Confused on standing up

[greypump]

So far I've seen a few variations of the pop up from using one knee first then quickly bringing the other leg round into place to the usual springing up into place to bringing one leg up to the side and then pushing off that trailing foot and bringing the other one up.

Is there a right or wrong way or is what works best for you?

[garbarrage]

forget going to the knee first if you can... get straight to your feet. whatever works for ya. i find it easier to bring one leg up(back leg) then the other on a shortboard, sorta levels the board as it drops. and pop straight to my feet on a longboard as there's something to kick off of.

either way... the quicker the better so there's not really much between the two.

[surferdude_scarborough]

DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.

right now thats out of the way, a couple of different techniques and i guess each works for different people. one is to push up then slide your feet into position. not sure how to describe this one as its not what i do.

what i do is to push up then swing my feet through into position si i plant both feet at the same time. its not like a two step thing like ive described though. it should be one fluid motion. thats very important. you need to get settled which technique is best for you and then practice so that you dont think about it when you pop up on a wave.

oh and another important thing is: pop up with your hands flat on the deck not holding the rails. this means tou wont be tempted to hang on to the rails too long as you stand up.

[RJD]

DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.

Its called a 'pop up' - badly IMO.

What I do, and what it looks like everyone else is doing..

Is you have your hands flat on the board the moment you catch the wave.

The board starts to drop down the face of the wave. As it does so extend your armsso they straighten up - this puts distanec between the board and your body. Your not actualy poping up, the boards realy droping away, though you may be pushing a bit.

Then rotate your lower body to under your chest, whislt your dong this bend your knees so that if you drag anything its your toes.

Leave one foot behind you (depends on stance) and bring the other flat under you, then stand up.

Do it all smothe though, usualy jerky rush job will unbalance everything.

DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.

[parrysurf]

DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.
DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.
DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.
making sure you got the others point.


RJD makes a good point, I find it much easier to get up as I am dropping down the face. If you wait/hesitate and lose the drop portion of the wave, you have to fight more gravity.

practice mucho

...oh yeah...make sure once you are up you bend you knees, and you arn't doing the stink bug(butt out)...just a tip

.....also DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.
DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.
DO NOT GO KNEE FIRST.

[RJD]

You wont have the board under controll unless your on your feet, wont make the bottom turn unless you have the board under control.

IMO your better offgetting you your feet too early than late/not at all, at first a lot of waves will prolly pass you by as your poping, dont worry, you'll get tuned in.

[the.ronin]

Wow ... I don’t know how you guys are able to describe it so well!

When I first read the question, I gave it some thought before reading on and I kept coming up blank. I really have no idea what I’m doing when I pop up. I just do it.

[greypump]

Hmmm......by the sounds of it when you have more experience and you are dropping into a wave the actual positioning of the board dropping actually helps standing up in a more fluid motion? Suppose since I'm on the flat and learning in white water everything is level and a bit scrappy through lack of experience. Sounds like practice, practice and more practice and it will come together. Never liked the one knee style but that's what the instructor suggested if I was struggling with a pop up.

And of course, if it was easy then where would the challenge be???!!!!

[RJD]

Honestly, get out of the whitewater asap.

Even if it means a bunch of sesions with no waves, learn to get out back (on small days!) and at least get in position to catch clean waves.

[Rodrigo]

man, i have been stuck on the one knee thing for ages, i try to get to both feet but no matter what my brain tells my feet to do, i keep landing on the one knee

lately i have been landing on one knee, then somehow correcting to get to both feet, but this usually means the wave passes under me by the time i manage to do it and my ride fizzles out

should i try to turn the back foot out, so that the inside ankle is resting against the board before i pop ? would that help at all do u think ? maybe i will try it this weekend

so bummed out, depressed

[LeeM]

One thing that has helped me is getting my hands under my chest, just below my pecs. I was doing a push up at shoulder height, and could not get my front foot in place without dragging my back knee/foot. That caused some serios foot pain after a session. This lower position seems to help with the hip rotation and smooth it all out. You might try "reversing" or "rewinding" your pop up on solid ground, to find out where the kinks are, kind of at a yoga speed. I've heard (from sports trainers) that you need to do it 50 times to reprogram the muscles once it's working for you.

[garbarrage]

Honestly, get out of the whitewater asap.

Even if it means a bunch of sesions with no waves, learn to get out back (on small days!) and at least get in position to catch clean waves.

disagree here a bit... if you can't get too your feet on whitewater doubt you'll be able to do it on a green wave...
takes practice but shouldn't take more than a couple of 2 hour sessions.

in the whitewater... take all the time you need. catch the wave prone get settled... then when you are good and ready get straight to your feet. concentrate on fluidity rather than speed. speed will come quickly on its own. once you are doing this consistently then head out back.

you'll catch way more whitewater waves. more waves = more practice. more practice = smoother popup.

find if i've been out of the water for more than a couple of weeks i start a session with one or two quick whitewater waves too get my bearings.

[Sar]

think the clip in this thread demonstrates a pop up very well:
http://www.surfing-waves.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7465

I agree with RJD, although Im not best placed to give pop up advice the few times I have done it I have been more successful on green waves. The gravity helps bring your front foot forward and the absence on the bumpy white water helps make it all smoother. Its much more enjoyable and will help you with wave selection. That said if its too big or messy to go out back may as well much about in the whitewater - it all helps

[pkbum]

if you use a longboard then the white water maybe the only place for the starters to stand up. Because its almost that they are going to make mistake with wave selection and have wrong position which will lead you to the whitewater.

However, if you use a shortboard, you need the clean green wave to practice your pop up, before you can do that. You need experience, timing and position to be able to paddle for the green wave.

Good luck, best advice for surfing is just surf. Its like every other sport, practice, and surfing is no difference.

[LOLRuss]

In defense of the one-knee... its the only way us fat fleshin' can stand. Working on the 'pop' but at least I can get rides in from one knee in the meantime.

[LOLRuss]

oh and another important thing is: pop up with your hands flat on the deck not holding the rails. this means tou wont be tempted to hang on to the rails too long as you stand up.

I've been trying to remember this for 2 days, and haven't held it in my head through paddling once yet. I think its whats messing up my pop-up.

[Beachbum]

I learned on a green wave since white water seems so bumpy and wants to throw you off your board lol. Ya idk why but just practice on land when no one is watching and have a great experience surfing.

[garbarrage]

oh and another important thing is: pop up with your hands flat on the deck not holding the rails. this means tou wont be tempted to hang on to the rails too long as you stand up.

this actually gives you an extra inch or two of space between your body and the board to drag your legs up through...
also its a lot less likely that your hands are going to slip leaving you with a face full of board

[parrysurf]

In defense of the one-knee... its the only way us fat fleshin' can stand. Working on the 'pop' but at least I can get rides in from one knee in the meantime.

LOL...didn't you just start a thread about how rashed your knees are....is this what you are defending?????

[surfmom68]

This has been such a useful thread! I am exactly at the point of getting out back and catching green waves and because i dont "pop up" like you have described, I am finding it quite tricky to come down the face of the wave... Think it might be case of practising popups on a board with loads of sofa cushions underneath in the safety of my own home!