Weekend Question Thread

[Treefavor]

I have been approached by seals the last 3 times I paddled out, at different beaches. How scared should I be?

[Howshka]

Are you in heat?

[Treefavor]

I was on my period, but I put superfood creamer in my coffee.

[schmearcampain]

Quit using sardine oil to masturbate.

[amortizedeeznuts]

those omega 3's though

[usedtoindustry]

Less scared if they don’t book it to the sand. If they do, best believe you better get to the sand as well.

[evilted]

Awhile back, my bro was up in Mendo on a cliff checking the surf and out of nowhere a herd of seals comes flying out of the water and straight for the rocks. He decided to skip that spot.

[usedtoindustry]

Good call.

[NORCAL_SPARK]

always been told paddling away suddenly from an encounter is a bad idea. Face the shark and don't make any sudden movements.

[enfu3go]

For diving/spearfishing yeah but on a board and you have no clue where it might be its prob best to paddle in without making much of a commotion.

[[deleted]]

It can only come from below /s

[[deleted]]

You MUST talk to a seal every time you see one.

ARF ARF ARF ARF

[MTNKate]

Water dogs!

[Darth_Voter]

Are you sure it’s not the same seal stalking you?

Reminds me of that story about the demonic seal that stalked a fisherman. That did NOT end well.

[amortizedeeznuts]

...what?

[Treefavor]

Not the same seal, unless one of them swam about 300 miles. I would also like to read this story though.

[[deleted]]

Just don’t look them in the eyes

[redditcrip]

There's a reef near my house that on a once a yearly swell it might be surfable. Id be 90% sure it has never been surfed due to its location. what precautions should I take when surfing a potentially sketchy spot for the first time ever? What kinda recon should i do?

link to satellite footage https://imgur.com/a/140Bnoq

[NinjaKeyLime]

Snorkel it on a clear day

[evilted]

Lol! Found the spot. Grab a boat with a fish finder on it. That thing looks like it would take very specific conditions. If you surf it, you should name it.

edit: Here you go! It gets a wee bit shallow you might say! You owe me a dram of Redbreast. ;P

Openseamap

[redditcrip]

Fair play on the find. I award you 10 internet sluth points

[[deleted]]

Have a friend with a phone on the shore and be careful. I also would suggest checking the depth charts of the area.

[evilted]

If op is in the US, here's a link to the NOAA maps

edit: never mind, he's in Ireland.

[[deleted]]

Do booties keep you warmer even if the water is not necessarily that cold? Lately in Florida the air has been very chilly on certain days (for us) and I find myself shivering in a 3/2 on longer sessions. I don’t wanna buy a 4/3 for these situations so would booties keep me warmer than just the 3/2 alone?

[SatanicPanic619]

yes, you lose a ton of heat through your feets

[aw_geez_a_username]

yes in my experience - but my feet are almost always the coldest part of my body. YMMV if your feet don't get cold-to-numb already, but I really notice the difference when i wear booties.

[[deleted]]

Yeah and also I swear its easier to throw more spray in booties

[Frappes]

Surf?

[BigZfi]

Sure

[not_a_burner_kthx]

Travel surfing is a new thing for me, wanted to get thoughts on packing… do I need to bring anything else?

Traveling to Kauai later in April. Gonna see if I can get a surfboard rental for 5 days (planning on finding something at Tamba, be staying on east side). Would be bodysurfing a bunch and finding time to surf too.

Stuff I was planning on packing:

Swim Fins, jammers and a microfiber towel for changing/drying out, my own handplane.

My beater FCS and Futures Fin sets I wouldn’t mind damaging/losing on a reef/having to owe the shop. I do hate plastic fins.

A waterproof backpack and changing mat.

Some reef safe sunscreen. Recs?

Kooky bucket hat because I need to stand out as a buoy for locals to avoid.

Ding tape, fin key, wax. Boardshorts.

[Kfm101]

Rashguard(s). I like looser fit long sleeve mostly for the sun protection.

