CUTBACK DRILL

AIM: 

To perform the best cutbacks a surfer can produce.


PREPARATION:  

Explain the importance of performing quality cutbacks. Demonstrate how to perform a quality cutback and ask the surfers to simulate the action on the beach. Explain how the scoring for this drill is allocated.


DRILL:

  • Send the surfers out into the surf for 20 minutes. Ask them to perform the best quality cutbacks they can do on the waves they catch. Score the cutbacks:
  • 3 points for an excellent cutback (surfboard rebounds vertically off the foam rebound)
  • 2 points for an average cutback (surfboard impacts with the foam but not with any height)
  • 1 point for a poor cutback (surfboard “taps the foam” or doesn’t impact with the foam at all)
  • Add the best 4 wave scores for a total. The highest total is the winner of the drill. (For example, a surfer might perform 2 excellent cutback – 3 points each – and 2 poor cutbacks – 2 x 1 point – giving the score for that wave of 8 points.)


NOTES TO THE COACH


Explain to the surfers, if they want to hit the form vertically on cutbacks they must “hold” their crouched body position until they

see the impact point on the foam. A good mnemonic for this is “squat till you spot”, meaning, maintain a crouched body position until sighting the top of the foam.

Just like in the bottom turn drill, the key to success when performing cutbacks isfor the surfer to get into a “set” body position at the start of the cutback. This position is the body position off which maximum power can be created and applied during the manoeuvre.

NOTE: This is a great drill to do when the waves are flat.

 Mark lesson complete