The world needs time to beat the coronavirus. The more people who stay at home, the more likely it is that we can all pull through this together. So we're creating and curating content that can can help you shred indoors and stave off lockdown blues. You can find all of that, HERE - JL, editor.
Have you lost your mind yet? Worn out every surf video you’ve ever owned? Depending on where you live, it’s probably been a week or two since you were last allowed to surf, and with stay-at-home orders only becoming stricter, it’s starting to look like it might be awhile before we get back in the water.
But that doesn’t mean that your days of shredding are a thing of the past. With a little bit of ingenuity and the motivation to get off your ass and turn off Netflix, you can still chase that feeling that only surfers know. Sure, it might not be the real thing—but it's better than turning into a couch potato.
Here are five ideas to keep you stoked at home:
Surf skate
This one is a no-brainer. After all, skating was created by desperate surfers who were looking for a way to keep shredding when there were no waves to ride. Whether you have a mini-ramp in your backyard, a banked driveway to practice your carves, or are simply trying to land your first kickflip, there’s no time like a quarantine to bone up on your Bones Brigade skills.
Slackline
Yes, slacklinging is sort of nerdy (Andrey Karr will see you in his office now - ed) —the pastime of hippies, hackey-sackers, and bored rock climbers whose fingertips are too raw to crimp.
But it’s also a great way to work on your balance, focus, and core strength—all of which have a direct impact on your surf performance. Plus, you can only watch Tiger King so many times...
Get Pitted on a Balance Board
Indo Boards were all the rage when they first came out in the late 1990s, and a variety of alternatives were produced over the next decade. By 2010, it was pretty much impossible to visit a surfer’s house without seeing a shrine to home-based balance proudly displayed in the corner of the living room.
But over the past few years, balance boards have sort of gone out of style—sold at yard sales and stashed in garages, lost and forgotten and replaced by things like hoverboards and electric bikes.
Now, with 35 million surfers currently locked in their houses, balance boards are primed for a comeback. An the good news is, you don’t have to spend £150 to work on your balance at home. Grab a skateboard deck, a softtop, or even just a piece of plywood, put it on top of a fascia roller, throw on that vintage copy of My Eyes Won’t Dry, and spend an hour balancing your way through a digital barrel-fest.
#homebreakchallenge
Shortboards in hammocks. Mid-lengths on exercise balls. Surfboards on wagons being towed beneath trickling garden hoses. Softtops on skateboards driving through throw-rug slabs, masterfully demonstrated by Yadin Nicol’s groms.
Stop-motion surf clips starring cute little kids who shred blanket barrels, boost pillowcase airs, and pan Pete Mel’s post-heat interview style. You name it, someone’s done it—but that doesn’t make it any less entertaining every time this hashtag pops up on your feed. Got your own idea for a clever way to #ShredAtHome? Shred it, film it, post it, and join the pantheon of the Insta-famous.
Pogo-Stick
If all else fails, there’s always the time-honoured tradition of bouncing up and down on a spring-loaded stick... if you're that way inclined.