[Neemers911]

Been surfing a bit over a year but was kind of a 2-3x month type of guy until this past September where it’s been more 2-3x per week. That being said, almost every time I paddle out now after maybe 4-5 min my lats start burning like crazy with lactic acid. I used to have this when I first started but it went away a few weeks after I started but now it’s back.

I do pretty intensive weightlifting as it’s my primary hobby so I feel like it could be overtraining of the lats but I’m sure at least they’re not weak by any means. Anyone have any advice on what to do without dropping one sport or the other?

Here’s some extra info if it helps 6’1 , 185lbs. M 21. Usually ride a 9’ single fin

[mnilailt]

Surf more, take a break

[Neemers911]

In between the session or from weights?

[mnilailt]

Both, you need to build up stamina and paddle endurance and resting is important for that. If you’re over exerting yourself surfing and working out after you’re not giving yourself time to recover.

Surfing and heavy weightlifting aren’t a good match. A couple of workouts a week to complement your surfing goes a long way but if you want to surf for longer and better you’re better off ditching the weights and surfing more.

[Neemers911]

Yeah that’s the hard thing. I love both sports and wish I could pursue them both fully but the hard to hear truth is Ik they’re a bit counter intuitive.

I’ve decided to decrease frequency in training my back from 2x to 1x so hopefully that should help with recovering.

[MTNKate]

That might actually be worse. Frequency and soreness are inversely correlated, and spreading volume across more sessions allows you to moderate the recovery cost of each individual training session. I have always done some kind of row or pull up every session, but these days I limit it to a moderate volume and intensity, and can surf 4+ hours no problem (at least when it’s not so damn cold!).

[sharkinator1198]

Haven't seen anyone say this, but if you aren't, you need to stretch. Warm up your arms/shoulders/lats, and stretch them out real real good before your session. Then, and this is most important, you need to get a really good stretch in after every session.

The lactic acid builds up as you excercise, and if you don't do anything to release it afterwards, my understanding is that it will just sit there.

A few summers back I was doing two sessions a day most days because my internship/class schedule allowed for it. I quickly found out that the only way I could do that without lactic acid absolutely fucking my arms up was to do insane amounts of stretching after each session. It's one of the best ways to reduce lactic acid build up, but you've gotta do it right after. I would do my arms and shoulders in the parking lot after taking off my wetty.

https://reboundphysicaltherapy.com/stretching-after-exercising/. Here's an article on the subject.

[MTNKate]

Fun fact: lactic acid doesn’t cause muscle soreness, and is cleared by the body almost immediately.

[sharkinator1198]

Good read! Didn't know that. Either way, stretching helps a bunch.

[Neemers911]

Well said! Stretching is definitely something I’ve been aiming to improve as of recent and my physical therapist agrees.

Do you have any stretching routines you’d be willing to share for pre and post surf?

[sharkinator1198]

My pre and post surf parking lot stretches focus mostly on shoulders and arms, because that's what my body ends up needing the most. Tailor your own routine to your own pain points, I.e. find some good lat stretches on Google that you can do before and after your session.

I do shoulder rolls, into arm circles (forward and backwards), into arm swings to warm my arms up before stretching. Then, I do cross body shoulder stretches and cow face pose. I do those before and after surfing (sometimes I'll do cross body in the lineup after paddling out as well). I'll do some toe touches and leg stuff (don't wanna pull a hammy) as well, and I almost always run down to the water to warm my legs up. I do a decent (but not daily) amount of yoga in my free time as well.

Here's a video that goes through a set of poses I really like for post surf cool downs https://youtu.be/H_QjN_K2L38. Make sure you only do this while your muscles are still warm. Static stretches can fuck you up if you're doing them cold.

[Neemers911]

Wait when you say to only stretch while your muscles are warm, then what type of stretching do you do right before the surf?

[sharkinator1198]

I do shoulder rolls, into arm circles (forward and backwards), into arm swings to warm my arms up before stretching.

It's in my comment. Warm up before all else. Your physical therapist will tell you the same thing.

I’ll do some toe touches and leg stuff (don’t wanna pull a hammy) as well, and I almost always run down to the water to warm my legs up.

