Surfing vs. Skateboarding

Both surfing and skateboarding encompass a wide variety of viewpoints, ranging from weekend pastimes to legitimate lifestyles and even highly spiritual pursuits. The venues of expression are equally broad, with board enthusiasts practicing their craft anywhere from fast food parking lots to remote beaches dealing out bone-crushing waves. Board cultures are very loyal to their sport of choice, choosing either skating or surfing, but not very often both. Whether you vibe with the waves or the cold, hard concrete, each sport offers something special to its devoted followers.

  1. Learning To Surf

    • A mastery of surfing doesn't come overnight, and it helps to start young, but much of the sport comes down to conditioning. Fill your head with all the images of glorious rides and obscene amounts of hang time that you can handle, but at the end of the day surfing is mostly about navigating the water. Proficient swimmers have the advantage, as paddling will comprise the majority of your activity time. A knowledge of weather conditions and the ocean's behavior is absolutely necessary for surfers looking to tackle big waves and deep oceans. CPR skills are a must. Once you witness an epic wipeout in furious waters, you'll understand why.

    Learning To Skate

    • Most people would agree that smacking your face on concrete ends up being considerably more painful than smacking your face on water. Wearing protective gear is essential. While surfers learn about swimming, the skater is getting to know his board. Determining how to stand on the board and getting familiar with simple balancing, bending and twisting comes long before even the most basic of tricks. Beginning skaters shouldn't even start on concrete. Grass is a novice's friend--a stable and gripping surface that helps move a skater slowly toward the same goal a surfer has: feeling the board as an extension of the self. Even on the concrete, balance and poise are concerns that should be met long before the fun stuff.

    The Playing Field

    • The skateboarder looks at his playground of choice and sees a static environment. The wall stays the same. The curb stays the same. The ramp stays the same. The matter of importance is how the skater transforms that fixed object into an expression of his talents. Thoughtful planning and execution result in a successful stunt. The surfer looks at an ever-changing landscape and uses his knowledge of weather, waves and breaks to watch for the perfect moment to start moving toward the ride of his choice. It's not all planning and thinking ahead. Each decision to catch the next wave is made from both experience and guesswork. The end result plays out as much from the wave's evolution as it does from the preparation beforehand.

    The Ties That Bind

    • Surfing and skating are sports that travel the same path. They start out in similar ways and the goals are mostly the same, but it's what's in the middle that defines them. You start out with a board, which becomes your constant companion. Whether you take that board to the street in a technical display of dexterity or into the ocean to finesse your way through the crashing waves is up to you. What matters is where your joy is, and where you feel the most sense of excitement and belonging. There is no better choice here--only a better choice for you.