Start paddling in, and let the broken waves carry you to dry land Don't wait until the last second to dive deep: bigger waves demand early dives, so do it as soon as possible Hold the rails of the board and go for it: remember that you can't, and you shouldn't duck dive huge waves - it's a mistake, and you might get hit by the board Decide whether to duck dive (a.), dive forward (b.), or paddle in towards the beach (b).Stop paddling: stop everything and look around for other surfers, surfboards, and obstacles.Control your breath: try to balance your breathing so that fewer resources are spent in the process.Don't panic: fear is good, panic consumes your energy - everything will be fine and, in a couple of minutes, you will be back on terra firma.So, here's what you should do when caught inside, and two, three, four, or five incoming mountains are about smack you down: You can, however, avoid and reduce the number of wipeouts that put you in dangerous situations.įor example, why don't you let the first waves of the set go unridden, particularly in extreme conditions? Why do you ride all your waves to the end? When you find yourself caught inside by a huge set, let your experience and cold blood handle the situation and come out unhurt. You should be fit to tackle big surf - that is the only way to be ready for dealing with tricky situations like a two-wave hold-down. The volume and mass of a wave are directly proportional to the fear level measured in your brain. When it happens, you must be prepared to press the auto-save button. However, Nature has its moods, and sooner or later, a freak set will inevitably catch you by surprise. These basic skills will help you escape the liquid guillotines, or at least a grand majority of them. In most cases, you can avoid eating the giant sets by simply monitoring the lines on the horizon or by calculating the wave period.Įvery surfer should how to measure the time between sets, line up properly, and triangulate. Taking a 20-foot set on the head is not the most pleasant experience surfing has to offer.Īnd sometimes, a couple of double overhead waves will do the same job, especially in close-out conditions and shallow waters.

Do you know what to do to survive the ultimate surfing punishment? Learn how to confront the endless rows of rumbling whitewater, and get out of it alive.

Escaping the big wave