Leash Drag

General Discussion
1

A few months ago my 10-4 got away from me and ended up hitting a guy and his board. It was a kinda small wave and a guy dropped in front of me and in the process of avoiding him, the log got loose and ended up encountering this other guy. I did not see what happened but he musta put up his hand to ward off the board and he bruised his hand below the thumb. I apologized profusely and told him I would pay for the board repair. He was cool about it and he was back in the lineup the next day…but he did suggest that I should wear a leash. I am very cautious about taking off when there are people that are potentially in the way if the board gets loose and I am confident if the guy had not got in my way…all would have been ok. Last week there were two overhead days and I decided to use a leash. The leash is really long(15 foot ±) and thick and it must be a big wave leash, but the board is 34 pounds and I figured if I am going to use it, I want to trust it will work properly. 

The waves were good but I was not flying like usual and I figured the waves did not have the normal juice. The next day, it was a bit small, but cleaner and I couldnt quite figure out what was going on and then DUH, its the fricking cord slowing me down. The next two days were smaller yet with a few head high waves and I surfed without the leash and all was working as normal. 

Today on Surf News Network I found this article:

http://www.surfnewsnetwork.com/featured/how-much-is-your-leash-a-drag-on-your-surfing

Anyway I guess I need to figure out what would be the best way to tether this monster board to me with the least drag. Maybe a much shorter leash…but still beefy diameter. Is there any kinda of coiled leash( like I have seen on body boards) or ? 

 

the beast…

 

2

Get a shorter leash.  I use a 5/16" DaKine 8’ calf cuff leash on all my SUPs, and it’s plenty long and plenty strong.  You will have enough slack to get to the nose on your 10-4.  There is very little leash in the water when surfing, which reduces drag, and keeps it out of the kelp.

I would advise against any of the coiled leashes that are out there.  They work very nicely for flatwater SUP paddling, but tangle, create drag and are a general nuisance when surfing. I can not imagine using one on your longboard.

3

Proneman I couldnt get that link to open but a guy here on Sways sent me a PM about a product he has developed that eliminates leash drag. Hes made them for about 10 years but not commercially.  A few weeks ago I started a thread on the Industry Forum where I mentioned it but my invitation to discuss potential ideas wasnt understood by some posters. Its a plastic disc that attaches to your leash quite ingeniously and slides to the curve at the furthest point from the rider. The curve at the end of the leash creates most of the drag. As it moves along it lifts the curved part of the leash just above the water. He sent me some images of it in action.

 

4

Proneman,

Forgive me for busting your balls, but there is NO excuse to not wear a leash if others are around.  Your desire for fun does not give you the right to endanger others.  Malibu, right?  Too many people.  If you want to surf leashless, and think you can do it because of your skill level?  Try Supertubes, just east of Mugu Rock. I like Drainpipes on a spring morning right at dawn or summer just before sundown on a Santa Ana wind, for that sort of thing.

I love surfing leashless too, but it is only for surfing when there is nobody else there.  If you have ever been hit by any size board you know it hurts.

I think the saying goes “My right to swing my fist ends at your nose”.

I’m with Andy, Just get a short leash.  Your big board has so much momentum, you aren’t going slower because of it.

Again, sorry for being a dick, but personal experience makes me call you on it.

5

I believe leashes do drag,

I surf with and without them

there is a differance. especialy the long fat ones and leashes that have wax on them

if its big or theres people inside, I will leash up

6

I think they slow you down in small waves and prefer to surf without one, too.  A couple years ago my board went over the top of another guy, too.  Didn’t hurt him.  He was lucky.  I surf in a place where I usually don’t need one, but when it gets crowded or too busy I leash up.  I would hate to hurt some guy so he couldn’t go to work and support his family over a wave or gouge some kid.  Aint worth it.  Mike

7

No leash drag with a board that size. 

8

The problem is not people who don’t use a leash the problem is people who have never surfed without a leash. If you think the leash is a safety component you shouldn’t surf. It’s a crutch. It makes surfers weaker, more aggressive, willing to take chances and inconsiderate. The only thing a leash saves is your board from the rocky shoreline or yourself from a long swim.

In the days before leashes, you learned where to paddle out from and where not to be paddling or sitting. You learned that boards will be coming in on waves when guys fall and how to avoid them. Occasionally you had to bail your board and swim because you got caught in a bad place. Getting run over was a part of the surfing experience, and learning how to handle it was a very important part. My dad always said he could fix my board, but he can’t fix a hole in my head.

