The surf journey from beginner to intermediate: 5 ways to improve your surfing
How do I go from a beginner to an intermediate surfer? This may be one of the most commonly asked questions by the new members of the surf communities. So let’s jump straight into the difference between beginner and intermediate surfing and look at some important steps on how to become a better surfer!
The journey from beginner to intermediate is neither easy nor fast; it’s a journey where you need to put as many hours in the water as necessary. But it’s not just the time spent in your wetsuit that matters, what you do outside of the ocean is just as important for you to step up your game. Although it may be a harder journey than you might expect, it will also be the greatest experience you’ll ever have. There are few feelings that can top the freedom and joy of being one with the elements and feeling the true power and beauty of the ocean.
If you want to learn how to ride with the big guys and gals, here are some key tips that will help you to improve your surfing from the beginner level up to the intermediate club!
What is the difference between a beginner and an intermediate surfer?
Let’s start with the key question: what is the difference between the two levels? You may hear a different answer depending on who you ask since the definition of the levels isn't cut in stone. You don’t go from a white to a black belt in surfing (even if that would have been kinda cool). However, we may all agree on the fact that a big difference between beginners and intermediates is the kind of waves that they ride.
Beginner surfers have one job and one job only: catching waves in the white water. Once you reach the intermediate level you will start catching unbroken green waves, which is a whole other game. It’s almost like you're learning to surf from the very beginning again! Instead of surfing straight towards the beach, you’ll start surfing left and right. Intermediate surfers also need to get more comfortable with reading the ocean and improving their paddling skills.
Are you an intermediate surfer? We talk more about the difference between beginner and intermediate surfers in this post.
How to surf from beginner to intermediate: Our 5 best tips to get better at surfing
We can list a million tips that can help you to improve your surfing skills, but in this post, we focus on some of the most fundamental things to keep in mind when making the beginner to intermediate transition. For more tips on how to improve your surfing, check out this post for 10 things to know when you start surfing and this post for 10 tips for intermediate surfers!