SURFING SLANG summary
Jerry Dunn
Hi,
Thanks to everyone who sent surfing slang for my book, "Idiom Savant:
Slang As It Is Slung" (Henry Holt & Co., NY, spring 1997). Here's the
summary I said I'd post.
No doubt I've made some boneheaded errors, especially in usage. Please
send any corrections or additions to me by e-mail:
I hope you can add example sentences to some definitions, to show how the
terms are properly used.
It's nice of you to help. Thanks again very much!
Cheers,
Jerry Dunn
The summary:
backside adj. when you ride with your back to the wave. łJimmie went
backside on that ride.˛
bail v. to jump off the board to end a ride. łI fully bailed.˛
barney n. idiot; someone who doesnąt surf well. Slightly dorkier than a
kook. Derived from Barney Rubble, a character in łThe Flintstones˛
cartoon series. Also, v. to act like a barney. łCheck out that grommet
barneying all over the wave.˛ Rel. wilma: a female barney.
barrel n. a wide-open tube.
beached adj. full of food. łWe ate donuts till I was so beached I
couldnąt stand up.˛
betty n. a pretty girl; girlfriend. Derived from Betty Rubble in łThe
Flintstones˛ cartoon. łState Beach was full of bettys today.˛ Syn.
chick.
big mama n. the ocean.
bitchiną adj. great, killer.
black ball (flag) n. a yellow flag with a black circle, raised by
Southern California lifeguards to indicate łno surfing.˛ Syn. meatball
flag.
blown out adj. when wind blowing onshore ruins the shape and rideability
of the waves.
body wompiną v. body surfing.
bogus adj. not right, phony, rude, lame, weird, bullshit. łThe black
ball flag at the Wedge is completely bogus.˛ Rel. bogosity: łThe utter
bogosity of the guy, cutting me off on that wave!˛
broą n. friend, buddy. Short for brother. Also, a substitute for
łdude.˛ łWhatąs up, broą?˛
butt floss n. a G-string bikini. Syn. butt thong.
capitalize v. to ride aggressively. łYou entirely capitalized on that wave.˛
choiceamundo adj. great. łHow were the waves this morning?˛ łChoiceamundo!˛
clamshelled adj. said of a surfer when a wave closes over him.
close out n. a wave breaking along most or all of its length at the same
time. Also, v. łThat barrel had a real chance of closing out.˛
corduroy to the horizon adj. waves lined up in straight lines, like the
parallel ribs of corduroy fabric.
curl n. the hollow area under the lip of a breaking wave.
dawn patrol v. to hit the waves at sunrise.
dial in on v. to talk with. łLetąs dial in on those chicks.˛
dude n. guy, friend. Also a substitute for łman,˛ added to the end of
almost any statement. łIąll drive you to the beach, dude.˛ Sometimes
tongue in cheek; łdu-u-u-u-ude˛ is self-mocking, a parody of Valleyspeak
in 1980s Southern California. Rel. dudette: girl.
epic adj. large, magnificent. łThe surf was completely epic when we dawn
patrolled this morning.˛
fully adj. completely, absolutely. Syn. heavily, totally. łLike, I
totally imagine I can help you out.˛
get air v. to leave the water with your board. Syn. catch air. łHey,
did you see Jason catch air?˛
gnarly adj. big, nasty, dangerous, scary, in the challenging-to-deadly
range. Refers to waves and, by extension, to situations. łIf you get
mixed up with the Federales in Mexico for some imagined offense, it can be
pretty gnarly.˛ Rel. gnarlatious: cool, huge, awesome; your gnarlyness:
jocular term of respectful address for a friend. łWant a burger, your
gnarlyness?˛
goofy foot adj. surfing with your right foot forward (instead of the
usual left foot).
green monsters n. very large waves.
grommet n. a young or novice surfer.
grovel v. to bounce yourself along the wave, trying to get up speed and
find a decent section to ride. łItąs pretty embarrassing to grovel, but I
didnąt have much choice.˛ Syn. hop.
gunga n. the residue of surf wax that wonąt come off a board.
hair n. guts, courage. łIt took real hair to go surfing on such a big day.˛
hair ball n. a big wave. łCheck out that hair ball!˛
huevos n. (pronounced WAVE-ohs; from the Spanish word for eggs) waves.
łShoulda been at Malibu Sunday, dude. Gnarly huevos!˛
in the green room adj. inside a perfect tube. Syn. in the Popeąs living room.
killer adj. great; a degree below epic. "Man, the surf was so killer
this morning. Also describes girls, situations.
kook n. a surfer of limited ability who nonetheless overestimates his
skill and knowledge of the surfing world.
mackiną v. for the ocean to be producing large waves, reminiscent of Mack
trucks.
mushy adj. shapeless, blown-out, slow, boring; refers to waves. Rel.
mushburger: a slow, shapeless wave.
nailed adj. hit hard by the falling lip of the wave in a wipe-out.
over the falls adj. caught in the water falling from the lip of a wave to
the bottom. łDid you see Chris get sucked over the falls?˛
pearl v. for the nose of the board to dig into the water, throwing the
rider off headfirst (as if diving for pearls).
plank n. a big, unwieldy surfboard, especially the mammoth redwood boards
used before the 1950s.
plugged adj. crowded with other surfers. łRincon was really plugged on
Saturday.˛
R&D n. research and development, i.e., searching for new surfing spots.
łWeąre doing some R&D in Mexico next month.˛
rip v. to surf aggressively, a term of admiration. łCorky really rips.˛
set n. a sequence of bigger-than-usual waves.
stoked adj. happy, up, energized, exhilarated. Refers to surfing and by
extension to all kinds of situations. łIąm stoked that I didnąt have to
sit in traffic.˛
stylish adj. very cool. łThat was a way stylish turn.˛ Rel. styliną:
to be doing very well. łYou were styliną out there, dude.˛
surf god n. a great surfer. łKelly Slater is a surf god.˛
tube n. a wave shaped like a tunnel, through which a crouching surfer can
ride. Syn. pipe.
veg v. (pronounced łvej˛) to chill out, do nothing.
way adj. very. łThe waves were way good.˛ Syn. so. łThe surf was
happening at the pier this morning˛ translates as łThe surf was so
happening....˛
wipe out v. to take a messy fall. Rel. blasted, drilled, lunched
worked adj. held under the waves and churned in the water. łI got nailed
and then worked.˛ Syn. prosecuted: łTerry really got prosecuted out
there.˛
zip-locked adj. trapped inside inside a tube as it collapses.
--
Jerry Dunn
jd...@west.net