The Bare Essentials

What modern day surfing has become can be boiled down to roughly seven moves that should be included in every surfer's repertoire. When practiced regularly, perfected, and combined with individual style and grace, these moves will provide a solid framework upon which to base one's surfing. So, we've created a list of "Essentials for Solid Surfing." Click on the photo above to begin your education!

The Drop
Obviously, if you don't make the drop, nothing else matters. It's not just about making the drop though, it's about controlling it, owning it. A good surfer feels their way around, into, and through the drop. They make it happen because they can.

The Bottom Turn
Ever notice how the things that look the easiest are often the hardest to do? So you make the drop, and you make it well... now you gotta make your way around the bottom. Or is it through the bottom? Or is it up from the bottom? The bottom line is (no pun intended) that a good bottom turn will take you exactly where you want to go.

The Floater
It is as functional as it is beautiful, allowing you to go over a section, rather than just around it. Actually, the feeling of weightlessness as you glide over the rolling curtain beneath is reason enough to pull these off.

The Snap
A solid snap, frontside and backside, shows good control through the tightest of arcs. Also, it looks really cool when you smack it a good one, and it rains down on everybody behind the wave!

Getting Air
Years ago it wasn't thought to be possible, but today surfers are launching out of the water like it was natural or something... and landing it. Getting air is, regardless of what your elders may tell you, an essential move to have in your bag of tricks. This is where surfing is going, and if you can't keep up, you'll simply get left behind.

As your technique develops, and you think your style needs a change, first be sure of which way you need to go. Look at some films of yourself on an average day and determine if you are too jerky, overly uncontrolled or radical, or simply not flashy enough. A lot of quick turns from the tail, stiff legs, too wide a stance, or swinging your arms a lot are all indications of unnatural balance and jerkiness. One turn and then a lot of cruising in a safe spot on the face is a sign of slugishness. Never losing your board is a sign of overly conservative surfing, while losing your board nearly every wave in a difficult spot is a sign of over aggressiveness.

The fastest way to improve style is to have a special board designed for a specific purpose, and not necessarily one you will be able to sell easily once you are done with it. This is why many professionals wait until they have access to special boards before they improve dramatically. When turns need to be smoothed out and slowed down, get a large slow board, slightly wide and thick, with rounded or egg rails. A rounded diamond or rounded square tail is preferred with a good size larger fin. If more power needs to be developed, the same board could be used but with a pin tail.

The final way to improve style is with lots of practice in various conditions. Surf big Hawaiian style waves in the winter, point breaks, quick reef breaks, beach breaks, and close beach breaks or shore breaks. Each break type will contribute its own characteristics to your overall style.

Contest Surfing

The subject of contests naturally arises whenever a group of accomplishes surfers get together. The contest surfer is a different type of person than those who surf just for relaxation or enjoyment. It is rare to find a surfer who can compete with the best but will never enter a contest. Many surfers who say they don't enter contests because they can't relate and don't like the hassle usually aren't competitive type people or simply don't like loosing.

In this section we will explore ways to improve chances to win consistently in contests. The non-competitive surfer will find the explanations on how to perform certain maneuvers useful in his everyday practices. School coaches can use it to offer suggestions to their team members. Modern day super stars might want to read it just for fun.

(a) Strategy and Wave Judgment

While several maneuvers which can be readily executed will add points to the final score, wave judgement and a certain amount of contest strategy are essential in winning consistently.

When first arriving at the beach, sit down and study the way waves are breaking for several sets. Try to find the exact spot where the majority of waves seem to form. If heats will be short and waves are inconsistent, this spot will be vital in providing sufficient scoring opportunities to win.

Next, try to find where the best front side waves are breaking. It may be impossible to find this spot at a point break, but beach breaks usually have both left and right breaking sections. In the case of a point break you must ride backside, find the best takeoff location that will allow you the longest ride.

If you are close to the finals, are going one on one, or are in a heat with some very good competition, try to locate the position where the largest set waves are forming. One or two good set waves will often provide the critical difference in winning a heat.

The final spot to look for is a channel where it is easier to paddle out. In larger surf, knowing this location is absolutely essential in order to prevent being caught inside and wasting much of the heat paddling. If a wave is ridden too far in a strong side current, it is often necessary to go clear into shore and run up the beach to this channel before paddling out again.

