Do Beginner Surfers Need Courage
The rarely thought about requirement for learning to surf is Do Beginner Surfers Need Courage? It is amazing how many beginners say they are nervous before we begin and how often a beginner is in the water and I see they are afraid to stand up.
Most people overcome their nervousness after getting pushed a few times and realizing that in waist deep water they won’t drown and that the small waves are not going to hurt them. The fear of standing up is another matter.
Overcoming Nervousness and Fear
Instructor and student don’t realize its a factor until I see they won’t release their hands from the board in order to stand up. They are afraid of falling. Once again, we are in waist deep water and a fall lands them in the water, but we have a natural fear of falling. We don’t like to fall on dry land because it usually hurts.
In the beginner student pop up, they place their hands on the board in a man’s push up position and then push while bringing one foot under their butt and placing it flat on the board. Then they stand up on one foot while lifting their hands and bringing the other foot to the front of the board. This seems a perilous moment to many as they stand on one foot only and release their hands.
The Fear of Standing Up
When I see this occurring, I bring up the idea they are afraid to stand up because they are not releasing their hands. At this point they acknowledge it. I say surfing requires courage. I tell them I want them to focus on standing up on the next ride. Most of the time, students can be talked through this phase.
A third issue not linked just to courage is the physical ability to stand on the board. The pop up requires some flexibility, some upper body and lower body strength, a little balance, and some agility. A surfer has to be a little bold to put them all together to give a maximum effort.
The issues of not standing up are often the inability to focus on the sequence I ask students to memorize. When they don’t focus on the sequence because of “performance anxiety”, they default to their instincts which I warn them are all wrong.
Learning the Right Sequence to Combat Fear and Instincts
The sequence is Paddle (to catch the wave), stop and glide (which is putting their hands on the board and gliding for up to 4 seconds), push (push up), back foot (placing one foot on the board under their butt), stand up ( standing on the one foot and releasing the hands from the board), front foot (bringing the other foot to the front of the board).
If the student does not lift his hands, he cannot get the front foot in front of his body leaving it too far back on the board. This cause the nose of the board to rise and the student loses the wave. Students often can’t focus on the sequence and do everything at once causing a bad stance and a fall.
The biggest secret is slowing down. I tell new students to stop and glide for four seconds. This makes them put their hands in the correct place and relax before trying to stand up. They say they got much better when they slowed down. When they slow down, they stop relying on their instincts.
Working through all these issues is something people don’t anticipate when they decide they want’ to learn to surf. It is also a reason people can’t learn on their own because they don’t know they have the issues and they certainly don’t know how to cure them.
More Posts
Oceanside Surf Lessons for Beginners
Beginner Surfers Learn the Pop Up
How to Progress to Surfing the Short Board
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