Board Control / Leash Etiquette

[wadadli_waterman]

In waves up to head high I flip the board over and hold onto the center fin.

The fin is an easy grip and the board doesnt want to "take off" as the foam or even breaking wave passes over.  Kinda like a reverse turtle for a normal long board. 

Works really well for me.  No sudden pulls and if there are multiple waves coming at me I just keep swimming backwards into them.

I cant bring myself around to the idea of putting handles on the board.  Kinda like wearing jeans and gators on the slopes.......if you know what I mean.

[PonoBill]

Get hit by a big enough wave and that fin will give you a new knickname: stumpy.

[snappy]

I totally agree Ponbill and whats more if the board happens to be a tri fin setup your forearms and wrists are awfull close to some really sharp blades.
It's like a truck just be aware of your surroundings and keep your distance from others especially those within stretched legrope range inside.I find with the boyancy of these epoxy styro boards they pop up over the wave pretty quick anyway.If you want a drag attach a balsa longboard to your leg and bail out in big surf.
Cheers from OZ.

[river]

Probably ok for smaller waves with a single or thruster setup but I rock quads and they are a bit small.  I am liking the push from the rear of the board tech. into the wave as the board almost always comes up close to me and pointing in the right direction to hop on and paddle quickly straight out w/o wasting valuable seconds turning it around flipping it over and such.  Just have to hold onto it long enough to really get it through the wave/foam so it doesn't get caught and turn around and hit you.  I find it better to kind of weight the rear down so it goes up and through the foam and shoots through with its own bouyancy. Its been working in some fairly large surf for me. Today I stood up through some of the biggest foam piles I ever have, and it was super fun

[wadadli_waterman]

I am liking the push from the rear of the board tech. into the wave as the board almost always comes up close to me and pointing in the right direction to hop on and paddle quickly straight out w/o wasting valuable seconds turning it around flipping it over and such.  Just have to hold onto it long enough to really get it through the wave/foam so it doesn't get caught and turn around and hit you.  I find it better to kind of weight the rear down so it goes up and through the foam and shoots through with its own bouyancy. Its been working in some fairly large surf for me.

Yeah, that sounds like a good idea too.  I have used that method occasionally but not when I know a surfer is inside of me/my board.  My flip-the-board-grab-the-fin method is really only meant for when there are surfers inside of me and I really want to prevent the board from going wild.  It really does work as there is very little pull, the board doesnt want to surf at all when its upside down.

When there is no one inside of me I use any method of controlling the board and getting back to my feet ASAP, depending on the situation.

[PonoBill]

I replaced my skinny leash attachment line with a heavier rope and left some excess after making the loop to attach the board-saver tab. Tied a big knot at the end and now I have a pretty good handle for grabbing. I also flip the board over sometimes if the hit looks like it will be heavy--a lot less pull--but I keep my pinkies away from the fins.

[1tuberider]

I started surfing in the early 60's.  No leashes were available.  So we learned how to hang on to our boards as a last ditch effort, otherwise you swam.

With the 12'6" starboard I started on, the board weighs to much for a leash.  So I surf without the leash.
I am not in crowded waters.  If I find myself falling, first I use my paddle to balance, and if that doesn't work then I try to fall on the board, then if that doesn't work then I swim.  For me this is all part of the surfing experience.  I rarely have to swim. 

So far I have not used a leash on my new naish 10'6 either.  Even though it is lighter, I just don't need a leash were I surf.  With the naish, I will put a leash on when I surf offshore shoals or rocky groins. 

I am careful around others.  I think of their safety before mine and I will not drop in if I see a collision.  No problems so far and I don't see a need to change.
 

[DavidJohn]

So far I have not used a leash on my new naish 10'6 either.

Just wondering..I'm looking at the Naish 10'6" for myself..What do you think of it?

DJ

[PonoBill]

I surf a lot in very shallow reef areas like Thousand Peaks. If (when) you fall there, you'd better be paying a lot of attention to not sinking and that tends to make it harder for me to land on my board. Of course if you've gone too far over the reef (as I often stupidly do when I'm having too much fun in the wave) then there probably isn't anyone below you, so it's not so bad to let the board run while you concentrate on becoming one with the surface (think balsawood thoughts, spread out like a starfish, pray, carry a first aid kit).

