Why Beginner Surfers Start with Soft Top Boards
Beginner surfers start with soft top boards so they can learn the fundamentals without the board being an issue. Hard boards and short boards create more security risks and difficulties.
The first priority for beginners is to learn the fundamentals so they can advance to real waves and bigger waves. Some will go to short boards and others will choose long boards. It will be dependent on a lot of factors.
The Soft Top Boards Performance
The reasons to start with a soft top board is they catch foam waves easily, are easy to paddle and are easy to ride. These three factors are in comparison to riding short boards. Surfing still is physically demanding and beginners tire usually in an hour or two depending on their conditioning.
I begin most teens and adults on a 9′ soft top board. After they improve on the fundamentals, I move them to an 8′ soft top. The 8′ soft top is an excellent board and surfers ride 7′ tall waves with them as well as execute a lot of advanced techniques.
The First Techniques to Learn
Learning to balance on the board and paddle straight with a wave pushing the board is a challenge for many beginners. They have to learn to paddle hard enough and long enough to catch a wave, paddle with short strokes, and paddle evenly with both arms. Any deviations turns the board and it flips.
The pop up on a soft top is easier than on a short board because the surfer is riding a foam wave and the soft top surf board is more stable. The surfer learns to pop up into a stable position and ride straight to the beach.
The posture is having feet shoulder width apart with the front foot at a 45 degree angle forward. The most important part for beginners is to have the hips and shoulders square to the beach and not have a shoulder back like riding a snowboard or skate board.
Advancing to Real Waves
A foam wave occurs after a real wave breaks and there is a lot of time to position for a foam wave. A real wave only offers a few seconds as it arcs and breaks. The timing of getting into the right spot requires judgement and practice.
The surfer lets the real wave come under the board and as it arcs, paddles hard to go down the face. At this point the beginner surfer must have mastered the pop up so that it is smooth and he lands in the right posture.
In a real wave, the surfer does not ride straight to the beach but rides in the pocket. He bottom turns while going down the face to get into the pocket. He can also point the nose of the surf board towards the pocket after he has caught the wave but before he pops up.
The soft top surf boards perform well in these instances and the surfer can learn to perform maneuvers in the pocket. The surfer learns the bottom turn, the cut back, and how to accelerate the board for speed.
If surfers don’t surf frequently, the soft top surf boards can become their boards for life.
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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