Ask Carroll

[Karlos]

Here's a question for you Nick. I'm watching Innersection 2. Pete Devries rips and has great style. He obviously works harder than most up there in the Pacific north west. Has he ever tried to take it further? Eg WQS? Not quite good enough? You'd think you'd move if surfing was your passion and you had enough talent.

Well for one thing you really do have to take video sections with a minor grain of salt. They do not show you the number of waves it took to compile the edit.

Reminds me of a time a while back skating the bowls at Five Dock & there was a fairly proficient bloke getting filmed doing a particular mapped out run which he was unable to nail in the couple of hours I was there. He had about 4 or 5 tricks (couple of airs of different variations, a disaster & something else) but just couldn't link them all in the one run. It would have been no more than a 10 or 15 second spot & he just wasn't able to get it. A couple of hours with no success.

Made me wonder about other skate & surf videos & how much filming really goes into them. The guys with the cameras must be extremely patient, especially considering they're not the ones surfing.

[Hatchnam]

Tonks.

If you're in SEQ and looking to build up ability to charge double overhead plus then it's not gonna be often as you're probably well aware.

Being able to paddle tirelessly against sweeps and not get axed on shallow grinding sandbanks will be your main concerns for the most part.

If I were you I'd be doing as much surfing as possible to get nimble and fit, and a lot of chest, shoulders, lats and upper body work as possible to build up paddle endurance.

Good training ground for the next big ECL or cyclone swell that hits would be to get your arse over to North Straddie, paddle out off the tip of deadmans just before widows and surf the entire stretch from deadmans, thru cylinder, thru home beach, then adder rocks. Spend hours and hours doing that full stretch over and over. That'll soon sort you out.

[Nick Carroll]

Made me wonder about other skate & surf videos & how much filming really goes into them. The guys with the cameras must be extremely patient, especially considering they're not the ones surfing.

Huge amounts - unless the subject is incredibly talented

Like Jordy Smith just released some video of himself on a trip to Mozambique, it was probably a 3-4day trip and they pretty much made a movie out of it.

Most surfers would take several months to compile a few minutes' high quality ftg.

The camera guys? Well they vary from very savvy young guys who are intent on building a career and working up their chops a bit on fun surf footage etc, to wannabe pro surfers who just wanna hang with the surf stars and use their cameras as a meal ticket.

It's boring work but it isn't hard.

[Nick Carroll]

Tonks.

If you're in SEQ and looking to build up ability to charge double overhead plus then it's not gonna be often as you're probably well aware.

Being able to paddle tirelessly against sweeps and not get axed on shallow grinding sandbanks will be your main concerns for the most part.

If I were you I'd be doing as much surfing as possible to get nimble and fit, and a lot of chest, shoulders, lats and upper body work as possible to build up paddle endurance.

Good training ground for the next big ECL or cyclone swell that hits would be to get your arse over to North Straddie, paddle out off the tip of deadmans just before widows and surf the entire stretch from deadmans, thru cylinder, thru home beach, then adder rocks. Spend hours and hours doing that full stretch over and over. That'll soon sort you out.

hatchnam, with respect, you're asking a bit much there of a surfer you don't know.

it's v important when advising someone about stuff like this that you don't encourage them to do stuff they may not be anywhere near ready for. Like it's not about what you might do or think you can do, it's about what might suit tonks.

To put it in context, it's a bit like you asking me about getting fit for surfing and me saying yeah OK, 13 training sessions a week, 3 x 4k swim sets, 2 x full ironman sets of 2.5hrs each, 3 board paddling sessions and 3 ski sessions plus two gym/running sets.

I would never do that to someone else without their express permission and a solid knowledge of their athletic background.

tonks my advice remains the same, just try to lift the hours in the water, and if you have some travel time, don't go to, like Oahu in December, but to somewhere within your range but consistent.

[steve shearer]

I'm really curious about this tonks . Where are u at on the journey? What waves ridden , experience etce etc what equipment have you got? And would you b prepared to get out of Brisbane to get some real surf time?

[alakaboo]

Why did you surf 6-8ft caba? A well hit 3 wood could've had you in some properly good waves

[steve shearer]

so you got nine weeks available and you want to chase some big waves, or bigger than you have ridden . Correct?

Or are you thinking of seriously zigging hard left and making this a bigger part of your lifes journey.

fcuk knows why I keep saying journey.

[steve shearer]

Of course.

In nine weeks you're probably not going to get much further than what you are now. Head to Indo or Fiji and take on some 6-8ft waves on a decent board.

Can you tuberide solid reefbreaks?

[jimmy]

Why did you surf 6-8ft caba? A well hit 3 wood could've had you in some properly good waves

Gee that's harsh Boo..But you're right. Caba is possibly the most overrated wave on the planet.

[steve shearer]

I, ah, happen to think there's a few things that are more important than surfing.

Could you elaborate on this.

[Drailed]

Head to Indo or Fiji and take on some 6-8ft waves on a decent board.

Yeah, settle into a good reef break, get your bearings on a solid day. Surf one that's not too ledgey and has a decent channel to escape. With some proper foam underneath you it's pretty awesome.

Disclaimer: I am in no way qualified to give advice on this, just my own experience.

[alakaboo]

Tonks, would you consider moving to a Pacific island community, or do you have the same geographical focus we've discussed?
Based on your skillset and desire to move, there are a few opportunities with aid and development groups.
I get a few things come across my desk and know a few people....I can't take up most of them due to other factors.
Plus your skills are more useful than mine.

[steve shearer]

How would you do that or how are you doing that?

[andy2476]

Dear nick do you know anything about the surf in Samoa ? And if so would be able to share some of your knowledge?

[kreepykrawly]

"Ninguém é absoluto o suficiente para se colocar diante das pessoas como o rei da razão. O seu certo pode ser o meu errado, e vice--versa. Cada um é cada um. Devemos, sim, expor nossas posições, mas sem atacar quem pensa o contrário" .

[kreepykrawly]

Oops sorry wrong forum...stirring mofos in other forums around the world.

[Nick Carroll]

Dear nick do you know anything about the surf in Samoa ? And if so would be able to share some of your knowledge?

Not enough. I've never been there but I know numerous people who have. I know there's some really solid waves there, sounds like sligtly uneven reef breaks, north side is better, and you can't surf on Sundays. I'll talk to some mates and get some more info for you

[andy2476]

Thanks, been invited to a friends 50th there in April. A few families who except ours are all from rural NZ. Cheap family style village accommodation. So not a debauched shameful resort type experience but a pretty mellow family vibe. Wondering if it's worth taking a board or should I just chill and forget about surfing for a week. Whch if the surf is nearby and baking will be pretty hard to do.