https://www.ombe.co/guides/the-proper-surf-stance#:~:text=How%20to%20Adopt%20a%20Proper,we'll%20break%20them%20down.

This helped me on foot placement angles- it suggests 45 for the front but as neutral as 90degrees for the back is also ok if like me, 45 feels too uncomfortable!

I had this issue too and am still working on it! Skating really helped me- especially dropping into bowls / ramps (roll ins) where being back foot heavy feels soooo unsafe (as you pointed out!) and the consequence of falling is much higher. I found imagining pushing a shopping cart analogy from Clayton helpful and use this.

I’m way better than before, but very much still working on it, and

discomfort makes bad habits come back, so my take away is changing habits can take time and patience!

I’ll be all the way in Canada, but heard Croyde is great (used to live in Plymouth so surfed Cornwall and south Devon tons, but never Croyde). Enjoy!

Clayton and Graham figured it out- I’d take their advice not mine! 😂

Ocean any day!!! People surf for different reasons- I love the beauty, peace (if I can find it) and spectical of nature. I don’t need to catch a wave to enjoy myself

Wave pools give me social anxiety but are good practice and can be fun- I’d rather be in the ocean any day though!

Hey Eng

Sorry I wasn’t clear- the softness of the bushings can be adjusted for looseness / stiffness, but I’m referring to the bolt at the bottom of the truck- it can come loose and fall off while riding which is dangerous!! Before this happens, the board gets wobbly! But you might just have soft bushings which is safe and no issue!

Nice extension and compression too! and really, on the foot id get input from other people as I have the opposite problem and I’m no expert!

It is fun!! Looking great for a second session!!!

Eng can I ask what trucks those are?

It’s looking a little wobbly and like you might just need some time practicing on the board to get comfy- if it was a smooth star/ yow/ waterborn/C7 these tend to wobble anyway and need more practice, if it’s a CX id check the bolt isn’t loose (this happened to a couple of my friends making the board both wobbly and unsafe!). For any board, it can be tinkered to stiffen it up!

Nice forward stance- I’d actually put my front foot at a slight angle (45degrees say) if it was me for more board control while keeping a forward stance as yours front looks dead straight (more in a pushing than riding position) - but others may have other ideas on this and think it’s fine so maybe take or leave this thought!!!

Props for doing ramps so early though!

Hi Paloma,

I agree with Graham- the major drawback of a shortboard is missing more waves. With that said, a short board enables you to take off later and duck dive giving you more confidence to sit in position and ride steeper waves.

I switched to a short board a few years in (16 years ago!) and never looked back. I wondered why I struggled to paddle out on a 7ft for so long! It is most definately easier to turn and more responsive but also less stable. I had no problem riding waves once I caught them. If you do other board sports, the balance might already be there for this part. However, I was living by the ocean and was comfy taking off and trimming by then.

When I switched, I used to miss waves lots with short boards and chalked this down to weak female arms and paddle power, but after doing OMBE training, I don’t have this issue now and know better!

As Clayton has pointed out, it’s a matter of preference on board thickness - people seem to love these ultra short ultra fat boards- I’ve ridden tons of short boards over my 20years and I am not a fan myself. As a female with less upper board strength/weight, I prefer a bit more length (6,0- 6,4) and a thinner, narrower board that’s easier to duck dive (less volume in nose to burry and my legs are strong to kick the tail) and easier to rail to rail with small feet and more feeling from the wave.

Takes some trial to discover your preference! If you can loan some different short boards to give it a try- might be worth a shot!

Thanks for the early heads up! I’ll have to see if I can make something workout 🙂

This is awesome! Super helpful! “Push the bush” golden 😂😂😂

I’m going to use this for my stance issues I’m making progress on!!!

Also, the sitting on the shoulder speaks to me- this can still be an issue for me if I’m intimidated. I’m using “Fck it I’m going” in big waves now too!

If your team was ever down for a challenge, I’m a slow learner with 20 years of bad habits and a fear of some big waves (but a love of the ocean). I usually travel to surf totally independently with no tour, guide or coach, but would be really interested in a coaching trip with OMBE to challenge myself!

I have to book vacation a year in advance in healthcare 😕 but if I could make it work and afford it, I think it could be a great challenge for me!

Nice wave! And nice height at the start of the turn! It looks like you fall as you are extended to much at the top of the wave, rather than compressing again at the top to come back down. First turn looks good though. Would love to visit J bay too!