Surfing is technical but Beginner Surfers Learn Secrets to Success. In the dry land lesson beginner surfers learn the technique for popping up on the surfboard. In the water they learn the timing for catching waves.
The main obstacle most beginner surfers face is their mind’s tendency to race and their instincts to stand up too fast. The anxiety about starting something new and the objective of standing up plays out too fast and beginners rush the process.
The Beginner Learns to Slow Down
The secret they learn is to slow down and do each step in the sequence. They find when they slow down the process, success arrives. My main effort as an instructor is to get the students to focus on the process and let their instincts go.
The timing for catching waves and popping up is a sequence. The surfer spots the right wave. Beginners stand in waist deep water waiting for foam waves. They then roll over and paddle a few times to get momentum. Then when the wave arrives they paddle hard to get in front of the wave.
Learning to Glide Before Popping Up
Once in front of the wave, the secret I have learned to make students slow down is they put their hands on the board in a man’s push up position and glide for five seconds. This is longer than necessary but gets past their instinct of paddling and then throwing their hands in front of their shoulders into an already pushed up position. This is the number one move to failure.
Once the student glides, he is gathering his poise and is rid of the notion to pop up as soon as the wave hits the board. Once the student is gliding, he puts his rear foot on the board and stands while lifting his hands. Now he has the room to place his other foot near the nose of the board. This slower motion also helps him get into the right stance.
Getting the Right Stance
The right stance is like pushing a tall box. I give students this image and say they must arrive upright and pushing the box. This keeps them from the second biggest problem for beginners and that is riding the surfboard like a skateboard. That stance is one hand trailing behind the body. The problem with the incorrect stance is it puts the butt over one rail and the weight on the heels so the surfer falls off the butt side.
Every student has said once they learned to slow down, it was easy. This is also the problem surfers who try it on their own face. They have no idea of the sequence or the timing. I often see them standing on the board before the wave arrives. They jump up fast and fall off faster.
Surfing is timing and rhythm and when the surfer experiences it he knows that is the truth.
Read Other Posts:
Beginner Surfers Learn on Soft Tops
5 Steps to Improve Surfing Performance
3 Ways to Catch Real Surfing Waves
Training to Ride the Surfing Short Board
Short Board Surfing Techniques
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