Surfers today don’t understand this or just don’t care. They’ll paddle right through the break instead of going around like we all did when were younger. They sit on the inside in your way hoping to snag your wave, if not they just push under and try for the next one. Half the time they are in the way causing you to not catch the wave because you don’t want to hit them. When you run them over they get pissed like it’s OK for them to be sitting there in your way. Leashes have allowed more idiots to go out and surf where they should never ever have been in the first place. They certainly would not be there if they didn’t have a leash to keep them close to their board.

I wear leashes almost all the time because I am lazy and don’t want to swim. I also don’t like it when the tide is low and your board sits in the shallow water where you will almost always get sea urchin spins stuck in your feet. I sometimes don’t wear leashes because I want to have that occassional swim. I still have days where my leash breaks and I end up surfing without a leash for the rest of the day. At least 1/4 to 1/3 of the guys I surf with don’t use a leash and some have never used a leash.

People need to learn that boards will come in and you should be thinking about that all the time. You need to learn how to jump off and dive down really fast. If you don’t want to get hurt don’t go surfing. If you can’t surf safely without a leash 90% of the time or more stay on the inside. If you paddle out through the waves, don’t get mad when a board comes in at you. You can go surf somewhere else if you want it’s your choice.

9

You can buy leashes that float ,       =   less drag .

10

[quote="$1"]

The problem is not people who don't use a leash the problem is people who have never surfed without a leash. If you think the leash is a safety component you shouldn't surf. It's a crutch. It makes surfers weaker, more aggressive, willing to take chances and inconsiderate. The only thing a leash saves is your board from the rocky shoreline or yourself from a long swim.

In the days before leashes, you learned where to paddle out from and where not to be paddling or sitting. You learned that boards will be coming in on waves when guys fall and how to avoid them. Occasionally you had to bail your board and swim because you got caught in a bad place. Getting run over was a part of the surfing experience, and learning how to handle it was a very important part. My dad always said he could fix my board, but he can't fix a hole in my head.

Surfers today don't understand this or just don't care. They'll paddle right through the break instead of going around like we all did when were younger. They sit on the inside in your way hoping to snag your wave, if not they just push under and try for the next one. Half the time they are in the way causing you to not catch the wave because you don't want to hit them. When you run them over they get pissed like it's OK for them to be sitting there in your way. Leashes have allowed more idiots to go out and surf where they should never ever have been in the first place. They certainly would not be there if they didn't have a leash to keep them close to their board.

I wear leashes almost all the time because I am lazy and don't want to swim. I also don't like it when the tide is low and your board sits in the shallow water where you will almost always get sea urchin spins stuck in your feet. I sometimes don't wear leashes because I want to have that occassional swim. I still have days where my leash breaks and I end up surfing without a leash for the rest of the day. At least 1/4 to 1/3 of the guys I surf with don't use a leash and some have never used a leash.

People need to learn that boards will come in and you should be thinking about that all the time. You need to learn how to jump off and dive down really fast. If you don't want to get hurt don't go surfing. If you can't surf safely without a leash 90% of the time or more stay on the inside. If you paddle out through the waves, don't get mad when a board comes in at you. You can go surf somewhere else if you want it's your choice.

[/quote]

Thank you for such an articulate statement about the surfing public today and it's mindset, as well as the historic ''rules of the road.''    The rudeness, and stupidity is rampant.    The joy of surfing is pretty much gone because of it.   Thanks again for such a well crafted statement.

11

Shark Country, I agree with just about everything you say.  Bill, you too.

Except if proneman is from the Malibu area, and no leash is just too dangerous.  We don’t have rocky beaches, where the board will get dashed against the rocks.  We have nice sandy beaches, where some little kid with a pail and shovel will get injured when the board reaches the shore.

 

1 Like
12

I agree with a lot of what you said here Sharkcounty.

Personally I feel that the leash has ruined surfing.  Not only are people lazy when it comes to swimming, they are so lazy that the idea of a pullout is foriegn to them.  All they seem to do is just fall off at the end of a ride. I feel that all surfers would benefit from learning to surf without, it will make them a better and safer surfer. I have seen may people get hurt from leashed boards pivoting at the plug.  I even had it happen once and caused someone to have to get stitches. 

