Draw your line

I always looked at it as picking a path along the face of the wave and surfing that path (or line). For me, taking the "high line" is fun since you get a lot of speed going down the wave.

 

Like McLovin said, it means picking a path. Mountain bikers, snowboarders/skiers, etc. talk about the same thing.

But I like to think that in surfing it means a bit more... there's a creative/expressive connotation hidden under the definition of the phrase. Unlike skiers or bikers, who pick a line from a purely functional perspective... the fastest or safest line... surfers pick a line that allows them to approach the wave from an expressive point of view in combination with a functional point of view. For example, how far out on the shoulder you go before your cutback will determine whether you'll do a full figure 8 wrap-around, or a more slashing, tighter radius top turn. Both are functional turns, both considered "cutbacks," but approached very differently, drawing very different lines on the wave face.

In addition to that, your equipment will often set the limits on what lines you can draw.

 

For years my orientation was always down almost at my feet. I would do whatever I felt like without care for what was coming. I can tell you that learning to look down the line and choosing your path will make you surf better. Once I broke the habit of "looking at myself surf" and actually surfing the wave that was there I improved by 100%. Drawing a line happens so fast it's not like your thinking about it it just happens eventually with practice.

 

Also, surfers have to pick their line spontaneously as the wave develops - in the mountains or paddling rivers you can choose your line and study it from above and below before you drop in and you sort of know what to expect. Waves in the ocean don't reveal themselves - or their possible lines - until they're happening...

 

its also what kind of bottom turn you want to take which sets you up for the rest of the wave.