Wow. After a week with Clay and OMBE Surf team this video really resonated with me. I went from 9 ft board with mega volume to. 6’8” quad in one week. Never realized how stuck I was just surfing down the line or how much progress in carving I could see in such a short time. Came away with with even more love for surfing and desire to improve that I thought possible at the age of 68!
👆 this is why do what we do. Thankyou for sharing. Honestly this is the best feeling, nothing beats helping someone find their flow. Keeps the stoke of surfing alive for us
4:30, this was something that changed surfing for me many many years ago. I never did my turns in the pocket so i was always struggling to maintain speed,i was always out onto the shoulder. Once i started drawing out them bottom turns/holding them for a second or so longer and pulling up right next to the white water, the amount of speed the wave gives you is more than when you take off. I realized i was too worried about getting hit by the white water so i'd play it safe on the shoulder but didn't realize that even doing turns close to the breaking part i was still traveling with the wave.
It's holding longer than you think yeah? It's one of the most common issues in our community and coaching! Even after years of coaching, if not diligent, we still see this manifesting itself in people surfing, and you have to address firstly the knowledge and or awareness of it. Then we usually find ourselves playing more of a mental coaching role than surf technique coaching as it's the mental state that can be the root cause for some surfers as they are in flight mode on the wave and unaware that they are. This is where video analysis is key. Just to highlight the undeniable proof for them that they are actually on the shoulder of the wave and not in the pocket where they thought they were.
I wish I'd seen this 10 years ago... Clay's explanations are so clear and suddenly it all makes sense, like a revelation.... Feel I've been surfing so dumb 😅 - thanks folks! Your course was also great! keep rockin'!
To have access to this advice is an absolute privilege. I'm from Ireland and am imagining guys 30 years ago when TH-cam wasn't a thing and information of this kind was impossible to access. Thank you so much Clayton and OMBE. Incredible channel I find this information invaluable.
Thanks so much Cain and Dave! This is exactly the reason we started OMBE 👆. We exist to help everyday surfers shortcut the 30 years of frustration. The right information and training can open a whole new world of surfing stoke. If our training works for you please do us a solid and share our channel and give us a follow🙏 we are on a mission to help a million surfers shortcut the shit lessons we learnt the hard way
You might bump into my friend Jason also out there, big place of course. He was telling me how nice the waves are but also how its pretty cool that we have similar quality here in Ireland. Nice thought, enjoy man! I'm heading to Lahinch in two days time, cannot wait!
One thing a young shaper should do is make a modern performance board but keep all of the rails very soft and very round and tell the glasser not to add an edge. It won't turn at all, and will feel slow and boggy, unless you have extremely large fins, and you will probably never surf it more than a few times just as a learning experience. Conversely make the same board but with all of the rails hard and square, exactly like they are in the tail. This board will work, but will feel terrible, like you have a very small fin near the rail in the middle or forward section of the board, as the hard edge bites and tries to redirect and pull the nose up the wave face. Surfing these two boards is really the only way to completely understand why rails fade out the way they do and in the location they do. A lot of people misunderstand the physics behind it as well. A hard edge redirects water, throwing it cleanly away from the board at some angle, accelerating the water away from the board (a change in direction is technically acceleration). Because net force = mass x acceleration, there is an acceleration applied to the water as its being redirected, as mass is obviously conserved, a net force is applied, and you can turn. Soft rails do not do this, they do not redirect water and throw it off at an angle, so there is no ''acceleration'' of water (mass) and thus no turning. On a 3D wave face, soft rails don't create much net suction and rather slip past the water so there is no bite, no drive, and no real turning ability. They are designed to stay out of the way and stabilize the board, letting the trail drive and turn. So even when you are turning with your front foot, most of the turning is still really being done in the back third of the board. That's one small reason why boards from the early 80's sucked. The rails were all kinds of wrong.
Thanks so much, Sagara. Comments like these keep us on the path and making fresh content for you all! Be stoked if you'd help us spread the message by leaving a review - g.page/r/CRNO0LEHErKAEB0/review
Great insight from Clay! Key elements to a shape are rocker, concave(s), rail profile and the template planshape. These curves work together to fit the curve of the wave, the conditions and your ability level or style of surfing. If you really want to develop your A game, work directly with a shaper to tune and refine these aspects to realize your goals related to your surfing. Recent topic in WA was the current #1 refining his rockers with his shaper. It's relevant
Hello Clay, It's exciting but it's complicated. It is already difficult to assess your level of surfing by being honest and also knowing that our age, our physical condition, our weight are also evolutionary factors that will also influence it. If we add the types of waves: beach; reef; point break; mushy; glassy; powerful or soft etc etc... Personal preferences on the type of surf you like, will influence the shape. I may never find the right board 😅 Surfistically and 👏🏻🤙🏻
Fascinating video. I especially enjoyed your visual demonstration with the tap illustrating how a boards rail interacts with the water. I’m curious, I dropknee on a bodyboard, why do body boards have sharp triangular rails rather than rounded rails like on a surf board??
