Surfing Etiquette In The Water






During the last 2 months surfing in Cherating, C-Bay, Quarry, Kijal, KT, i notice alot of angry and disappointed surfers in the water. We are here to highlight the potential mistakes and misunderstanding. This is just our piece of thoughts, if any of you are not happy with it, dont get offended. I give you a classic example of Cherating beach as below;

- Too many beginners surfing at the main point. If you are a beginner, stay at the lower section of the spot. You have a better chance of getting a waves and having fun with it. If you stay at the main point, your chances of getting waves are very very low and you might get hurt if you are in the way of other surfer ridding the waves.

- Surfers dropping in.....this really pissed everyone off. Dont ever do this as this is very dangerous. IF someone already riding the waves, stop dreaming of catching the waves. Just paddle towards the waves, away from the surfer and wait for the next waves. Please DONT PRETEND you didnt see the surfer ridding the waves and dropping in on the surfer. No matter where you go, you will get the gnarly treatment if you drop in. I have seen surfers got bashed up in the water and out of the water when they drop in.....in alot of countries.

- If you are not a strong paddler,  paddle far out! Dont paddle direct to the point as you might be in the way of the surfers that is ridding the waves. Remember, the more you paddle, the better surfer you are!! If you think you want to improve your surfing, improve your paddling too!!!

- Dont throw your board if a waves rolls on you. Your board might hit another surfer near by. Learn to duck dive, if u cant duck dive or dont know what is duck dive, practice it or dont stay at point!!!

- Pay Respect to Local Surfers!!! No matter how good or bad is your surfing skills, you can always afford a smile or a nod whenever you see a surfers. Whenever you first paddling into the ocean, you can just say hi or give a smile to show your respect. In return, im sure you will get back your respect.
I have seen recently a surfer got shouted and chased out of Cherating beach.  Unfortunately, this guy is a good surfer but he have no respect and very selfish. He almost knock his board on kids several times, thus we find him a very dangerous surfer. If he ever do again, we will make sure he will never surf in our beach again!!!

- Know your surfing rules before you start surfing!!! Get a surf lessons!!

- I have seen many fresh starter surfing with small boards. GUYS or GIRLS, get the right board!!! Dont listen to your friends if his surfing level is average only. If you use the wrong board, you will only struggle to surf and ended giving up surfing!!! I know longboard is heavy and big to carry but for a beginner that is the best bet. You will have fun ridding the waves with it. I know it is more style to carry small boards on land, but we will only see you struggling in the water. heheheheehhehehe

- As everyone knows, surfing is booming in Malaysia and everyone is keen to learn to surf. We are very happy to introduce surfing and seeing surfing in Malaysia move to the next level...We are proud to share the waves but again, please learn your way up. If you are not sure, can always ask....its free!!! We dont charge you for any questions!!! Feel free.....

P/S- All it takes is just 3 fins on top of your head or your body. This cut is deep enough to rip your skin apart and sent you to hospital. Or even the board hitting your eyes!! So please, learn the basics and enjoy the ride. Don’t let your fun be your enemy.

3 comments:

  1. Greetings.

    Can I share the info here at my blog?

    Thanks~

    ReplyDelete
  2. KamaLklique, sorry for late reply. You can always share the info here. You can also contribute any good info in my blog as well. Just feel free to email me details and pictures!! Thanks!! Happy Surfing!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes i think surf etiquette 101 is the FIRST thing that surf schools should teach their beginners. Heaps of surf schools popping up where we are in bali and churning out new surfers by the day, and the thing they fail to teach their beginners are the valuable rules! It's been busier, v dangerous and also a spike in punch ups in the water. The best i heard a couple of weeks ago in the water was..."but i pay good money to be in the water "! I almost fell off my board laughing!

    Awesome blog btw, Bryan! Keep em wise words coming! :)

    -Cheryl

    ReplyDelete