After I had established a regular program for my return to surfing, I found things entirely different from the few days spent with (Grman photographer) Hanns Hubmann.

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The beginner and the philosophy of sur ng
APRIL 28, 2021 | SURFING

2. After I had established a regular program for my return to sur ng, I
found things entirely different from the few days spent with [German
photographer] Hanns Hubmann.
For the rst month, I was still pretty weak, but I was stimulated by the competition from Larry and
George, who were getting better fast.
I learned again that paddling was half the battle and that to paddle properly, you had to have the
board at just the right angle, or it will not glide.
This is a few degrees above the horizontal.
If it is lower than this, the nose will go under, and if it is much higher, paddling is very di cult.
For best results, the tip should be an inch or two above the water, which is known as keeping a trim
board.

3. As you prepare to take a stroke, you raise yourself on the board until your chest is eight inches or so
above it and thrust your arms forward as far as you can reach, taking a double stroke, pulling hard
through the water as you would when doing the butter y.
This means you must use your shoulders to prevent the arms from becoming tired too quickly.
Some people prefer to paddle in the kneeling position, which is more common in California, where
the water is cold and where the surfer can be recognized by his characteristic blue color.
It is more di cult for a beginner to hold his balance this way, but an experienced surfer often nds
that a greater leverage and sweep is possible from this position.
This is especially true for apes, orangutans, and ordinary people with long arms.
When paddling in the kneeling position, I prefer my legs splayed a bit and my knees almost together,
with the balls of my feet on the board, which again increases the leverage.
Many surfers, however, prefer their legs parallel a few inches in on the board with their insteps at
and the soles of their feet pointing toward the sky.
This method has the magni cent advantage of allowing one to commercialize on the soles of one's
feet, which may be used for advertising; Jersey Joe Walcott initiated this epoch-making idea in his
rst ght with Joe Louis.
(He was not expected to win.)
Although few surfers will be able to resist the blandishments of commerce, repeated knee paddling
sometimes induces bone-like "surfers knots" on the bursa over the knee-cap - a sort of sur ng
version of housemaid's knee, which apart from producing knobby knees of considerable ugliness, is
extremely painful and has been known to require surgery.
Some surfers alternate between the prone and the kneeling position to relieve certain muscles when
they are tired, but in the long run, your choice is largely a matter of personal comfort.

4. Building Surf Skills at Waikiki
When I began sur ng again with Larry and George, they had been at it about a month, and in self-
respect, I had tried to start at their level of pro ciency.
I felt, quite wrongly as it turned out, that I was past the beginner's stage.
As has been suggested, a beginner should take lessons for the rst week.
(Barry Napoleon says many of those sur ng stories in James Michener's books are based on truth,
girls!)
If you cannot afford lessons, you are better advised to catch broken waves with white water (soup)
and ride them lying down.
For this, you must rst paddle out to a point where the waves have broken.
After making sure you are in nobody's way, station yourself in the center of the advancing waves and
wait for your opportunity.
When you have recovered from paddling out and fell ready for a wave, face toward the shore.