For beginners who want to start on shortboards…

[longannes]

Do you guys think a good swimmer can learn on a shortboard? My brother was a competitive swimmer and I'd like to take him surfing with me. I only have shortboards so I'm kind of hoping the fact that he's one of the best swimmers I know will help him paddle into waves and have some fun?

P.S. We are in our thirties but we're fit.

[oldmansurfer]

I think being a good swimmer helps but good board paddlers aren't necessarily good swimmers. What would also help is having an understanding of waves and riding waves as in being a good body surfer or boogie boarder and then maybe some other board riding skills as well like skim boarding skateboarding snowboarding etc.. The thing with starting on a shortboard is even with all those skills it's still a steep learning curve for a couple weeks or more. It is very unlikely that he will do much other than struggle for while so if he is only going to do it for a short while let him at least catch and ride some waves on a longboard rather than struggling and falling down for the whole time. He can try it but it won't likely lead to him enjoying it unless he is a masochist.

[dtc]

I would say being a good swimmer is like being a good runner and trying basketball or soccer for the first time. You are undoubtedly better off than someone unfit, but it isn’t actually the skill that you need to be a good basketball or soccer player. Being an ok to good paddler gets you in the game, it doesn’t help you play well.

But naturally give it a go if it’s not costing him anything (eg you are just lending him a board) and make sure he had the mindset that it might be a step too far, so he shouldn’t give up or get too frustrated if it doesn’t work out

[PunaTuna]

Just a couple questions here. I was gifted an old beater board because I kept talking at work about how I wanted to try surfing. So this guy I work with who’s from Molokai gives me this board that has more scars than I do and says he’ll meet me at the beach. This board is an old Oak Foils 7’2”x 21-1/2” x 2-9/16” and comes to a nice point at the nose. I’m 5”8, 145 lbs wet, with a slim build. Is this considered a short board or somewhere in between? Surf was kinda mellow compared to what it usually is so I said hey why not. I didn’t go for the white water, I just followed him. I spent a couple years on a SUP, and my job has me walking 3-4” beams 100 ft+ off the grounds for the last 20 years so I knew I had the balance part down standing up. Those waves don’t look very big from the beach but when your actually out in it for the first time I had to take pause and reassess what I was putting myself into here. I’ve heard everyone talk about green waves and these don’t look green to me lol, they’re blue. Back in Fl we would have to go out 30-40 miles to see blue water! Anyways back to this board. It just felt like a good fit for paddling. The first wave I paddled into was shoulder to head high and I actually caught it but was in more of a crouching tiger position trying to pop up. Next one I stood a little higher but still not all the way up in the upright position. I felt I had cheated somehow lol. I skipped the whitewater riding but and went straight for the clean waves first time out and was a real confidence builder. Thing is I couldn’t master something as simple as sitting upright on this board. Everytime I would try I looked like an idiot. So I spent almost the entire time just paddling around waiting on my set to come in in the lineup. Wasn’t bad exercise, in fact I kinda enjoyed it. But when I got home, I noticed the only part of my body that was sunburnt, and badly, was the back of my calves. And at my age, I had to explain to my boss the next day why I was having trouble getting around. I had forgotten that I was no longer a spring chicken, even tho in my mind I felt like a teenager again...

[dtc]

This board is an old Oak Foils 7’2”x 21-1/2” x 2-9/16” and comes to a nice point at the nose. I’m 5”8, 145 lbs wet, with a slim build. Is this considered a short board or somewhere in between? .... I skipped the whitewater riding but and went straight for the clean waves first time out and was a real confidence builder. Thing is I couldn’t master something as simple as sitting upright on this board. Everytime I would try I looked like an idiot. So I spent almost the entire time just paddling around waiting on my set to come in in the lineup. ..... And at my age, I had to explain to my boss the next day why I was having trouble getting around. I had forgotten that I was no longer a spring chicken, even tho in my mind I felt like a teenager again...

7'2 would generally be regarded as a 'mid length' board. Being surfers (humans? often male?) we like to categorise things even further, so you can have mid length hybrid boards (pointier nose), mid length fun boards (rounder nose), short longboards (even rounder noses). And then there are the specialist longer boards, such as guns or semi guns for much bigger waves.

I dont know the board you have, but it sounds like its a reasonable (even if not 'the best') option for a beginner at your height/weight. A foot or 18 inches longer would be better, but if its being given to you for free then that is something (still, if you wanted to pursue surfing seriously, you might want to look at a slightly longer board as your 'first board' eg 8ft or 8ft6 ish).

