When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside USA, I get all ages from kids to seniors. Age is not chronological as much as functional. One of my best students was 77 years old and a life long heli-ski guide. Advantages are held by those who are flexible, have upper body strength and have active cardio exercise. People who are always learning new physical movements adapt quickly.
When you ask who can learn to surf begin by learning what are the physical requirements and then what are the necessary techniques. Surfing introduces techniques the body has not practiced. People who are always learning new things like yoga or dancing or aerobic classes have an easier time. Surfing takes a little courage. Many people get stopped by the requirement to move from the lying down position to the standing position. They are not sure whether they will fall. Its only water, but still we are not accustomed to falling down.
Almost everyone says its a blast regardless of how they do. Their is something thrilling about being on a board and getting pushed by a wave. Standing up makes it more fun, but surfing immerses one into the ocean where you get to play with the waves and try to conquer the sport of kings.
Intermediate surfers learn to lip the rip by first learning to accelerate in the pocket and then do bottom turns into the face. One of the favorite things surfers love to practice is ripping the lip. It is a central feature of all maneuvers and competitions. It is flipping the tail of the surf board over the lip of the wave. It can be performed both going forward and reversed.
The first necessary ingredient is speed. On short boards, surfers accelerate by pushing the nose of the board up and down the wave creating an unweighting action. Coaches like surfers to accelerate just two or three times. We accelerate before and after a maneuver in the pocket.
Beginning the Technique
To begin the ride up the lip, the surfer gets in a low center of gravity position usually trailing the inside hand in the water. He performs a bottom turn by rotating his body in the direction of the turn and pressuring the inside rail with toes or heels (face side or backside). As the surfer nears the top he wants to counter rotate his upper body by first moving his head shoulders and arms toward the bottom of the wave.
Many surfers like to throw the top arm over the body to help with the motion. Joel Parkinson, champion professional, keeps both arms level in front of him and rotates smoothly from the upper torso to the feet to effect the torque. When the torque reaches the feet, it board whips toward the bottom of the wave with the fins sliding over the lip.
The first surfing maneuvers can begin in foam waves, but that is practice for the real waves. When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside USA, we focus on riding the surf board straight to the beach. Getting the right posture on the board so that it will go straight is crucial for all advanced steps.
The next step is to ride small faces of real waves. The first maneuver is to bottom turn on the face to turn into the pocket. Place a little pressure on the toes or heels in the direction of travel and rotate the upper body slightly. The edge of the rail will dip into the wave face and the surf board will carve.
The next fun maneuver is to practice cut backs. They occur to reverse direction. They help get back to the power of the wave, stay in the power to ride to the beach, or just show style. Once again, place pressure on the toes or heels in the direction of the turn and rotate the upper body beginning with the head and eyes.
The most important maneuver for short boarders is accelerating. Run the nose of the board up and down the pocket with your front foot as the surf board unweights up and then falls back down the face to increase speed.
How to fall when surfing develops with the instincts of experience. One of the things that is constantly on the mind of beginner surfers is falling. When students are in my Oceanside Surf Lessons USA, the fear often keeps them from trying to stand up on the surf board. When you start riding real waves, you fear pearling (where the surf board nose goes under water). On bigger waves, falling brings hundreds of pounds of water on top of you while it is churning.
How to fall when surfing
Watching surfers is a lot of fun. It is also a lot of laughs. It is so much easier to be on the beach and watch the crazy crashes and wipe outs. If you are in the water it is not always so funny.
When you are learning in foam waves near the shore, you want to fall backward to land on your butt instead of forward where you could land on your head. As you start falling off real waves, your instincts get better and you learn to drop straight down into the water or cannon ball.
Know the Water Depth Where You Are Riding
When you ride a board to shore, you have to be careful about just falling off the back. Once I didn’t pay attention to the fact it is was low tide and when I dropped in the water was only about six inches deep. I had a major contusion on my butt for a week. It is always good to sit down on the board if you can without falling on it.
The first thing to do is protect your head and face when you go under water. I always put my arms in front of my face and my hands over my head until I have come up to the surface. I wonder where my board is and I don’t want it to hit me. When you come to the surface you might want your hands on top of your head in case the fins of your board are above you. I have been hit on the head with the fins of my board after I came up and I’ll tell you, scalp wounds make you bleed like a stuck pig.