(b) Show Up on Time

Showing up when your heat is called, entering the water immediately when directed, and not standing up except when allowed are rules all top surfers follow. Showing up on time prevents being rushed, and ensures all directions are heard. Most surfers study the surf and the current heat or wax their boards after checking in. Conditions can change quickly, or can be different than they look from shore, so watching how surfers in the previous heat are doing can help in your wave judgement.

(c)Entering the Water

Most places start the heat when the surfers paddle out, while some allow the surfers to paddle out before the previous heat has ended. Regardless of how the heat is controlled, don't stand up or get in anybodies way until your heat starts. When you enter the water, paddle out to the most consistent break immediately. When the heat starts, catch at least three solid waves at this location. Solid means that you can get a good long ride out of the wave. Heats are usually judged on the best 5 or 6 waves, so catching three quick waves will insure a full score in the heat.

Once your scoring base has been established, move to where the larger or more "juicy" waves are forming. You might need to wait, but remember that to win (except at the professional level) you probably only need one or two of the real big ones. Try to go front side on a big wave if you can as it will allow you the best position to try your most radical maneuvers first. Also, watch your time so you can move back to the consistent location if the heat grows too short to wait any longer for a large set.

Traditional Turns

A good turn off the bottom and up to bank off the lip is a classic for contest surfing, especially if performed backside. If frontside, try to kick your board vertically against the lip and let the wave push your board back down. If backside, try to cut back over the breaking part of the wave when you reach the lip. The higher scored turns are those that show no loss of power, and appear to attack the waves directly in a nearly fluid form.

When surfing slow but steep waves, several banks off the lip will increase speed and ensure a solid scored ride. In large fast surf, long clean turns off the bottom and smooth lines in the most critical part of the wave near the lip look good. Also, the more often the surfer can get back inside the tube, the higher the score.

Another technique in big surf is a backside carving turn from high under the lip. Your body should be almost perpendicular to the wave during the turn, so speed and momentum are necessary. The contest surfer should perfect smoothness in big surf as this is a must.

Compression Session

How to Keep Things Compact During Turns

The key to staying low, especially on a backside snap, is to think about grabbing your outside rail during the turn. Just the thought of it will get you in the compact mode. It's much easier to pull off a critical move when you're down low because you have a lot more control.

Once I push my board up the face, I try to keep my body in line with the board. Otherwise, it might look like I have a broken neck. As I turn my board and body at the same time, I'm guiding with my front foot and pushing through the turn with my back foot. On a good turn, my face is so close to the board I can kiss it. Ideally you should get your back foot above your head as you're coming back down and break your fins loose. As the fins catch back in, follow the board with your head.

To keep from pearling, I usually put the pressure on my back foot again as I'm coming back down. That will set you up for the next bottom turn with the maximum amount of speed. Use that momentum to launch you into the next move.

Although it's a simple maneuver, it's difficult to perfect. There's always room for a tighter turn in a more critical part of the wave. Fundamental maneuvers like this may be a lot more tedious to practice than chop-hop 360s, but they are a lot more rewarding once you know how.

High Scoring Manouvres

Certain flashy manouvres are scored very highly by contest judges. Many are difficult and can only be performed by top notch competitors, while others are fairly simple if you know how. A person can not learn these movements without practice, but can be mastered with minimum effort by following the procedures described.

The most common and basic maneuver is the roller-coaster re- entry, with the over the lip movement much easier than the through the lip movement. This maneuver can be performed in virtually any surf conditions and on most normal size waves. It is usually accomplished as the wave starts to close out or when a section breaks in front of the surfer.

Important points to perfect are timing and speed off the turn. When the breaking section forms, increase your speed by dropping lower into the wave and then using your power to turn up into (or over) the breaking section. Aim for a point very near the curling and breaking lip so your board will cut through and over the section. This will appear to a judge as the most difficult move. If you loose speed off the turn the maneuver will be difficult to accomplish.

Water will blast off your board and carry you on top of the curl. The more vertical a turn into the wave will generate the highest score. If you plan to go across the breaking section and back into the wave, make your turn sooner and don't approach the curl as vertically. Just as the board breaks through the curl, make a hard turn towards the bottom and lean back slightly.