The rest of your experience is pretty common. Catching waves on your first time, even if you werent able to stand up, is better than many people. Not being able to sit comfortably is also a common problem, but its usually only a problem for a few sessions and then you figure out where to sit on the board, how tight to hold it between your knees, how to counterbalance with your upper body and that kind of stuff. And being exhausted and sore - totally expected. Surfing uses muscles and movements that just arent used or performed in 'the real world'. Realising that having skills such as excellent balance doesnt mean much, because standing on the board is the last 10% and first requires you to achieve 90% other stuff (sitting, paddling, positioning etc) - a very common 'hit' to the ego! (snowboarders get hit the worst with this)

In terms of learning on whitewater vs green waves - whatever works. Some places unbroken waves are fast and pitchy and hard to learn on, so learning on white water is preferable. Other places (well, Hawaii...) the waves can be mellow and rolling and its easier to learn on them than the white water.

Anyway, read up on surf etiquette and get back in the water (with some sunscreen!)

[oldmansurfer]

I think the idea of learning on shortboard is very attractive to lots of beginners for various different reasons.
such as
Kelly Slater uses a shortboard and I want to surf like him
it's cheaper to buy a shortboard than a longboard
I only need to buy one board the one I want to surf on so it cheaper because I only buy one board
Longer boards don't fit in my car
I am different because I am a skateboarder, skier, snowboarder, wake boarder so I already know how
Other reasons....

I learned on a shortboard with no leash but I didn't have any of those reasons. I didn't even pick out the board, my parents bought the board. However I was a bodysurfer, bodyboarder, kneeboarder for about 12 years before I learned to surf and I went out in bigger surf than most of the surfers I knew would go out in. Still I think picking the wrong board to start on helps to keep the number of new surfers down because it becomes an overwhelming task to learn for lots of people. It's not just board skills, you have to learn about the ocean, how to read the waves and currents and how to paddle and where to paddle and when to paddle and how to get out through the surf and back in and if you aren't going to be surfing several times a week learning on a shortboard will be even more challenging because if you stay out of the water too long you lose skills and paddling strength and endurance. The outcome from learning to surf on a shortboard might be it drastically cuts down the time and expense of learning to surf however it might also be that you learn a bunch of bad habits that will hinder you for the rest of your surfing career. Or you might just give up because it's too much to learn all at once. I know there is at least one or two other surfers who post here who learned on a shortboard but for most surfers it isn't going to happen. It could be you will succeed, we have no way of knowing and only know that for most it won't work

[Liam9653]

I'm still learning and I'm not quite able to get up to the wave. It makes me a little sad. I know this all requires many attempts and patience, I try)
By the way, thanks for the tips

[jaffa1949]

You'll get there Liam, where in Sydney are you surfing?

If you are a Blogger or Vlogger then sooner or later the Day will come between Surfing or shooting the surf
But in order to get your surfing act together get wet meaningfully as often as possible.
Cheers
Jaffa an Aussie in Austria now!

[steveylang]

I think the idea of learning on shortboard is very attractive to lots of beginners for various different reasons.
such as
Kelly Slater uses a shortboard and I want to surf like him

WARNING- Foul language, really funny!

[tomthetreeman]

“...polishing your gimp suit back in Nebraska...”

[steveylang]

I think the idea of learning on shortboard is very attractive to lots of beginners for various different reasons.
such as
Kelly Slater uses a shortboard and I want to surf like him

WARNING- Foul language, really funny!

I just want to add that there is a homophobic slur at the very end of the video that is not okay, I apologize for not mentioning it in my post. The rest of the video is really funny and oldman's Kelly Slater reference made me think of the video.

[Emilie Robbins]

How to start early, when everybody staying at home ... That virus crash all plans (

[oldmansurfer]

You have to learn to social distance in the lineup

[Ace864]

I used to surf on a long board all the time, but now I would like to switch to the short board. Any tips?

[jaffa1949]

A question that has been me bugging me for a while now, Ace, how well do you surf? and what is your current board?
To offer you suggestions of what sort of. short boards , age weight and height would help us suggest something!

[evahilton]

I did try for many seasons surfing in a Short...I use to toke my girlfriend but I couldn´t stand up. I don´t know the reason but after go to the beach (not surfing), I loose 3 girlfriend.
Now I only surf in a Longboard Pipeline, and keeping the same girlfriend ..eheheh....try :

I didn't think you could lose a girlfriend for surfing.

[cuica]

Start with a long board!! Will be much more fun...

I've been riding a 6'0" on and off the past year - alternating between that and my mid-length. Some sessions I get lots of waves on it and it all 'clicks', other times it's really frustrating.

When I go back to the mid-length it feels SOOO easy. There's progress, but it's slow.

Best to pick the conditions, at first only use the short board when the waves are nice and clean, and not too big, give yourself a chance!