crisis

[surfmom68]

need your help and advice.. have been surfing 4 years now and am suffering a real lack of mojo. Dont get me wrong we all have moments of taking 4 steps forward and then 2 steps back and mercifully these are usually brief moments of crisis. But its been much more than this recently......
In this last year it feels like progress has been soooo slow. Im finding it increasingly frustrating.I can catch green waves, have a decent bottom turn but feel uncomfortable in waves over 4ft.. maybe I'm just not sure what I should be working on next?? My local break is fickle at the best of times. I'm 5' 5 and 9.5st riding a Mctavish Egg 6' 10. Can I blame my board? Can I blame my break? Have I lost my mojo?

[surf doc]

Sorry to hear about your frustrations. It sounds like your skills are actually pretty good, a lot of people would be stoked to be able to successfully catch waves and bottom turn. How often are you able to get out?

[tony g]

Sometimes people hit plateaus with their surfing and it can take a while to move up to the next level. Try to find out what you are having the most trouble with and work on that. Sometimes people spend a lot of time practicing doing things the wrong way and therefore do not improve. Try to get one of your surfing bros to video tape you and compare yourself to an experienced surfer to see what you need to work on. We can learn a lot about ourselves by seeing ourselves on video.

[jaffa1949]

Sometimes we lose sight of what a great thing surfing is because we are just trying too hard to do a little bit better. Forget the surfing goals for just a little while.
You have children by your Avatar and the whole world can seem a little mojoless when we have so much to do and surfing seems to have a to do list as well.
If you can arrange it, ease the household stuff and have the children settled and head to the beach either by yourself or with a surfing buddy. Just take the time to sit brerath and take it all in and then go out to surf with only one thing in mind FUN. Nogoals of what to do comfortable size waves and while you are surfing just breath and appreciate that you have the time and space to do what you just did.

Alternately visit your non surfing friends, see how their dry land mojo is going, might be some insight.
A day of ordinary surfing is a lot better than a lot of ordinary days.

Even go out on a body board and just have FUN

[drowningbitbybit]

Swap spots.
My mojo suffers if I continually surf the same spot, and have the same frustrations with no new scenery. Try somewhere new, and not only will it be interesting again but will also be a new wave that you might do better on.

[surfmom68]

Everyone of you has made at least one pertinent point. Thank you! I need to take the time and enjoy once again.Such wise words Uncle Jaffa...Surf has become the next thing on my To Do List especially at this time of year when its impossible to surf as the days get shorter and my local break has such a short working window in the tide.... spent last night sorting children and work/house stuff to head out Saturday whatever the conditions.... need to recount my lucky stars..

[themathteacher]

Actually, here is a different spin: what you need is a surf bud(s)

Can't tell you how many fun sessions I have had in small surf where if it wasn't that I was there with a bud I would not have even gotten wet. I usually surf anything knee high or better, but sometimes I'll pass when it's small, but not if I have a bud with me.

So, a suggestion off left field: make friend that surf, join a local forum of people that surf, start doing sessions with buds or, if needed, online buds.

[surfmom68]

Got in again with a much more positive attitude this weekend. The mathteacher is right, a lot of it is about surrounding yourself with great surf buds. Had a blast in windy old wind chop nonsense with a couple of good surf friends . Hot chocolate and a piece of cherry and almond pie finished the whole session off perfectly!

[esonscar]

. . . . . am suffering a real lack of mojo. feels like progress has been soooo slow. Im finding it increasingly frustrating.I can catch green waves, have a decent bottom turn but feel uncomfortable in waves over 4ft.. maybe I'm just not sure what I should be working on next?? My local break is fickle at the best of times. I'm 5' 5 and 9.5st riding a Mctavish Egg 6' 10. Can I blame my board? Can I blame my break? Have I lost my mojo? . . . .

Angle take off's now please. Only angled take off's - aim to steam along the wave face, no more droping in and turning as the turn saps all your speed.
Challenge: Get good at angled take off's and then go for a lurvelly floater or a gentle reo. Only then go back and do some more drop and tuns but mostly go stick to angled take offs (dont worry about the size of the wave, if you like a three to four foot face that is plenty to enjoy yourself on - size isn't everything).

Oh yeah, go get a custom thruster too, a real one about 5' 8" along the stringer, thinner than your egg and 19 and a bit inches wide with well defined bottom rails; not a floaty pleb one with rounded edges. You'll always have the egg as a backup now too.

Let us know how you go.

[my $.02]

[jaffa1949]

I know Surfmom68 that you like the Wombats, here is a real wombat being a Mom carrying a Joey ( that's what they're called) on her back through the snow near where I live. Very rare this carrying.
Their closest relative in Australia is the Koala who also carry their young on their back but since Koalas live in trees it's necessary.

I also included a Mojo bear at a local surf spot

[surfmom68]

L ving the Wombat! AND found that lost Mojo...

[jaffa1949]

L ving the Wombat! AND found that lost Mojo...

Glad to help