| The Rules of surfing have been around for many | | | | paddling out, try to stay out of the way, take the |
| years, they are often unspoken and always bent | | | | hit from the white water rather than risk ruining |
| or broken to a degree. Yet we surfers, wether | | | | another surfers wave. You would not run into |
| experienced or absolute novice can not afford to | | | | traffic, do not paddle into the line of an oncoming |
| ignore them. In today's utterly crowded conditions | | | | surfer. |
| we must all try a little harder to monitor our own | | | | 7. Use common sense where crowds are an |
| behaviour in the water. Simply because without | | | | issue. If you turn up to a break that is already |
| some idea of what is ok in the water, and what is | | | | heavily crowded, then consider surfing |
| not, we destroy and devalue the surfing | | | | somewhere else. Adding to an already frustrated |
| experience for all others around us. Here are the | | | | and aggressive crowd won't help you or them |
| basic rules, it's a very good idea to learn them, | | | | 8. Wear a leg rope. Occasionally you'll see a surfer |
| ignore these guidelines at your own peril. | | | | in the water who is not using a leg rope, they are |
| 1. Have fun, but not at the expense of the other | | | | usually very experienced and rarely loose control, |
| people in the water | | | | and they are the only exception to this rule. |
| 2. Don't drop in (this means don't catch a wave | | | | 9. Always hold on to your board when a wave |
| that someone else is already riding). The surfer on | | | | hits you (throwing your board away and allowing |
| the inside (closest to the breaking part of the | | | | your leg rope to do the job for you, is very |
| wave) has right of way | | | | dangerous to the other surfers in the water) |
| 3. Don't be a snake! (A snake is a surfer who | | | | 10. Never use your board as a weapon or as a |
| constantly paddles to the inside, or turn inside | | | | means of protection from a possible collision. Many |
| someone after they started to paddle into a | | | | beginners will throw their boards in front of |
| wave, and then invoke the drop in rule). In other | | | | another surfer when afraid of a possible collision. |
| words try not to be greedy | | | | This is incredibly dangerous. |
| 4. Don't paddle through the line-up. (This means | | | | These are the basic rules that have been in force |
| don't paddle out where the other surfers are | | | | for many years out in the surf. Yet for the last |
| riding, it's very dangerous for all involved). | | | | ten years these rules have been broken on a |
| 5. Do show some courtesy and respect to both | | | | regular basis, mainly by newcomers to surfing. |
| the more experienced surfers and the locals, | | | | The result is chaos, and learners have come to |
| remember this. When are surfing away from | | | | be resented by the more experienced surfers. |
| home, you are surfing in someone else's home. | | | | learn these rules and apply them, become part of |
| Show some respect. | | | | the solution, rather than a part of the problem. |
| 6. The surfer on the wave has right of way, if | | | | |