Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

The long and short of it

At Tourmaline, long- and shortboarders are welcome.
At Tourmaline, long- and shortboarders are welcome.

The waves have to be fast and be breaking to catch them on a shortboard. While sitting on a shortboard, the surfer is very low down in the water. Shortboard surfers get upset with longboarders when the latter surf what is normally considered shortboard country. It is scary to see a longboarder coming directly at you fast.

Longboards allow a surfer to get into the wave even before it begins to break, much sooner than a shortboard. This means that a longboarder can sit farther out in the surf line-up and catch the waves first. Surf etiquette dictates that the longboarder has the right of way on the wave as long as it lasts. This is another reason that shortboarders do not like having longboarders near them.

Sponsored
Sponsored

At Tourmaline Surfing Park, long- and shortboarders are welcome, and they seem to get along together fine. There are two reasons for this. The first is that the landscape of the beach and the surf breaks tend to keep the two groups separate. The second reason is because Tourmaline is a friendly surfing spot, especially for beginners.

After a longboarder has taken a long ride in from the outside, he/she will get off the wave early so a shortboarder can ride the wave while it is actually breaking. Out at P.B. Point (aka False Point) there is even better separation between long- and shortboards.

Longboarders (on a big day) are well outside catching huge waves before they can break. The longboarders have to get off the wave before it completely breaks or they will be pushed onto the rocks. A shortboarder can surf closer to the shore and they have it much easier when a big wave breaks directly on top of them. A shortboarder can easily dive under the wave (duck dive), whereas longboarders have to flip over (turtle roll) and that does not always work.

Most of the locals know that Tourmaline is primarily a longboard surfing spot, with the longest boards getting the most waves. Surfers on shortboards do not get nearly as many rides as longboarders.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Remote work = cleaner air for San Diego

Locals working from home went from 8.1 percent to 17.8 percent
Next Article

Pedicab drivers in downtown San Diego miss the music

New rules have led to 50% drop in business
At Tourmaline, long- and shortboarders are welcome.
At Tourmaline, long- and shortboarders are welcome.

The waves have to be fast and be breaking to catch them on a shortboard. While sitting on a shortboard, the surfer is very low down in the water. Shortboard surfers get upset with longboarders when the latter surf what is normally considered shortboard country. It is scary to see a longboarder coming directly at you fast.

Longboards allow a surfer to get into the wave even before it begins to break, much sooner than a shortboard. This means that a longboarder can sit farther out in the surf line-up and catch the waves first. Surf etiquette dictates that the longboarder has the right of way on the wave as long as it lasts. This is another reason that shortboarders do not like having longboarders near them.

Sponsored
Sponsored

At Tourmaline Surfing Park, long- and shortboarders are welcome, and they seem to get along together fine. There are two reasons for this. The first is that the landscape of the beach and the surf breaks tend to keep the two groups separate. The second reason is because Tourmaline is a friendly surfing spot, especially for beginners.

After a longboarder has taken a long ride in from the outside, he/she will get off the wave early so a shortboarder can ride the wave while it is actually breaking. Out at P.B. Point (aka False Point) there is even better separation between long- and shortboards.

Longboarders (on a big day) are well outside catching huge waves before they can break. The longboarders have to get off the wave before it completely breaks or they will be pushed onto the rocks. A shortboarder can surf closer to the shore and they have it much easier when a big wave breaks directly on top of them. A shortboarder can easily dive under the wave (duck dive), whereas longboarders have to flip over (turtle roll) and that does not always work.

Most of the locals know that Tourmaline is primarily a longboard surfing spot, with the longest boards getting the most waves. Surfers on shortboards do not get nearly as many rides as longboarders.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

City Lights: Journey Through Light & Sound, Hotel Holiday Tea Service

Events December 7-December 11, 2024
Next Article

San Diego seawalls depend on Half Moon Bay case

Casa Mira townhomes sued after losing 20 feet of bluffs in storm
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader