Josh Kerr teaches the frontside re-entry, a diverse top turn that allows for great style, maneuverability, and spray. The tutorial emphasizes using the bottom turn to set the direction, letting the arms lead the pivot, and extending the body to maximize power and land confidently.
Key Takeaways & Tips
Bottom Turn Setup
The bottom turn is what sets you up for the re-entry. If you want to get tighter into the lip, you must keep your head turning and look into that tighter part of the wave during the bottom turn.
Arm Pivot
As the board starts to come up into the lip, your arms must start coming across the body. You need to get your arms a little bit ahead of your board to get your momentum going back into the wave and help the board pivot.
Rotation
As the board goes up into the lip, your eyes should start looking away from the lip (down the wave). You have to adjust the board and let the legs catch up to the arms.
Extension and Spray
To emphasize the turn and get the spray going higher, you must start lifting your arms up and pushing your feet into the board. This gets you more upright and pushes the board away from you.
Front Arm Control
Your front arm (leading arm) should swing out of the way to give you more room to move through the maneuver. If it stays closed, you have no room to move.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Closed Arm Stance
If your front arm remains closed and does not swing out of the way, you limit the room to move through the maneuver and cannot complete the pivot.
Failing to Look Away
Failing to look down the wave (away from the lip) as you hit the re-entry will cause you to stall or fall over the back of the wave.
Lack of Extension
If you do not extend your body and arms up, you won’t get the necessary separation between your chest and knees to push the board away and get the spray flying high.