If you are on a shallow reef you come down on your board so you don’t hit what is below.
In the beginning when you pearl and fall off your board you will do some face plants and full chest plants. These hurt. It takes a while to learn how to turn side ways to the water, cannonball in, or get to your back. When you are being somersaulted under water you do not know where your board is so you want to cover up.
You always want to know where other surfers are and watch where their board is when they fall. Learning how to fall in surfing becomes instinct with experience.
*
If you are interested in Learning to Surf in Oceanside, see my Home Page
Winning in the Surfing Line up begins with mastering basic techniques. When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside USA, we begin in foam waves where we don’t really have to understand surfing etiquette. Once you start riding real waves where there are other surfers, etiquette is to keep everyone safe and share rides. You want both.
Winning is being assertive but also giving everyone their turn. If you are on a beach where there is usually one or two main breaks, chances are the best surfers are lined up to get the waves. It is not as much of a problem if the waves are rolling in quick succession, but more of a problem when they slow down.
The best surfers will get the best position which is the inside under the peak. They have the right of way right or left. If the wave is breaking right, you know which way they are coming. If the wave is breaking right and left, and you are not at the peak, then you have to wait and see.
If it is a long break and you are closer to the shoulder or down the line, it is difficult to see if someone is coming before you pop up. You might pop up thinking it is clear and quickly hear a “Yo”. It means they are bearing down on you.
The well liked successful surfer at the line up takes waves and gives waves. They are entitled to their turn but they back off when someone has position on them. The way to establish position is start paddling for the peak as soon as you see the ripple on the outside. You are alerting everyone that you are going for the wave. Those that don’t have a chance of getting better position than you will probably back off.
As soon as I see the ripple I start moving regardless of whether I know where it is going to break at the moment. I want to develop momentum so that I can paddle to the wave and run parallel along it looking for the best spot. Others seeing me paddle parallel to the wave know I want it and might be in the best position. If it is going to break further in that I expected, I might chase it, but those further in that waited probably have better position than me. In these cases, I will often say “You’ve got it”.
You have to catch them. If the line up sees you chase and not catch consistently or fall off the wave, they will not give you as much room. When you see someone chase, catch, and ride each time, they get the most respect.
When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside USA, we begin on 8′ and 9′ soft top boards. 8′ is considered a mini long and 9′ is a long board. After surfers spend a few months learning, they may decide to go long board or short board. Going the short board route is the more challenging.
The long board is easier to paddle so you don’t have to be in as great of condition.
The long board catches waves easier than shorter boards. You can start on a wave before it gets too steep.
Once the wave catches the board, it is easier to pop up and stay on a long board. You can catch small waves easier.
The Techniques to Learn Surfing the Long Board
Surfers like the long board
The beauty of surfing is that it offers so many opportunities to do what you want.
Surfers like the long board because you can have fun driving it down the pocket. It is easier to ride because unlike a short board, you don’t have to pump for speed.
Turning the long board is accomplished by putting weight on the back foot and swinging the nose in the direction you want to travel. You can also walk back or forward.
The most power is in the top one third of the wave so you like to begin at the top and eventually drop lower on the wave.
Finding the Right Beach Breaks for Surfing the Long Board
You can surf most beach breaks with a long board, but one reason surfers like the long board is that the long ride is the most fun.
Short boards like steep waves so they can maneuver with rips. Long boarders want to ride forever so they like breaks like reefs that have long rights and lefts.
In San Diego, beaches like Terra Mar in Carlsbad and Swamis in Encinitas are long board havens because waves build slowly and stay well shaped for a long time.
Learn surfing on vacation in Oceanside to create a recreation that can be enjoyed on many vacations. Along with sitting in the sun, walking for coffee in the morning, fishing, and boogie boarding, surfing is a great destination recreation.
When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside USA, my students are from all over the world.
Once you learn how to practice, you can take that knowledge to Hawaii, Mexico, Portugal, and so many other great surf destinations.
You Don’t Need Anything But a Wet suit to Learn
In the summer, you don’t even need a wet suit. Water temperatures are over 70 degrees. In the winter, the water temperatures don’t drop below 60 degrees most to of the time and a wet suit is adequate for staying warm.
