Just thought I'd throw this out there for the sake of discussion. I read a handful of surf forums (don’t worry, OSP, you’re the only one I post on ) and the topic of “what makes a surfer” comes up from time to time.
There seems to be two schools of thought around this. One goes along the line of “’do you go into the water with a surfboard?’ Then you’re a surfer!” while the other is basically a list of prerequisites (length and composition dependent on the person) that one must meet before they can even consider themselves a surfer. One regular commenter even goes as far as telling folks they are “delusional” about being a surfer if they can’t do A, B, & C list of things.
I’m the last person to judge anyone on their ability, so I tend to lean towards the former definition. I like to surf, I have the equipment, I go regularly, so therefore I’d like to consider myself a surfer. However, when talking to other people who actually know how to surf well (hello, all) I definitely do not feel like a surfer. I feel like the kook that I really am.
So, while I doubt I’ll ever really be satisfied with my ability level, based on a few other discussions I’ve read, I’ve cobbled together a list of goals that I have set for myself in order to feel like a (more) competent surfer. Or, if anything, a little bit less of a kook.
That all being said, what makes a competent surfer?
Having the ability to:
1) Read a surf report and glean pertinent information from it
2) Paddle out to the lineup without issue
3) Duck dive/turtle roll without issue
4) Catch a green/unbroken wave consistently
5) Drop in and Pop-up cleanly and consistently
6) Trim left or right on a wave consistently
7) Do a bottom turn and go back up the wave consistently
I’m sure there’s more, especially regarding etiquette, etc., but those are my current goals. Making good progress on some, others I still have a bit more work to do. Anything I left out? Anything I put in that should be taken out? In your opinion, what makes a competent surfer?