A few months back i was sitting near the car park at 1st point Noosa watching a bloke on a longboard catching 1 foot rubbish.
He would catch these waves with vigour, stand up, hop back, turn, trim than walk up the front then walk back on and on and on, milking the wave to nothing then paddle back out.
He was accompanied by a short boarder who was struggling with the size of the surf and two 666ers. One could surf, one couldn't.
It got me thinking, look at these guys having fun in these very average conditions.
The long boarder was a very good surfer and was a pleasure to watch. It made me think obviously this guy can and does surf in conditions like this often.
This gave me a different perspective. I thought from now on I'm going to surf in all conditions and get my stoke back..and i did for a time.
but unfortunately I have now fallen back into being selective.
I know that its so easy when its cold and the waves are not quite right I can make all the excuses to turn the car back and easily say fark that.
But now the weather is perfect so I have no excuses but still find myself being TOO selective with the surf conditions.

Got any ideas how to overcome this
What do you guys do How do you stop being selective

The fact that I drive 1h20min to surf kind of takes the selective part out of it, once there I'll pretty much surf whatever the conditions are.

And I guess I always have the attitude it's better than working.

i surf with mac once a week .



believe me that makes me very non selective


cobra i always look at bad or ordinary surf like -where can i get a ride in those waves and what board can i do that on.


sometimes it might just be catching inside dregs in the ck mouth on hideous ne wind day using a 12'6 666

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vanders1 said..
The fact that I drive 1h20min to surf kind of takes the selective part out of it, once there I'll pretty much surf whatever the conditions are.

And I guess I always have the attitude it's better than working.

Great stuff Vanders!

I surf everyday no matter what. I have surfed some very very horrible stuff,thankfully I have someone just as stupid as me to paddle out with.

A surf passed up is one I will never get back,plus it keeps me paddle fit against the groms

I just love the ocean

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vanders1 said..
The fact that I drive 1h20min to surf kind of takes the selective part out of it, once there I'll pretty much surf whatever the conditions are.

And I guess I always have the attitude it's better than working.

yes vanders anything is better that working

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vanders1 said...
The fact that I drive 1h20min to surf kind of takes the selective part out of it, once there I'll pretty much surf whatever the conditions are.

And I guess I always have the attitude it's better than working.

Ever heard of surf cams ?

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chrispy said..
I surf everyday no matter what. I have surfed some very very horrible stuff,thankfully I have someone just as stupid as me to paddle out with.

A surf passed up is one I will never get back,plus it keeps me paddle fit against the groms

I just love the ocean

chrispy you are the froth monster,i know you would and do.
so whats you secret how do you keep the froth

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NewScotty said...

vanders1 said...
The fact that I drive 1h20min to surf kind of takes the selective part out of it, once there I'll pretty much surf whatever the conditions are.

And I guess I always have the attitude it's better than working.

Ever heard of surf cams ?

A lot can change in a hour

I believe if you have the right board for the conditions you have a better chance of surfing most days,I laugh at the shortboaders struggle on our points when I know if they looked over the hill they would be blessed with perfect shortboard waves,are they scared of the agro at d-bah maybe.My days of chasing waves are over I did all the road trips casing waves in my shortboard days,here its so easy N wind head north,S wind head to the points,the board I'm picking up this week is for those days you mentioned 1 foot.I've surfed the north end for 20 years and to be honest I load the place for a few reasons.

So yes I'm very selective with age.

PS sup surfing should be banned

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Cobra said...

chrispy said..
I surf everyday no matter what. I have surfed some very very horrible stuff,thankfully I have someone just as stupid as me to paddle out with.

A surf passed up is one I will never get back,plus it keeps me paddle fit against the groms

I just love the ocean

chrispy you are the froth monster,i know you would and do.
so whats you secret how do you keep the froth

I just love it,and as one of the lifeguards says,never a crowd when it's ****

I guess when I got hurt and thought would not get to.surf again is my motivation, I never know when it's going to end. So I'm pretty blessed and thankful for.what i love to do,and keep.loving to.do it
Also what lacey said. I have a few choices board wise that can keep me out there.

Funny thing is,while I'm at work now,the whole night I will be checking the winds and plotting where I can get the best waves in the morning.....while y'all are sleeping

wow some good insight guys,, I'm starting to froth

Was going thru the same problem, then I started saying to myself "If i go out..I go in" ie:- if i spend the time & $ to drive out for a surf I'm gonna go in. Doesn't always work but I now get more exercise & paddle practice as well as a few waves & thats what it's about.

I have no interest unless its decent. I live close to the beach (fortunate) and all sorts of good waves but it has to be reasonable and uncrowded or I do something else (usually work - so when its good and uncrowded I get to maximise my utility). I see people who like to make the most of every occasion and I respect them for it. We all know its better than being at work. But given my surf time is limited due to other commitments I find its best to surf when its good and work when its not. I often spend my weekend working so that mid-week I can enjoy the fruits. Some people think I am weird - but I get so much more out of a perfect 3-4ft a-frame with just a few than a saturday morning event with all the weekend warriors getting in the way.

