A Touch Down

You high performance Longboarders can probably understand this... We could almost coin a new phase, the "Touch Down".

A late drop in, clean conditions. You always know you're going to get the wave, but you decide to do the lazy paddle, and almost miss the wave, but you wait for the sudden tail lift (inevitable tail lift), and get to your feet with that smooth timing where you control the nose "diving" with a combo of hand and rear foot placement, and the nose just goes into "Touch Down" mode, and you've laid it over onto the inside rail, and you've literally got 9 foot of rail in the face.

I will credit Bob McT's Original for helping me learn this great Longboard technique. Now Dick Brewer's shape also compliments those lessons learned. The high rocker of The Original allowed that for that late slicing take off.

You like that Brewer Simo. She's a keeper.

Rear fin placement in the above pic....

Its a little fin in a big box so where do you put it? Forward, back, or smack in the middle? I dunno, its all experimental so I was happy to be guided by Billy Tolhurst.

Billy has a "formula" for fin placement that seems to work with any tri-fin setup in any longboard. A big call, but I have used his formula for various of my own and customers boards over the years and so far it works well.

He told me to measure 7 and 9/16ths inches back from the rear of the side fins and that is where the rear of your centre fin should be. Measure from the base of the fins where they go into your board (hence the little black dot in the pic to remind me of the spot!)

So that's exactly where that little blue stabiliser fin ended up...and it works! - Mark

Now that's a coincidence, talking about your so called touch downs and multi fin setups, just yesterday both things factored in my life.

What you may know is that I very rarely ride anything other than single fin, simply because it creates less drag and gives me the best chance of getting waves (my only priority).

What you would not know is that I no longer surf what I consider to be the best longboard wave on the Sydney northern beaches, North Avalon, with the best elevator rip in the business.

So yesterday, things were so grim that in the late arvo I ventured away from my locals, braved the inevitable holiday bumper to bumper traffic on the Bilgola Bends on the way home and put up with a big line up crowd, just for a few waves.

Just quietly, I reckon Nth Av, pound for pound, has more quality pussy than any beach in Syd.

Anywho, judging from who was out, it looked as if it would hold me up for a decent nose ride so I pulled 9.6 ITP out of the quiver and for reasons unknown, I kitted it out with an 8 inch centre and 2 of the smallest bites I had.

I must say, I had no trouble catching waves and I'm assuming it's because my paddle fitness has improved but the big surprise was the way it held me up at the nose. Every bit as good as a hatchet or a big dolphin.

Now for the touch down bit. Because the ITP is basically a nose rider, it's pretty flat. And the nose is really weird, it's super wide and very thick. Personally, I think this makes it a poor turner because there's so much inert volume at the front to overcome, this may be the reason I went with the bites for a change.

So there I was floating around out back waiting for the next foot and half bit of slop to come through when I spied a promising white cap way out. On the off chance, I paddled out and to the north and I was completely on my own when a good'n came through.

It was fullish and had a really long face so I had to work to get on board and the whole time I was thinking;

“geez I wish I was on the Munoz, I'm gunna bomb at the bottom and I'll be the laughing stock of Nth Av and all that beautiful pussy on the beach will be pointing and sniggering at me as I do the walk of shame back to my car, never again to the grace this beach with my inept presence”

Regardless of my thoughts, my ability, my board, my small penis, (sorry I got a bit carried away with the self deprecation) I made the wave at the worst possible point, late and right at the top. Worst of all, I was dead straight pointing into the bottom bowl.

I leaned as much as I dared to bring that big assed nose to the right but I knew it was never going to be enough, then to my amazement, it made the bottom turn and rocket across the face.

I think what saved me was that big assed nose, and the bites, it got settled on the face on the way down and just had so much volume, it refused to pearl.

It only took one cutty before I wiped out, but by that time it didn't matter, I made the drop “touch down”.

That's why it came as such a surprise when all the girls still pointed and snigger at me when I walked back to my car.