RealSurf Surfers' Forum

Another consequence of aging is that I am even less likely to get into an argument out there.

Was never likely to in the past, but now I will just sense trouble early and move on before it gets nasty. Some of the most disappointing surfs I've ever had involved nice waves and heated discussions. I just won't sacrifice my peace of mind out there to argue some fine point of surfing etiquette.

Of course, having greying hair helps keep you out of trouble. Most surfers leave me alone or have a friendly chat. I'm fairly sure it isn't because I'm so scary looking they don't want to ruffle my feathers.

I was 'rubbish' ten years ago, 'cr@p' five years ago, and Im 'embarassingly shite' now. I fully expect to be 'abysmal' in five years hence.

So I think my surfing has been fairly consistent over the years.

...

Have been thinking about body shape and aging in surfing. I'm a beanpole, now a 45-y-o beanpole and I really think it is easier to age as a surfer if you have been skinny and/or smaller framed. My mates who had the body the chics swooned over in our 20s (and 30s for a few of em), tall really solid blokes, two worked as Manly pacific bouncers _ not Islanders! _ are the ones really battling the weight now. They are locked into the big guy tri club when it comes to boards and have lots of hassles getting boards they like. Same with some guys _ all in the 100kg plus club _ I went on a boat trip with. Some on this trip took what looked like mini mals, and with their bellies and beards I reckon if you saw em walking your beach you'd think kooky. But these fellas were extremely good surfers, just that they had to ride boards with a lot of foam. Tall and skinny, or short and skinny, seems to allow you to ride "normal' boards for many years. At least until the back, bane of the lanky _ starts playing up.

Consistency, thats what annoys me the most as I get older.
Somes days it all comes together, sometimes even better than when you were young cause you have more experience/knowledge as NC said, and some days not, ya walk up the sand feelin like a sack of sore old bones.
Problem is most of us surf less than perfect waves at our local and as the body gets slower its harder to accommodate the varying conditions.
Ever notice when you go on a surf trip, score good waves, it all clicks into place.
Guess I'll just keep training, surf my local as much as possible, not sweat the bad days (if possible) but most importantly get away when I can and score some good waves.
As you get older you need to train SMARTER, and surf SMARTER.

It just gets tougher and the boards get longer and the grommets seem younger

Most points have been covered already of course and it’s been interesting reading as a fellow “old-one” … ..a few comments though …

Spoon made mention of the dedication a some of the older one’s … for me it seems that my love of surfing has never changed and I simply hate the feeling that I might miss out on something, so I just want to make sure I surf everyday … last night I worked till mid-night but was in the water again at 6am as surfing takes precedence over sleep … (BTW .. it was very worth the effort this AM ) … also it keeps me off the grog late at night when I’m thinking about the waves in the morning …

Like Ringmaster my boards are similar maybe only a little longer and most of the time I can still throw it around a bit … I have however toned back on really aggressive landings as I do worry about doing further leg damage … at this point I do not at all feel a need to change board dimensions at all...
From time to time I feel a bit stiff but it’s hard to tell if that’s age or something else … like yesterday I was feeling stiff but received a vaccination the night before … and like in the middle of winter when it’s cold + in a steamer + have a cold I suppose that all adds up too … stamina is also of course an issue as I really only have time for surf, work and family so my only exercise really is from the surfing … I am under no illusion that as I get older flexibility and stamina will become more of a problem and I will have to work on that out of the water …

NC mentioned how a calculated approach creeps in and I must say that although happy to paddle into some big drops I certainly think about my chances of getting hammered and if I really want to go through that … last winter in the middle of all that big swell I copped a hiding one day and gave my back a twist which lasted weeks (didn’t stop me surfing but gave me plenty of trouble)

Larry mentioned a number of ailments … being short sighted causes me issues in the late afternoon in the failing light making it hard to see the waves properly and can be a problem when it’s big …
Unfortunately for me I already come damaged after a serious road accident about 20 years back that f’cked my ankle and calf muscle on one leg and my knee on the other, as well as a minor back problem, and as well a few years back I broke my hand badly hitting the bottom on a reef break so my hand starts seizing up after an hour or so in cold water … these accidents are not responsible for my sour narky attitude, that came naturally …

I suppose for me, I know there are surf related problems that will occur as I get older but at the moment I simply love it too much to change my ways … maybe start this thread up again in 5 years and we can compare notes again …

plus ... after surfing all week in these great conditions you get pretty damn wrecked ... my arms were a bit jelly like this morning, I was glad in a way that it had dropped away making the paddle out's a little easier ...