If performing a backside roller-coaster, try to turn your board in an arc so it ends up directly under you and facing the shore. Frontside roller-coasters are best accomplished by waiting until your board is mostly on top of the wave and then dropping back into the wave similar to a late takeoff. If shooting across a section, keep high on the wave and try to re-enter the shoulder just above the curl line.

The methods outlined work best in 3 to 6 foot surf. In small surf, several turns in succession may be necessary to generate enough speed. Roller-coasters are difficult in large surf, and best left to experts. However, the procedures are basically the same. Be careful when trying the maneuver that you don't aim too far below the lip as the board may be pushed directly back on top of you by the wave.

360 Degree Turns

Among the most radical manouvres that can be performed on a wave is the 360 degree turn. There are two ways to accomplish this trick, one is fairly simple while the other is most difficult, even for professionals.

For the less difficult manouvre, a short, down rail board with a small fin is commonly used. Take off on a fairly slow wave and stand towards the nose. Position your board horizontally at about' the middle of the wave face, then kick the nose slightly towards the wave and lean forward to release the fins. Next, stand as straight as you can and allow the tail to drop down to the bottom of the face.

Continue your board's momentum by twisting while allowing the fin to again catch in the wave. As the wave rises to just above your knees, execute a turn towards the bottom of the wave. Don't turn very hard or your rail will dig in the wave and cause a fall.

The hardest part of this manouvre is maintaining your balance for the last critical turn. Trying this trick during a contest will definitely gain a few points unless you fall early into the initial turn.

The second way of doing this maneuver is very difficult, requiring both a very good wave and no mistakes. The author has only accomplished this twice, and never during a contest. A regular board is used in over three foot surf.

If you are planning an inside 360 degree turn, approach the lip of a frontside wave using a very strong frontside nearly vertical high turn from the bottom and let your momentum carry you to the top of the curl. To maintain all your speed and power to turn, use your rail more than your fin.

At the top, make a second quick flat turn to get you over the lip and headed back down again. Your momentum must keep you forward on the board so the second turn can use the power remaining from the first turn to allow bringing the nose down in a complete circle and back down the face. You must keep concentrating on the turn and not your position as you will not be right side up for the second turn.

Accomplishing a 360 during a contest assures a higher than average score from the judges. The maneuver is more often tried in modern day professional contests than in the past, primarily because of wave conditions, the push towards radical contest maneuvers, and because some very good board designs exist.

Floaters

I surf a lot of shorebreaks, so I end up doing a lot of floaters. Floaters are both fun and functional. You can use them to get over a section and set up for the next move. The ideal wave is a down-the-line beachbreak where you can build up speed. Mushy waves are easier and barreling ones are harder and a lot scarier. I've seen Kelly Slater and Sunny Garcia pull big floaters at Pipe, but floaters on bigger waves are a lot harder to make. Three- to 4-foot and under is the ideal size.

The first step is speed. So assuming you are flying down the line with plenty of speed, the next step is to wait for a nice long section. When you find the right section, throw your board up with as much speed as you can and use that speed to slide across the top. It's kind of a balancing act. It helps to lean most of your weight on your back foot and get low over your board.

Once you're up there, it sometimes helps to stay low by grabbing a rail. I've seen Pat O'Connell do a double-rail-grab floater and it looked rad. You can also do skateboard tricks, like little rock and rolls by shoving your board sideways while you're sliding.

Make sure you come down off the lip before you lose all your speed. But it's easier if you turn toward shore before you lose your speed so that you're moving faster than the falling lip. Sometimes you can fly off with the momentum of the lip. It's similar to an ollie--just pop off and go with the rhythm of the wave. From there it's an air drop, and when you land, you want to land in the flats.

It's really easy to hurt your ankle coming down from floaters. Landing tail-first instead of flat helps minimize the impact. I've seen plenty of friends break their ankles. Flying off onto the flats is a bit of a risk, but it's worth it. My favorite part of doing a floater is flying off at the end. I love that feeling.

Functional Tricks and Fun Tricky Tricks

Tricks don't seem to generate many extra points in modern contests, and are mostly used in long board contests or simply to have fun on a wave. While the number of points gained will depend on the individual judge, the surfer who can show a little bit more, especially in poor waves, will often get the extra credit. Just be certain that a variation of tricks are used so the judges don't get tired of seeing the same thing. A few of the most popular tricks will be described below.

