What is my surfing level?

Beginner & Intermediate surf coaching.

Coming to understanding of your surf level between you and the surf coach lays a successful foundation for surf coaching programmes here at Surf & Yoga, Sri Lanka. The following have been constructed after many years of surf coaching by our instructors.

We at Surf & Yoga, Sri Lanka have broken down your surfing ability levels into following parameters,

Level 1: beginner surf coaching

1.1 : Total beginners

You have never tried surfing, but able to swim.

At this stage our focus is on teaching you the fundamentals of surfing which includes a dry session on the beach or in our camp focusing on,

– Introduction to the surf board and equipment
– Correct position on the board
– Paddling technique
– How to protect yourself, board and others in the water
– Surf etiquette
– Passing the white water
– Correct pop up
– Correct stance

1.2 : Beginner who has tried surfing a couple of times before

This is a challenging stage for both you and our coaches because in some surf schools you had before, the techniques used differ from the ones that we use. Therefore, we stick with the ISA method of teaching.

At this stage, we focus on

– Reviewing the basics with you and comparing it with the methods you learned before (level 1.1)
– Working on your stance for more balance and improving on your pop up and paddling technique
– Teaching you on the basic stages of a wave and the shape of a wave at the particular beach
– Talk about positioning in the line up to catch unbroken waves
– How to do the angle take off and get into an unbroken wave to the left or right
– Learning how to slow down or accelerate according to the section of the wave
– Correct stance

1.3 : Advance beginner

You have surfed more than a couple of days by now and understand the wave and board mechanics and are comfortable in the water most of the time.
You have more control on catching the waves and your stance, but only able to go straight.

At this stage we focus on,

– Reviewing the basics of level 1.1 & 1.2
– Working on wave reading and positioning in the line up
– Improving on the angle take off and stance
– Learning the basics of trimming on a wave

Level 2: intermediate surf coaching

2.1 : Beginner intermediate surfer

At this stage, you have pretty good control over your paddling, are able to go out the back and catch unbroken waves and go left or right. You also understand about the waves, surfing and ocean conditions.

Our focus on you at this stage is,

– Generating speed on the wave
– Improving on the wave reading ability
– Duckdiving
– Improving the stance for more mobility
– Bottom turn & top turn fundamentals

2.2 : Advanced intermediate surfer

At this stage, you have very good control over your board, are able to make turns to change the direction. You are also riding a short board or a mini-mal surf board.

We will focus on,

– Surfing & Speeding down the line on different type of waves
– Correct positioning to catch different types of waves
– Learning to cutback
– Technical analysis of your top turn and bottom turn
– Small floaters to pass the sections
– Duck dive improvement