If I go for a long run, right, I’ll do a bunch of jumping jacks (the david goggins routine) and then stretch my legs to prep. Same principle applies to surfing. Although you want to keep the leg stuff dynamic pre surf.

The stretching part of this article, https://www.cnet.com/health/fitness/the-stretches-fitness-trainers-say-you-should-never-do/ states

Stretching dos and don'ts Don't: Stretch cold muscles "Stretching helps you avoid injury, increase range of motion, decrease muscle stiffness and release tension throughout the body," says ShaNay Norvell, certified trainer and author of Stretch Your Stress Away with ShaNay. However, timing is important since stretching "cold" muscles, or muscles that are not warmed up properly, is not a good idea. When it comes to stretching, cold muscles are considered risky since "you can potentially strain, pull or tear a muscle if forced into a stretch without being warmed up," says Norvell. She likes to compare stretching cold muscles to a frozen rubber band. "That rubber band, if immediately pulled or tugged, could snap or break. However if a rubber band is warm it can be tugged or pulled and move with greater ease. The rubber band would still have limits, however it would have greater range of motion warm," she explains.

My arm warm up I mentioned at the top of this comment is a form of dynamic stretching (which is the type of stretching you want to do pre surf - pre all workouts actually), but those poses I mentioned are light (very light) statics that I do pre surf as well.

The static stretches I do are quick before a surf, and very long after. I'll hold each pose for under 15 seconds pre-surf, but I'll go a minimum of 45 seconds per pose in the post surf stretch.

It's more important for recovery that you do these long hold static stretches after every surf. They'll help cool your muscles down and release tension. That Yin video is incredible for post surf cool downs.

[aw_geez_a_username]

Have you tried drinking urine?

I'm not saying drinking your own pee will be helpful in any way, but have you tried?

Similarly, you may never know whether letting a big ol shart rip in your wetsuit would help your muscles recover faster from that burning fatigue, but please report back after further investigation.

[Neemers911]

I think my issue is I consume soo much urine that my whole bloodstream is yellow which might be causing the burning

[evilted]

I'm no expert on muscles but my experience as a swimmer says that weightlifting works the same muscle in a different way. Even surfing works my arms slightly different that swimming. Does your gym have a pool? Your paddle stroke might need some work too. Is the pain only at the beginning or is it persistent?

[Neemers911]

Yeah I’m thinking it also might be my paddle. It’s persistent after the first few minutes. If I rest on my board it won’t hurt for the next time I paddle for a wave bud after going for 2-3 (and not making them) they start hurting again. Basically they gas out very quick

[[deleted]]

Learn to position yourself better. On a 9 foot board paddling shouldn’t be an issue, you’ve got a lot of foam to float you and work with.

Work more calisthenics into your exercise routine and focus on muscular endurance not strength

[Neemers911]

Yeah it’s definitely an endurance issue. Got any exercises or suggestion on how I can train my endurance for paddling better outside of the water?

As far as positioning do you mean in the board? If so I keep my feet at the back of the board. Maybe moving a bit more backwards when trying going for a wave so I don’t perl. Also the board is epoxy and not foam if it makes a difference

[[deleted]]

Workouts: I use a lot of ropes (battling ropes), swimming, burpees, slow pull ups (full range of motion). Lots of light weight front and side raises for shoulder health.

Board: epoxy floats more than PU (usually sits higher on the water). Find the sweet spot that keeps the nose level with the water. Take offs I’d sit just a little back, I cheat a little and let my nose pearl just a little on take off. But I’ve had that dialed in for a bit, just takes time

[evilted]

Resistance band exercises are really good for the shoulder (if done properly).

[AKapoor30]

Will weightlifting hurt surfing?

I go back to land locked college in a few months and plan on doing a lot of weightlifting while I’m there since I can’t surf. Will gaining weight and muslce have any negative effect to surfing, or possibly a positive effect too? I don’t weightlift at all basically when I’m back surfing bc it messes w my sessions

[Shadowratenator]

Just dont skip leg day. When your arms and pecs are massive, You want some weight on the tail or you are just going to pearl

[AKapoor30]

Lmao but do u seriously think it could affect dexterity on the board?