Not 100% as Jeremy on of the team answering this comment I would assume for short sharp responses as you have more control of a bodyboard and your mostly in the power zone. You are not trying to hold your bottom turn or draw out a carve on the face in the same way when your on a surfboard. Essentially think it boils down to control and positioning of your lines on the wave
man, I wish I was living in gold coast to get into one of your programs. BTW, my most magic stick ever was a Red Ranga 5.6, purchased totally by chance in Tenerife, that board help me to progress a lot in a short time. A unicorn board, I ended up using it in almost any condition in norther spain for years.
The underside of the rail is so impportant and where the hard edges break depends on the surfer and the stance on the board . Pros get 10 shaped and keep one maybe two. Thats nnot viable for most surfers. Remember just because it has a named brand sticker and all the right dims doesnt mean the board wll go as welll as it should for you
Hey Clay, great explanation! Quick question: I'm 182 cm and about 77/78 kgs. Currently I'm on a 6'0 x 20 1/2 x 2 3/4 with 36,3 liters (intermediate level surfer) so its quiet a fat one :) I would like to take the volume down a bit because I feel like its hindering my progression at that point as I feel like I'm surfing very flat as you explained and having trouble getting the board on rail. Might also be technique but the 6'0 of mine has like a mini mal body to it so it makes it even harder I feel like. To my question :D I'm having the chance to get the JS zero second hand in 5'10 x 19 3/4 x 2 5/8 (easy rider dimensions) with 32,4 liters. Do you think thats a good option for an everyday board? Or is that jump from 36 to 32 liters to much? I'm 31 years and would call myself a fit guy :) Thanks a lot!
Thanks for the question, Julian. Can’t comment on the board model specifically, as there a ton of variables not accounted for with advice online without seeing your surfing. Feel free to post your surfing footage in our free Surf Hacks Facebook group or community.ombe.co and I’ll try be more specific to your needs. In general as your progress your skills you want to embrace the suck of learning (failure) as a positive so you can start attempting to surf on rail. This will mean some frustrating sessions but it’s critical in your skill development so you can find new feelings that will you start to internalise as you learn to tap into the waves energy sources more. At a high level, I’d say yes, it’s sounds as you should experiment with the E equation of ombe which is actually the last part of the ombe equation we recommend changing in small measurable increments. But if you have already identified your lines, are they beg, int, or adv. you are aware of the mind state you surfing in - freeze, flight or fight mode when you attempt to take a more advanced top-to-bottom line closer to the power zones of the wave? This mindstate will undoubtedly manifest itself in your body via tension which leads to stiffness and or over moving at an intermediate level so you will want to look at smoothing out your movements and awareness of your mind affecting the body (we do this with on-land training, few different modalities but best one is surf skate in a ramp or bowl).. When you have this awareness, it makes sense to challenge your body and mind with new experiences via your equipment. So riding a surfboard that requires rail engagement will be beneficial if you know the above OMB part of the learning process. We have a course specifically on choosing the right board for where you are here👉train.ombe.co/programs/get-the-right-surfboard?category_id=124627h And have written about it here 👉 www.ombe.co/guides/finding-the-right-surfboard-and-when-to-change-boards
Wow. After a week with Clay and OMBE Surf team this video really resonated with me. I went from 9 ft board with mega volume to. 6’8” quad in one week. Never realized how stuck I was just surfing down the line or how much progress in carving I could see in such a short time. Came away with with even more love for surfing and desire to improve that I thought possible at the age of 68!
👆 this is why do what we do. Thankyou for sharing. Honestly this is the best feeling, nothing beats helping someone find their flow. Keeps the stoke of surfing alive for us
4:30, this was something that changed surfing for me many many years ago. I never did my turns in the pocket so i was always struggling to maintain speed,i was always out onto the shoulder. Once i started drawing out them bottom turns/holding them for a second or so longer and pulling up right next to the white water, the amount of speed the wave gives you is more than when you take off.