Leashes can be just as dangerous as no leashes.

I too ride that secret point between the pier and the colony, and somedays I wish I had a dive kniife on me just to go around an cut leashes.

When I started surfing avery board had a leash, until I started collecting and riding vintage 60’s longboards.  Then I learned to surf without. I do wear them when I feel that conditions warrant a leash.

 

13

This is what we use at the moment:

But I guess you won’t find this for a longboard. This one is only 5’ long… but you feel the difference.

14

The incident occured at Ala Moana Bowls. Generally I agree with Shark Country regarding leashes and I would bet far more people have been hurt because of them, than due to them. If you surf without a leash the majority of the time, you see the stupid things people(especially beginners) do when they do use them full time and you know NOT to do those things.

Everysurfer, yes Malibu is my main Calif. surfspot, but on any given day at Malibu, the majority of people surfing First Point Malibu do not have leashes. The lifeguards try to keep the kids on the beach over and out of the way of wayward boards. Out of thousands of go outs at Malibu over the last 50 years, maybe I have used a leash once or twice. It just does not seem to be a problem. Far more damage is done by leashed surfers dropping in front of people and then bailing their boards without regard for others. I reckon every surfer should learn to surf without a leash so they learn to surf responsibly. After that, if you want to use a leash, fine. 

roger

15

Roger, when I was just a gremlin in Hawaii some of the breaks were a quarter ot 3/8ths of a mile offshore that I was learning to surf at.

No one wore leahes and the price for the learning curve was a very long swim, it cleared out the take off zones, the very best surfers were the ones left to ride the waves.

The price to pay for bad wave choice or inexperience was to swim and a long ways at that, now there are no consequences for bad judgement, F-up, jump off, reel your board back in.

I surfed last night with out my leash, surf was 1-1/2 to 3 feet, breaking 40 - 60 feet off the beach and no cobbles, this is why I wear a leash most times, I don’t want my boards to get beat to hell on cobbles, I snapped a leash in Oahu a few winters ago at the “Ranch”, locals will know the spot, my board ate absolute crap, another haole out of the water too soon that day.

But on a tangent about that day, when Danny and Colin, myself pulled up that day, there were 2 local guys out, a bit older men, Colin decides to give this most excellent, tasty wave a go. I watched for about 5 minutes and said to myself, I can ride that, grabbed my board and paddled out. Being Westside and previously occupied by 2 local guys, I was watching my manners closely, only taking waves that were going to be unridden, or when thay were already on waves on the inside.

I finished a ride and when I looked outside both locals were over on the shoulder with Colin, Oh Oh, I better get back out there and cool this off if I can. When I got nearby both were paddling back into the peak, I asked Colin what was happening, were we being invited to get back in the car and not come back ? He said they came over to him and said “Brah, you uncle reeping”, I guess the look of a mid 60’s, white haired, farmers tanned haole at their thumping break was going to result in a 911 call, only for my board

 

16

Leashes ruined surfing?

I don’t know.  I grew up surfing Palos Verdes.  There are a  couple of spots that would eat your board alive if you lost it, another that would require a long swim and then might or might not eat your board.  And yet when leashes first came out , in PV, it was considered anathema. PV was all white boards, black wetsuits and no leashes.  And I should add, all local shapers or homemade boards :slight_smile:

 

We spent a lot of time patching dings. That may be how I got into making surfboards…

 

If I’m surfing a beachbreak that is not too crowded I usually go leashless. I have to admit, it is kind of like a badge that says to the others, “Leashes?  I don’t need no stinking leash.   I can hold onto my board.”  I am, however,  considering wearing a leash at the beach since I’ve busted a couple of fins/finboxes after losing my board and having it bounce around in the shorepound.

 

NOW, however, since we’re talking surf etiquette and general wave knowledge here, my rant has to do with-

SURF SCHOOLS and SURF P.E.   I don’t know what these institution’s teachers teach kids, but I do know that surf PE teaches them to surf in a pack.  At my local beachie there will be 50 kids in a 50 yard stretch of beach on school days. These kids are growing up thinking it’s OK to hassle and that it’s Ok to descend en masse on a peak where a couple of guys are enjoying waves, even when there are other empty peaks around. Surf schools are kind of the same. Pack mentality. And I’d bet my left nut that the schools teach kids that the leash is absolutely necessary piece of equipment. I wouldn’t bet a pack of airline pretzels that they teach them how to hold onto their boards.  And you know they don’t teach them how to swim in , body surf, to retrieve a lost board…

 

 

17

At least twice in my life, I have been held down in a wave hydraulic way too long.  The leash was my lifeline.

