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BESTSWELL SURF ACADEMY

Build your skills

Simple land drills and foundations for coached water practice.

Prepare for a coached lesson with beach-choice advice, board-balance drawings and a pop-up sequence. Keep the practice adapted to your body, board and conditions.

Start with the forecastLearn the pop-up

The pop-up, broken into stages

1 · Set your base

1 · Set your baseLie centred. Hands come beside the lower chest, rather than gripping the rails. The board nose points to the right.

Board nose

Lie centred. Hands come beside the lower chest, rather than gripping the rails.

2 · Create room

2 · Create roomPress comfortably through the hands. Make space without throwing the head back. The board nose points to the right.

Board nose

Press comfortably through the hands. Make space without throwing the head back.

3 · Bring feet underneath

3 · Bring feet underneathUse the progression your coach teaches. Hands support you while the feet take the load. The board nose points to the right.

Board nose

Use the progression your coach teaches. Hands support you while the feet take the load.

4 · Find a low stance

4 · Find a low stanceSoften knees and hips, look ahead and control your weight over the board. The board nose points to the right.

Board nose

Soften knees and hips, look ahead and control your weight over the board.

Front foot and back foot

A broad stance seen from aboveTwo feet across the centreline on a right-pointing board. Placement is approximate and not an angle prescription.

Regular means left foot forward; goofy means right foot forward. Neither is better. Position and angles should be adapted with your instructor.

Original simplified body illustrations showing broad learning concepts. Trim angles and foot placement are exaggerated or approximate, not measured recommendations. Coach review and individual adaptation remain essential. Original BestSwell illustrations.

Where would you like to start?

Read in any order. New to surfing? Start with choosing a beginner session before trying a water-based drill.

About these guides

By BestSwell, with AI-assisted research, writing and illustrations. Sources are listed with each lesson; independent technical and coaching review is still pending. Suggest a correction.