How to Catch Unbroken Waves

Want to progress to surfing unbroken waves?

One of the biggest and most exciting steps in surf progression is moving from riding white water waves to catching unbroken waves out the back.

Reading and catching unbroken waves is a skill that a surfer will always continue to progress and improve upon. We cover a few of the basic paddle and observation skills needed to catch unbroken waves below.

Catching Unbroken Waves

1 - Look over the inside shoulder.
Checking for positioning on the wave and priority.

2 - Runway Paddles
The faster we are moving the less steep the wave needs to be. Keep the board perpendicular to the wave.

3 - Turbo Paddles
As the wave lifts the tail, continue paddling. Paddling will help lift the nose and allow us to start traveling down the wave.

*Bonus - Legs together applying pressure.
Arching the back and applying pressure to our legs helps us catch the wave and keep the nose out of the water.

4 - Head up
Once you feel the acceleration from the wave, start your pop-up. We want to aim to be on our feet on the top half of the wave.

Learning from each wave whether you manage to catch it or not is key to faster progression. Take note of the steepness of the wave, how fast you are paddling, and how easy or difficult it was to catch... this is all data you can collect and learn from. Watch other surfers in the line-up and learn from them too.

[andrewleonardi]

It's a lot easier when the waves are that good

[Alvin_Vivian]

As a beginner who has only successfully popped up a couple of times, this makes it look way easier than it really is.

[OverstreetCycles]

I just tried surfing this passed weekend and it was so hard I didn’t even get to ride a wave … she made it look ridiculously easy

[belgabcn]

It's a small wave, with no much energy, and you need some good technique to catch it.
But the wave is literally breaking where she popped-up.