Waxing your surfboard

You need wax on your board in order to surf unless you have a full deck grip which is unlikely. Wax comes in all shapes and sizes and different formulas for surfing in cold or hot water temperatures.

We obviously don't use much tropical wax over in the UK so you'll be asking for cold water wax but most shops will automatically sell you this so you don't need to ask. Popular brands are 'Mrs Palmers' and 'Dr Zogs' . It's a personal preference which one you use at the end of the day. Recently I've found 'Might Mounds' from Mrs Palmers to be rather good and it smells great!

Applying: Starting from scratch on a new board - I normally mark out with lines where I want to wax up to. You don't need to wax the whole board, just from the rear foot area up to about two thirds of the way up the board.

If you're unsure, take out your fins or sink them into the sand carefully. Lie on your board and have a look where your chest is on the board when as if you were paddling. This is where you need to wax up to.I use the tip of the wax block and draw a line showing where I'll stop waxing. I then draw a grid pattern either diagonal or criss cross all over the deck of the board.

Once this is done I start building up the wax, using a circular motion from rail to rail all over - think Karate Kid - 'wax on, wax off'. After a while you'll notice the wax is forming little circular beads of wax which is what you're aiming for.

Build them up nice and high if you want them to last and not smudge so easily. Apply evenly and concentrate on the areas where your feet will go. Most surfers opt for a rear deck grip nowadays in which case, you'll only need to wax the middle and never need to worry about waxing the back again!

If it's particularly cold outside, a good way of making the wax go on easier is to drop it into a cup of hot water. The wax will become warmer and instantly easier to apply! Similarly if your wax is too warm and slips everywhere, dunk it in some cold water before waxing.

If travelling abroad, to say Mexico for instance, make sure you buy tropical wax and apply to your board before you go (clean the old wax off first) as you'll quickly find that your old wax simply melts off in warmer waters. Check in the surf shop that it actually says tropical on it!

I wax my rails(sides) where my legs go when sitting and where my hands go when duckdiving. You don't need much, just drag the bar of wax up both sides and it's done. It's entirely up to you but i find it stops me slipping off when sitting, especially on a new board!