Chrispy seems to the have the mix wired these days - but for how long can this continue

I used to have a good blend of work life balance but recently this has gone mental - so I have to maximise the good days. One day soon things will change and I will be back being an everyday kind of guy - and I will post pics to annoy you all

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Ted the Kiwi said..
I have no interest unless its decent. I live close to the beach (fortunate) and all sorts of good waves but it has to be reasonable and uncrowded or I do something else (usually work - so when its good and uncrowded I get to maximise my utility). I see people who like to make the most of every occasion and I respect them for it. We all know its better than being at work. But given my surf time is limited due to other commitments I find its best to surf when its good and work when its not. I often spend my weekend working so that mid-week I can enjoy the fruits. Some people think I am weird - but I get so much more out of a perfect 3-4ft a-frame with just a few than a saturday morning event with all the weekend warriors getting in the way.

Chrispy seems to the have the mix wired these days - but for how long can this continue

I used to have a good blend of work life balance but recently this has gone mental - so I have to maximise the good days. One day soon things will change and I will be back being and everyday kind of guy.

so your saying ATM you would of been sitting at the car park with me.

+ ted i don't have that kind of surf environment where great conditions keep rolling in

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Cobra said..
+ ted i don't have that kind of surf environment where great conditions keep rolling in

yes that is probably the case given your location. But you could get a boat they tell me NSW is a good place to live 9 mths of the year.

I wish I had the stoke - look at TC and his mates - out at every opportunity - i used to froth like that. These days no chance - life has taken over. For you though Cobra you are essentially retired so no real excuse

As for sitting in the car with you - no chance - I either did not bother going to the beach as I knew it was crap or I left 30 seconds after I got there - no point delaying the inevitable.

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Ted the Kiwi said..

Cobra said..
+ ted i don't have that kind of surf environment where great conditions keep rolling in

yes that is probably the case given your location. But you could get a boat they tell me NSW is a good place to live 9 mths of the year.

I wish I had the stoke - look at TC and his mates - out at every opportunity - i used to froth like that. These days no chance - life has taken over. For you though Cobra you are essentially retired so no real excuse

As for sitting in the car with you - no chance - I either did not bother going to the beach as I knew it was crap or I left 30 seconds after I got there - no point delaying the inevitable.

its spelt retarded ted

Funny to hear your thoughts mac....I'm the opposite. I.loved road trips when I was a grom......now I love them even more. Nothing beats it,not even your LM could come close. Just the whole thing about a roadie rules,even if it's just one night.

I just can't believe you would rather **** around with the.crowds you deal with then drive for another 30 minutes and get waves to yourself, I'm shocked

Sometimes yes but I always go look regardless

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thePup said..
Sometimes yes but I always go look regardless

pup we are talking about surfing not perving

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Cobra said..

thePup said..
Sometimes yes but I always go look regardless

pup we are talking about surfing not perving

.....it is what it is

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thePup said..

Cobra said..

thePup said..
Sometimes yes but I always go look regardless

pup we are talking about surfing not perving

.....it is what it is

never surfed WA but i would of thought you guys would have plenty of options.
if i had that,it would make me more fussy,,then if i had chrispy to surf with i would be out there all the time..

No you must be sadly deluded there are no options in Perf just endless miles & long days of midgee infested swamps mosquitoes as big as poodles only Surf here is the 2kg box of the stuff ya chuck in the machine to wash the skiddies out ya dacks

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thePup said..
No you must be sadly deluded there are no options in Perf just endless miles & long days of midgee infested swamps mosquitoes as big as poodles only Surf here is the 2kg box of the stuff ya chuck in the machine to wash the skiddies out ya dacks

Ok what ever you say

I'm pretty selective, I usually drive 180k's each way to go for a surf as I hate crowds, aggro and $hite waves.
And even then I've probably turned around and driven home without getting wet half a dozen times this year cos the waves weren't up to scratch.

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smicko said..
I'm pretty selective, I usually drive 180k's each way to go for a surf as I hate crowds, aggro and $hite waves.
And even then I've probably turned around and driven home without getting wet half a dozen times this year cos the waves weren't up to scratch.

that would be disappointing ,but when its on yeeeeew

Cobra moving away from the coast has made me appreciate the surf more,eg I used to open the bedroom curtain look out at the surf and yes got selective,now as said by others if it is surfable go for it.

I am will surf just about anything when there is swell...lucky to live in a spot where there are some protected corners so wind is usually not an issue...if its real poop I will grab the kids and take them surfing which is always good to get the froth going

I was selective this morning... 5am start, got there and chose to get to work early and keep my powder dry for another day instead. Kicking myself now

At my skill level (or lack of it) I should be surfing every chance I get. Terrible decision.

what you described is what i surf most the time ... is there something else ?