Spoon wrote:out at first light every day and they are all in their forties.

wow... imagine being that old.

Yeah I think I have definitely peaked , but I think I am doing and trying stuff I never did before... got a lot more experimental in boards. A lot of that comes from knowing a lot more crew in the water, not being so afraid of blowing waves, and not giving a stuff what people think.

I definitely surfed better in my mid 30's than I ever did in my 20's - I put that down to setting the bar so low in my 20's . Nah, all carp aside, I surfed bigger stuff in my 20's but my wavecount increased by a factor of 10 in my 30's ( I moved to be nearer the coast ). I don't think i managed my first decent roundhouse cuttie until age 33, and I definitely could get more vert more often when I was able to surf a lot more and fine tune things.

Sometimes now though I'll be screaming through the last section and see a nice shorey double up, and that little voice in my head says " 'think your knees will stand up to the landing?", and I go "ummm... maybe not this one", and flick off the back to the jeers of grommets in the shorey.

Hatchman wrote:I think it's down to surfing every 2 or 3 weeks these days as opposed to once a week before I became a dad.

OK... now you're scaring me...

It depends a lot on who you're surfing.
I'm 52 and when I'm in the water with friends we tend to push each other (well, as much as you can). Still get a buzz out of seeing mates get good waves and still like spraying them with a cut back when they're paddling out.
The thing that's missing sometimes is timing.

bradad wrote: spraying them with a cut back when they're paddling out.
The thing that's missing sometimes is timing.

Thar could get ugly

I agree with that with fatherhood your reasons for surfing, along with priorities in life, change. I'm down to one surf a week now if I'm lucky, and it's become my last remaining piece of 'me' time - I often have to fight long and hard with the cheese n kisses to maintain it, but fight I must . So, just being out there is sometimes enough, and to be realistic only surfing once a week doesn't give you much of a chance to progress your surfing - hell, just maintaining is hard enough!

I joined a longboard club a little while ago and the older guys there are an inspiration. On land they've got crook knees and backs etc, but out in the water they're surfing rings around me Good on 'em. I hope I can keep it going that long too

the reaction time has slowed but the ability to sniff out and slot into barrels just keeps getting better. I have got some of the very best in the last couple of years even though I am getting less and less waves. i see it all the time. the older who only gets a few waves but the ones he does get, if the lip is throwing, he will park himself with a mimimum of fuss.

I think I have become more confident with age and experience - not less.
Ok - Im only 38 and have only been surfing for 28 years so i am not very experienced compared to some of you fellas. But more international experience in serious waves changes your perception of what is big or scary and how you approach it. eg - last Sunday was heaps of fun - didnt hesitate to hook in to biggest sets because i had so much fun in even bigger waves in Hawaii this year

2 things I notice as I get older. one is that if I don't surf for a couple of weeks my surf/paddle fitness goes right out the window. the other is that a heap of water and a couple of bananas before each surf are now mandatory to help keep the leg cramps at bay.

I used to surf better as I get older ...

... and I keep forgetting to take those B12 tablets ...

... so that I won't forget so many things.

Harold Holt wrote:2 things I notice as I get older. one is that if I don't surf for a couple of weeks my surf/paddle fitness goes right out the window. the other is that a heap of water and a couple of bananas before each surf are now mandatory to help keep the leg cramps at bay.

Yep I have the same problem.

I've found lots of water does the trick and a decent breakfast consumed an hour before you go in keeps the cramps away and gives me enough energy to last a couple of hours.