How do you guys use pumping in your surfing and how do you do it? I ask cause I had a real breakthrough today, but I'm still not sure what I'm doing. Had to surf a weaker wave to stay out of wind and pumping just clicked like it hasn't before, could really accelerate down the line, it was so damn fun.

at first it felt like pumping transition on a skateboard- like I was just pushing up/down going down line as if there was an invisible pump track to press against, then I started doing more the tic tac thing with side-side worked in. I'm just doing this by feel and now that session is done I'm not sure if one way felt right on steeper wave and one flatter (the tic tac). Anyway would love to hear how you all approach this and if there are two different ways or if I'm misunderstanding what I'm doing.
thanks

I think that there are two kinds of pump. The technique I mostly use feels like it does on my skateboard. When a long section presents itself and I need/want more speed I begin a slight turn up the steep wave face and the a slight turn back down grabbing a speed increase from the steepness. Repeating this across a steep section will generate more speed then if you had just trimmed through the section. And if not a steep section the method will work anytime there is a bit of a slope.
The other pump is the shortboarder hop. That is the unweighting and the pressing down of the front foot while going straight. Sometimes if I seem to get hung up near the top of the wave this will help to unglue the board to get going. Usually just one or two pumps and it's good.

If trying to max the energy on a weak wave section maybe a bit of both. A nice tool either way.

Definitely pump when on flatter section more up down on fat wave.
Also up and down wave face - all depends on the wave and your read of it.
Most spots don't need to but some spots a few pumps gives you speed to set up better turns.
More intuitive surfing getting speed than paddle strokes when on the wave

Fins matter here, side to side pumping needs side fins to work... if surfing with a single fin it won't...

Thanks for feedback, I was on L Quobba sides M center.

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Kisutch said..
I had a real breakthrough today, but I'm still not sure what I'm doing.

Welcome to the club!

Once you feel it, it is unmistakable, and it becomes easier to reproduce. And it is very similar to the one in skating when wheels stay on the ground.

Basically you need:
- traction: the fins must be in laminar flow, not stalling, they should feel rock hard when pushing on them. So you must go fast enough. You can pump a single fin, but the board must be nimble enough to allow for quick small turns via the rails: short length and curved outline. Twin fins are the easiest to pump. And Quobbas help a lot :-)
- quick movements, very limited in scope. Think of a fish trying to "pump" its rear fin

There are quite a bit of info on the net, look for "surfing pumping". But the hardest part is to get the first "clicking in place".

Id rather not pump

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colas said..

Kisutch said..
I had a real breakthrough today, but I'm still not sure what I'm doing.

Welcome to the club!

Once you feel it, it is unmistakable, and it becomes easier to reproduce. And it is very similar to the one in skating when wheels stay on the ground.

Basically you need:
- traction: the fins must be in laminar flow, not stalling, they should feel rock hard when pushing on them. So you must go fast enough. You can pump a single fin, but the board must be nimble enough to allow for quick small turns via the rails: short length and curved outline. Twin fins are the easiest to pump. And Quobbas help a lot :-)
- quick movements, very limited in scope. Think of a fish trying to "pump" its rear fin

There are quite a bit of info on the net, look for "surfing pumping". But the hardest part is to get the first "clicking in place".

Thanks Colas! I was nerding out hard reading about pumping, asking friends who prone surf etc. and was having trouble mapping those explanations onto my prior experiences pumping on concrete and snow. But I love how with this maneuver you get such clear feedback on whether you're doing it right, get that feeling of gaining speed.

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LastSupper said..
Id rather not pump

I listened to a prone surfing podcast (surf mastery I think) about the value of staying the pocket to get speed rather than trying to make your own through pumping, but damn if it wasn't about the coolest feeling I've had yet to beat a closing section of wave with the speed from pumping. I'm used to the feeling of trying to hold a high line and trim for speed, I like this active feeling like your sprinting for it, also psyched it gives me something to work on in small surf or waves that stand up but take forever to break...

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Kisutch said..
damn if it wasn't about the coolest feeling I've had yet

Yes, the famous "Huntington Hop" that SurfingJ describes leaves you a dirty feeling:



(Named from Huntington beach where weak waves promoted its use)

But the real "laminar flow" pumped turns is really exhilarating. And you want to incorporate it in ALL your bottom turns (in the form of a well timed flexion + extension), it is the secret gateway to enhancing your surfing.

Also, managing it while surfing backside is quite a challenge...

Sorry but not sorry - that Huntington Hop makes me feel ill!

Thanks for that last video by Barefoot Surf colas... finally, someone did it right!
that was the best explanation that I have ever seen, on how to pump down the line to build speed)

Where does the paddle come into play?

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castawaycove said..
Where does the paddle come into play?

