River Surfing Etiquette
With the growing popularity of river surfing in Dayton, we’d like to throw out some river surf etiquette 101 for people newer to the sport. A lot of these things apply only when the wave is more crowded. Aloha!
Don’t Be a wave hog - When there’s a good line up, try to keep surfs to 60-90 seconds. Get a few turns, then try a trick, 360, shove-it, floater or whatever. Surf harder to keep the line moving. If the line is long on one side, no need to alternate, let a few on the busy side go.
Stick to the lineup - Keep to an actual line and don’t huddle up by the entry point of the wave. After your surf, make your way to end of the line. This is especially important because kayakers need the room and runway to paddle into the wave and will not be in the line with surfers. Be respectful to all watercraft.
Don’t be a snake - On busy days and with all surf, SUP and kayakers, know who you go after in line. Be respectful and friendly.
Going! - Be ready to drop in when you are up. Try to avoid the 30 second Olympic visualization sequence and deep breathing rituals before you are about to drop in. Do those while standing in line!
When in doubt, don't go out - Know your limitations, skills, and know the levels! If you learned at a lower easier level, it may not be the same level as that previous day. The whirlpools can be quite scary and do some deep long hold downs at higher flows.
Control your board - When you’ve made it into the eddy, pull your board back to you and hold on to it and keep away from the wipe out zone.
Life jacket- Wear it! They really do save lives and we never want to see anyone drown or be put in the situation where others have to risk their lives in a rescue attempt.
Gear up - Know the weather and water temps, booties, wetsuits, have gloves during colder seasons, use quick release leashes, etc.
Upstream has right of way - If you see people coming from up river wanting to go through the drop, let them. Upstream traffic always has the right of way. It’s much harder for them to fight the current.
Dog friendly - Dogs are always welcome down at the wave, but it’s not the place where you should be letting your dog swim. It’s too easy for the dog to get tangled up with leashes, injure a surfer as they are trying to make it to the eddy, and a lot of boards are fiberglass and epoxy which means they are fragile. Don’t let your dog jump or stand on boards.
Eddy out - There are hazards downriver. Know the basic hazards of river safety - flush drowning, leg entrapment, strainers, leash entanglement.
Live Aloha - Respect for waves, water and other wave riders is a critical part of surfing.
Keep it clean - Pack out all your personal trash. We always try and bring trash bags down when we surf, especially after rains, because a lot of trash ends up in the eddy. Let’s all do more than our part!
Help build more waves - The way to ultimately spread the crowd out. More waves have many other positives - removes dangerous low head dams, improves irrigation infrastructure, reduces flood risk, allows for better fish passage sediment transport, improves river navigability, water trails, economic benefits to local economy. The list is long!