Instructors bring the surf boards. If you want to practice after your instruction, there are surf board rentals you can access all week.
Get in Shape for Your Surfing Vacation
You can be surfing on your vacation with just a little physical preparation. Stretching is good for any activity. For surfing, you want to loosen up your hamstrings, buttocks, and lower back. Some side to side twisting is also good. You want to be flexible for executing the pop up and not getting hurt with strange falls.
Upper body strength is important so start doing push ups. If you belong to a gym you are probably already doing upper body weights. Add cables for paddling strength.
Aerobics are also important for any vigorous sport. They help with sudden exertions and recovery.
Surfing on Vacation is a Spiritual Experience
Surfers often go into the water just to “get wet” as they say. There is something special about being in the water, feeling the sun and ocean breezes that makes you feel at one with the earth.
Surfing on vacations can help you make that connection with every place you visit.
*
If you are interested in Surf Lessons, see the Home Page
Visit my Face Book page for inspirational photos and quotes
See a dry land and water beginner demonstration
When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside USA, students learn how to progress from riding straight to the beach to carves in surfing. The ability to ride balanced on the board sets up the ability to carve right or left on demand. When students develop technique that isn’t correct, they can often only turn in one direction or not at all.
Three Carves in Surfing
The first turn one learns after riding the face of real waves is to make bottom turns into the pocket. A regular footed (left foot forward) rider places pressure on his toes and rotates his upper body to the right for a face side carve (turn). He places pressure on his heels and rotates left for a back side carve.
Once the surfer is driving the pocket on a long or short board, he will want to reverse his direction for both practicality and style. When the power of the wave in the pocket starts to die, you want to reverse toward the falling lip to regain the power. A cut back is executed by a reverse rotation of the upper body beginning with the eyes, head, shoulders, arms and hands in a solid move torquing the hips, legs, feet, and finally the board. Speed facilitates the turn which is why all short boards accelerate (unweight) in the pocket.
Ripping the Lip
The third carve in surfing is up the face of the wave either front side or back side. One purpose is to perform a trick and the other is to escape a closing wave. Riding up the face is a bottom turn. Most surfers like to get a low center of gravity by dragging the inside hand in the water and then arcing just as you would coming down the face of the wave.
If you are ripping the lip, you will reverse your rotation just like a cut back.
Download my 17 page Surf Guide It covers your basic fundamentals and techniques. $1.
Purchase the 80 page eBook Surf Instructions: Beginner to Advancedto begin your adventure. All the lessons I have learned from my students about what makes learning to surf a fun adventure. $8.62. Download and begin reading.
Learn what it is like to live The Surfers Life eBook even if you are not near the water. Surfers have an attitude about what is important in life. $6.42
Surfing is not exclusive to the young. Seniors can learn to surf as well as any adults. My oldest student is 77 years old and he got up on the board the first time and most times after that.
Seniors surfing
How to Prepare Yourself for the First Surfing Day
Children, teens, adults, and seniors could all have trouble surfing if they have not led active lives. Surfing is a full body sport. Some of the best prepared adults and kids are those who do gymnastics, yoga, weights, pilates, tri-athlons, biking, running, swimming, soccer, dancing, and so on. I think you get the idea.
In my Oceanside Surf Lessons, many seniors have surfing on their bucket list, but age being functional, not just chronological, many have not stayed active with the right activities.
Surfing has specific muscle groups that are supported with some specific practices. First is flexibility. I often ask my students if they can put their palms on the ground without bending their knees. The pop up loves flexible hamstrings, buttocks, and lower back. There is a motion of getting on the board where you bring your front foot under your chest and place it in the middle of the board.
Upper body strength is important for pushing up with a spring to move the front foot forward to the middle of the surf board. It is one thing to push your body up in the living room or on the beach and quite different in the water. Some instruction videos say practice on your bed if you want to understand how water fails to support you.
Stamina extends your learning time. If students could practice full strength all day, they could almost be pros at the end. Most adults are tired in an hour, kids and teens in an hour and a half, and seniors often in twenty minutes. Iron man work outs are a good model. Participants practice each phase of the contest building stamina and then work with weights for when the body gets tired.
