Advanced Surfing Maneuvers

Advanced surfing maneuvers can be executed on long or short boards but are more easily performed on short boards. They can all be learned on soft top boards. It is great to learn on a soft top board and then easier to perform on shorter boards.

I start most new students over 130 pounds on a 9′ soft top surf board. If they can surf often they soon move to an 8′ soft top surf board. The 8′ surf board is almost as maneuverable as a hard board for intermediate surfers.

The Surfing Maneuvers for Advanced Surfers

Once a surfer on a soft top board has learned to catch real waves riding down the face, they are ready to practice advanced maneuvers. The three basic maneuvers are bottom turns, cut backs, and accelerating.

The bottom turn is executed coming down the face of a wave carving into the pocket. The surfer turns his eyes, head, and upper torso toward the turn while putting pressure on the toes or heels on the side of the carve. This carve gets the surfer into the pocket, over the lip to escape a falling wave, or up the face to perform a trick like ripping the lip.

The cut back is for reversing direction, stalling (waiting for a barrel or the power to catch up), or for style. The surfer turns his eyes, head, and upper torso in a reverse direction from where he is traveling with a little pressure on the heels or toes on the outside of the pocket.

Accelerating is important to gain speed in the pocket. Short boarders don’t drive the wave like long boarders. They speed up so they can perform an maneuver. Two or three pumps is usually enough. The surfer runs the nose of the board up the face of the wave with his front foot and then allows the nose to drop.

Most other maneuvers such as aerials, reverses, or plaining start with these three maneuvers. Once a surfer can perform them, they can start watching their peers, video, or reading about how to do more advanced tricks.

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