East coast kook questions

waves are influenced by the ocean floor.on the east coast u will notice one spot completely flat and dumping on the shore,while further down the road,say near a jetty with a constant rip next to it,scurries out the sand and builds up a nice sandbar on the outside of the jetty.the swell will come in and jack off the jetty.anywhere theres a rip,there will be a sandbar on the outside that will produce decent surf.a beach with a flat ocean floor will only have closeouts,which are not good.sup,i dont quite understand it,but iv seen a lot of flix of people charging 30 ft waves on sups,so some people can do it,others cant.lifeguards are buzz kills,and should only be at places like belmar,where theres a thousand people who cant swim.belmar is a great place,the sandbars are awesome,but i stopped going there years ago because of the crowds.id say belmar is up there with the inlet as far as crowds.never turn your back on the ocean.watch out for the clean up sets that sends kooks throwing their boards and diving under the waves.surfing brings people together from all different nations.its a beautiful thing

 

Welcome to the East Coast.

I credit the SUP craze to people who are looking for an easy transition into the aquatic lifestyle. I have yet to try a SUP, but I want to. It gets flat on the East side and you will get tired to looking at the Atlantic Lake - SUP is a great option to stay active on the water. I have seen a few SUPs in the lineup - not too big on surfing one, but its their choice.

Sure, some may consider lifeguards to be a "buzzkill," but they are there for a reason. It comes down to the lifeguard to determine if they are a "buzzkill" or not. Some guards take their job too seriously and it makes them seem like they are being over protective, but in reality, they are there to keep us safe and in the water. The last thing they want is something to happen on their watch. The guards are not too bad here in NC, but it seems like people have more issues with them up North.

I was a surf instructor for three years. We teach the students what they pay for - to learn how to surf. Plus, most people that I taught were from out of town and they just wanted to take a few surfing pictures to show their friends, back in Ohio. Very rarely do I see a former pupil surfing around my break.

 

I can say from personal experience you won't regret getting one if you do decide to give it a shot. I suggest renting a couple times if you aren't 100% sure about making that investment. I find most people don't "get it" but I certainly do, and after almost 17 years of surfing prone the SUP is a nice change of pace for days like you describe, but also in the surf when you are good enough to paddle out without looking like a danger to those around you. I don't use it as my primary mode of catching waves, but occassionally I giver her a go and it's fun. Most often i'm on my McTavish or WRV Fish, it's just good to have options, especially with inconsistent surf conditions and flat spells. It's actually what got me back in shape and motivated to get better prone surfing, which I have exponentially since i've gotten the SUP a little over a year ago. Go for it dude...

 

One of these days, I am going to rent one to see what the rage is about. I like the idea and they look cool, but before I drop the dime, I want to make sure that it's worth it (should be). As I said, I think a SUP would be awesome to float around the river or take it out on a flat day. I will keep you posted, as you are the master SUP'er on this forum.

 

I always thought that jetties seemed like sort-of-phallic projections into the ocean. This just confirms it.

To answer your questions:

Yes, jetties make a difference. They allow sandbars to form more consistently, and sandbars are just about the only surfable thing that East Coast waves break on.

SUP is largely pointless except that you can catch really tiny bumps that even longboards can't, but unless you're not doing it off a lineup people are going to get majorly pissed at you.

Lifeguards are nuts because we have so many idiot tourists who come here and try to drown themselves (whether they realize what they're doing or not). People come to the East Coast and don't respect the ocean like they might at more famous breaks. Our breaks often look tame but then people get caught in rip currents and the lifeguards are forced to swim for them and bring them back to shore. I'm sure they're tired of idiots so they're really strict on swimming areas and ****.

Surf schools aren't good at teaching ****. They're in it for profit and most of them just don't care. People aren't paying to be schooled on etiquette, and unlike learning hand signals and ascension techniques in SCUBA, nobody's around to tell the surf schools that they have to teach any given thing. Surf schools piss just about every surfer off. Also, a lot of experienced surfers know etiquette but just disregard it (which I hate). East Coast surf is largely groveling for waves, and people just take anything they can get with disregard to other people.

