What New Surfers Learn on Foam Waves

New surfers learn on foam waves to master fundamentals before trying real waves. The foam wave occurs after a real wave breaks. Its best to begin with a high volume soft top board so that the board is not an issue in learning the fundamentals.

Learn the Fundamentals

The basic fundamentals for a beginner surfer are learning to position and balance on the surf board, catching waves, popping to a stance, and riding the wave. When positioning on the surf board, the surfer has his feet at the tail and his body over the middle stringer so the board is level. When catching a wave, the board must go straight and stay level until the wave is caught.

Catch a Foam Wave

To catch a foam wave, the surfer rolls on top of the surf board 25 feet before the wave arrives. At this time, the surfer is only in waist deep water. The surfer paddles to get momentum. When the wave is 5 feet from the board the surfer paddles hard. The idea is not to ride with the wave but to accelerate so the board is in front of the foam. This takes 3 to 5 paddles depending on the surfers power.

The Pop Up

Once the surf board is in front of the wave, the surfer places his hands on the board to prepare for the pop up in a man’s push up position. Then the surfer pushes and places his back foot flat on the board under his butt. The foot must be placed so the surfer can stand on it. As he stands, he raises his hands and then puts the front foot near the nose.

Ride the Wave

The right posture on the board is feet shoulder width apart with weight equal on the front and back leg. The hips and shoulders are squared to the front. The hands are in front of the surfer as he looks straight at the beach. The knees are flexed. If the posture is correct, the surfboard will travel straight and the surfer does not have to do any work to stay balanced.

Learn More

For Oceanside Surf Lessons, see the Home Page

See the Post What You Learn in a 2 Hour Lesson

See the Post How to Progress in Surfing

See My Dry Land and In Water Demo video

See How to Catch a Green/Real Wave video