I started surfing without a leash 43-44 years ago.  But when I started using a leash 12 years later, my surfing improved significantly because I could go for, catch, and ride waves I normally would have passed up because of the chance for a long swim in and a nasty return paddle out.

I can always remember a$$holes paddling out through or sitting in front of the take-off zone.  This is why I started riding a Morey-Doyle (with a leash) at my most crowded break. It was so much fun, I started riding it most of the time.  If I bumped some idiot who suddenly moved in front of me in the take-off zone, it was mostly just a gentle wake up call.

I didn’t notice any real drag.  But I made my own hollow leashes from rubber tubing after my first commercial solid cord broke.

18

this is a good place for me to comment,

the urethane part of the leash doesn't really cause much drag.

unless it's too long for the board size or it's kinky-twisted like some of the gals kensurf dates...jk...lol.

most of the drag comes from the rail saver............either it's too long ,massive,or improperly installed.

what you say? installed incorrectly ?

yes...........i see alot of railsavers attached to the board with a piece of cord that's too long and or full of knots-seaweed-used condoms etc........so the rail saver is consistantly in the drink zapping your, "out flow".........it's like being in a drag race w/ you parachute already deployed..heck most people that surf these days don't even know what the railsaver is for.........most never had to go thru the evolution of the board cord............i did.

a tip or three............never leave your leash on your sticks..........remove it and don't coil it up,rather leave it straighten out(as much as possible).two....keep it clean........as ken said wax will cause some inital drag.....(plus it makes you inspect it for damage or aging)......infact i've seen leashes w/ more wax on them that the dippy kookster had on there boards.......lol..............three..........always use a low stretch cord and keep it as short as possible..........the rail saver should be up on the tail ..........not trolling the bottom for kim chee !!!!!!!

hollow leashes do work a bit better for this........but they are weaker.............case point the 70's surgical jobs.......worked like a dream until the cord inside it snapped...........then the leash became a missle launching slingshot aimed right at your head ......or ass........what ever it came in contact witn first..........it usually meant loosing something from your body and you don't get it back .eg. jack o'neill..........(can you figure what i'm talking about here).

be careful about shorter leashes..........they can bite too.........i have 4 inch scar on top of my frontal scalp from having a 6 foot comp leash attached to an 8 foot semi-gun on a good size day...........jim phillips and bill thrailkill saw my fresh scar from this stupid act of carelessness.

you know what really causes alot of drag ?

waxed bottoms........yeah sure,

..............................................but really tails pads ,especially the ones w/ abrupt kick tails will dead stop you on take offs and thru the flat spots of the wave.......

......also your feet,........especially on short boards where your feet hang off the end..........add booties to this and it's a combo plate to go!!!!!!!!!!!! or shuld i say to stop ?

 

my qualifications to rant on this subject..........?.........here's afew of my many favorite!!!!!!!!!!

i created a bi-filament leash back in say 2001 and gave it to the guys over at xm........they were the first to develop it commercially and others followed.........i never got any credit for that one,but i did get a cold shoulder from them at that point on.........the same goes with my back foiled fins............ya inside foils on side fins........i still have the originals.........the a set or two of the very first prototypes for commercial sales.........very little credit ............don't get me wrong......... i don't expect for anyone to give me credit for any of my creations.................if these folks had any common sense and were nice.......................................................................it should come automatically !!!!!!!!!!!!......... ............but nice guys finish last...................right ?

 you can call it,,, B.S. on this last bit of rant.........but those who know ........know......... and it's all been made public here.........in the creation(s) of these and many other crafty ideas of mine....................maybe that's why kokua and i have noticed a bunch of fairly important threads missing...........like vanished like a virgin on prom night................it's not about get noticed for anything...........at least for me personally................IT'S ABOUT DOING THE RIGHT THING!!!!!!!!!..........the way i was taught..............out of respect...............plain and simple............now it time to walk my dogs !!!!!!!!!

 

herb

19

Never used the surgical tube cause I couldn’t get it in my tiny rural coastal town in TX.  I bought a very long piece of some “low stretch” black rubber (?) tube I found in a local hardware store.  Made several leashes out of it.  Never had it break or slingshot on me.  Still have one of those leashes to this day – still looks good too (30 years later).

