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Surfing Terms
360
Spinning the board round 360º on the face of the wave whilst riding it.
Air
When the surfer and board shoot off the top of a wave.
ASP
Association of Professional Surfing.
Backhand
Surfing with your back to the wave
Barrel
When the lip of a hollow wave curls over and the wave breaks from top to bottom it forms an ‘O’ shape inside. This is known as a barrel, and most surfers dream of being inside a barrel. It’s takes a lot of skill. Also called a ‘tube’ and a ‘cover-up’
Beachbreak
Waves breaking over sand close to the beach
Blown Out
Choppy conditions usually associated with onshore wind
Bottom Turn
Turning back up into the wave at the bottom
Carve / Carving
The classic surfing manoeuvre. A turn on a wave where your rail carves into the water’s surface
Clean
Swell coupled with a light offshore breeze or no wind at all results in clean waves. Perfect surf
Close out
When a wave collapses and breaks as a whole section rather than peeling across. Unridable. Also known as dumping
Cutback Quickly switching the direction in which you’re surfing.
Ding
Minor damage to your surfboard
Dropping In
Dropping-In is catching a wave when you do not have priority – when there is already somebody riding it.
Duck dive
Submerging yourself and your board beneath an oncoming wave
Dumping
Often caused by onshore conditions, where a wave will fold over in big sections, making it un-surfable
Face
The front surface of a wave
Fakie
Riding backwards on the surfboard, tail first. Difficult
FCS
Fin Control System. A system enabling you to fully remove your fins from your surfboard. Ideal if you’re travelling
Fin
Fins stick out from underneath the tail of your surfboard and grip the water, preventing your board sliding out sideways down the wave. You will usually have three, sometimes four, and on a longboard there is often just one big fin.
Foamies Beginner boards made of foam
Forehand
Surfing facing the wave
Glassy
Clean conditions with little or no wind, making the water look like glass. Perfection
Goofy
Surfing with your right foot forward.
Grommet
A young surfer.
Hang Five
Riding a longboard with one foot right at the nose of the board, with five toes over the nose
Hang Ten
Riding a longboard with both feet right on the nose of the board, so you can hang ten toes over the nose. Difficult
Heavy
Heavy conditions indicate big, threatening waves.
Hollow
Hollow waves are perfect for good surfers, terrible to learn on. Helped by offshore winds, a hollow wave looks like it has been carved out of the ocean – the lip curls right over and can form a perfect tube as it breaks. The opposite is a fat, crumbly wave which is much more forgiving if you make a mistake
Jeffrey’s Bay / J Bay
World famous South African right hand point break.
Leash
The cord attaching your board to your back leg
Lefthander
A wave that breaks from left to right as you look from the beach
Leg rope
Same as leash
Line Up
The place just outside the breaking waves where surfers sit and wait for waves.
Lull
A period of quiet water in between sets
Malibu
A longboard with a rounded nose
Mavericks
A famous big wave in Half Moon Bay in California.
Nose
The front of the surfboard.
Nose dive
Falling off a wave face first. Can be messy!
Off-the-lip
Where the surfer hits the lip of the wave and rides back down the face
Offshore
Where the wind is blowing from the shore towards the sea. As long as its isn’t too strong, offshore wind provides great surfing conditions, holding them up and providing great faces to surf on.
Onshore
Where the wind is blowing from the sea towards the land. Usually an onshore wind will mess up the waves, as blowing from behind it pushes them over and breaks them too soon.
Pipeline
A world famous Hawaiian wave, which creates perfect barrels just metres from shore where only a couple of feet of water covers reef. Insane, and only for the truly excellent.
Point Break
A break where surf peels off a point.
Rail
The sides of your surfboard.
Reefbreak
Surf that breaks over rocks or reef
Regular
Surfing with your left foot forward.
Righthander
Wave that breaks from right to left as you look from the beach
Rip
A strong current heading out to sea, caused by the action of the waves collecting in one place and channeling the water back out in a stream. Can help you paddle out, but can be dangerous if you come across one accidentally.
Roundhouse
Move where surfer and board spin 180 degrees
Sandbank
A bank of submerged sand that causes the waves to break
SAS
Surfers Against Sewage. An organisation combating the dumping of sewerage into the ocean.
www.sas.org.uk
Set
When the weather system causing swell is far enough away, waves crossing the ocean will group together and arrive at our shores in groups called sets. The period between sets is called a lull.
Shorebreak
A wave that breaks close in to the beach, usually not a great place to surf as shorebreak often dumps.
Snaking
Where a surfer paddles around the line up to steal priority on the next wave. Sneakier than dropping in but just as illegal, and a great way to make yourself instantly unpopular.
Soup
White water
Steamer
A winter wetsuit with long arms and legs
Stick
A slang term for a surfboard.
Stoked
Very happy.
Stringer
The line of wood that running up the length of a custom surfboard – gives strength.
Swell / Ground Swell
Swell is energy produced out in the ocean by low pressure systems, which travels through the water and arrives at the coast to produce waves.
Switch
Riding the surfboard in the opposite stance from usual i.e. a regular footer would switch to ride goofy
Tail
The back of your surfboard
Tailslide
A tailslide is a move where the tail of the board slides across the lip of the wave.
Top Turn
Turn on the top section of the wave
Tube
A tube is formed where a hollow wave breaks from top to bottom.
Wax
Rubbed thinly over the top of your board to stop your feet slipping off.
Wetsuit
Neoprene suit to keep you warm in cold water.
Whitewater
The broken section of a wave that looks like foam
Wipe-out
Falling off your board
Wind swell
Waves generated by wind rather than ground swell. Not ideal, but can create semi-decent waves which will do if you’re desperate.
WQS
World Qualifying Series
WCT
World Championship Tour