Quick little moves in an inside break like short nose rides, head dips, riding backwards, switch stance, spinners, and even hand stands on long boards used to be very popular and are still fun to try. Nose rides are harder on short boards since the board will quickly drop if the surfer moves forward. By keeping your weight well back in a fast tube, and then stretching one foot to the nose, hanging five, or an old time "cheater" five, is simple to accomplish.

The classic hanging ten was popular during the long board era. Special boards were made with concave in the nose to provide lift. As the board started to rise, the surfer could walk to the board's nose and put all ten toes over the front. Noseriders were built by nearly all manufacturers of the day including the Webber, Bing, Hobie, Surfboards Hawaii, and Greek. This author saw a surfer get ten toes on a nose ride lasting over 20 seconds at the Ventura Nose Riding Contest during the 1960s. I believe the surfer was David Nuuhiwa.

While getting ten toes over is nearly impossible on today's shorter boards, achieving a full nose ride for a short distance is both possible and exciting. The easiest way to get to the nose is from a backside turn. Turn the board into a slightly upwards lift from the bottom of a hollow wave. The turn should be strong enough to provide plenty of speed. As the board begins to rise, walk to the nose and lean slightly back. Use short small steps. When the board slows, move quickly back to your normal position. For best results, turn back towards the bottom of the wave once you reach your normal position. Try to also master switching stance if you really want to maintain great control on the nose.

Another difficult trick in the long board era was a paddling out takeoff. John Geyer of Newport Beach used it effectively about 1967 or 68 to win his heat against Nuuhiwa at the US Championships. The move consisted of paddling into a wave, then standing up near the nose and allowing the fin to catch in the wave's face while using board momentum to swing the board around correctly. The surfer then stepped back and rode the wave directly.

Functional Switch Stance

A flat inside section of a wave is much easier to work facing the steepest part of the wave than it is going backside. Therefore, switching stance is used more often to help work a flat wave until it re-forms than for other purposes.

The quickest way to develop balance with your opposite foot forward is by using a skateboard. Practice with an opposite stance until power can be incorporated into a turn with no balance loss. Next, take off on a backside wave and, immediately after the turn, continue twisting and bring your rear foot around to the front. This same manouvre works on a frontside wave by doing it on a cutback.

To switch without turning, reverse your weight and look backwards when the board is nearly horizontal on a smooth part of the shoulder. Next take a step to get your normal stance facing towards the tail of the board. By pivoting on the balls of your feet and looking forward again, you can continue surfing with the opposite stance.

For contest surfing, try switching at the top of a roller- coaster. Usually when you get through the lip frontside and start your cutback, it is easiest to switch and make a nice power turn back into the wave.

Fin First Takeoff

This was a popular contest trick in the 1970s but is now used mostly for fun. It's a simple trick if the right equipment is used. The best board to use is short and has flat bottom with a rounded pin or round tail. A wide nose and a small fin with not much rake is also desirable. The "pig" board of the 70s was often used for this manouvre.

A slow mushy wave of any smaller size is preferred. Position yourself sitting towards the front of your board (fin reversed) close to the surfline and just to one side of an oncoming peak. As the wave reaches you, paddle down the face and slightly towards the peak. When your board catches the wave, stand up opposite stance and make a slight turn towards the peak. A slightly wider than normal stance is best.

In the same motion as your turn, aim the nose of the board down the face by following through with a normal turn. The tail of the board will move up into the wave and catch, and then start back down normally as forward momentum starts to build. Don't fall backwards as the board will spin too high and the board tail will go over the falls.

While this maneuver may get a point or so in a contest, it is mostly a fun thing when you are surfing shorebreak on a day with small surf.

Side Slipping

Releasing your rear fin and maintaining a completely controlled rail slide on the face of a steep wave is another not to difficult basic fun move. A judge might increase your score a point or so if you can perform it from a position just under the lip of a steep breaking wave. Releasing on a normal face probably won't gain much in a contest, unless you use it to set up a 360 turn.

The trick can be done on virtually any board. Longer three fin boards are a little harder to perform on. Short fins, 4 in. to 6 in., will release with very little pressure on the inside rail. However, take care not to lean into the wave as the board will slip out quickly and can result in your falling on top of it under the wave.

