Avoiding Nosediving
Avoiding Nosediving
Avoiding Nosediving
The nosedive. It’s an element of surfing that all surfers, both beginner and experienced, must deal with at one time or another.
It can be a frustrating aspect to a surf session, particularly if the number of nosedives outweighs the number of successful take offs!
One of the most frequent questions we encounter as surf coaches is “why did I nosedive?” And “how do I avoid nosediving?”
So, let’s break it down-
What is a nosedive?
Nosediving, also known as ‘pearling’, is the term given to a particular kind of wipeout. It is categorised by the nose of the surfboard submerging into the water of a wave, broken or unbroken, which results in the surfer sliding off the front of the board.
They can be entertaining to witness, but are generally undesirable for the surfer experiencing a free sinus clearing curtesy of the ocean!
Nosediving can happen on take off, when the surfer is still lying prone on the surfboard, or even once the surfer is on their feet and dropping into a wave.
So, why do they happen?
As a general rule, nosedives are the result of too much weight on the nose of the surfboard. This can be caused by multiple factors however.
1. Board position
If you are laying too far forward on your surfboard, you will put too much weight on the nose. As the oncoming waves pick up the tail of the board and start to push you forward, this will cause the nose to submerge and result in a nosedive.
Sometimes, even if we are laying in the correct position of the board, we can still put too much weight on the nose with our paddle technique!
2. Paddling
If we paddle for a wave with our chest flat to the board and our legs apart, this puts substantial weight on the front end also. This can cause the same effect as laying too far forward on the board.
Furthermore, if we don’t paddle long enough or strong enough, any weight on the front of the board will be less forgiven. If we maintain a solid, consistent forward momentum with good paddle technique, the increase in speed will counteract the force of our weight on the front of the surfboard.
3. Wave selection
Sometimes we can be in the perfect position on the surfboard, utilising the greatest paddle technique witnessed by surfers globally. But we still nosedive.
Not all waves are made equally. Some waves can be much steeper than others, we can catch them much later (when they’re closer to breaking), and some waves are simply ‘close outs’.
When taking off on steeper waves, the timing and pop up technique becomes much more critical. If we take too long to stand up, the board will nosedive due to the steep angle of the take off. Moreover, some waves are known as ‘close outs’, which essentially means the entire length of the wave breaks all at once, rather than gradually from the peak. Close outs are generally seen as undesirable waves for novice surfers, and even those more experienced!
So, how can I avoid nosediving?
In reality, sometimes you can’t. Nosediving is a lot like getting caught in the impact zone. A less fun, but unavoidable, part of your surfing experience.
That being said, we can take steps to lesson the frequency of nosedives:
1. Board position
Make sure your toes are over the tail of your surfboard! If you’re experiencing the dreaded nosedive on a shortboard, always look for the nose of the board to be just above the surface of the water. If it’s already submerged before you even paddle for a wave- you’re setting yourself up for failure.
2. Paddle technique
Make sure that when you paddle, your chest is raised and your legs are together. This will unweight the nose of the surfboard, and also ensure that there’s enough weight at the tail-end of the board for the fins to be engaged in the water. This will also help you catch waves more consistently!
Also, make sure you start paddling early, with long and strong paddle strokes. As the wave begins to pick you up and you feel that forward momentum- commit to it! Don’t panic and stop paddling, keep that momentum going with at least three extra paddles to keep the board moving forward.
3. Wave selection
Take some time to learn how to read waves. You can predict when a wave might close out by looking at it’s shape as it rolls into the beach. Generally we want to look for ‘A frames’- waves with a distinct point that is higher than the rest of the wave that is referred to as the ‘peak’. This part will break before the rest of the wave, and is what precedes those lovely, peeling waves with plenty of open face to surf along. If the wave appears to be entirely level as it rolls in, it usually indicates the wave will break all at once, which is a ‘close out’. These waves are best avoided, particularly for novice to improver surfers!
Furthermore, make sure your surf craft reflects your surf ability. The shorter and lower volume your surf craft, the later and steeper you’ll have to pop up on a wave. If your pop up is still a work in progress, this can make it tricky to take off late. If you opt for a longer board, with higher volume (such as a foamie), you can catch the wave earlier when the face is less steep- giving you more time to pop up!
To conclude…
Avoiding nosediving is no easy feet. And in many ways, wiping out is a good sign that you’re progressing- we usually fall off when trying something new or more challenging!
However, sometimes wiping out, particularly if it’s nosediving, can be a frustrating aspect to a surf session.
If you find yourself nosediving consistently when catching waves, and you want to work on your take off, you can book a lesson with one of our surf coaches.
This will allow us to watch you surf, pick up any errors or areas for improvement, and help you to progress- and hopefully limit the amount of nosedives in your surf session!