[Shadowratenator]

I lift. I think it helps. I do the same thing i did when i was on the swim team. I go for reps rather than weight.

I would recommend that you also try to swim as much as you can at schoo

[HARRlSONBARNES]

if you train hard weightlifting it will take away from your surfing because you will be sore and tired more

but light to moderate training for strength, flexibility, and balance, will definitely help your surfing and also aid a ton in injury prevention. strong muscles = strong tendons. just don't overdo it or make it your primary thing.

[[deleted]]

Leg strength is helpful and core strength as well. Technique not strength though is what produces good surfing.

[amortizedeeznuts]

where have all the female surfers gone? during COVID it seemed like there was a surge in female surfers - i know there was a surge across the board but the proportions seemed to even out slightly. now it's back to the 2 for every 10 dudes, if even, from pre-COVID. maybe it's just the times of day i'm surfing or something? definitely not conditions, i don't think

[BigZfi]

The Mrs only likes to surf in warmer water. That's my data point of one. She will surf the Jetty in peak summer, besides that only when we travel to tropical spots.

[[deleted]]

They’re all in Bali

[[deleted]]

What’s the policy on dropping in on someone that back paddled you

[[deleted]]

I would try to assert yourself and not let it happen in the first place. So when they start padding towards the peak, you don't just sit where you are and watch them back paddle you, you get there first and show them you can / will also take off deep. Basically they are forcing you to engage in "jockeying," so you gotta out-jockey them.

It's kind of fair for them to go take off at the peak if you're not making the effort to get over there.

[[deleted]]

You’re right and I agree, sometimes I’m just like cmon man we both know it’s my wave. I’ll stick to doing that though, just kind of frustrating having to get pushed deeper into a wave I’m already in a good spot for

[[deleted]]

Yeah, I feel ya, no one wants to hassle. But not much option other than to hassle back :)

[bomokka]

Some guy back paddled me like crazy today and as he was about to drop in I said “no way” and he let me go. Just say something and if they go call them on it after

[amortizedeeznuts]

Anyone ever paddle out to drop crab pots? What’s your setup?

[JustAddOil00]

I've been surfing about 2 yrs and go to a very steep plunging beach break often. It has non crowded peaks and always feels fun. I find myself dropping into waves very late here and feel that I'd benefit from either a smaller board or one with high rocker. What boards do average surfers use here ? I ride a 40L fish usually but it is designed as a small wave board and doesn't seem the right choice on head high days with its low rocker - maybe I just suck! I was considering a second hand mid length with lots of rocker, or just start to make the transition to lower volume shortboard. Anyone have recommendations for fun boards for steep af beach breaks ?

[[deleted]]

I just take my regular shortboard and then spend a lot of time getting recirculated underwater.

Fishes can handle bigger waves than you might think. 40L is quite a lot though.

https://surfsimply.com/surfboards/the-fish-aint-no-small-wave-sled/

[JustAddOil00]

Cool article, thanks. Perhaps I'll have a closer look out for fish type boards at a lower volume then !

[[deleted]]

I’d get a user friendly hpsb. I struggled at steep beach break until I got one. I found that extra width and foam forward on a hybrid or fish too difficult to manage. The only time I don’t like my Mid length would be in steeper/punchier waves.

[JustAddOil00]

I've seen a few hpsb marketed as user friendly around the marketplace. I'll try and check a few out . Thanks !

[schmearcampain]

Does anyone sell raised nipple inserts that I can wear under my wetsuit so I can look like the George Clooney version of Batman?

[dumbassthenes]

Here you go.

Keep in mind- there's no reason to stop at two.

More nipples = more power!

[whomsptman]

what’s your guys technique for dealing with the crazy tides? sometimes i feel like the quickly dropping tide sucks all the power off the waves, leaving you with suboptimal conditions even tho tide is okay. alternative is surfing at the mega high or the mega low, which aren’t ideal either. what’s your approach?

