Ask any surfer about their relationship with surfing, and chances are they’ll talk about the feeling of riding their first real wave.
Test me on this.
Read any interview with any well-known surfer and you will almost always find a reference to that first real wave—the moment of gliding across the surface that instantly hooked them.
As surfers, we’re forever chasing that first-wave feeling.
Here’s the best part: the feeling never goes away. It doesn’t fade with time. Somehow, the more you surf, the better it gets.
Quick sidebar: don’t get hung up on the wording. If your “first wave” was a clumsy wobble followed by a splash, you’re in great company. We’ve all been there. What we’re talking about is the first time you feel like you’re soaring across the ocean, weightless and gliding, and you know deep in your bones you’ve never felt anything like it. It might take time to get there—but it’s worth it. And it’ll be worth it again and again.
Even if the clouds don’t part and the angels don’t sing after your first ride, don’t lose heart. You have so much joy ahead of you. Some surfing stories are slow burns. Some are lightning strikes that change everything. Whatever yours is, embrace it fully. Enjoy every session—even the brutal days. You’ll have plenty of those, and they’re part of the process.
So how do you get to that first real wave?
It comes down to two things:
- You need to be able to predict what a wave is doing.
- You need to match the speed of the wave with your arms.
That’s it.
If it feels like other surfers around you are catching wave after wave, they’re not magical.
They’ve simply spent more time in the water. They’ve gotten better at reading waves, built stronger paddling muscles, and learned how to respond to what’s happening. That will be you soon.
What you can practice right now
These are the basics that stack up over time:
Pop up to your feet on dry land.
Keep your center of gravity low.
Learn how to turtle-roll your board under oncoming waves (you aspiring longboarders will thank me).
These are all important.
But predicting a wave’s behavior, and paddling for it at the right moment, are the two tallest walls you’ll climb before you get that first real glide.
How to speed up your learning curve
Watch the best surfers in the lineup, and try to emulate them.
If they’re all sitting in roughly the same spot, start 10–20 yards off the shoulder from them. Get comfortable there. Then inch your way toward where they are.
Even better: pay attention to the surfers who are just ahead of you skill-wise. They were you—maybe as recently as two weeks ago. Match their proficiency first, then find the next person to learn from.
Trying to jump from total beginner to “best surfer in the water” is like watching a Formula 1 race on TV, then hopping into your parents’ 25-year-old station wagon with them in the backseat, permit in hand, and trying to do the same thing. Unrealistic and unsafe.
One last crucial thing:
If you suddenly see everyone in the lineup paddling toward the horizon as fast as they can—don’t wait, just go.
Use the body language of the surfers around you as clues. Those clues tell you something is happening: maybe a set is coming, maybe a clean-up wave is about to unload. Turtle-rolling might not be enough.
Learning to surf is as much about watching as doing.
Pay attention.
Stay curious.
Celebrate the small wins.
Your first real wave is coming.
And when it does, you’ll understand why we never stop chasing that feeling.
