[SeaCliff]

I had a pretty good year overall - made progress I think, but of course not as much as I'd like. At the very least 2009 was a healthy year for me, which all by itself helped tremendously - I remember thinking at one point that I was *almost* back to surfing as well as I had been prior to an injury 2 years ago - and finally starting to move past it and try new things again.
 
 But beyond that, I'm always curious about how people have perceived their progress and the discussions that ensue on what everyone is working on or plan to work on more....so with that said, how was the '09 campaign for everyone? Progress? Setbacks? What's the outlook for 2010?

Post your thoughts and of course vote in the poll! (Results are viewable once you vote!)

[Kdropin]

the more you surf i think the more i improve.. it all depends on the quality of water time you log.. i think now that i have a board that i will like to ride in smaller stuff that works well in it too(frocket) will help me get motivated for small days

[tummee]

Definitely feeling much improved. Anyone with anecdotal evidence to the contrary can feel free to disagree, of course.

Surfed the Pacific for the first time. Riding smaller and smaller boards (even with a 5/4 on). Got my first honest barrel this year. Last time I was out in waves of size... jeez - three weeks or so ago... I was finally taking the board straight up. Haven't felt the rush of a transition like that since skateboarding.

Ready for 2010!

[ya_bloody_wanka]

i surfed ALOT this year and i definatly think i improved alot. focused more on finding good waves this year and did alot of travelling to the good waves. board choice, and boards in general have been feeling really good lately so all that combined and i feel i had a really good year

[ez_ed]

Better at surfing smaller boards at more performance waves thanks to plenty of Spring sessions at Ehukai/shallow reef spots in Mokes and the addition of my Morgan quad fish to the quiver. Been working on sticking steeper drops with consistency at spots like Pinballs but haven't been able to do a lot of bigger wave surfing due to paternal responsibilities and the fact that surfing bigger waves is more of a time-consuming mission so I've been able to just do mostly quick sessions at Alii's and in my backyard(not that I'm complaining).
Been SUPing more so I've definitely improved in that area, especially surfing overhead surf and going left. When I started out I struggled in these areas with the SUP.
I skate bowls more regularly so that helps the surf neurons fire even when I don't get wet. And it's something I can do with the keikis.


Here's to more surf stoke in 2010!

[hexnotes]

Feel I definately improved, doesn't feel as dramatic as past years.  Felt maybe I dicked around with new equipment too much which I guess is part of the learning process.  Still haven't found the board that is totally right for my size, skill level, etc....but had a lot of fun figuring it all out.  Managed to take 2 pretty epic surf trips (I'm super broke now) including a camping trip up the california coast that I'll not soon forget.  Explored a lot, surfed a lot, came out in one piece.  All in all, 2009 will go down as the year when everything else in my life sucked, but the waves were stellar including a pretty decent summer and a damned awesome fall if you ask me.

[surfnli]

the same if not worse.  tweaked my knee a couple of times and also had a heavy ruptured eardrum/concussion episode that altered my year for the worse.  that said, i've opined before, i don't stress much about skill level.  just get out there and have a good time.  ride boards that make that easy. 
 
really to me the best part of surfing is exploring     driving hiking and boating to relatively inaccessible areas and surfing waves most people don't.  in that i've had another fantastic blessed year.  looking forward to more of the same in '10!

[nycwipeout]

I'm totally getting worse, can't help it, just don't surf enough to make any advancement 

[Yuppers913]

job = worse at surfing.
really frustrating.  I only really get to surf now every couple months.  But, i'm trying to turn lemons into lemonaid by working out a ton so when I do surf, I'll at least be in the best shape I have ever been in.

[onefinookas]

broke ass, staph, raging sinus infections and all that, yet still found time to progress.  One day I will surf the the door off your house.

[Masochist]

I'm about the same.  I've been surfing like a 47 year old longboarder for a l o n g time
 
HAU 'OLI MAKAHIKI HOU !!

[Justin-PI]

Far worse. Like a lot of people on here, I started getting worse after high school when I headed to college upstate.



But this year my decline went into overdrive, due to bad luck with missing swell because of work/being out too late for DP and generally having a lot on my mind other than surfing.


Also my trip to Nica was great, but it was during one of their biggest swells in recent memory and I was utterly undergunned o a 6'2", so I never got that post-trip improvement spike because I couldn't just catch a zillion waves and try new stuff.


Turn the page.

[theusername]

this last year i actually improved quite a great deal, but i also made it a high priority to surf as much as possible, and took extended trips that allowed me to surf more often and in more consistent waves. i may not always have the opportunities i had for most of last year to focus on surfing so i consider myself very lucky and have decided 2009 was a pretty good year.

[Dorado]

Better In Hawaii this past yr , as opposed to my first trip to the North Shore where I broke all my boards in 2 weeks .

Better frontside ( lefts) tuberiding , def making it out of and deeper , probably due to fading more and doing a w=quick snap stall and shuffling up a little instead of always trying to backdoor the barell

Slightly better but still a long way to go at backside tuberiding but made strides last good day in NJ and made a few .

The same at doing snaps , hacks , cutbacks , which really never intriqued me  and where I was always pretty pedestrian, I suppose I have to start trying to turn harder or more flashy . I always try and be a more positional surfer and look for the barrell as opposed to doing floaters and hitting a section hard .Been stcuck in a surf down the line rut for so long I jsut stick to what I know . I have a rocket again which during trop storm Danny I felt like i was doing some progressive floaters and a few tail drifts until i busted the fin box by catching the board in the nads .

overall getting more consistent with age but at nearly 41 the window of above the lip surfing has closed for me and I know I'll never be that guy .

My focus for 2010 is to continue to get better and more consistent in the OH to DOH range( my main interest ) when we get those days and when I travel ( tricks are for KIds silly rabbit)

OH and def worse at cross stepping and overall longboard style in which I used to be able to do a facsimile of cross stepping and somewhat style on a log and now due to never riding one have regressed to crab shuffling . Once Im up there I can noseride OK though

[Waves be Good]

I'm really sharpening up on the point breaks here, pushing my surfing closer to the pocket and learning how to carry speed into and through turns. I want to focus on barrel riding this year, when possible. I think I've finally got the wave knowledge and the right equipment for it--some bodysurfing sessions proved to be the real breakthrough.

When are any of you folks coming to visit Liberia?