Here are the steps on how to do a duck dive
As the wave approaches, paddle hard into the wave to provide some momentum, then place your hands on the rail at shoulder height and push the nose of your board underwater.
Straighten your arms, which will push your board farther underwater.
At the same time push your body off the board so that one of your knees is on the board (use your feet in big waves) to apply pressure so that you are more or less horizontal underwater.
As the wave passes you by, start pushing your board forward, releasing the pressure on your arms will bring the board up and outward against the wave.
When you reach the surface, you should return to the paddle position.
You know you’ve done a great duck dive when you dive under the waves and feel very little pull from the waves!
Other duck dive sites
Basically we just raised the board from where we were lying, you don’t need to move the board up and down. A lot of times I see people trying to dive by moving the board up, which causes them to lose their balance and reduces the pressure on their knees against the back of the board. Moving the board up will never get them deep enough to clear the bottom of the wave.
Start paddling as soon as the water is exposed. Failure to do so on bigger waves can result in you and your board being sucked back into the break, which is not fun because entering the break from behind like this can give you a real shock!!! We’ve all been backed up on a waterfall before and it makes you even more determined not to let that happen again!
Always Duck Dive before the waves reach you so you have time to dive in. A common mistake is to leave it too late and the white water will grab you and pull you back to the beach.
Remember, learning to Duck Dive takes a lot of practice to get it right. Once you have mastered it, you should be able to duck dive in flat water – just like a duck!
Turtle Roll
Duck diving a 7-foot or longer surfboard becomes very difficult, especially if the board has a nose as wide as a longboard. A big surfboard floats well and is hard to push underwater. If you can’t duck dive deep enough to get under the wave, the wave will push you back to shore.
In this case, don’t be a duck …… Be a turtle dude!
Turtle rolls are not a fun thing to do, but they are essential if you want to get yourself out the back and through those walls of white water.
This is what you do ……
As the wave approaches, grab the crossbar of the board around where you will be standing with your hands, or 1/4 to 1/3 of the way from the nose of the board, and lean to one side, causing you and the board to turn upside down.
You are now underwater, under your board. It is best to keep your body in an upright position at this stage. That is at a 90 degree angle to your board, rather than parallel, which will help create resistance to the pull of the wave.
For small waves, place the board at least 2-3 feet from the front of each rail and pull the front of the board underwater. This will cause the wave to pass through the board without catching it and pulling it back. For large waves, it takes a lot of force to pull the board far enough underwater and resist the force of the wave so it will pass.
The most important thing is to be upside down underwater before the wave reaches you.
Be careful not to lean the board back too far, as it can make it easier for the wave to get under the board and wrench it out of your hands.
You should feel the board push down and up as the wave rolls over, which is usually how you know you’re flipping well
Once the wave has passed, flip the board over and start over.
There you have it! You’re a turtle!