To start the manouvre, turn your board slightly up into the face of a frontside wave while leaning on the inside rail. The feet should be kept wider apart than usual with your rear foot (and little weight) directly over the tail fin. If the fins do not release immediately, kick your back foot out and your nose into the wave. The best method is to lean only from your waist up and keep your legs directly over the board.

The reader should note that this trick is nearly impossible to control for any length of time backside and should not be attempted. One interesting backside variation is to cut back into the wave, slip a few moments while facing the wave, and then turn back out again. Turning the nose back down the wave with a cutback will cause the fin to catch again.

Surfing Truth No. 1: You will paddle more than stand.

Surfing Truth No. 2: Powerful, efficient paddling is the key to surfing happiness.

While good positioning is a critical factor in catching a wave, the ability to sprint-paddle on command is the difference between stroking in a half-second early for a behind-the-peak tube ride or flailing over the falls. It can also help you avoid every surfer's worst nightmare: to scratch lungs-out for a huge set wave, miss it, then discover you've lined yourself up perfectly at Ground Zero. You sit panting and gulping in the impact zone as the next wave begins to feather....

Take a look at Brad Gerlach's incredible tube ride from the Gotcha Tahiti Pro this year. His takeoff is so aggressive that he's half-way down the face before the wave--easily three times overhead--unloads like a Tyson punch over the shallow Tahitian reef. There's no way he would have been able to negotiate such a backless monster unless he had great paddling technique.

Pro triathlete Alexandra Laws, a former Australian junior swim champ, coaches a variety of athletes in strength and flexibility training. As a Corrective and High-Performance Exercise Kinesiologist (CHEK) practitioner, she's done core conditioning and rehab work with some surfers, including Gerlach, and skateboarders Danny Way and Colin McKay. She and Gerlach have outlined a basic paddling stroke that can be used as the foundation for sprinting as well as long-distance paddling. The goal, says Laws, is not only to improve your paddling and endurance, but also to prevent injury. The following comments are Laws'.

* Keep your core strong. "While on your board, squeeze your glutes (butt) to stabilize your lower back. You need to activate what's called the "hip-extension mechanism muscles"--the lower back, the glutes and the hamstrings--to support the body so you don't get lower-back overuse injuries. Draw in your belly button at the same time. This activates the "girdle" (the transverse abdominus), which supports the spine. Don't flex the spine. Surfers with good core strength can go out for four hours a day and not beat their bodies up."

* Keep the proper amount of back arch. "You need only enough to lift your shoulders out of the water but not so much that you are hyperextending your back. Don't do 'The Cobra' while paddling. If you hold your head too high, you can't get your arms deep enough. And you could overuse the extension muscles in the back and end up with an injury. When possible, keep the chin tucked. The reason there are so many neck and lower-back problems in surfing is from hyperextending."

* Dig deep. "Surface water is more turbulent and air-filled, which means it has less resistance to paddling. This translates as working harder and moving slower. Just try getting out of the way of an incoming set when you're stuck in foamy soup. In the surf zone, water becomes noticeably more dense as you go down even another foot. By reaching deep, you're pulling against denser, less-turbulent water, which means more resistance, which means more speed. Of course, you need to build up a good set of paddling guns to make use of all that heavy water."

* The power stroke. "The hand is slightly cupped with fingers spread slightly apart. I call this the 'relaxed hand.' Pull down in a straight line for maximum extension. The first two thirds of the stroke is setting up for the power stroke. On the last third, you accelerate out with a slight flick of the wrist to end the stroke on a full extension.

* Don't mimic a paddlewheel. "At the end of the stroke, you lift your elbow up out of the water, which cocks the arm parallel to the body. From there, you simply drive the arm forward and set up for the next stroke. Do not bring the hand overhead in a full rotation as it's inefficient (you often see beginners flailing like this) and will put an unnecessary strain on the shoulder girdle."

* Be patient. "Good paddling arms do not come overnight. It takes time and practice to reprogram the mind and body. Think of your muscles--your arms and the body core that propels them--as the engine. They need to be tuned up and operating at peak efficiency to deliver the maximum horsepower. However, the best Indy engine built is useless without a good carburetor and transmission. You need to be able to translate all that paddling power efficiently and on command. A lot of surfing is sprinting, digging in and racing for the peak. Your 'fast-twitch muscle response'--the accelerator pedal--needs to be honed as well."