Hi guys and gals,

I'm after a few tips on getting out in the waves. I have watched lots of clips and read a bit but still seem to have issues.

I have been sup surfing for a few months now and am getting ok. I am starting to catch waves on a more consistent basis and turning rather than just going straight down.

My issue is getting back out after catching a wave in when the surf is decent. I can get out over the white wash if it breaks a fair way in front of me and paddle over it standing but I find I am getting hammered when it breaks just in front of me. I don't like jumping off the board as it's a hazard for those around me.

Any ideas?

If you are paddling out and see a wave that is pitching and you are close you can hang back to let it break first then really paddle hard at it. Read the swells so you might want to wait for a break in the sets before paddling out or wait for most of the waves in the set to have broken so you are mainly dealing with whitewater not pitching waves. Try to get the paddle stuffed into the back of the wave as you are going over it and haul yourself over it. The key is to be aggressive and charge at the wave then at the last second switch to surf stance so you are stable and presenting less body area to the wave and gets the nose up - side on rather than head on. Sometimes it is amazing what you can get over...sometimes you just get mowed down. If you jump off try and hold the leash so you reduce the "kill zone".

Not to sound negative, but be careful when you hold on to your leash - people have lost fingers. But if you can hold the tail (or kick-pad) of your board that can help.

Do be a bit careful if your board has a square nose; they can jump up and hit you in the ribs...

Another option, as you are paddling toward the wave you can deliberately fall off backwards while kicking the board through or over the wave. Like everything, you have to choose the time and place. But sometimes you can spear the board through the wave if you think the wave will land on your head (or come close). But try to kick it towards 2:00 and you fall off to the left (or vice versa).

And I might add, look around as you paddle back out to see if there are peeps around. I always try to avoid people behind me by sometimes having to paddle on a bit of a tangent. Most people know these days not to paddle back out behind a SUPer, probably from experience

I've been reading a few threads over at Standup Zone regarding how to deal with bigger surf.

It sounds like some people have developed a technique of pushing down on the tail of their board while in the water to sink it. I presume this is done facing towards the shore. This supposedly keeps the board much closer to you and results in less lost ground. There seems to be some experimenting going on with handles and tail pad designs to make it easier including a tail pad that sort of semi holds your paddle across the tail so you can push down effectively with both hands and put a lot of your weight into it.

Has anyone tried this technique?

I've also read that some are using wakeboard type impact vests and waist leashes to good effect.

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CoffsSUPer said..
I find I am getting hammered when it breaks just in front of me. I don't like jumping off the board as it's a hazard for those around me.

Just like paddling technique, paddling out in SUP is something that is deceptively complex, and will take a lot of experience to master.
Some tips:
- You are aware that you can be dangerous to others, a very sane concern. The best way to handle this is to be sure to be far away from other people, so take ime when paddling out to veer left or right to always have nobody behind you. It may mean rideing a bit the whitewater diagonally to get out of the impact zone and going back via another route
- Staying close to the board IS dangerous for you when you fall trying to get out, so you should know that bailing out is often the better option rather than trying to pull it through, falling in an uncontrolled way, and being hurt and kept out of the water for days/weeks
- Try to read the incoming wave, some parts are weaker than the others, and by veering left/right you can succeed
- For going through/over the foam, experiment a lot in gentle conditions: some of the successful techniques are counter-intuitive. Basically you need to paddle as fast as you can, have the paddle in the water most of the time, move your back leg aft, crouch, and jump somewhat when the foam hits so that you let the board be lifted by the foam freely without it catapulting you upwards... try a lot of things.
- be commited, if you hesitate, it wont work
- Learn some controled bailout techniques:
- push the board over the foam and fall backwards
- if attempting to go through/over the foam and it goes wrong, jump sideways as soon as possible
- push the board sideways when diving under the lip (end of [2]), so the board is not facing the wave, where the lip can break it in 2, and the leash be cut by the fins if the board goest backwards, or, even with a railsaver, the leash can tear through a carbon board[1]
- do not resist the initial pull of the leash to avoid stressing it to the point of breaking, let yourself be dragged underwater
- never attempt to jump over the nose of the board. The nose will skyrocket upwards and hit you full force. And it hurts severely.

[1] board going back over the leash:


[2] push the board sideways: at 2:07 in:

never attempt to jump over the nose of the board. The nose will skyrocket upwards and hit you full force. And it hurts severely.

Yeah when it hits ya in the gut :)

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surfinJ said..

That guy is soft - I would have paddled over the top.

Thanks for all the tips. A bit choppy today but I will give some things a try hopefully tomorrow.