Why can't we all get along?...
Another day of learning something new in surfing. I went to Sunset this morning and it was really fun. All slow, crumbly waves...
I got to Sunset at 6:20am today. The waves looked really good - probably since it was low tide at 5:30am. I saw the sets come in, all lined up (nice...!), and only about 8 guys out by the point - only one in front of the tower where I was going to be(woohoo!). I got dressed with excitement for a great session. But boy o boy, it was so hard to catch the waves. No matter how hard I paddled, I seemed to miss the wave. Maybe it was my paddling? my positioning on the board? where I was sitting out? After about an hour, I started talking to Marvin - the one guy that had been sitting on the inside in front of the tower. It turns out that he has been surfing for only 10 months. He surfs either at Sunset or Bay Street by tower 22. I'll be surfing there from now on. It's finally nice to surf with another semi-beginner... He gave me some pointers on catching the wave and some of the things that he had gone through in the last 6 months:
1) Takeoffs should be straight, perpendicular to the wave. Then when you catch the wave and stand up, that's when you turn. Actually, your body was just naturally makes the turn without you knowing. I'm not sure if that's completely true, because some people have told me to take off at an angle. I guess I'll have to wait to experience it first. He says that by next month, I should be getting the real feel for it. I can't wait!
2) Wave selection is very important. Be choosy and don't try to go for every wave. But once you choose the wave, commit 100% and paddle like mad to catch the wave. Don't half-ass it or you'll end up missing the wave. (I'll have to try this next time)
3) Be at the right spot when you take off. Before you enter the water, look for the place in the water where the wave gets that sudden punch to start peeling. You should be positioned about 12 feet behind that point. This way, you won't have to paddle so far in order to catch the wave.
Even though I didn't catch a single wave today, I'm satisfied with today's session since I learned something. I just wish I had caught at least one wave... O well, maybe tomorrow, I'll get lucky. Low tide tomorrow is at 8:10am, so Sunset should be good at dawn. :-)
Oh, and btw, it became pretty crowded when I left the water around 7:30am though. And I guess a lot of people were frustrated at the beginners and wave hoggers who surfed at the point. Since I'm a beginner and I know that the experienced surfers hate beginners, I try to stay out of their way. I can understand their frustration since it's how I feel about beginner snowboarders when I'm boarding up in the mountains. So, I just stay away from the crowds who were huddled between the Dos Banos and the point today. I pretty much stayed in front of the tower, which was fine for me since there were only other beginners who were sitting there waiting for a wave. Just something to keep in mind for the future. Try to stay away from those surfers that can "rip". They won't like us beginners...
I got to Sunset at 6:20am today. The waves looked really good - probably since it was low tide at 5:30am. I saw the sets come in, all lined up (nice...!), and only about 8 guys out by the point - only one in front of the tower where I was going to be(woohoo!). I got dressed with excitement for a great session. But boy o boy, it was so hard to catch the waves. No matter how hard I paddled, I seemed to miss the wave. Maybe it was my paddling? my positioning on the board? where I was sitting out? After about an hour, I started talking to Marvin - the one guy that had been sitting on the inside in front of the tower. It turns out that he has been surfing for only 10 months. He surfs either at Sunset or Bay Street by tower 22. I'll be surfing there from now on. It's finally nice to surf with another semi-beginner... He gave me some pointers on catching the wave and some of the things that he had gone through in the last 6 months:
1) Takeoffs should be straight, perpendicular to the wave. Then when you catch the wave and stand up, that's when you turn. Actually, your body was just naturally makes the turn without you knowing. I'm not sure if that's completely true, because some people have told me to take off at an angle. I guess I'll have to wait to experience it first. He says that by next month, I should be getting the real feel for it. I can't wait!
2) Wave selection is very important. Be choosy and don't try to go for every wave. But once you choose the wave, commit 100% and paddle like mad to catch the wave. Don't half-ass it or you'll end up missing the wave. (I'll have to try this next time)
3) Be at the right spot when you take off. Before you enter the water, look for the place in the water where the wave gets that sudden punch to start peeling. You should be positioned about 12 feet behind that point. This way, you won't have to paddle so far in order to catch the wave.
Even though I didn't catch a single wave today, I'm satisfied with today's session since I learned something. I just wish I had caught at least one wave... O well, maybe tomorrow, I'll get lucky. Low tide tomorrow is at 8:10am, so Sunset should be good at dawn. :-)
Oh, and btw, it became pretty crowded when I left the water around 7:30am though. And I guess a lot of people were frustrated at the beginners and wave hoggers who surfed at the point. Since I'm a beginner and I know that the experienced surfers hate beginners, I try to stay out of their way. I can understand their frustration since it's how I feel about beginner snowboarders when I'm boarding up in the mountains. So, I just stay away from the crowds who were huddled between the Dos Banos and the point today. I pretty much stayed in front of the tower, which was fine for me since there were only other beginners who were sitting there waiting for a wave. Just something to keep in mind for the future. Try to stay away from those surfers that can "rip". They won't like us beginners...
posted by OutdoorChick @ 7:30 PM
2 Comments:
At 8:53 PM,
Surfsister said…
Don't worry too much about Sunset. It's a zoo. As you become a better surfer, you'll complain about it too. One of the problems with Sunset is that there's really very little room to surf. At a beach break, people can spread out and move away from one another. That's hard to do at a place like Sunset. As a result, people end up getting in each other's way. My only gripe is that the beginners don't look to see if anyone else is going for the wave. They end up cutting people off or getting in the way. But, to be truthful, that's surfing. I never get mad about it; It simply makes me nervous.
Sunset is a deceptive wave. When you go to a beach break, you'll have to be much faster than you are at Sunset. The waves at beach breaks, especially in Santa Monica, break hard and fast. So I've become accustomed to being quick. When I'm at Sunset, I have to slow it way down. The waves simply roll through and you really have to paddle hard to get them. About a year ago, I was still having trouble catching waves at my break. One of the locals looked at me and said, "You gotta paddle like you want that shit." That stuck with me. So now I'm passing it on to you. Remember those words when you're paddling and you'll be alright.
At 11:10 PM,
OutdoorChick said…
Thanks for the advice, Surfsister. I'll surely remember that...
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