Surfing Short Board Maneuvers

Surfing short board maneuvers are for riding the pocket of the wave. They include techniques for getting into the pocket and then setting up tricks and maneuvers for fun and style.

The first maneuver off the face of the wave might be a bottom turn to get into the pocket. The bottom turn is executed like most maneuvers, by first turning the eyes toward the turn and moving the head and upper torso as a unit toward the turn. Then with a little pressure on the toes or heels closest to the turn, the body and then the feet torque the board to carve.

Accelerating in the Wave

Once in the pocket, the first technique for the short board is to accelerate to stay ahead of the falling lip and to get speed for the next techniques. Accelerating is moving the nose of the board up and down the pocket with the front foot.

Coaches like to see competitors make no more than three acceleration moves before executing a trick. After the trick, the surfer accelerates again before another technique. Longer boards tend to drive the wave without need of help, but the short board needs to be accelerated.

Cut Backs and Ripping the Lip

The cut back is a good maneuver after learning the bottom turn and acceleration. The cut back is used to reverse direction on the wave, stall on the wave waiting for the power or a barrel, and at the top of a face when ripping the lip. The cut back is initiated by the eyes and upper torso looking back in the direction the surfer wants to travel and then pressuring the toes or heels to execute the carve.

Ripping the lip is the maneuver you see most surfers practicing. After accelerating in the pocket, the surfer executes a bottom turn on the short board and then rides up the face of the wave. Just before the top, the surfer reverses direction in a cut back and is looking down the face as the tail of the short board spray the lip.

Tricks on the Short Board

Once the basic maneuvers are learned, there are a variety of maneuvers that can be learned. Getting aerials begins with riding up the face and continuing without the cut back. In the air, surfers might do 360’s and reverses with various types of grabs.

Surfers, skateboarders, and snow boarders study each others tricks on YouTube and try and take the new ones to their own medium. Surfers can also do flips but can’t get the same height in the air as the other sports and are limited with what they can do in the air.

Whereas skateboarders and snowboarders ride rails, surfers on short boards can plane the foam and suspend on top of the wave for the same effect. Judges in contests are looking for smoothness, variety, novelty, and difficulty. There is no ceiling to what can be performed.

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