Even still, I find I can catch the handle I put on my Starboard about half the time. In the deeper water I'm up to about 90 percent, though I bonked a girl on the chin the other day at Puamana when I missed. She was at least 20 feet away, and the board was pulling on the leash when it hit her, and it still hurt. I felt like a total schmuck of course. After I made sure she was OK I did the "paddle of shame" a few hundred yards away from the lineup and finally gave it up for the day.

I'm thinking shorter, stronger leash, and stay the heck away from other surfers. Period.

[1tuberider]

DJ

I have not had it long enough to do a review.  So far though I like it.  I weigh around 190, wear all the 5mil rubber, so I am not light. 

No problem with paddling.  Surfs well but I need to put it thru some use.  I will post a review after I have ridden it for a few months. 

If you were close, we could trade boards for a while.

[Nate Burgoyne]

I am careful around others.  I think of their safety before mine and I will not drop in if I see a collision.  No problems so far and I don't see a need to change.

"So far" is what worries me good brother. Even a cat falls off the fence sometimes. I was hit in the head by the fin of a regular longboard a few years ago and it sent me to the hospital bleeding for 14 staples in the scalp. In my opinion, unless you're the only guy in the water, it's not worth it.

[surfpainter]

No leash?... and this coming from a guy who says Greg Noll has no style..sounds like true stinkbug etiquette from an old guy who really should know better.

[1tuberider]

Leashes have a purpose.  i did not say I did not use them.  But for my sup, where I surf, I choose no leash.

The purpose of a leash is to keep your board attached so you don't swim.  I surfed 10 years before leashes were even thought of.  The reason surfers used them was to surf setups that were far offshore or where your board would be damaged by rocks. Surfers did not care about the others and already had skills to avoid accidents. 

The result of leases, were more crowded lineups, and surfers not actually earning their waterman skills before hitting the lineup.  Leashes also causes a false sense of security.  Surfers without surfing skills
had to think twice before they took a wave (am I going to make it).  Kooks were crowding lineups who really did not have the skills to be there.  Leashes also took away the skill of falling on your board to keep it and lets not forget about swimming.  By the way, I actually swim faster pushing my paddle vs limping along with it, something a leash less stand up paddler would know.  Also when a surfer lost his board, they were removed from the lineup, making for opportunities for the others.

Leashes has always been a personal choice.  They are not required by any other than those who choose to use them.    In the days when leashes first came out the general attitude was that leashes were for kooks.  I don't fault you for wearing a leash so think twice before you fault someone for not wearing one. 

When you enter the water you are taking risks.  Most accidents occur in the zone and leashes have no effect in preventing them.  I can give many examples of injuries over the years I have surfed, and not one was caused by me not wearing a leash.  In the leash less days boards were all over.  We learned how to avoid loose boards coming in.  Is that something that has been forgotten?

I also did not say I did not like Greg's surfing.  I said that a stink bug stance looks like a survival stance.  So if a survival stance is how you make the drop, more power to you, but I much prefer calm cool and casual in the eye of the storm.  I also happen to live in the same town with the Noll family so I know them personally. 

If none of my comments about water skills sunk in, why don't you try leash less surfing sometime.  If might make you a better surfer.

[Nate Burgoyne]

Thanks for the clarification 1tuberider. I agree with you that there's a different feeling surfing without a leash, it's something everyone should experience...in the right place at the right time. One of my most memorable sessions was when I showed up at the beach alone to a vision of glassy  rights with nobody on them. I stuffed my leash in the bushes and paddled out. Then when the crowd arrived, I went in and put the leash on.

In Hawaii, it's basically a given that you wear a leash. It isn't frowned upon and you aren't considered a lesser surfer because of it. I don't think anyone would downplay the skills of Bonga, Dino, or Kanoa for wearing a leash.

I think this is a great thread, not as a venue for debate but for one of understanding and for the development of the sport. In my opinion, I would say that surfers like 1tuberider who may have the skills and location suitable for no leash surfing are the exception to the rule of what's safest for most stand up paddlers.

[Tree]

Somebody got off their leash. It's not who or what you know, it's how you as a person are percieved by your peers. Leash or Not, skilled or not, some folks just don't get it.