I realized i was too worried about getting hit by the white water so i'd play it safe on the shoulder but didn't realize that even doing turns close to the breaking part i was still traveling with the wave.
It's holding longer than you think yeah?
It's one of the most common issues in our community and coaching! Even after years of coaching, if not diligent, we still see this manifesting itself in people surfing, and you have to address firstly the knowledge and or awareness of it. Then we usually find ourselves playing more of a mental coaching role than surf technique coaching as it's the mental state that can be the root cause for some surfers as they are in flight mode on the wave and unaware that they are. This is where video analysis is key. Just to highlight the undeniable proof for them that they are actually on the shoulder of the wave and not in the pocket where they thought they were.
I wish I'd seen this 10 years ago... Clay's explanations are so clear and suddenly it all makes sense, like a revelation.... Feel I've been surfing so dumb 😅 - thanks folks! Your course was also great! keep rockin'!
Pay it forward and help make someone else’s day!
To have access to this advice is an absolute privilege. I'm from Ireland and am imagining guys 30 years ago when TH-cam wasn't a thing and information of this kind was impossible to access. Thank you so much Clayton and OMBE. Incredible channel I find this information invaluable.
Hey, I'm from Ireland! In Indonesia now learning to surf and watching these guys. Weirdly looking forward to surfing out West tho..
Thanks so much Cain and Dave! This is exactly the reason we started OMBE 👆. We exist to help everyday surfers shortcut the 30 years of frustration. The right information and training can open a whole new world of surfing stoke. If our training works for you please do us a solid and share our channel and give us a follow🙏 we are on a mission to help a million surfers shortcut the shit lessons we learnt the hard way
You might bump into my friend Jason also out there, big place of course. He was telling me how nice the waves are but also how its pretty cool that we have similar quality here in Ireland. Nice thought, enjoy man! I'm heading to Lahinch in two days time, cannot wait!
One thing a young shaper should do is make a modern performance board but keep all of the rails very soft and very round and tell the glasser not to add an edge. It won't turn at all, and will feel slow and boggy, unless you have extremely large fins, and you will probably never surf it more than a few times just as a learning experience. Conversely make the same board but with all of the rails hard and square, exactly like they are in the tail. This board will work, but will feel terrible, like you have a very small fin near the rail in the middle or forward section of the board, as the hard edge bites and tries to redirect and pull the nose up the wave face. Surfing these two boards is really the only way to completely understand why rails fade out the way they do and in the location they do.
A lot of people misunderstand the physics behind it as well. A hard edge redirects water, throwing it cleanly away from the board at some angle, accelerating the water away from the board (a change in direction is technically acceleration). Because net force = mass x acceleration, there is an acceleration applied to the water as its being redirected, as mass is obviously conserved, a net force is applied, and you can turn.
Soft rails do not do this, they do not redirect water and throw it off at an angle, so there is no ''acceleration'' of water (mass) and thus no turning. On a 3D wave face, soft rails don't create much net suction and rather slip past the water so there is no bite, no drive, and no real turning ability. They are designed to stay out of the way and stabilize the board, letting the trail drive and turn. So even when you are turning with your front foot, most of the turning is still really being done in the back third of the board. That's one small reason why boards from the early 80's sucked. The rails were all kinds of wrong.
always a life lesson in the form of a surf tip in there with this guy and i love it
Knowledge bombs dropped. Thanks a ton for sharing, much appreciated
Awesome. Learning lots here at Ombe.
Stoked. Thanks
Wow. Great explanation. Very articulate and knowledgable.
Great video. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing these very hard won insights. I’ve been at it for over thirty years and still found them thought provoking and very helpful.
Thanks so much, Sagara. Comments like these keep us on the path and making fresh content for you all! Be stoked if you'd help us spread the message by leaving a review - g.page/r/CRNO0LEHErKAEB0/review
One of the best videos of surfing tha i have ever seen. Thanks for giving us your knowledge bro. Aloha!
Love this 4 videos, great info and everybody could understand better all the things around surfing. You’re a great coach
Great insight from Clay! Key elements to a shape are rocker, concave(s), rail profile and the template planshape. These curves work together to fit the curve of the wave, the conditions and your ability level or style of surfing. If you really want to develop your A game, work directly with a shaper to tune and refine these aspects to realize your goals related to your surfing. Recent topic in WA was the current #1 refining his rockers with his shaper. It's relevant
Hello Clay,
It's exciting but it's complicated.
