How to do a first takeoff of fins on a longboard

The modern longboard has truly evolved from its ancestral counterparts of the 1950s and 1960s. With today’s modern foam blanks, epoxy pop-outs, and lightweight glasswork, surfing on a longboard today It has attracted a large part of the surfing population. From kids to aging baby boomers, more and more surfers are grabbing a longboard and paddling out for some fun. Longboarding has created an avenue for anyone to get out on the water and really enjoy themselves. Even when the swell is small and uncooperative, the extra glide and float provided by a longboard adds to the fun factor.

Starting in the 1970s, long boards began to be relegated to the higher performing short boards. Lighter, faster and more maneuverable, the shortboard has taken the sport of surfing to an incredibly high level of performance. With this progressive evolution of high-speed turns and carvings, the learning curves increased, the youth began to dominate athletically, and the need for bigger, more powerful waves became a prerequisite for fun.

But the classic longboard soon began its own renaissance and today is the weapon of choice for millions of surfers around the world. With his appearance we have also seen many of the old tricks performed by the classic hodads of the 1960’s. Crossover steps, nose riding, headstand and spin were all favorite maneuvers and were commonly referred to as hot dogs. A really fun hot dog maneuver was the first flipper takeoff and in this article, we’re going to break this move down, step by step, and show you how it’s done.

The first takeoff of the fins on a longboard is particularly striking to watch. At over nine feet long, seeing one of these floating behemoths take off backwards, fin first, and turn 180 degrees is a pretty cool thing to see. Especially if it’s done with smoothness, purpose, and style.

So, in an effort to make this fairly easy to understand, let’s break it down into three simple steps.

catching the wave

Even though we are taking off on this wave backwards, or tail first, we still have to paddle towards the wave and catch it just as we would if we were surfing the normal nose first position. Flip the board so that the tail is now in front. That was pretty easy, wasn’t it?

Now you’ll probably notice that to prevent the rear fin, which is now attached to the front, from sinking into the water, you’ll have to unnaturally slide back closer to the nose of the board, behind you. This way, with the fin sitting high in the water, you can paddle to the next wave without it catching on the water and causing you to turn prematurely too soon. Be sure to employ this technique by keeping your fin dry and out of the water even as you paddle out and catch the wave.

The first takeoff of the fin

At this point, the tail of the board is in front of you and you’ve paddled, caught a wave, but haven’t gotten up and off the ground yet. While perched on the edge, just before the wave has started to break, the wave face will be below you. Keep the fin up and out of the water during this split second of takeoff. Keeping your weight back and towards your nose will take care of this very well.

Now that it is time to stand up, you will need to make this change of foot. Yes, that’s right… If you were a dumb foot, you would have to stand up with your normal foot. If you are a normal foot, you will have to stand up like a fool foot. By forcing yourself to jump into a switch-foot position, once the longboard rotates 180 degrees, you’ll be riding the face in your normal, comfortable stance.

I know some surfers insist on standing up normally and changing stances after the whip, but for me that method is flawed. At first it seems awkward. It’s one of those after-the-fact moves that a lot of times just doesn’t look that smooth.

Secondly, if you find yourself taking off in a more critical part of the wave, you will be much better prepared to handle the fall because once your board has turned around, you will already be in your natural stance.

putting it all together

The initial jump into the switch stance position, for some, is a bit awkward at first, but it is the preferred technique. Once you’ve done it a few times, it will come naturally to you and you’ll be pretty comfortable with it. Another key to this trick is to practice planting your weight-bearing foot on your nose when you first stand up. This really helps keep the fin out of the water and prevents a premature and disastrous early turn. However, once you stand up with your weight toward the nose, immediately shift your weight onto your front foot, which will push the tail down, causing the fin to catch and the board to spin like a tongue depressor on roller bearings. balls.

First fin takeoffs are so much fun on those little musky days when you want to mix it up a bit. The old-time hot dog may not be what it used to be…but there’s nothing wrong with having a couple of old-school tricks in your arsenal of maneuvers.