There are a few simple skills that all beginners should master sooner rather than later – it will make you much safer in the water (for yourself… and others!!) and will allow you to make the most of your time in the water, and progress your surfing skills even quicker!!
The summer months in Morocco are great for learning to surf, and for fine-tuning those basic surf skills! Here are some of our top tips for mastering the basics!
Paddling
90% of surfing is all about the paddling skills (come out here and count just how many times our surf instructors shout “paddle” in a day!!). Yes it’s tough, yes it’s doubly tough as most of us don’t do that much sport with our upper body – fortunately there are a few tips you can use to improve your strokes:
– Keep it steady and smooth. A slow strong paddle is better than fast and frantic!
– Bend at the elbow as your hand enters the water – this especially seems to help girls when they’re learning on wide soft boards
– Feel yourself grounded to your surfboard – think of your hips and thighs being pinned to the board and this will improve your stability.
– Keep your shoulders lifted and light – if you rock your shoulders you rock your surfboard… and we can guess where that ends!!
– Close your legs and feet – it removes drag in the water and frankly just looks a bit more respectable!!
Eskimo Roll
Essential when paddling out to the lineup, a great form of protection against waves and surfboards flying in your direction and also a polite way to make sure you don’t smack someone else in the face with your board!
– Paddle strongly towards the waves to give you good momentum to get through the wave
– Roll early! This will make sure your board is fully turned before the wave hits you and will stop the wave dragging you along
– Firm grip on the rails with both hands
– Slightly relaxed arms and a gap between your body and the board – I find this helps the wave pass over me and I’m more likely to keep hold of my board
– Push your board up so it spears out the back of the wave!
Pivoting your board to catch the wave
There’s nothing worse than making it out to the line up, see the perfect wave coming towards you and then realise your board is facing out to sea and you don’t have time to turn your board! This is a great skill to practice on those flatter days and having learning to master this will really help you feel more confident with your board 🙂
– grab the rails firmly and scoot your bum down towards the tail of your board
– lean towards one side and kick your legs so you spin in a circle
– pull yourself back up and lie on your board, to get into the paddling position!
Catching your first green wave is an amazing feeling, and getting to grips with these skills will get you out to those green waves in no time!
Why not join us this summer for our summer surf special? Great for beginner surfers or anyone who loves clear, mellow waves and longboarding – and for putting those paddling skills into practice!
Our Summer Special Surf package includes:
-7 nights at the surf house with breakfasts,
-5 surf days with lunch, equipment and tuition,
-6 delicious dinners and
-FREE return Agadir airport transfers,
Price: JUST €425 per person per week
Just visit our booking page and quote ‘FBSUMMERSPECIAL’ in your message!