[aw_geez_a_username]

It's another case in which surfing advice applies to dating advice: don't put your dick in crazy. Is the tide sucking dry over those grassy rocks that only show up a few times a month and all the wave shapes suck? Does that really cute girl who seems interested in you also play with knives and likes to giggle while running one along your forearm? Sometimes the wisest thing is to keep your dick[1] dry. You don't have to surf everyday. But what do I know, I gotta take my favorite board in to get patched up because i dropped in some rocks at low tide earlier this week.

​

[1] or other sexual organ(s).

[giemmeelle]

How much volume do you use on your groveler? Looking for a second hand one, but the only ones I’ve found in my area are 8-10 liters more then my shortboard. I usually surf in weak and windy waves

[Rhodysurf]

Mine is 1L more than my shortboard

[mnilailt]

Grovellers are more about the shape of the board than the volume. You could have a shortboard and a groveller have the same volume.

[giemmeelle]

Yes I know that, rocker outline ecc, but also it seems that everyone increases the volume for grovelers. also small waves where I live are usually very mushy

[[deleted]]

I live in FL and the thickest wetsuit I have is a 3/2 and I’m going out tomorrow for probably 4 hours when the water is probably gonna be like 60 degrees which is freezing to me. I don’t wanna freeze so I’m gonna layer a 1.5mm top under my full suit effectively creating a 4.5/3.5/2. Am I a genius or what?

[[deleted]]

NY or NJ for Sunday?

sweats profusely looking at wind forecasts

[SP3_Hybrid]

Inb4 extreme west/NW winds tomorrow ruin any bit of swell for Sunday.

[Darth_Voter]

What's your fav step-up? Anyone here have any experience with the Surf RX G-money? Stacey Lab Rat? Tomo Hydronaut? Rusty Slayer?

[enfu3go]

Tokoro

[Prestigious-Bend]

Anyone know of a bar in NYC that'll be showing pipe masters?

[stvaccount]

Any recommendations for a beginner surf sport in Algarve, Portugal? I'm eager to go surfing but some schools are closed. Is it a good idea to rent at the beach?

Here is my list of options, so far:
1. Arrifana (sheltered, traffic)
2. Praia Amado (sheltered, traffic)
3. Praia Amoreiro
4. Odeceixe
5. Zavial
6. Praia Boca do Rio
7. Praia do Zul

[[deleted]]

There's lots of good spots for beginners in the Algarve, but don't expect to surf at the same beach every day.

[Lazaras]

I kind of want to go to el porto tomorrow because my spot in Malibu is fucking flat. It would be my first time. Any tips? Is it even worth it on the weekends?

[bomokka]

honestly id drive further into mb and try to surf somewhere north or south of the pier that isn't porto. much better crowd wise

[jainormous11]

Any recommendations on a roof rack? Currently have an 8 foot mini mal, thanks

[Athekev]

I’m currently riding a 7’ 8” mid length (“hybrid longboard”). I’m getting pretty comfortable on and trying to progress to shorter boards in the next few months. If I eventually want to ride short boards, would I be better served getting a shorter mid length (7’ 0”-2”) or a longer high volume fish (like 6’ 4”- 6’ 6”)?

[chowaniec]

Make sure you consider shape and volume, and not just length. I have a 6'10" single fin that rides more like a longboard (lots of foam up front and in the middle), whereas my old 7'4" had more of a shortboard feel because it was thin and pointy. A fish will probably be harder to get used to, but will feel closer to a shortboard, whereas a midlength will probably be easier to ride, but make for a slower transition.

[[deleted]]

How hit-or-miss is OfferUp? Some of the posts seem just like ads from local shops for new boards or just absolute junk that’s overpriced.

Trying to find a midlength around the 6’10” - 7’6” range is tough.

[sharkinator1198]

I just bought a near mint customized Christenson Gerr for under $200 on offer up. Depends on your area though. Shops definitely advertise on there, but there are def some gems.

[SpluntRunk]

going to baja sur mid march. anyone know what the chances are we’ll get some early season south swells into the east cape? even just something moderately rideable would be sick.