Surfing: More Than a Sport, a Hobby

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Surfing is a unique experience that ends up marking you for life. Surfing is more than a sport; it is a way of life. It is feeling the foam on the face and the excitement of the speed with which we slide through the waves.

 

That's why today we bring you a guide on how to learn to surf, how to get started in this world that is not as close as some may seem.

 

As always, we recommend you to start learning to surf in a surf school like ours since contact with professional instructors and veteran surfers is fundamental when it comes to getting off to surfing.

Many people surf as a hobby and lifestyle. This hobby is very fun, but to start requires an exclusive time of learning and dedication.

 

What is Surfing?

Surfing consists of staying balanced, sliding on a board, dragged by a wave, as long as possible and without falling into the water directing it through one or several keels located at the back of the board. In addition to good reflexes and balance, it demands a mastery of swimming and a great knowledge of the sea; so surfers can choose the best waves.

Surfing Steps

You have to practice many times out of the water (in the sand, on a carpet in your house, on the floor, etc. The more you do it, the better you will be on the board later. You will say 'regular' if it is the left one and 'goofy' if it is the right one, the way to know it is to see how you are going on the skate, doing snow, how you place your feet when you are going to take a race, anyway ... Well, once you know this, you're going to be able to stand up.

The Stand-Up

To start, lie face down, arms to your chest, you raise your head a little, you arch your back as if your body was going to make a 'U', you put the back foot where the knee of the other leg is, and then the front foot you put between your arms; when you have done it, you release the arms of the board and you stop.

 

Put your feet always parallel to each other. On the table, you have to be in the center, never on the edges, because you go sideways. Your body should stay perpendicular to the board, making a T with your feet and your board. When standing up, look closely at your position.

 

Your legs flexed the back knee you should put it in a bit, the back always straight, the shoulders in the direction of the board, your arms forward.

Importance of Stroke

Having a good paddle is very important so you can catch many waves. To practice it is better than you are on the shore, catching the foams (waves that break), if you stand on them, it will be easier to catch the whole wave.

 

To achieve this, you must be very attentive and when you see the foam you want to catch, you turn around, you lie on the board, you paddle and when you notice that the wave takes you without the need to row, you stand up.

Rest and How to Get Out Of the Wave

When you want to rest, sit on the widest part of the board, the balance point. Very attentive you must be to get out of the wave, it can be more complicated than it seems, and there are many waves that tend to carry you to the shore or carry to the bottom.

 

It's getting more interesting, right? Everyday styles are improved, techniques are invented, new designs and maneuvers that make it very fun.

 

Techniques

Each wave is different. A surfer must know how the waves behave and then ride on them and impress the judges.

Take-off or take-off: It is the first maneuver made by surfers. The surfer supports the belly on the board and is incorporated with the help of the arms. Maintains balance by flexing the knees and separating the arms from the body.

 

The surfer rides the wall of the wave (the front side), above the lip, which is where it breaks. Then, ride the ridge (navigate on the form of a breaker), go back down to the wall or cut and turn suffer rides the wall of the wave.

 

Shifts the weight to the heels and rotates the table 180 degrees, towards the lip of the wave, where it breaks. The surfer will slide inside the tube that creates the wave when breaking. It is the perfect wave and dreamed by every surfer in any maneuver that involves a takeoff of water.

 

Maneuvers to Surf 

These are some of the basic movements that are used. You may think that the language is very technical, but let's not panic, you at your own pace ... you have to go slowly but surely.

Take Off: It is the first maneuver you will do, it is the moment when you stop rowing lying on the board and you stand up, ready to slide on the wave. It's down the wall of the wave.

Bottom Turn: This is a turn that is made after the take-off. When you have the momentum in the descent of the wave you must turn to escape the part of the wave that is breaking. In the lower part of the wave, it does not push you and you have to turn to go back up and not go straight to the shore, in other words, so you can go over the wall of the wave.

Cut Back: It is almost the opposite of the Bottom turn, once you have slid down the wall of the wave; you make a turn of almost 180º to come back to it.

Reentry: You climb to the crest of the wave and make a sharp turn of 180 degrees to lower it. Also known as Carving.

Floater: Consists of you navigating on the foam of a wave that breaks or "breaks".

Tube: You slide inside the tube that creates the wave when breaking. This wave is the queen of surf due to its difficulty and spectacularity. It is the perfect wave and dreamed of by every surfer.

Aerial: Fly over the wave, entering it again. In these movements, you will be able to distinguish the "grabs" (ways of holding the board with your hands in the air - in front, behind, with both hands at the same time, etc.). One of the most spectacular maneuvers is the "Air-360" in which you take a full turn in the air.

360 degrees: You make a complete turn on the axis of the board, skidding the tail or through the air.

Snap: You brake in dry and fast the table, skidding its tail. A kind of sharper Cut-back with a smaller turn.

Roller: You take the board over the wave leaving the tail resting.
 

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Surfing is an excellent hobby for people who like life at sea and in the open air. It's a really great sport and full of adrenaline. Without a doubt, it is one of the most fun and entertaining hobbies. 



 

Related hobbies: Swimming , Skimboarding, Sailing

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