We are talking all things cross steeping feeling, how to and specific technique
The flow of moving with a wave. Feeling at each step you are gliding along it as if you are embodying the spirit of that very wave. Is this the closest feeling to being the ocean and all its energy. The speed and flow developed with being able to ride a wave in this way is not only impressive to watch. We want you to be able to feel that pure ocean energy so we wrote an article of just how to do that.
Your first decision is going to be when is THE time to start cross stepping. A few elements which are going to help you is being in the right position. Why ? Because in order to cross step your board must be positioned in ‘the pocket’ also known as the steepest part of the wave. The reasoning being so as the wave breaks in counter balances the weight you put on the nose.
When longboarders also talk about just feeling when they need to step to the nose and back. The feeling they are referring to is often when they are loosing speed or even loosing the wave itself so by transferring weight further forward you regain momentum forward. But if who don’t step back you could nose dive with too much weight on the front for an extended period of time.
Let’s get into technique. So we want to shift our weight from your hips first and then the rest will follow
You start with your weight over your back foot, keeping your hips and knees relaxed and loose. The next step is to shift your weight over your front foot by moving your hips and upper body forward. Now that there is no weight over your back foot, you can bring it round in front of your leading leg. At this stage there is still no weight on your back foot, so you can step back easily if you pick up too much speed or become unstable.
To continue cross-stepping, shift your hips and upper body forward again on to your new leading foot (the foot that has just crossed over to the front). You can now bring your usual leading foot back around behind your back leg into an open stance again. You don’t need to transfer your weight onto this foot, but if there is room and you want to continue cross-stepping you can repeat the process and maybe even get to the nose!
Other Important Tips
Stay loose in your knees to be able to flow with the movements as too bent knees or too straight legs will make the cross stepping difficult
Keep your arms low. Having minimal movement in the arms and upper body when cross stepping will help with balance.
image shot by Annie Smith of Claire Vandermerien in our Water Women surf suit