Surfing Tutorial UCPA #8 - The tube

How to surf ?

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The tube ride is not strictly and technically speaking a surf manoeuvre, but rather a particular moment when the surfer manages to get totally wrapped by the wave.

More so than any other manoeuvre, the tube ride is only possible when the waves are big and hollow enough. You can execute a top turn or cut back on any waves, but the tube depends on appropriate conditions. So it is more rare and more difficult to manage.

As soon as you take off, you must focus on a spot far away on the shoulder of the wave, your pop-up must be quick and adapted to the slope you are facing. A big wave offers more space and will require a strong bottom turn to allow you to position yourself in the hollow part of the wave, whereas a smaller wave will require you to cut your bottom turn and dig in your rail in the curve to immediately position yourself in the hollow part.

Entering the wave should set your board on a breaking line in the most appropriate way. If you are too low, the lip of the wave will put an end to your hopes of a barrel. If you are too high, it is the speed of the breaking wave and the hollow that will lift your board and you at the same time. This first phase is the most difficult because it requires a fast analysis of the wave, very quick reactive decisions and adapted and intense weight transfers. The point is crystal clear: to manage to ride along the wave and its rhythm.

The wrapping phase comes next: trust your choice as you enter the wave, keep well set on your trajectory, with your body weight evenly distributed on your feet, focus on the exit with your eyes
It is not technically more difficult than riding across the wave and maintaining your balance. The problem comes from the emotion at that moment: it is the time to keep the focus on the exit in the hope of smoothly and easily getting out of the barrel
A small tip: even if you think that the wave is falling down on to you, keep your feet in position, and your eyes towards the exit. The most intense barrels are often those you do not expect to get out of.

It is possible to speed up in a barrel with some experience and it also depends on the length of the waves. Either you transfer you weight forwards, or you undulate in the tube to gain speed in a regular way.

Let’s recapitulate: drop into the slope, adjust your bottom turn to perfectly set yourself in the hollow part of the wave and maintain your speed to prepare your exit