THE TRANSITION TO UNBROKEN WAVES

Up until this point we've focused all of the learning on catching and riding whitewater waves.

It's now time however to shift out of your comfort zone and navigate your way out the back to tackle the unbroken waves.

Catching unbroken waves is an order of magnitude harder than catching and riding a whitewater wave, but it's here in this transition where surfing really starts to get a whole lot more fun!

UNBROKEN WAVES VS WHITEWATER

Catching whitewater waves is fun. You get to practice your craft, experience the energy of the ocean, and enjoy the thrill of riding a wave.

But that's kind of the limits when it comes to riding the whitewater.

Riding an unbroken wave however, opens up a whole new world of opportunity, adrenalin, challenge, and excitement.

On an unbroken wave you can go much, much faster. You can control where you want to go on the wave much better, and you can ride waves far, far longer.

And best of all...

It just looks damn cool right?

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CATCHING WHITEWATER VS AN UNBROKEN WAVE

In the whitewater the number of variables you have to contend with are few.

You simply need to spot the whitewater you want to catch, hop on your board, throw a few paddles in there and away you go.

Catching unbroken waves though is much more complex.

To position yourself correctly to catch an unbroken wave you need to consider a whole host of variables first off:

Latitudinal Positioning: Catching unbroken waves requires constant monitoring of your latitudinal position in the ocean. Too far in and you'll get the wave on your head. Too far out and you'll miss the wave entirely.
Longitudinal Positioning: Unlike whitewater waves that tend to break in uniform lines, unbroken waves are much more unpredictable. A meter too wide of the peak and you'll miss the wave entirely.
Timing: Timing when to paddle, and how hard is key to catching unbroken waves successfully.
Other People: As you navigate out the back the environment starts to become more competitive, making it harder to catch the waves you want

WRAPPING IT UP

The transition to unbroken waves is a tough one. One that oftentimes feels like you're regressing in your ability before you progress.

It's hard, and it takes time. So don't be too tough on yourself.

Over the next lessons we'll be dissecting things a little further to arm you with everything you need to know to catch unbroken waves successfully.

CATCHING UNBROKEN WAVES

YOU MUST BE LOGGED IN TO ACCESS THIS COURSE

LEVEL 1 BEGINNER

GOTTA HAVE POP!

SPEED

TURNING

THE SUBTLE ART OF NEGOTIATING WAVES

PADDLING

NEXT STEPS...

LEVEL 2 PROGRESSOR

IT'S TIME TO PROGRESS...

POP-UP LIKE THE PRO'S

READING WAVES

CATCHING UNBROKEN WAVES

TURN BABY TURN

TRIMMING

NEXT STEPS...

LEVEL 3 IMPROVER

THE QUICKENING

ANGLED TAKE OFF

SPEED

BOTTOM TURNS

CARVING

CUTBACKS

NEXT STEPS...