Pushing my limits to the next level.

Just one man's opinion but...
Move away from VB... it is truly the ball sack of the east coast for waves or just travel (OBX or elsewhere) when you can...surf good waves.
Surf with good surfers... someone to push you to go big ...a crew to amp with you can be huge.
Talk to a shaper...get boards that will help take you to the next level.
Watch videos... Archy, Gorkin, Fletcher, Ozzy... they go for it...sometimes I just watch Rodney Mullen skate videos pre surf...that dude 1. shows me how much I suck at skating but 2. makes me want to do something rad
but what do I know?

 

Just go out there and take it one wave at a time..

I don't have a crew to surf with but it helps me to just look around and see the others grabbing waves. When I'm having a rough day this can get frustrating but turn that into motivation to help drive you to take that steep drop etc...

"I have surprised myself in the past when I did make the hairy drops. I know I have more skill than I let myself believe. Just hold back too much." You need to believe it !! Mind over matter.. you have done it before!

 

Dude, I can't tell you how many times I used to watch Rodney tear it up on the wooden stick. Have you seen the video from 1984 in Japan? That's some classy footwork.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuMmT3E-KVU

 

This sounds like something I can relate to, some days I go out and my mind is where it needs to be and i don't hold back and I end up making some waves that some days I wouldn't think possible. Those days where i'm not "feeling it" I tend to only get the ones I know I can get and the ones that look like a wipeout waiting to happen i hold back on. So the key I find is to just tell yourself F it and just go and don't look back, just go...

And by just going, you FORCE yourself into a position to where you HAVE to do something.

 

i agree with everything this guy said.for those who dont know about ozzie wright,check him out.crazy aussie that absolutely rips no matter what the conditions are.watch doped youth,one of the best surf movies.they have it on vimeo.com for free,just search doped youth.when paddlin for a big set,make sure u put in 2 extra paddles so u dont get stuck in the lip.id say go balls to the wall,or just wait on the shoulder and drop in but thats cheesy.i hate seein this kids waste perfect waves by not being deep enough.rodney mullen is the sickest skater that ever lived.i grew up skatin bowls so im pretty good at carvin,layin it on rail.i dont have much advice for older guys gettin into surfin,when your young your loose and can transfer easy.like the great surfers say,learn all your hotdoggin moves on a 3ft wave,then transform that to bigger waves.another thing travel,always show respect.last winter in hawaii,i surfed 8-10ft sunset,which are like 20-25ft faces.your so far out u cant see the beach,just focus on your positioning.u surf waves like that,then come back to the eastcoast and a 10ft day is a walk in the park!!remember fear is a cancer,u have to cut it out before it kills u.greg long nearly died at cortes bank,meanwhile some kook in longbranch got rescued by a helicopter.dont be that guy!

 

Just spend more time on a shortboard. and you'll get the timing, paddling technique back for a shorter board. Maybe look for spots that tend to break a little softer slower if possible on the better days. Perhaps not what would be the textbook "best spot" for the day, but still maybe the "best spot" for you getting back into it.

I'm sure I'll get flamed for this, but it is simply easier to be proficient on on a longboard. I've done both since I started surfing many years ago, and I enjoy both, but it's just true in my opinion.

I can go a looong time without riding a longboard, but then if I pull one out, it's pretty easy to pickup where I left off.... The reverse is not true. If I spend along time not riding a shortboard, it takes a while to really get back into the groove.

 

Sound advice.....Get used to that shortboard in some sloping surf before you hit the steep stuff.

 

That is insane.

 

I find taking a good thrashing then catching a couple set waves on the head on the first wave of a session puts me in the right frame of mind and takes away any apprehension I may have had before paddling out. I don't know, maybe I'm weird but it really does pump me up to charge the hardest I can.

 

Kinda like professional fighters who need to get punched 1st before they really get into the fight and go after the guy.

 

Yes, same here, after taking a good beating I think to myself that it wasn't that bad and can then get in the zone and properly charge.

 

Hunter Thompson wrote about something like this in "Hells Angels". it had to do with how the Angels are so relaxed go top speed into a curve into the road. they were so relaxed becuase they have already "gone over the rail" and survived to ride again. he wrote about how all these karate experts would walk into bars looking for a fight and how the angels and bar tenders would whup em just because they were always getting into brawls.

could be the same thing with surfing. more time in the water. more times going over the falls and coping beatings. eventually you just go and don't think about it.

maybe thats the best advice. don't think just go.

 

So true... I find myself much more committed after a good ass kicking. Once you take the worst, it's a lot easier to go for it with out hesitation.

 

Doing a massive amount of push ups should help your pop up speed, which is def crucial to charging pumping surf and harrowing drops.