The one most important fact is to take lessons from a well established surf shop that has trained instructors and an established business with a building that you can actually walk into to sign up for lessons and buy the proper gear.

Anything less then that and who are you going to go to if something goes wrong? Don't go with just some "Dude" in a truck cause it just is not safe!!!!! 

Surfing begins when the surfer finds a rideable wave on the horizon and then attempts to match its speed (by paddling or sometimes, by tow-in). Once the wave starts to carry the surfer forward, the surfer stands up and proceeds to ride down the face of the wave, generally staying just ahead of the breaking part (white water) of the wave (in a place often referred to as the pocket or the curl). A common problem for beginners is being unable to catch the wave in the first place, and one sign of a good surfer is the ability to catch a difficult wave that other surfers cannot.

Surfers' skills are tested not only in their ability to control their board in challenging conditions and/or catch and ride challenging waves, but by their ability to execute maneuvers such as turning and carving. Some of the common turns have become recognizable tricks such as the cutback (turning back toward the breaking part of the wave), the floater (riding on the top of the breaking curl of the wave), and off the lip (banking off the top of the wave). A newer addition to surfing is the progression of the air where a surfer propels themselves off the wave and re-enters. Some of these maneuvers are executed to extreme degrees, as with off-the-lips where a surfer over-rotates his turn and re-enters backward, or airs done in the same fashion, recovering either with re-rotation or continuing the over-rotation to come out with his nose forward again.
The tube is a maneuvered performed in the sport of surfing. When a wave begins to break, it often creates a hollow section as it peels down the sandbank or reef bottom, enabling the experienced surfer to position him / her self in the hollow part of the wave, also known as the tube. The surfer can be completely surrounded by water for several seconds (sometimes much longer depending upon the wave) until the wave forces him / her to exit the tube and go back out onto the open wave face. Given the degree of difficulty experienced whilst riding a tube, surfers often fall off their surfboards before exiting the tube cleanly. Strong tube riding skills can only be acquired from years of experience riding hollow waves and learning to anticipate how the wave will break, thus enabling you to stay inside the tube longer, or exit quickly before the wave collapses on top of you. Some of the worlds best known waves for tube riding include Pipeline on the North shore of Oahu, Teahupoo in Tahiti and G-Land in Java. http://www.surfersvillage.com

Hanging Ten and Hanging Five are moves usually specific to long boarding. Hanging Ten refers to having both feet on the front end of the board with all of the surfer's toes off the edge, also known as nose riding. Hanging Five is having just one foot near the front, toes off the edge. Hanging Ten was first made famous by James (Rip) Carman from the early Californian surfing beaches.
Photo of surfer at bottom of wave, attempting to let tube envelop him
A surfer going for the tube
Search Wiktionary Look up Appendix: Glossary of surfing terms in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

