Call it 'Slang" Call it "Language". Surfers call it a Communication like no other. Let's talk "Surfer and the meaning behind the word's.Stay Safe learn the terms and enjoy the sport!
Ariel - Skate Board-influenced a surfing maneuver where a surfer launches off a wave crest, body tourquing airborne and back on the wave crest.
Air Drop - Controlled maneuver where the rider and surf board, as a unit momentarily lift off the water as they drop down a steep or concave wave face.
Angle - The veering path a surfer takes across the smooth, unbroken face of the wave, ahead of white water.
Backdoor - To begin tube ride from behind the already dropping tube section, that is, a section breaking before the curl line, paddling and crosscutting entering the tubes apex and standing up.
Backside - Riding so the heels,butt,back are facing the wave.
Backwash - A short lived counterdirectional wave,generally produced as a expiring line of white water, rushes up to beach and flows back into surf water.Bail out- Abandoning the surf board in one of two ways. jumping from the board during a ride a controlled wipe out. 2) diving off after getting "caught side"; that is trapped while paddling out a non-nogotionable breaking wave.
Barrel Roll- A cork screwmanuver usually in tubing waves,were rider goes up side down in the face of wave crest and drops to trough.
Beach Break - A type of surf that takes shape over a sandy beach. Because beachbreak surf is dependant on sand bars, it is far more mutable and unpredictable than surf found at pointbreaks and reefbreaks.
Belly boarding- a surf method dating back to 2,000 BC. using a small ridged board . it was the first original form of surfing.The oldest belly board is in the bishop musenm in Honolulu Hawaii.
Blow out- Ocean surf condition creates a moderte-to-strong onshore wind.which produces a chopy, sloppy surf.
Break Water- Good surf is found in conjuction with break waters.The rebounding wedge causes the water to rise.
Caught inside- Being traped on the shoreward side of a incoming wave, or set of waves. This is a worse case senerio, California surfer Donnie Soloman died while being trapped inside at weiamea bay in 1995.
Channel- An area of deep water adjacent to a surfbreak,usaully running perpendicular with the beach.
Cheater Five- Nose riding Manuver intended and popularized by Hawaii's Paul Strauch in the 1960's. A surfer moves to the front third of the board,crouches, and extends the leading foot to the boards tip.
Clean-up set- A set of large waves; a occurance when the swell is on the rise. The clean up set should break far enough beyond the prevailing surf zone.That it will 'Clean up" the surfers by sweeping them to shore.
Climb and Drop-A sustained, winding, up-and-down , trough-to-crest series of turns preformed as surfer rides across a long taperd wave.
Close out - A wave folds over all at once with out a shoulder or declining crest line.
Close out Tube- A Nonnegotioable, no possible exit tube ride. Dangourous for intermediate and beginners as the surfer could be struck by his/her own board.
Cloud Break- Big-Wave break, usually a reef, located well beyond the normal surf zone. Cloud break come about and form with large storms. Tow in surfing has made cloud break surfing popular.
Cover up- A full or partial dissaperance behind the curl.
Cowabunga- A declaration of stoke and enthusiasm.
Crest- The Top portion of a wave.
