The Unspoken Rules of Longboarding Unlike many other sports, surfing doesn’t have official rules that are written down and posted publicly. But despite the lack of official rules and referees, the sport does have a number of unspoken rules and etiquette that should be followed by everyone in the water. Among these rules are a few that specifically apply to longboards. If you are still new to longboarding and wondering why people the other people in the lineup keep giving you stink eye, these rules might just help you figure out what you have been doing wrong! Stick to longboard-friendly waves. While there are a handful of pro longboarders who can paddle out at Pipe and pack huge barrels, most of us will never get to that level. In general, longboarders should stick to user-friendly waves in the ankle- to head-high range. Intermediate+ surfers on high-performance longboards will be able to handle larger waves at some spots, but it’s important to keep in mind that longboards have a lot less rocker than shortboards, so they tend to get bogged down and pearl on bigger, heavier waves. Traditional noseriders in particular have virtually no nose rocker, no edge in the rails,...

WSL Longboard Tour Is ON!   Now that the WSL shortboarding world tour has ended for the season, the focus has moved to the longboard tour, which has two championship events on the roster, as well as a 1000-point qualifier in Brazil in November. The longboard world tour kicks off this week on September 29, as 36 of the world’s best longboarders (18 men and 18 women) head to the Surf Ranch in Lemoore, California. The world’s most famous wave pool hosted a specialty longboard event in 2020, but this is the first time that results at the Surf Ranch will count toward the cumulative world title. Kelly Slater’s wave is well-suited to longboarding, as it is a long, perfect, relatively sectionless peeler that tops out at around chest- to head-high—pretty much every longboarders dream setup. While the Cuervo Surf Ranch Classic is the first longboard world tour event of 2021, 🤙🤙 the rankings from the abbreviate 2020 season are still in play when it comes to crowning a world champion. Points from the February 2020 event at Noosa Heads, Australia, will be combined with points from the Surf Ranch, and the final event of the 2020/21 world tour will follow shortly...