Stance for surfing

[flipperade]

When I surf my prone boards my feet are on and across the centre stringer line.

When i first started catching waves I noticed I was falling off backwards, realised it was because I had my front foot out near the rail and my back foot automatically was on the centre.....so the question is what do you find the best stance-

1 A surfers stance but with both feet near the rails
2. Moving the front foot to the certre line and a standard surfers stance?

Cheers

Ade.

[stoneaxe]

I'm still very much the newb so take what I say with that in mind. I try to head straight for the full center surfers stance. I'm working on cross stepping and the only way you can do that is to be centered. If I'm dropping into a bigger wave I might start out with my feet in surfers stance but towards the rails for extra stability but I try to move to the center as soon as I can, that's usually when I fall.... . If I manage to stay up and start down the line I don't get to the rail until I try to turn....and then I fall.....

[PonoBill]

The good surfer's may snicker at this answer but I use my front foot for stability and weight control and the rear for steering. So the front foot is more or less centered and the rear foot is on whichever rail you're turning on.

Of course you're moving around the board once you get the first turn done. Probably moving forward to pick up some speed, and if you're climbing up the face your front foot will be towards the rail to help dig. Likewise, if you're fading down the face your fron foot might be on the lower rail a bit.

[DavidJohn]

I think it depends on the wave..and the board...Check out the feet positions in these two pics.

DJ

[Poppy]

DJ,
oooyea, wave and board. nice pics

[stoneaxe]

Yeah...that's exactly how I do it.......in my dreams....

You left out the rider DJ.....wave, board, and rider...oh...and planetary alignment. Adjustments for gravity can't be ruled out.

Seriously though, is there anything that you can pont to in any sport of a similar nature and say there is one correct way to do it? If so would sports ever evolve? You see sports reach a "maturity" level where they stagnate then some wiz kid comes along and breaks all the rules and things get interesting again. Yeah...there are basics and I better stick to them or I'm going to spend a lot of time IN the water but it sure is fun watching the wizards.

[flipperade]

Thx for replies,

When I surf a shortboard/fish or a performance mal I tend to keep my feet on the stringer and turn from the back, on a noserider I do put my back foot out near the rails to turn maybe with a drop knee as well (on a good day).

I am on my first board and its very wide (Starboard 12' x 32") and I think I need a lot of wave time to determine how best to turn it. I think I am suffering but to a much larger degree the problem I get when I have been surfing performance boards for a while and then take my noserider out and that is not allowing for the much slower turns so my body/mind is asking the board to move in a way it cant.

Ade.