Etiquette slips that annoy experienced surfers

Most experienced surfers forgive a beginner who misjudges a wave, but they tend to remember the small habits that make the lineup harder to share. Few of these slips are dangerous in themselves, although a loose board or a rushed paddle through a crowd can hurt someone. They are annoying because they repeat, because they take waves away from others and because they show that a surfer is not watching the people around them. Correcting them is usually a matter of paying attention and changing one habit at a time.

The slips below fall into three groups: how you move through the water, how you leave it and how you share the waves. Each one is easy to fix once you notice it, and the fixes are the ones regulars tend to expect.

Paddling through sets

When a set rolls in, surfers paddling out have to get past it, and the worst way to do so is to push straight through the peak while others are waiting for waves. Doing this puts you in the path of riders and takes the position other surfers were using to catch the next wave. A set breaking on a crowded peak is a moment to move wide of the people already sitting there, not to push through the middle of them.

The rule regulars expect is to paddle out through the channel, the gap where the waves break least and which most surfers therefore use, but that channel is usually a rip current. Only surfers who know how to leave a rip sideways should use it, and less confident surfers should paddle out along the edge of the whitewater instead. Once you are past the break, sit where you can see the next set coming and wait your turn, rather than working through the middle of the group. If a rider is coming toward you, do not cross the open face in front of them. Paddle toward the whitewater behind them, where the wave has already broken, and accept the risk of a bump rather than cutting across the wave they are riding. If contact looks likely, protect your head and keep hold of your board.

Leaving the lineup carelessly

Leaving the water causes its own set of problems. Riding a wave all the way in is fine when the way is clear, but a ride that carries you across the path of surfers still waiting for their turn is a slip. Come in along the edge of the whitewater, away from the rip channel, or on a wave that takes you clear of the riders, and do not cut across the people still in the lineup.

Keep the board under control as you come in. Hold it by the rail and keep the leash attached. A loose board can hit someone, and in the shorebreak it can be thrown into people or into surfers still paddling out, so keep hold of it until you are clear of the breaking water.

Hogging the waves

Sitting near the peak is not the fault in itself. Most waves start to break there, so surfers who want good waves naturally sit close to it. The slip regulars object to is hogging: taking every set wave that comes through, then paddling back to the inside of people who have been waiting, cutting past them to get back into position. A surfer who does this may catch plenty of waves, but everyone else in the session gets very few.

The fix is to count your waves and let some go. If someone else is closer to the peak and in position, give them the wave. After a ride, paddle back around the outside of the people who have been waiting, rather than cutting through the inside of them. Taking turns is the habit regulars notice most, and it costs very little. A session shared fairly tends to run more smoothly for everyone in it, including the surfer who was tempted to take every wave.

A quick check helps before you paddle for a wave. Look back over the last few sets and note who has been waiting through them while you rode most of the waves. If someone farther in has gone without for several sets, let the next wave go to them, even if you are closer to the peak. Giving up a wave at the right moment shows the other surfers that you are paying attention to the whole session, not just to your own ride.

Smaller habits that add up

Some slips are so small they barely register, yet they compound. Paddling for every wave in a set, even when others are closer, is a common one. Forgetting to look behind you before you paddle for a wave is another, because a surfer who does not check can paddle straight onto a wave someone else is already riding. Many surfers also forget to acknowledge a wave given to them by someone else, and a simple nod or a raised hand costs nothing and keeps the lineup friendly.

Yelling or cursing at other surfers, even after a collision, tends to escalate things and rarely helps. If something has gone wrong, a calm word is usually enough. The surfers who are most respected in a lineup are usually the ones who stay predictable, leave room for others and handle mistakes without making them bigger. Watching a few sessions and copying those habits is often the fastest way to fit in.