Sucking at paddling just plain sucks.

Power is important; but you’ll have to pay attention to technique if you really wanna paddle better than your mates.

More Glide.

After reading Total Immersion (a killer book on swimming) I realised that it wasn’t necessarily the strongest swimmers that were the best. The smoothest swimmers are the ones ruling it. Same goes for paddling your surfboard.

The important point here is to focus on gliding through the water and minimising drag.

In Richard Schmidt’s Learn To Surf article, he recommends taking fluid, relaxed strokes.

He also says we should minimise unnecessary body movements.

Stopping my hips rocking has had a sweet improvement on my speed, increasing it by around 10%. I also noticed I was reaching too far and the shoulder twist was increasing the rocking. I’d recommend you reach out nice and long but don’t over-extend and cause your stick to rock.

Positioning on the Board.

Positioning on the board is also key for gliding: Too far forward or too far back and you’ll slow right down. If you’re centred on your board and it’s lying flat it will glide faster. Lie your board flat in the water without you on it to find out how it sits best.

When you’re paddling, glance down at the nose as a guide for your positioning on the board. Try to keep the tip just an inch or three above the water (depending on your board size). Keep tweaking your body position back and forward till you find what Wanna Surf calls your sweet spot.

I’ve found my sweet spot is basically going as far forward on the board as possible without nose diving on take off.

Align yourself to the stringer (if you have one). Feet together-ish.

Plunge Arms Deep.

Let your hand enter the water smoothly. Plunge arms to the elbow, then pull down and back (this is the only time your arm should be tensed) then relax as your arm exits the water and glides forward again, just over the top of the water without touching it.

Make sure you don’t plunge so deep that your arms twist back in underneath the board. They should stay parallel to your stringer for the full stroke.

Turbo Boost.

For a final burst to get that wave, I give a few quick kicks.

I also like to hit the NOS button sometimes and throw in two butterfly strokes at the last minute for that extra speed to start steaming down the face.

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Click here to check out the Total Immersion book so you can learn how to paddle faster than your mates.