* Regular/Natural foot—Right foot on back of board
* Goofy foot—Left foot on back of board
* Take-off—the start of a ride
* Drop in—dropping into (engaging) the wave, most often as part of standing up
* Snaking, Drop in on, cut off, or "burn"—taking off on a wave in front of someone closer to the peak (considered inappropriate)
* Duck dive—pushing the board underwater, nose first, and diving under an oncoming wave instead of riding it
* Rolling—, Turtle Roll; Flipping a long board up-side-down, nose first and pulling through a breaking or broken wave when paddling out to the line-up
* Snaking/Back-Paddling—paddling around someone to get into the best position for a wave (in essence, stealing it)
* Pop-up—Going from lying on the board to standing, all in one jump
* Bottom turn—the first turn at the bottom of the wave
* Shoulder—the unbroken part of the wave
* Cutback—a turn cutting back toward the breaking part of the wave
* Fade—on take-off, aiming toward the breaking part of the wave, before turning sharply and surfing in the direction the wave is breaking
* Over the falls—When a surfer falls and the wave carries him in a circular motion with the lip of the wave, also referred to as the "wash cycle", being "pitched over" and being "sucked over" because the wave can suck the surfer off of the bottom and draw him or her "over the falls."
* Pump—an up/down carving movement that generates speed along a wave
* Stall—slowing down by shifting weight to the tail of the board or putting a hand in the water
* Floater—riding up on the top of the breaking part of the wave, and coming down with it (invented at Terrigal Beach, Central Coast Australia)
* Hang-five/hang ten—putting five or ten toes respectively over the nose of a longboard
* Hang Heels—Facing backwards and putting the surfers' heels over the edge of a longboard.
* Re-entry—hitting the lip vertically and re-reentering the wave in quick succession.
* Switch-foot—having equal ability to surf regular foot or goofy foot (i.e. left foot forward or right foot forward)—like being ambidextrous
* Tube riding/Getting barreled—riding inside the hollow curl of a wave
* Carve—turns (often accentuated)
* Pearl—accidentally driving the nose of the board underwater, generally ending the ride
* Off the Top—a turn on the top of a wave, either sharp or carving
* Snap—a quick, sharp turn off the top of a wave
* Fins-free snap (or "fins out")—a sharp turn where the surfboard's fins slide off the top of the wave
* Air/Aerial—riding the board briefly into the air above the wave, landing back upon the wave, and continuing to ride
* Grom/Grommet—young surfer (anyone younger than you)
* Wipe Out—Falling off your surfboard while riding a wave. Accident while involved with surfing
* Close-out—When the wave breaks in front of, or potentially on top of, the rider. A wave is said to be "closed-out" when the wave breaks at every position along the face at once.
* Snake—When a surfer who doesn't have the right of way, steals a wave from another surfer.
* Hang-loose—Generally meaning "catch that wave" or "well done". This message can be sent by raising a hand with the thumb and pinkie fingers up while the index, middle and ring fingers remain folded over the palm. Then twisting the wrist back and forth as if waving goodbye .
* Off the Hook—If a surfer were to say the swell is 'off the hook', he generally means that the surf spot he is referring to is of a good size, shape and look.

 Learning to surf

Many popular surfing destinations, such as Hawaii, California, Florida, Chile, Ireland, Australia and Costa Rica, have surf schools and surf camps that offer lessons. Surf camps for beginners and intermediates are multi-day lessons that focus on surfing fundamentals. They are designed to take new surfers and help them become proficient riders. All-inclusive surf camps offer overnight accommodations, meals, lessons and surfboards. Most surf lessons begin by instructors pushing students into waves on longboard. The longboard is considered the ideal surfboard for learning, due to the fact it has more paddling speed and stability than shorter boards. Fun boards are also a popular shape for beginners as they combine the volume and stability of the longboard with the manageable size of a smaller surfboard.[3]

Typical surfing instruction is best performed one-on-one, but can also be done in a group setting. Popular surf locations such as Hawaii and Costa Rica offer perfect surfing conditions for beginners, as well as challenging breaks for advanced students. Surf spots more conducive to instruction typically offer conditions suitable for learning, most importantly, sand bars or sandy bottom breaks with consistent waves.

Surfing can be broken into several skills: drop in positioning to catch the wave, the pop-up, and positioning on the wave. Paddling out requires strength but also the mastery of techniques to break through oncoming waves (duck diving, Eskimo roll). Drop in positioning requires experience at predicting the wave set and where they will break. The surfer must pop up quickly as soon as the wave starts pushing the board forward. Preferred positioning on the wave is determined by experience at reading wave features including where the wave is breaking.[4]

Balance plays a crucial role in standing on a surfboard. Thus, balance training exercises are a good preparation. Practicing with a Balance board or swing boarding helps novices master the art.

Once you have excelled in perfecting your skills on a surfboard you may possibly want to test your fate. Instead of using a tow-at (being towed into waves by jet-ski) like many big -wave riders need since the waves are almost impossible to paddle-in to, visit Pipeline on the North Shore of Oahu. This break is the mecca of surf photography and culture. Three different breaks are compiled into what people call the seven mile miracle. Many big named surfers paddle out at Pipe to get their name in the book or catch the wave of the season. But be fore warned wipe outs at Pipe are costly and never mediocre, devastating is a better word for it and the wipe out could possibly end your career as a surfer.
 Equipment
Photo of man bent over surfboard rubbing bar of solid wax against the board with palm trees and ocean in background
Waxing a surfboard
Photo of plastic cord attached to surfboard and velcroed around surfer's ankle
Surfboard leash
Photo of dozens of surfboards on rack. Each board is perpendicular to the ground and parallel to the other boards. Ocean in background.
Long boards in Waikiki beach

Surfing can be done on various equipment, including surfboards, longboards, Stand Up Paddle boards (SUP's), bodyboards, wave skis, skimboards, kneeboards and surf mats.

