Two things:

What do you think of crossbow (?) turns where you have paddle on wave side for bottom turn, then reach across board w/o switching hands on your top turn or cuttback, planting blade on your toe side? I couldn't even picture them in my head, but I started trying them and found they really helped - I often feel stuck after the bottom turn and the crossbow thing helps me with the transition and whips the board around.

The two biggest waves I've dropped into backside this year each resulted in disaster - my rail didn't set and I just slid out onto my butt and got pummeled by the wave. Humbling cause usually the one thing I have going for me backside is setting the rail. Anyone have this experience or some advice? Not sure if it's footwork or what. cheers

Yeh, the crossbow did my head in for ages - had to practice the paddle switch on land until I understood it! Nowhere near mastered, but enjoy practicing it. It does mean you have to choose between two types of backhand turns depending on what the wave is doing. This kid does them in his sleep: .
I don't have an answer for the rail sliding out. IMO bottom turns on a SUP are just sketchy when it's a big wave and any sort of chop.

I go far enough back to remembering It was named the Nolan,in Hawaii,because he virtually invented it !,this stuff does test my memory though

Hi Kisutch, I have found the Oz Longboarding champ Ben Considine Youtube channel to be a great help when it comes to ideas and ways to improve your surfing. And he is clear and walks you through his ideas, and the videos are great and its free.

Here is a link to a great one for backside surfing which you might find useful.



Steve.

P.S this one is great too.

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Kisutch said..
I often feel stuck after the bottom turn

Surfing backside, your body tends to "lock".
So the trick is to do whatever "unlocks" it and allows to be flexible and nimble.

For some it may be the paddle switch, but for me it is facing the shoulders forward, and thinking of crouching on the board, then move the upper body loose from the legs rather than leaning too early in the turn like when surfing frontside, which tends to lock the body.

Unlock those hips!

Exactly this^. Try this visualization. Stand up with your feet about shoulder width. Picture yourself on your board, knees slightly bent, just starting your drop, straight down 90? to the wave. Now frontside is easy, right in front of you, just lean in and off you go. Even with locked hips you will manage.

Now backside. Take your leading, for a goofy the right hip and shoulder, and rotate them back to the way you want to go. This turned hip and shoulder position is how you will be for most of the wave. Except off the tops or cutbacks, momentary frontside. Loose hips.When to rotate will be determined by the drop, the smaller the sooner. Feet movement as needed.

I remember a photo of Nolan, Hawaiian guy, with his big longboard vertical and his paddle planted deep on the low side as some kind of pivot, radical. Most of my critical or bigger wave takeoffs are done with the paddle toe side. And if I start to go down on my butt, I try to stop the fall with the paddle flat on the water behind me. And maybe I won't crash.

+1 on Colas's response. I can't even think about switching the paddle without a faceplant. I like the visual of throwing my lead hand to the top of the wave backhand. This creates an uncorking of the lower body and has the paddle in place for the top turn. SUPboarder has an excellent video comparing the two backside turns. Ultimately, the body position is the same for both. Stop the video at 2:07 and again at 2:15.

Tons of Youtube videos of Colin McPhillips sup surfing, he never switches his paddle. Some may disagree but I view switching the paddle as a personal preference. Look where you are going, backfoot to the rail you are turning, and unlock the hips. Use the paddle however it enhances your surfing.

Good discussion, after watching the WSL Rottnest event last year with so many good natural foot surfers riding backside. The next session I just held my paddle in my right hand and used my left arm to point up the wave face like a surfer. For me it made the difference and it's my personal preference.

Thanks for all the great feedback and clips! I like watching Colin McPhillips, found this old Paddlewoo video in a contest where he makes turns on a longer board look so fun and stylish.
~ 2:40
vimeo.com/progressionproject

Have a look at this vid from 'byronmaui' of his son surfing from about 8 years ago. From my perspective still one of the best examples of SUP backside surfing. I only wish I had half of his skills and flexibility (:

Great video- only thing I'm not jealous of is the crowd:)

I can do a crossbow stroke to turn around when paddling but not when I am on the wave because it would torque my back too much.
Too bad because the "cross bow" paddle reach turns the shoulder nicely to initiate the turn.
Seems like all our breaks have been frontside for me the past few years.... but I almost prefer SUP surfing backside.
I feel like I have a big advantage with my heels on the rail for solid turns.... and facing the turn off the top.

My backside top turn is always with the paddle on the "turn" side
I start the first turn with paddle on my heel side but then I switch the paddle away from the wave face to get it out of the way.
That way, my top turn is frontside with the paddle on my toe side to turn off of and help with body/shoulder rotation

Her are a few short clips from past years that show options to the "cross bow" top turn
This one is in super slow mo then again in normal speed


This one is an oldy showing a slow mo of a roundhouse cutback on my backhand.


This one show a fun backside session on my original Flow:

Great style STC

Thanks for clips STC. Had a couple exciting drop ins today and didn't slide out, tried waiting longer to turn and moving back foot a little off center, had mostly stopped moving foot rail to rail on this 8x28 cause tail pretty narrow.