BTW I made my first dual concave board in 1969-1970.  Nobody gave a damn, neither did I.  Seven years later (give or take)  my brother-in-law showed me in Surfer where some Aussie had patented a dual concave.  Had to laugh.

20

[quote="$1"]

this is a good place for me to comment,

the urethane part of the leash doesn't really cause much drag.

unless, it's too long for the board size, or it's draggy-kinky-twisted,,, like some of the gals kensurf dates...jk...lol.

most of the drag comes from the rail saver............either, it's too long ,massive,or improperly installed.

what did you say? installed incorrectly ?

yes...........i see alot of railsavers attached to the board with a piece of cord that's, too long, and /or full of knots-seaweed-used condoms, etc........so the rail saver is consistantly in the drink, zapping your, "out flow".........it's like being in a drag race, w/ you parachute already deployed......heck, most people that surf these days don't even know what the railsaver is for.........most never had to go thru the evolution of the board cord............i did.

a tip or three............one,,never leave your leash on your sticks..........remove it after surfing, and don't coil it up......rather leave it straighten out(as much as possible).

..two....keep it clean........as ken said, wax will cause some inital drag.....(plus it makes you inspect it for damage or wear/aging)......infact i've seen leashes w/ more wax on them that the dippy, kookster had on there boards.......lol........... 

 

...three..........always use a low stretch string/cord to attach the railsaver to the board,and keep it as short as possible..........the rail saver should be up on the tail ..........not trolling the bottom for kim chee !!!!!!!

hollow leashes do work a bit better for reducing drag by floating on the surface........but they are weaker.............case point,,, the 70's surgical jobs.......worked like a dream until the polycord inside it snapped...........then the leash became a missle launching slingshot aimed right at your head ......or ass........whatever it came in contact with first..........it usually meant loosing something from your body and you didn't get it back .eg. jack o'neill..........(can you figure out what i'm talking about here).

be careful about shorter leashes..........they can bite too.........i have a 4 inch scar on top of my frontal scalp, from having a 6 foot comp leash attached to an 8 foot semi-gun on a good size day...........jim phillips and bill thrailkill saw my fresh scar from this stupid act of carelessness.

you know what really causes alot of drag ?

waxed bottoms........yeah sure,

..............................................but really,,, tails pads ,especially the ones w/ abrupt kick tails,they will dead stop your forward motion on take offs and thru the flat spots of the wave.......like a brake.

......also your feet,........especially on short boards...... where your feet hang off the end of the tail and you're too lazy or unskilled to pick them up out of the line of fire..........add booties to this, and it's a combo plate to go!!!!!!!!!!!! or should i say......., "to stop" ?

 

my qualifications to rant on this subject..........?.........here's a few of my many favorite!!!!!!!!!!

i created a bi-filament leash back in say 2001, and gave it to the guys over at xm........they were the first to develop it commercially, and other leash mfg.s followed.........i never got any credit for that one,but i did get a cold shoulder from them at that point on.........the same goes with my back foiled fins............ya inside foils on side fins........i still have the originals........and a set or two of the very first prototypes for commercial sales.........very little credit there............don't get me wrong......... i don't expect for anyone to give me credit for any of my creations.................if these folks had any common sense and were nice.......................................................................it should come automatically !!!!!!!!!!!!......... ............but nice guys finish last...................right ?

 you can call it,,, B.S. on this last bit of rant.........but those who know ........know......... and it's all been made public here many years ago, in the creation(s) of these and many other crafty ideas of mine....................maybe that's why kokua and i have noticed a bunch of fairly important threads missing........... vanished like a virgin on prom night................it's not about getting noticed for anything....(bfd who cares anyway, right?).......at least for me personally ya, sure it would be nice(there's that bad word again,"nice")................IT'S ABOUT DOING THE RIGHT THING!!!!!!!!!..........the way i was taught..............out of respect...............plain and simple............now it time to walk my dogs !!!!!!!!!

 

herb

[/quote] geeez.......

there's no edit button on my post,?(on this thread)  anymore...........there was at first.......and i had started editing it(the post previous to this one)........but in the middle of editing, my mouse frose up,and when i came back after re-booting .........the edit button on this particular post vanished ........YES......... like a virgin on prom night !

so here's an updated version.............you can't keep a good man down !

 

herb