I have made a series of videos for YouTube titled “Mastering a Mid Length.” Anyone who follows my content or engages with my coaching knows that I’m a stickler for getting proficient at larger boards before you step on anything under 6’6”. My own surfing was built on a 7’2” Doug Haut swallow tail with three glassed-on fins. It was about 3” thick and I couldn’t duckdive it to save my life. Granted, I weighed about 70lbs at the time — I was 11-13 years old — but still my dad’s philosophy for my surfing was the same: “If you’re not catching waves, you’re not surfing.” He wanted me in early, setting up my rides, and with enough speed generated by the board alone to develop a smooth style before I learned to pump. As much as it wrankled me as a kid — this was the heyday of the “glass slipper” style shortboards in the 1990s — I now can’t thank him enough for curbing my enthusiasm to hack and whip and rip. If you can build fundamentals on a larger board the smaller ones should be easier. However the knife doesn’t cut both ways. Shorter boards, while seemingly easier to turn, are unforgiving with misplaced weight and thus can be slow and awkward if you’re not either a.) very, very light and agile, i.e., a child; or b.) already a pro surfer (in which case you learned when you were light and agile and you’ve probably stayed light and agile). For more in depth analysis of the physics of surfing a mid length make sure to subscribe to my newsletters and follow the YouTube channel!

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