I’ve been bodyboarding for more than 20 years now but with every wave, I still get the same rush as I did as kid being hurtled up the beach at Fistral on my annual summer holidays. In this video, we lay the foundations as to how you can effectively and consistently catch your first waves, and perhaps sow the seed for 20 years of exhilaration.
Step 1 - Beach assessment
When you arrive at the beach, take the time to assess the conditions and surroundings. Is there a lifeguard on duty? Are there any rocks? Where are the safer sandier areas? Are there any rip-currents? What is the tide doing, rising or falling? Where are other beginners catching broken waves? If you are unsure, ask the lifeguard or local surfers for advice.
Step 2 - Make your way into the waves
At this stage you don’t need your swim fins, so leave those on the beach or in the car. Next, fasten your leash and walk into the surf with one rail of the board pressed into your hip and one hand holding the opposing rail.
The further you get into the surf, the more powerful the waves will become, so it’s key to aggressively step through the oncoming waves to prevent yourself from being bowled over.
The most efficient way is to stand sideways on to the breakers and with your knees bent slightly to absorb the energy of the wave when it hits. If you stand straight on to the oncoming waves, you have less stability and are more likely to be knocked over backwards. Nobody wants that!
Step 3 - Catching a wave
Once you are out into waist depth water, it’s time to catch your first wave. Now, stand sideways on and looking over one shoulder at the oncoming waves, holding the board out of the water and with the nose of the board pointing to the shore.
Now, just a split second before the oncoming wave makes contact with the tail of your board, you must bend your knees, push off with your feet and gracefully slide onto your board.
At this stage, your positioning on the board is the key to success. If too much of your weight is over the tail of the board, you’ll get bogged down in the water and the wave will pass over you. But too far forward on the board and you’ll nosedive under the water.
The position you need to adopt, is to have your shoulders and upper torso over the front third of the board. Keeping your head up and back arched. - This will also help prevent you from nose diving.
Step 4 - Riding the wave
Woohoo! The wave has picked you up and you’re hurtling toward the beach in which will become an addictive thrill. So, to prolong the ride, ensure you maintain the body positioning from step 3 as well as keeping your legs straight, with knees and ankles together.
Once you are confident and have already caught a number of long rides to the beach, experiment with looking and leaning in one direction (left or right) and you will start tracking across the broken wave.
Once you’ve mastered all the above, it’s time to catch your first unbroken wave, which you can learn more about in our next video.
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