By Michael Lear Hynson

Shoulder Hopper:  An overly aggressive surfer who takes off in front of an already riding surfer, compromising or ruining the original surfer’s ride. Shoulder-hopping is a serious breach of etiquette and can result in tension, arguments, even fights. (The Encyclopedia of Surfing, Matt Warshaw)

I ran across an article that Chris Ahrens wrote years ago entitled, “Attitude Isn’t What Matters Out On Water.” In it, Chris talks about the first time he surfed the same break as me at WindanSea.

“I stood up tall on the reef and I spun around, dug in deep and was up and moving with a clear path all the way to the inside “Right Hooker.” But Hynson, who was paddling out, saw that wave too and decided he wanted it. He looked right at me and dropped in, leaving me to suffocate in his wake. It was his spot, though, he was the man, and he got more barreled than I could ever dream of.”

As far back as I can remember shoulder hopping has been a common maneuver in surfing. I’ve seen the worst shoulder hoppers and I’ve seen it done pretty well. But watching Miki Dora was the first time I witnessed someone getting away with it time and time again.

The Malibu Style of shoulder-hopping, was a way of survival for Miki Dora. You either do it right or you do it bad. A lot of surfers thought he was way out of line, but he didn’t do it to be a pain in the ass. If he and I caught the same wave it didn’t seem right to ride it out next to him. It would be years before I earned that privilege. I looked at it as a way to show my respect to a great surfer. Instead, I’d kick out and take off on Johnny Fain, the unofficial mascot of Malibu, a freckle-faced toe-head who always had zinc oxide smeared across his lips. Everyone took advantage of Fain. Dora harassed him constantly. Taking off from behind, he practically stuck his board up Johnny’s ass. Snaking him in front, Dora made him swim in. He cut Fain off so often, sometimes I almost felt sorry for the guy. Well, not really. (Excerpt from Transcendental Memories of a Surf Rebel)

Shoulder Hopping is basically just a position. Catching the wave is what’s important. Then being in the right spot comes next. Let’s face it, there are only so many waves and if there’s enough room for more than one guy, you have to quickly decide who’s going to ride it. Never, I mean, never hesitate.

If you’re going to shoulder hop you immediately have to establish your ranking out in the water. You also want to be careful who you cut off; the local guy, the tough guy, etc. But once you decide, look the person right in the eye then go for it. Sure, it’s rude to a point. But if I have the opportunity I’m going to take it every single time. Even though shoulder-hopping has been known to cause arguments, even fights, I’d much rather take off in front of a person than behind them, especially if there are cameras on the beach.

The professional and courteous way to shoulder hop is to take off from behind. If you want to get in front, you go up and around. That can get unpredictable and dangerous, though, especially when you’re dealing with a kook. The safest way is to take off in front. Plus, who wants to be sitting outside watching some other guy take your wave all the way in to shore. It just ruins your whole day.

Once when Mike Haley and I went to Hawaii we surfed Sunset Beach the very first day. We were both riding yellow boards with a blue stripe down the middle and had already caught quite a few waves when Haley took off in front of Michael Ho. In all the commotion, they both lost their boards, and Ho quickly slid onto Haley’s board to paddle to the beach. Haley swam in after him. Just as Haley came out of the water, Ho took the nose of his retrieved board and gouged a hole into the bottom of Haley’s. With all of Ho’s friends and local boys standing around, Haley went up to his board, put it under his arm, walked back into the water, and paddled out, avoiding a fight altogether.

Years later, Andy Tyler and I were out at La Jolla Shores, six to eight feet, offshore wind. It was right around the time when more girls started surfing. I swear, I don’t remember taking off in front of anybody, but when I came in and was changing out of my wetsuit, I heard two girls, talking, “Fucking Hynson, he took off right in front of me.” In my defense, I hadn’t been surfing in a long time. I wasn’t trying to intimidate anyone I was just trying to catch the wave. But it dawned on me as I quietly crept over to my car to avoid a confrontation, slid into the front seat, and split. I obviously ruined their day.

That was the day I quit shoulder hopping.