This is not to scare you, but many students who think they are in good shape when they arrive find they have not prepared for the specific demands of surfing. Seniors can learn to surf and make their lives better in the process.
High Volume Surf Boards Make Learning Easier
New adult students should start on 9′ soft top surf boards. Seniors can learn to surf on bigger boards, but when they get too big they allow students to cheat on the proper techniques. The 9′ surf board will support students weighing up to 250 pounds. If weight is not an issue, then this soft top board allows new students to practice the right techniques and learn the fundamentals.
Ideally, after students have learned the fundamentals on a 9′ board, it is fun to step down to an 8′ board. The smaller board is easier to handle, more maneuverable, and more fun once students have learned the basics.
The First Three Things a Student Learns
Adults and seniors can learn to surf learning the first three fundamentals and have a lot of fun.
Paddling on the surf board maintaining balance seems easy, but is trickier than one would think in the water. Students have to maintain the balance of the surf board by lying across the middle stringer with equal weight on both sides of the board. Surfers keep their body pencil straight with both feet together, their head in the middle of the board and then balance the level by moving their butt.
Paddling is accomplished by dropping the arm in the water up to the elbows and pulling straight back along the sides of the board. Paddlers want to keep their chin and chest up to prevent the nose from going under water and to make the pop up easier.
Catching waves is the second important fundamental and many feel the most fun part. When the foam wave is twenty feet from the board, the student rolls onto the board arriving in the middle of the board and starts paddling easy. When the wave is 5′ away the student starts paddling hard. After the wave starts pushing the board, the student continues paddling hard for three or four strokes or until the board is moving without paddling being necessary.
The final fundamental is the most athletic part. Seniors can learn to surf when they accomplish this task and should practice in their living rooms at home before they take their first lesson. Videos below give an idea of how the pop up is executed.
The main four steps begin with paddling for a wave until the board is being pushed on its own. Then the student puts their hands on the board in a man’s push up position under their chest. On the third count, they are pushing off the board with power and bringing the front foot under their chest to arrive in the middle of the board. The right spot on the board is between where their hands were positioned.
On the fourth count, the student is standing on the board with shoulders and hips squared to the front, hands in front of the body, and eyes looking over the nose of the board toward the beach.
Practice Makes Perfect
Students can practice all the requirements before and after they visit the water, just like the pros. Seniors can learn to surf by practicing the physical exercises to get fit and the techniques by doing pop ups in their living room. Getting to the water often helps, but daily fitness and daily pop ups can make the whole process much easier.
If there is a long term commitment to scratch this sport off the bucket list and to continue having fun, the daily routines should become part of the student’s life.
*
This is a YouTube pop up video that demonstrates the body motion necessary on a high volume board
Learn surfing the short board by honing the basics into greater precision. The short board is an advancement that necessitates more physical skills, better techniques, and more experience.
Lower volume surf boards create three new physical demands. Paddling them is more work and longer sessions require more stamina that paddling high volume boards. The body has to be in advanced surfing physical condition to execute the pop up. This will include flexibility, upper body strength and core strength.
Surfing the short board requires that the pop up is smooth, swift, and accurate. Gone are the days when you can crawl up on the board like on a soft top. The lower volume won’t tolerate any imbalance.
Short Board Experience
Surfing the short board requires the experience of reading waves. Foam waves give a wide window in time to paddle and receive the impact. A short board needs the arc of a real wave and the window is a few seconds. The secret is paddling in front of the wave and allowing it to come under the board. Then a few powerful strokes will usually propel the board down the face.
Riding the short board requires a new understanding of weight placement between the middle of the board and over the fins. In accelerating, and carving, the weight on the board changes from middle to rear. Watching how to videos is one way to get the idea and as techniques are practiced, videos keep delivering more meaning.
The size of the short boards can vary tremendously. They can retain the high volume width and thickness to make them easier to ride. They can get thin and narrow to change the performance dynamics. They can be shaped to ride small waves or big steeper waves. You can find your level and enjoyment and then get the right board.
Learning surfing the short board only begins the adventure.
*
For Oceanside Surf Lessons USA, see the landing page