It is already difficult to assess your level of surfing by being honest and also knowing that our age, our physical condition, our weight are also evolutionary factors that will also influence it.
If we add the types of waves: beach; reef; point break; mushy; glassy; powerful or soft etc etc...
Personal preferences on the type of surf you like, will influence the shape.
I may never find the right board 😅 Surfistically and 👏🏻🤙🏻
Digging these numbered videos! It’s helping me out a lot!
Remove or flatten rocker at 18” nose and tail makes flat rockers on rail , tight pivot .
What a great video...very rich insights making...
Thank you Broski, great video!!!
Shot for sharing this useful information bru! Super appreciated!
Ya kidding is this Clayton from South Africa??? Mate 20 years ago I bought one of your boards in Aachen, Germany before moving to Australia! Crazy
These Videos are so awesome!
Great video thanks
what board thickness are we talking about :? 2 and... 🤔
Fascinating video. I especially enjoyed your visual demonstration with the tap illustrating how a boards rail interacts with the water. I’m curious, I dropknee on a bodyboard, why do body boards have sharp triangular rails rather than rounded rails like on a surf board??
Not 100% as Jeremy on of the team answering this comment I would assume for short sharp responses as you have more control of a bodyboard and your mostly in the power zone. You are not trying to hold your bottom turn or draw out a carve on the face in the same way when your on a surfboard. Essentially think it boils down to control and positioning of your lines on the wave
man, I wish I was living in gold coast to get into one of your programs. BTW, my most magic stick ever was a Red Ranga 5.6, purchased totally by chance in Tenerife, that board help me to progress a lot in a short time. A unicorn board, I ended up using it in almost any condition in norther spain for years.
Hell yeah! Red Ranga haha, there is some history bru. Thanks for the support
So good!
The underside of the rail is so impportant and where the hard edges break depends on the surfer and the stance on the board . Pros get 10 shaped and keep one maybe two. Thats nnot viable for most surfers. Remember just because it has a named brand sticker and all the right dims doesnt mean the board wll go as welll as it should for you
speaking truths !
Thx m8🤙
Hey Clay, great explanation!
Quick question: I'm 182 cm and about 77/78 kgs. Currently I'm on a 6'0 x 20 1/2 x 2 3/4 with 36,3 liters (intermediate level surfer) so its quiet a fat one :) I would like to take the volume down a bit because I feel like its hindering my progression at that point as I feel like I'm surfing very flat as you explained and having trouble getting the board on rail. Might also be technique but the 6'0 of mine has like a mini mal body to it so it makes it even harder I feel like.
To my question :D
I'm having the chance to get the JS zero second hand in 5'10 x 19 3/4 x 2 5/8 (easy rider dimensions) with 32,4 liters. Do you think thats a good option for an everyday board? Or is that jump from 36 to 32 liters to much? I'm 31 years and would call myself a fit guy :)
Thanks a lot!
Thanks for the question, Julian. Can’t comment on the board model specifically, as there a ton of variables not accounted for with advice online without seeing your surfing. Feel free to post your surfing footage in our free Surf Hacks Facebook group or community.ombe.co and I’ll try be more specific to your needs.
In general as your progress your skills you want to embrace the suck of learning (failure) as a positive so you can start attempting to surf on rail. This will mean some frustrating sessions but it’s critical in your skill development so you can find new feelings that will you start to internalise as you learn to tap into the waves energy sources more.
At a high level, I’d say yes, it’s sounds as you should experiment with the E equation of ombe which is actually the last part of the ombe equation we recommend changing in small measurable increments. But if you have already identified your lines, are they beg, int, or adv. you are aware of the mind state you surfing in - freeze, flight or fight mode when you attempt to take a more advanced top-to-bottom line closer to the power zones of the wave? This mindstate will undoubtedly manifest itself in your body via tension which leads to stiffness and or over moving at an intermediate level so you will want to look at smoothing out your movements and awareness of your mind affecting the body (we do this with on-land training, few different modalities but best one is surf skate in a ramp or bowl).. When you have this awareness, it makes sense to challenge your body and mind with new experiences via your equipment. So riding a surfboard that requires rail engagement will be beneficial if you know the above OMB part of the learning process. We have a course specifically on choosing the right board for where you are here👉train.ombe.co/programs/get-the-right-surfboard?category_id=124627h
And have written about it here 👉 www.ombe.co/guides/finding-the-right-surfboard-and-when-to-change-boards
surf hacks groups here BTW -
facebook.com/groups/surfhacks/
😃💛🙌💛😃