AboutKat Dawes Expertise I'M SORRY I DON'T DO WINDSURFING!
I am the sub-editor and editorial assistant for Carve and SurfGirl magazines, based in the UK. I can answer questions about all aspects of surfing: equipment, travel, history, culture, locations in the UK, the pro tour, training for surfing, technique, women`s surfing, forecasting, surf media and so on.
Experience I am the sub-editor and editorial assistant for Carve and SurfGirl surfing magazines, based in
the UK. I have been surfing for 12 years in Wales and Cornwall. I have also travelled to
Australia and various European locations to surf.
Publications Carve and SurfGirl magazines
Education/Credentials 15 A grades, BA and MA in English Literature.
Question I am having difficulty standing up on my board!!! Any tips?
Answer You need a certain amount of upper body strength, this is a reason lots of girls find it hard to get up there. Do some gym work and/or swimming and a few press-ups and pull-ups won't hurt either.
Practice on dry land. Jump up and check your stance, then do it again about 10 times. It needs to be an automatic reaction, as you don't have a lot of time to get it right out there in the sea.
Make sure you catch a wave/line of whitewater with enough power to propel you forward for a good few seconds, to give you a chance to stabilise the board and pop up.
Make sure you have caught the wave before you try to stand up or you've no chance. The board needs to accelerate under you.
Try not to use one knee. This is a bad habit to get into! You should be up in one smooth movement.
Both hands go flat on the deck of the board and you push your chest off, followed by the rest of your torso then jump! and shove your front foot under you. Your back foot will follow and should land near the tail. Stay low to keep your balance, knees bent and arms out to avoid wobbles.
When paddling, keep your chest up off the board, your back arched, and paddle with deep strokes. It means you can see what's going on, you'll catch waves easier and paddle faster (even though the position feels strange at first; watch other surfers, they all do it) and also once you've caught the wave and try to stand your chest is already off the board so you're not having to push so much of your weight up with your arms.
Ollypop towels are available - these come printed with hands and feet to provide pop-up practice. Sounds odd but reportedly works well. Google them.
You should have a board with plenty of volume which will be stable enough for you to get up on. Hopefully you're not attempting to ride a high-performace shortboard just yet!
That's about all I can think of right now, except the mental side of things - believe you can do it (training helps here too), visualise yourself doing it, watch others doing it, and tell yourself you can. Focus when you're out there - ignore your surfing mates, anyone with a camera trained on you, and other distractions (but mind you don't surf into anyone else, of course!). Be thinking about the wave and only the wave (become one with the wave…no, sorry…going too far!)
Smaller summer warmer waves coming our way, perfect for perfecting those pop-ups, so you'll have no trouble sorting this out I'm sure!
