Imagine This: Trying NOT to Throw Spray
[Editor’s Note]: I recently had a conversation with Brad Gerlach in which he dropped a line that stuck with me: “Ya know, I’ve been talking to Rasta [Dave Rastovich] about surfing without trying to throw spray…” he said. Immediately the thought of Gerr and Rasta discussing that — two guys who surf with tons of power and style — and something clicked. The thought of carving clean and what that might lead to. What did he mean exactly? I was obsessed. I had to hear more, so I asked Brad to sit down and bang the keys. What’s here might change your style forever. —Travis
I have a tiger inside that wants to rip the fucking hell out of every single wave I ride. I know this. And I’m good with this. I am not a cruiser. I want to rip and tear. But my experience has taught me that even though my surfing comes with limitations now, I still have that fucking tiger to deal with. I have learned by now that I will never grow out of it, or be too old and let the pilot light go out. That is a good thing. But he still fucks up a lot of waves for me. Honestly, most of the waves I’ve fucked up in my life were because of this tiger — but some of the best waves were because of this tiger too. But what it all boils down to is trying too hard. You know that old Buk quote, “Don’t Try.” Well it applies to surfing too. Hear me out.
““I grew up trying to throw as much water off of every turn as I could. You know, the whole surf, slash, and destroy vibe. It’s all over our nomenclature.””
But every turn doesn’t require trying to throw water. Some turns are much better when there isn’t so much pressure against the water. With the ability to accelerate at will you can learn to play with the most critical parts of each wave and use them to your advantage. And the last thing you want to do is try too hard.
In order to change my demeanor on a wave, I started to picture surfing without throwing spray. Like surfing on ice skates. Completely frictionless. How would that feel? Speedy and effortless. Better timing, and less body tweaks. But what about this tiger? The one that wants to rip and tear? Well, I know that if I can harness and leverage the tiger’s energy within myself I have a better chance of harmonizing with the waves. “If” being the key word here. If I can be more aware and slow down to the tempo of the waves no matter the size or conditions I have a better chance of releasing that tiger with full effect. Then I can choose to bite, maul and play with my prey.
By cultivating this ability you will get better at allowing the wave to be your source of power. You will get better at using gravity to pick up maximum speed on the drop — the drop becoming exactly that: a real sensation of the body dropping with no tension. Then on the bottom turn you can become the pinball that bounces off the bumper with double the speed it had going into it. I know this dates me but I am not ashamed of that. Take a look at MR or Rabbit Bartholomew playing pinball in Freeride or one of those ‘70s movies.
This is what led me to the philosophy or idea of surfing without throwing spray. Or surfing with the intention of not throwing spray.
Let’s look at a roundhouse cutback for instance: If you are doing the cutback with the intention of throwing spray you will probably slow down and not get a decent rebound. And the top turn? If you try to throw spray you may stay on your back foot too long and get stuck at the top of the wave. I see this all the time and don’t get me wrong, it is fun to ollie off the lip, tail first on the way down, but if you are surfing a fast wave your chance of making the wave lowers and you may be left doing a bunch of wiggles at the bottom of the wave to get around it. The gouge stall being the first domino that falls leaving you behind the power source.
I think the main point is that trying to throw spray and accelerating don’t work together. Key word is “trying” — there’s that fucking tiger again. I want to reiterate this does not mean surfing without getting radical or surfing critically. On the contrary, this philosophy will put you in critical places without getting stuck. Visualize gliding around an ice rink. You may well find you’re naturally throwing more spray. And one last thing, when a friend is paddling out: know you have the option to stomp on the tail at will and spray them. It’s the only time it’s OK. Put all your eggs in and throw buckets at all costs.
[If you’re a good surfer of any age looking for ways to refine and enhance your approach, consider Brad Gerlach’s Wave Ki program. His philosophy leads the way in this anti-jock approach to improving your surfing.]
[Image: Dane Reynolds photographed by Nate Lawrence]
