THE POP & CORK METHOD

Oh man, this is one of my favourite hacks.

It's one of those sneaky little skills that packs an almighty punch

Literally, mastering this one skill alone will double, if not triple your wave count.

It really is that good.

WHAT IS THE POP AND CORK METHOD

The pop and cork method is a technique whereby you sit on your board prior to catching a wave - forcing the buoyancy of your board underwater - then, releasing that built up energy at exactly the right time to literally pop you onto the wave.

Time for an analogy:

Imagine you were holding a football underwater. The further you push the ball underwater, the more energy it will have once it's released and rushes back to the surface.

We kind of copy this same process with our surfboards. Forcing the buoyancy underwater, and releasing it just as the wave is about to pick you up.

Let's take a closer look at how that works below.

BREAKING DOWN THE POP AND CORK METHOD

This is an advanced technique - one that'll undoubtably take a little time to master - but it's just so damn effective that we think it's really important for you to start introducing it into your game.

Here's how it's done:

As the wave is approaching sit on your board, lean back and try to force the buoyancy of your surfboard underwater.
Just as the base of the wave is about to reach you, release the pent-up energy of your board from underneath the water.
As you release this energy, move all of your weight forward - chin should be touching the board.
Allow the wave to pick up the tail of your board so that it is higher than your head (tail high take off).
Paddle down the wave face.
Pop quickly to your feet with all of your weight over your board.

WRAPPING IT UP

I'm not going to lie, I use the pop and cork on virtually every wave I catch.

Why?

Firstly because I'm lazy, and secondly because it's just damn effective.

It's a difficult skill to master at first, but persevere and the payoffs will be huge.

POP & CORK

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 INTERMEDIATE

THE QUICKENING

ANGLED TAKE OFF

SPEED

BOTTOM TURNS

CARVING

CUTBACKS

NEXT STEPS...