If you’re looking for information on the different surfing levels, and most importantly, want to know what surfing level you’re at, you’ve come to the right place.
Knowing at what level of surfing you are is essential if you want to progress in your surfing journey. Considering yourself an intermediate surfer when you don’t actually have the skills for that level, will only hurt you in the long run.
If you know your surfing level you can plan your surf trips accordingly, choosing where and when to go surfing in order to make the most of it.
You also need to know it if you plan to book yourself a surf lesson or surf camp, as they’ll ask your level in order to plan your classes.
In this article we have outlined a detailed breakdown of the four levels of surfing, and the various phases within each of those levels.
Within each surfing level there are various skills and phases you need to master in order to progress to the next level.
So what are you waiting for, read on to discover the four levels of surfing, and to understand what level you are!
Ale doing a reentry 180 manoeuvre while surfing in Tenerife, Spain
In the surfing world there are four levels:
Level 1: Beginner
Level 2: Intermediate
Level 3: Advanced
Level 4: Professional
Within each of these levels, there are different phases that we must reach to move on to the next level.
Greta surfing in Tenerife, Spain
Surfing Level 1: Beginner
Within this level there are three fundamental phases, upon which your whole surfing learning journey will then be based.
Phase 1: Get up on the board
Although it sounds simple, for many people it’s actually very challenging.
If you have the right board (a suitable surfboard for beginners), there are optimal conditions and you have a good instructor to help you at all times, both in and out of the water, you might be able to stand up on your board in a whitewater wave (an already broken wave) on your first day.
However, standing up on your first day doesn’t mean that you have mastered the first phase of the Beginner level.
A perfect wave for surfing
You have to keep practicing for several days, correcting posture errors so that your pop-up, or take off, is correct and comes to you automatically.
This can take, at least, from a week to a month of practice. Practicing how to stand up on a surfboard everyday, for 1 to 2 hours per day, will be enough to control your position on the board.
Obviously these timings are just estimates. It’s hard to say how long it takes to learn surfing, since everyone’s journey is different.
Everything will depend on your commitment and perseverance, and how often you train.
Greta surfing in Fuerteventura, Spain
Phase 2: Learn to paddle
This is super important for your independence in the water. If you don’t have a good paddle, best case scenario you just don’t catch any waves.
Worst case scenario, you won’t even be able to pass the breaking point area to reach the line-up.
Once you have a good paddling technique, your safety in the water increases and your surfing evolution will speed up.
This won’t take you too long to learn, but it will take a little more practice to get your arm muscles used to doing it efficiently.
Not paddling properly will frustrate your surf progress, and can also be extremely dangerous if you can’t paddle out of a dangerous situation. Basically, something as simple as paddling well is as important as your life itself.
There are lots of different paddling techniques, and the best one for each person is different.
Ale giving an advanced surf coaching session
Phase 3: Choosing waves in the inside
Being able to choose the right waves is essential to surfing well. Knowing which wave to select, and which wave has enough strength to for us to ride it for as long as possible, is extremely important.
At a beginner level this will take place in the inside, a safe and controlled area where the waves have already broken, and you’re surfing whitewater waves (or foam).
This phase doesn’t take long to understand, but like everything, it takes a lot of practice to get to the next surfing level. These three phases of the beginner level are the foundations that will support your evolution in surfing.
Sometimes people consider themselves intermediate surfers after doing one surf class, where they managed to stand up on their surfboard with a surf instructor pushing them on the wave.
Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as that.
To master the beginner level and be ready to progress to intermediate, you need to master the three phases listed above, and be able to independently choose your wave, paddle it and confidently stand up and ride it.
Greta surfing a whitewater wave in the inside in Tenerife, Spain
Surfing Level 2: Intermediate
This is when you really start to become more independent in the outside. This stage can be very frustrating for many new surfers, since you can spend many hours in the water and only catch one wave.
When compared to all the whitewater waves you were catching at the beginner level, it can feel disheartening. Don’t worry however, as this is completely normal.
At this surf level, it’s important to understand where the correct position to catch the wave is. This perfect spot is known as the pocket.
In order to correctly identify the pocket, you need to take the experience you cultivated during the final phase of the beginner level, where you were selecting the right whitewater waves, and put it to work at this intermediate level.
You must learn to read and anticipate the wave, and know where to position yourself in order to take advantage of the force of the wave.
Being in the right position will give you the push and speed you need for a good take-off, and thus get out of the impact zone and really surf the wave.
The intermediate level can also be broken up into four phases.
Ale dropping a wave while surfing in Tenerife, Spain
Phase 1: Duck dive
A duck dive is when you dive under an oncoming wave, similarly to how ducks swim (hence the name), and pop out on the other side.