 

The guards I know who surf are some of the coolest people in the water. Some of the guards I know who are former "athletes," who don't surf, are some of the biggest d-bags when doing their jobs, and seem to get of on some kind of power trip. So... please to stereotype all guards, and realize that any moment, they could be faced with a quite literally life-and-death situation, which may or may not mean putting their own life on the line. It's not all just sitting there with your shades on checking out the hotties.

I also ran a surf school for kids, for years, and the first thing we talked about is "the rules." That was before anybody even did a pop up on the sand. If instructors are not doing that today, then they're NOT doing a good job, they're doing a disservice to the surfing community and the integrity of the sport, and they're cheating their clients out of what they should be getting for their money. Surfing isn't just riding waves... there's a lot more to it than that, IMO. As a young kid in my town once said to me, "there's more to being a good surfer than just surfing good."

As for SUP... they have their place. It's harder than it looks, but it can be a lot of fun. Especially when you paddle out to some outer shoals, or reefs and have fun surf all to yourself.

 

Cool man, it's really challenging at 1st but once you get your "sea legs" under you you'll really enjoy it. I'll be glad to help with any tips when the time comes, just PM me if you like.

 

Any idea where i'd find something like this in FL? I'm spoiled by the Inlet, but i'd venture out if it were worth it, i've never heard of anything like this around here, but i live under a rock, so IDK

 

this is like opening a can of worms!! welcome!!

 

1. I don't think I need to expand on the jetty answers as others have sufficiently answered it.

2. SUPing is awesome! I mean, I'm a surfer true and true but I tried SUPing about a month ago after a few years of scoffing it. As mentioned, it is fun because you can catch the smallest of waves. Additionally, I enjoy paddling out about a quarter of a mile or so and sitting on the board meditating. Very peaceful. Finally, if it's flat, at least you can still be in the water. I suggest trying it if you haven't done so.

3. Lifeguards are just like anyone else. Some nuts, some normal. The ones that surf are usually pretty decent though.

4. As an instructor for the AC Surf School, we spend about a half hour on the beach explaining ocean safety and surfing etiquette. I think it's why we do so well. People appreciate the knowledge and not just being thrown in the water. Why other schools don't teach these things is beyond me. They just churn out kooks that either get in the way or injure themselves and others. It's a shame really.

 

Ask the Sebastian Inlet Crew if jetties really work.

 

SUP...killer excercise head to toe...literally. When it's flat as hell like it usually is down where i'm at...a sup is a great way to mess around in the water and be on a board. but those morons who are clueless and just create a messed situation on SUPs when there are actual waves need to take it somewhere else...preferably like 10 feet out of the way. welcome to the east coast man...as much as it sucks just remember one simple thing...you could always be landlocked

 

I did see a crazy nut SHARK fishing on a SUP. Fun adrenalin rush or Darwin at work, you decide:

http://www.worldfishingnetwork.com/users/fastlanesc/blog/stand-up-paddle-board-shark-fishing-8710.aspx

 

SUP pisses me off! Way harder than it looks, I am sticking with surfing for the time being.

 

Just looks like a bad idea. My uncle runs a charter out of Montauk, and those threshers are dangerous even when on a 60 foot Hatteras. Whatever torques your twanger I guess.

 

I hope everyone who keeps bashing SUP has actually tried it. I have not had the chance to try it, but I am going to give it a shot before I share my thoughts; positive or negative. I feel like SUP does not get the credit it deserves, as people are so quick to dog it to "fit in" with your cool and tough buddies.

I know some smarta$$ is going to "reply with quote" and say "I hate SUPs because they get in my *way* and they say that I'm softer than my soft top, etc." Every SUP, like every surfer, controls their own actions - not all SUP'ers are going to get in your way and so forth.

The same goes for lifeguards - not every lifeguard is going to be a "buzzkill." Don't let one (or more) bad experiences generalize other lifeguards forever. Bad vibes go a long way.

 

+1 man, well said

 

I tried out an SUP for the first time recently. Definitely had fun on it. Was at a beach where the waves only broke on the sand bar at low tide and turned into shore break at high. With an SUP, was able to ride the high tide bumps over the bar without them ever breaking.

Balance wasn't much of an issue, but paddling and getting into position on a wave was much more challenging than I would have thought.

I enjoyed just paddling up and down an empty beach and riding in bumps as they came. Pretty mellow experience.