With so many races adopting the classic Battle of the Paddle format, where paddlers have to race in and out through the surf, knowing how to ride waves on your SUP race board is becoming an essential skill.

But Stand Up Paddle race boards aren’t easy to surf. They’re long, narrow and usually designed for going straight and fast, not surfing waves.

So in this comprehensive feature, SUPracer reveals exactly what it takes to control your race board on the waves. Scroll down for our in-depth, step-by-step analysis…

click the image to zoom in

Step #1: Don’t nosedive.
Step #2: …

*****

Thanks to Rob Porzig (who can actually surf quite well) for being this week’s crash-test dummy 😉

Sequence taken at the West Oz State SUP Titles by Laurie from seabreeze.com.au. Check out the last frame: snapped the paddle and all… ouch.