How To Wipe Out Properly

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Hehehehehehehe wipe ooooout!! Those famous Beach boys lyrics have forever ingrained the word in our culture, but wiping out is serious business. Most of the bad things than can happen while surfing do so during a wipe out; injuries, broken boards, collisions and worse. There will be times when you are held under for longer than you like and other where you don't know which way is up. But there is actually a way to properly fall to help decrease the chances of something bad happening. Experienced surfers will do it out of reaction, but with a little bit of practice, you can wipe out properly as well.

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Rant by grumpleflump

6 comments

Dog
2 years ago

Wasn't it the Surfaris the wrote "Wipe Out"?

magic_surf_bus
2 years ago

So, what's the proper technique for bailing from your board when you get folded up inside a decent sized tube? I've never been deep enough in a OH+ wave to get shacked.

Do you simply try and drop down below your board if you fall off so that it doesn't whip around on the lip of the wave and bash you?

waveslave
2 years ago

I usually try to land side ways so that i don't get twisted upside down or backwards. I have been almost broke in half before getting shacked when its heavy and shallow from getting pinned on the bottom and then being flipped from the wash. Basically, you just want to try to land flat, or sideways to avoid back or shoulder injury. i have recieved both.

Zurffy
2 years ago

Good advice! Also just stay on your board as long as possible when in the barrel... it is a lot safer in there than getting smacked by the lip or over the falls... etc. Basically stay as close to the surface as you can.

madpie
2 years ago

For some reason, I get hurt in the barrel going backside, but not frontside. Maybe it's just a fluke, but backside I always feel like I end up getting thrashed with the board right with me, so that I get bashed by the board, etc. Frontside, I seem to do a better job of falling back into the foam ball and letting the board go out ahead of me.

Now that I think about it, it sort of makes sense, since if the lip hits you on the back of the head when you're going backside it's going to throw you forward, whereas the reverse is true going frontside.

SurfScience
2 years ago

Maybe we'll have to do a "How to wipe out properly: Advanced Edition". This one was more for the beginners who will be learning this summer. Hopefully there are a few less injuries and dinged boards as a result.