Surfboards were originally made of solid wood and were large and heavy (often up to 12 feet (3.7 m) long and 100 pounds (45 kg)). Lighter balsa wood surfboards (first made in the late 1940s and early 1950s) were a significant improvement, not only in portability, but also in increasing maneuverability.

Most modern surfboards are made of polyurethane foam (with one or more wooden strips or "stringers"), fiberglass cloth, and polyester resin. An emerging board material is epoxy which is stronger and lighter than traditional fiberglass. Even newer designs incorporate materials such as carbon fiber and variable-flex composites.

Other equipment includes a leash (to stop the board from drifting away after a wipeout, and to prevent it from hitting other surfers), surf wax, traction pads (to keep a surfer's feet from slipping off the deck of the board), and fins (also known as skegs) which can either be permanently attached (glassed-on) or interchangeable.

Sportswear designed or particularly suitable for surfing may be sold as boardwear (the term is also used in snowboarding). In warmer climates, swimsuits, surf trunks or boardshorts are worn, and occasionally rash guards; in cold water surfers can opt to wear wetsuits, boots, hoods, and gloves to protect them against lower water temperatures. A newer introduction is a rash vest with a thin layer of titanium to provide maximum warmth without compromising mobility.

There are many different surfboard sizes, shapes, and designs in use today. Modern longboards, generally 9 to 10 feet (3.0 m) in length, are reminiscent of the earliest surfboards, but now benefit from modern innovations in surfboard shaping and fin design. Competitive longboard surfers need to be competent at traditional walking maneuvers, as well as the short-radius turns normally associated with shortboard surfing.

The modern shortboard began life in the late 1960s and has evolved into today's common thruster style, defined by its three fins, usually around 6 to 7 feet (1.8 to 2.1 m) in length. The thruster was invented by Australian shaper Simon Anderson.

Midsize boards, often called funboards, provide more maneuverability than a longboard, with more flotation than a shortboard. While many surfers find that funboards live up to their name, providing the best of both surfing modes, others are critical.

"It is the happy medium of mediocrity," writes Steven Kotler. "Funboard riders either have nothing left to prove or lack the skills to prove anything."[5]

There are also various niche styles, such as the Egg, a longboard-style short board targeted for people who want to ride a shortboard but need more paddle power. The Fish, a board which is typically shorter, flatter, and wider than a normal shortboard, often with a split tail (known as a swallow tail). The Fish often has two or four fins and is specifically designed for surfing smaller waves. For big waves there is the Gun, a long, thick board with a pointed nose and tail (known as a pin tail) specifically designed for big waves.
Famous surfing locations
Mavericks ( California )
Main article: Mavericks (location)
4-frames image that shows the famous break of Mavericks

Maverick's or Mavericks is a world-famous surfing location in Northern California. It is located approximately one-half mile (0.8 km) from shore in Pillar Point Harbor just north of Half Moon Bay at the village of Princeton-By-The-Sea. After a strong winter storm in the northern Pacific Ocean, waves can routinely crest at over 25 feet (8m) and top out at over 50 feet (15m). The break is caused by an unusually-shaped underwater rock formation.



Surfers often surf in pairs or groups as a safeguard.
Photo of surfer catapulted into the air with feet higher than head at 45 degree angle to surface
A surfer exiting a closeout

Under the wrong set of conditions, anything that a surfer's body can come in contact with is potentially a danger, including sand bars, rocks, reefs, surfboards, and other surfers.[7] Collisions with these objects can sometimes cause unconsciousness, or even death.

Many surfers jump off bridges, buildings, wharves and other structures to reach the surf. If the timing is wrong they can either damage themselves or their equipment, or both.[8]

A large number of injuries, up to 66%,[9] are caused by collision with a surfboard (nose or fins). Fins can cause deep lacerations and cuts, as well as bruising. While these injuries can be minor, they can open the skin to infection from the sea; groups like Surfers Against Sewage campaign for cleaner waters to reduce the risk of infections.

Falling off a surfboard, colliding with others, or hurting oneself whilst surfing is commonly referred to as a wipeout.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surfingfrom