Sufing Terms and surf speak

ASP
ASP stands for Association of Surfing Professionals.  This is the world pro tour and is made up of the best 44 surfers in the world.

Barrel/Keg/Tube
A barrel is where the wave is hollow when it is breaking, if it is big enough you can actually ride inside the wave.  Getting barrelled is arguably the best thing you can do on a wave.  Barrels are sometimes called 'Tubes'.

Beach Break
A wave that breaks over sand.

Blown Out
When a strong, usually, onshore wind makes the waves shapeless and no good for riding.

Board
Short for surfboard.

Board shorts / Boardies
Jazzy shorts worn by those surfers lucky enough to surf in water warn enough. 
Is acceptable to wear over a shorty wetsuit but not over a full suit.

Bottom Turn
Get to your feet, 'drop in' then ' bottom turn' to set your line to get down the line.  This is the most basic turn in surfing and as with any turn can be executed in a number of different ways in order to suit the wave being ridden.

Carve / Carving
Basically turning on a wave is called Carve.  Tends to be a long drawn out turn as opposed to a snap'.  The best would be 'A full rail carve'.

Close Out
Where a wave breaks along its length all at once.

Cross Step / Stepping
A classic style longboard move.  Basically moving up and down the board to keep the board in 'Trim'.  It is done foot over foot because it is harder so scores more points with the crowd.

Cutback
Turning back towards the curl of the wave to stay in the 'power pocket'.  Can be done with varying degrees of speed and aggression.  The best would be a round house cutback, hitting the white water after the initial cutback.

Dude
Anyone, everyone.  If you're at the beach you are 'some dude'. 
If you are some dude of notoriety that makes you a ‘Cool Dude’.

My Wave
My wave! Whistle! Oh! Aigh Aigh! Ave a look! 
All ways of surfers saying I have priority, do not ‘Drop in on me’!

Drop In
If you want to avoid hassle in the water you need to learn this lesson ‘DON’T DROP IN!
This is where one surfer is already riding along in the curl of a wave with Priority.  Then another offending surfer catches the same wave in front of the surfer who is already on it. This act can prevent the priority guy from surfing the wave the way he wanted to and can make surfers very mad!

Ding
Surfboard damage.  Oh nah I’ve ‘Dinged my board’!

Duck dive / duck diving
Pushing your board under a wave when paddling out.

Fakie
Riding backwards on the surfboard, tail first.

FCS
FCS stands for Fin Control System.  Modern day removable fins.

Fin
Board can have three fins, two fins, one fin and in some rare cases four and even five fins. They give you tuning ability.  Fins are a huge subject in surfing but only the most informed will tell you anything worth knowing.

Foamies, Sponjose, Swellies
Surfboards that are made out of foam, perfect as learner boards.

Goofy / Goofy Foot
Surfing with your right foot forward.

Goon/Kook
A surfer with no idea.  ‘All the gear and no idea’!

Grommets
Young surfers.

Hang Ten
Riding a long board with the toes of both feet hanging over the end of the nose.

Heavy
Used if a wave is very powerful, ‘The waves are heavy out there today’.  Also used to describe the locals at a ‘locals only’ beach ‘watch yourself with the heavy locals’.

Impact Zone
The spot where the waves are breaking.  Spend as little time here as possible!

In the Soup
Being left in an area of ‘air-rated’ water after a large breaking wave has just come through’

Indo
Indonesia – Home of some of the most perfect waves on the planet!

Kneeboarding
A school of surfing.  Kneeboarders ride special knee boards, on their knees.

Layback
One of surfing's more extreme tricks. Where the surfer literally lays backwards on a wave.

Leash/Legrope
Attatched to your ankle and the board.  Will stop the board getting away from you. 
Untill around 1978 surfers rode without leashes, much harder and can involve more swimming.

Line Up
The Line Up is the place just outside the breaking waves where surfers ‘Line up’ for their waves.

Mullering/pulverising/washed up/slammed/messed up
Bad Wipe-out!  Usally provokes a great ‘RAW’ from the crowd.  All in Fun.

New School
Trick surfing -airs, shove-its, 360 spins, 540 reverse etc. 
Sometimes frowned on by old school surfers, maybe because they can’t do it.

Nose
The front of your surfboard

Offshore
When the wind blows off the shore and into the face of the waves.  This can groom a swell, hollow it out and make it great for riding.

Onshore
When the wind blows over the sea, towards the land it will create ‘chop’. 
Enough wind and the surf will become ‘Blown Out’

Perl/Nose dive
When the nose of your board goes under the water.  The board will stop dead and the surfer will be hurled forwards into the water making a big splash!

Rail
The sides of your surfboard.  Designed with turning in mind. 
‘Bury your rail and pull off a massive carve’

Regular / Regular Footed
Surfing with your left foot forward.

Rip
Are currents that may travel along the shore line or out to sea.  Can be dangerous to your unserspecting swimmer or inexperienced surfer.Experienced surfers will actually use rips to their advantage as they can make paddling out in ‘Heavy surf’ easier.

SAS
Surfers Against Sewage.  Evironmental Charity looking out for our beaches and oceans.

Shove-it
Jump in the air whilst riding, ‘Shove’ the surfboard around 180 degrees and land back on it
Very Difficult!

Slash
A fast, aggressive turn off the top of the wave - hopefully throwing loads of spray off the top. 
Best would be a ‘Layback Slash’

Snake / Snaking
Paddling across another surfer, in order to gain priority on a wave. 
The surfer closest to the curl will have priority on a technicality however this Snaking is frowned upon.

Sick!
‘Oh that wave was SOOO SICK’!  It was so ‘Heavy’ it was totally ‘Gnarly’

Stick
Your ‘Stick’ is your surfboard.

Stoked
I was ‘Stoked’, Chuffed, over the moon, very happy.

Stringer
The strip of ply wood that runs up the middle of traditionally ‘shaped’ surfboards.

Swell
Waves!  There are two kind of swell, Ground swell-Good, Wind swell-No so good

Switch Stance
Riding with your other foot from normal, forwards

Tail
The back of your board

Tail slide
Sliding the back of your board out, whilst turning.

Now you have a general understanding of surfing terms and how to speak like a surfer why not give it a go. After some practice you can even string it all together. 

Example: 
Oh ‘Dude’ you should have been there, it was so heavy.  ‘Took off’ on one, ‘bottom turn’, ‘pulled in’, straight ‘into the barrel’, then just like ‘spat out’ Massive carve’ back to the ‘pocket’, then just like pumped it ‘Down the line’ and pulled an ‘air’ ‘off the back’.  It was SICK!

Feel free to join in only don’t over do it aigh!

 

 

 

 

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