Shortly after many students start learning to surf they want to know how to surf the short board. In the movies, the surfers are mostly on short boards as they ride big waves or rip in the pockets. It looks so easy. The short board is an advanced form of surfing, but the long board…
Learning to surf the short board requires patience and persistence. New surfers learn how technical surfing is just to ride a soft top in foam waves. Learning to surf the short board requires the patient building of skills and physical capabilities. The Physical The soft top boards have high volume to make them easy to…
The first two surfer carves are the bottom turn and cut back. They can be performed on soft tops or short boards. They are used primarily to get into the pocket after surfing down the face of a wave and for changing directions on a wave. The Bottom Turn Carve The bottom turn after catching…
In Oceanside Surf Lessons, new students begin riding foam surfing waves before learning to catch real waves. The reason is two fold. New students need to learn on soft top boards to minimize the difficulties and catch foam waves to learn the fundamentals and minimize the injuries. Learning the First and Second Steps Once students…
EXECUTING THE SURFING BOTTOM TURN When I teach new students in Oceanside Surf Lessons, we do not get as far as bottom turns in a first lesson. The first lessons are about going straight to the beach on a foam wave. As students advance, they learn how to go to the outside and catch bigger…
Surfers learn short board surfing after they have mastered the soft top in foam waves. The fundamentals are the same for short board surfing, but to ride a short board fundamentals have to be precise. Adding the Facets for Short Board Surfing In learning to fly big airplanes after learning on small airplanes, the fundamentals…
New surfers learn to carve starting with foam waves. After beginners have learned to catch foam waves, pop up in right posture, and can ride to the beach, they can start carving . Carving on Foam Waves On foam waves, the surfer begins a right turn assuming left foot is forward by first turning his…
Catching the first real waves after learning on foam is a phase in process. One can begin by catching the reformed waves near the beach. Or surfers can catch the smaller waves at an angle. Both require different timing than learned with foam waves. Starting with the Foam Waves Foam waves are waves that have…
There are steps on how to progress learning to surf. Learning to surf requires patience with slow steady progress. Surfers learn to build competence with techniques, conditioning, and courage. The First Fundamentals The first fundamentals to progress in surfing serves surfers from beginners to advanced and have to be mastered. They seem simple to say,…
Paddling and catching surfing waves are early techniques to master. They are two techniques that require timing. Paddling and catching surfing waves are similar with both foam and green waves. Paddling Fast The first correction needed for most new students is paddling fast. Most have the instincts to paddle with slow swim strokes as they…
When I teach Oceanside Surf Lessons, we begin with nice stable 8′ or 9′ soft top surf boards. I like to take the board out of the equation when teaching new surfers the basic techniques before they advance to short board surfing. Concentrating on the necessary moves getting up on a board is better if…
When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside, beginners start with riding foam waves. But I explain that the technique we learn is expert and would be the same technique to ride big waves. In my Oceanside surf lessons, I paddle out with intermediate students to ride steeper waves. Catching steep surfing waves is an ultimate…
You learn how to catch real waves after you have mastered catching foam waves. When I teach Surf Lessons in Oceanside, students learn to ride foam waves straight to the beach. When your position and posture on the board are correct, the board will go straight with very little balancing effort. The ability to make…
Moving from soft top surf boards to short surf boards is a goal of many beginner surfers. In Oceanside Surf Lessons, I progress students in this process in a number of lessons. Most teens and adults start with a 9′ soft top board to learn the fundamentals. Once a beginner can pop up in the…
Beginner students aspire to ride the surfers short board. New students see movies and think it looks so easy. In the movies, riding waves looks simple, but the movies never show new students learning to surf. They are two different realities. In Oceanside Surf lessons, new students begin with 8′ and 9′ soft top surf…