This will allow you to get past the broken whitewater waves and into the outside quickly, so that you can get to the line-up for your next green wave.
The duck dive is essential to be able to surf beach breaks, otherwise you simply won’t be able to reach the line-up.
It’s better that you learn it early on in your surfing journey, because if you feel ready to ride larger waves, but don’t know how to get past the break, it will be very frustrating and it will put you off surfing.
Ale dropping a huge wave, the kind you have to duck dive under to reach the line-up
Phase 2: Reading the pocket
Reading the waves and the pocket is essential to becoming a good surfer, and catching as many waves as possible.
The most important thing that you should always keep in mind is to observe the waves very well, and how they break progressively. This will help you understand how to move in the water.
When observing waves as they approach the coast, you can usually see them clearly aligned one after the other. You need to be able to select one that best suits your surf level and paddling ability.
A perfect surfing wave in Tenerife, Spain, where you can see the pocket
Phase 3: Drop or descent of the wave
Even if you already know how to do the take off, you need to learn how to drop the wave, or you will end up suffering numerous wipeouts.
Once you have mastered the descent of the wave, you’re ready to progress to level three, the advanced level, and start learning your first basic manoeuvres.
Greta dropping a wave while surfing in Tenerife, Spain
Surfing Level 3: Advanced
The move from intermediate to advanced surfer can take a while. Surfing is a long journey, also because it’s not only dependant on how often you train, but also on the wave conditions and many other external factors.
Once you feel confident at the intermediate stage, and that you can catch green waves and ride them on the wall, you’ll want to start practicing some basic manoeuvres to properly reach the advanced level.
Phase 1: Bottom turn
The bottom turn is considered the base upon which all other manoeuvres are then built, since it’s what gives you the push to carry out any radical manoeuvre, and most importantly, to stay on the wall of the wave.
As the name suggests, the bottom turn is used to cross at the base of the wave, to be able to get back to the wall of the wave just after your drop.
It gives you the perfect position to get on the lip of the wave and perform a more radical manoeuvre, or simply to get back on the pocket and follow the line and flow of the wave.
To do a good bottom turn you need to know how to distribute the weight of your body on the board, since in this manoeuvre we begin to move from front to back and from one side to the other.
Ale doing a bottom turn while surfing in Tenerife, Spain
Phase 2: Ripping the wave
Once you get to this phase of the advanced level, you’ve reached the point where you’re truly dominating the waves and surfing.
At this stage you can be considered an advanced surfer, since you will learn how to generate speed and stay on the wave from start to finish.
In the world of surfing, we call this stage ripping, to say we have reached the point of dominating the waves to our liking.
Once you have mastered ripping well in the waves, you have reached the final level that can be reached in any sport.
Although there are only two phases to the advanced level, it can take years of training to confidently master this level.
Ale sipping a wave in Lobitos, North Peru
Surfing Level 4: Professional
This is the last step of the sports chain, which will take you to surf all kinds of waves, regardless of size or conditions.
Surfers that reach this level can do all the previous phases smoothly, as well as learning high performance manoeuvres.
It sounds very simple when you put it in writing in a few words, but to reach this final surfing level you have to train for years.
Professional surfers train with dedication and perseverance for years, in all kinds of conditions and waves to be considered professional.
Ale doing a carving manoeuvre while surfing in Tenerife, Spain
In increasing order of difficulty, here are the main manoeuvres that professional surfers do at this level.
1. Bottom turn
2. Cutback or layback
3. Re-entry
4. Snap
5. Floater
Ale doing a tail snap while surfing in Tenerife, Spain
6. 360
7. Carving
8. Tubo (pipe)
9. Ollie
10. Aerial
If you can do at least 5 of these 10 main manoeuvres, then congratulations, you can now be considered a professional surfer!
Now that you have reached this level you will be able to surf all kings of waves in any condition, anywhere in the world. Now you can just keep surfing, and enjoy every wave you ride!
Ale doing a floater while surfing in Tenerife, Spain
Final thoughts on the four surfing levels
There you have it, the ultimate breakdown to the four surfing levels and all the skills and phases within each of them. I hope this article helps you answer the question; “what surfing level am I?”
As already mentioned, being realistic about what surfing level you are is key to your improving and enjoying your surfing journey.
Many people overestimate their surfing skill level, and make mistakes like buying the wrong size surfboard, paddling waves that are too big for them and just generally surfing in conditions that aren’t appropriate for their skill level.
In the long run, this will just hurt you and your surfing journey, since you’ll catch less waves, get frustrated, and not enjoy it.
It’s better to be realistic, stick to the surf essentials for your skill level, and surf in conditions that you feel comfortable with.
If you have any questions about the different surfing levels and the phases within them, just let us know in the comments below!
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