I guess we could add a third category of pumping: paddling.

Even uglier and less satisfying than the Hungtinton Hop ;-)

A laminar flow pumping is much more efficient and powerful than paddling. Legs are much more powerful than the arms. But it requires both a minimal speed, and some power in the wave. Paddling can be the only option on very weak wave sections.

At 1:48 you can see me first paddling to get enough speed, and then switching to "turning pumps"

I do not think the paddle is part of any pumping action. It's all in your body. Trying to add the paddle will just throw off the coordinated moves needed to pump. And the ugly, if used excessively, hop pump - becomes a beautiful surf move if all you do is a 1 or 2 front foot hop to unglue yourself on a wave. With all the surf hitting you guys down under there I have been gorging on vids from the Superbank. One of the rippers, Mick Fanning is a pumper supreme. One of the fastest surfers I have seen, he uses a smooth pump beautifully.

Follow up question on pumping - does rocker make boards pump better? Guess I'm wondering if some of the design features that make a board slower down the line (without pumping) can actually make it faster w/ pumping.

Worked on pumping on my backhand side today, actually seemed a little more straightforward for me than on my frontside, super fun

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Souwester said..
Sorry but not sorry - that Huntington Hop makes me feel ill!

Yeah bunny hop I call it ,kinda why I have not got into foiling,the hoping part looks wrong IMO .

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Kisutch said..
Follow up question on pumping - does rocker make boards pump better? Guess I'm wondering if some of the design features that make a board slower down the line (without pumping) can actually make it faster w/ pumping.

Actually, pumping is quite similar to pumping a foil (and has nothing to do with the Huntington Hop!).
- you need speed to feel it. Unlike prone surfing, you can use the paddle to get more easily up to this initial speed
- quick, nervous movements with a tight range of motion
- the hard part is getting the feel for the first time. Once it happens, it is unforgettable, and becomes easier to reproduce.

And, as with foiling, the best board for pumping are boards that are as light and short as possible, for the less inertia in the quick pumping movements. Plus a tail that you can push hard on without sinking: with width and volume... as for a bigger wing in foil pumping. And like a foil wing, with technique, you will not need the volume/thickness, only the width.

See also my post in
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Quobba-Fins-?page=8#2696034

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Souwester said..
Sorry but not sorry - that Huntington Hop makes me feel ill!

It looks like shortboards attacking a poor defenseless longboarding wave!

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colas said..

Kisutch said..
Follow up question on pumping - does rocker make boards pump better? Guess I'm wondering if some of the design features that make a board slower down the line (without pumping) can actually make it faster w/ pumping.

Actually, pumping is quite similar to pumping a foil (and has nothing to do with the Huntington Hop!).
- you need speed to feel it. Unlike prone surfing, you can use the paddle to get more easily up to this initial speed
- quick, nervous movements with a tight range of motion
- the hard part is getting the feel for the first time. Once it happens, it is unforgettable, and becomes easier to reproduce.

And, as with foiling, the best board for pumping are boards that are as light and short as possible, for the less inertia in the quick pumping movements. Plus a tail that you can push hard on without sinking: with width and volume... as for a bigger wing in foil pumping. And like a foil wing, with technique, you will not need the volume/thickness, only the width.

See also my post in
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Quobba-Fins-?page=8#2696034

Colas what board (dims) are you riding in the video????

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bomberdave said..
Colas what board (dims) are you riding in the video????

Both boards are 6'10" x 125 liters
You can see them in more details on my post at:
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/Review/New-6-10--Simmons-SUP?page=1#1526623

Not that I can pump 8'+ boards if they have a curved outline, like the Gong Alley or Karmen, if light enough in the nose.
But I couldn't pump my 8'0" Simmons shape similar to the one at
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/Review/New-6-10--Simmons-SUP?page=1#1516907
You need boards that want to turn with even a slight roll. With parallel rails it is not possible if the board is too long (more than 7' for me).
But even with curved rails, I don't think I have been able to turn-pump 9'+ boards.

With this sort of 'skateboard' pumping, would a thruster work better ie have more drive than a quad?
Or would a quad be looser thus easier to get driving?

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finsup said..
With this sort of 'skateboard' pumping, would a thruster work better ie have more drive than a quad?
Or would a quad be looser thus easier to get driving?

What you want is make your board the loosest possible: reduce the rear fin(s), or move it forward.

You do not need a lot of drive for the "push" part, as you are in a forward position to reduce board drag, the rails provide a lot of hold.
But you need a loose board to get back in position by itself on the "release' part.

Single fins are noticeably harder to pump, moving the fin forward helps a lot.
Twin fins are a bit easier to pump
Thrusters and quad are quite similar in my experience in comparison, but in theory I guess a loose quad setup would be the best.