5 Reasons to Use a Front Surf Board Deck Pad

What Is a Front Surf Board Deck Pad?

A surf board deck pad is a piece of material made from either EVA foam, rubber, or silicone. It is molded into a specific shape and strategically placed around the middle of your surfboard on the top deck. A surf board deck grip is a practical component for your front foot that both saves on wax and gives you extra grip. Sounds great, but beware of just one catch – make sure you always wear a shirt or wetsuit using a front deck pad surfboard…unless of course you consider ripped chesties and a mad nipple rash ideal.

Front Deck Pad Surfboard

The surf board deck grip is a pretty old addition to the surf accessory family. Infact, the font traction pad has been around since the late 70’s but wasn’t widely adopted until recently. The lag was mostly due to the fact that there was no nipple protection back then, which meant the front traction caused many a road rash on those delicate chesties. In easier terms, rash vests and wetsuits weren’t really around at the time. Further, the lag was also partly because of a fashion statement. Ever seen a guy doing a carve with a traction pad on the front of his board? Some people find this less aesthetically appealing than a smooth rail line.

With the birth of air travel, the front traction is being revived by pioneers like Noah Dene, Dion Agus and Craige Anderson. These pilots make the deck grip look like a brand new boeing 747 taking flight. It’s extremely satisfying peering into the distance seeing the large black pad contrasted by a white surfboard. Further, the front traction pad is also super practical, you get way more grip and the pad gives you an added feeling of being a pilot. Combined, these two factors and you will be doing airs in no time! We particularly love the HoStevie! black and white palms deck pad.

Have you used a front surf board deck pad?

Why Should You Use a Surf Board Deck Pad?

There are more than a few reasons to use a front traction pad. Moreover, there are reasons why you shouldn’t. Below are 5 reasons to assure your decision.

Less Wax

Less wax means less hassle. Generally, wax is great, but in practice, after a while gets old and funky, melts in your car, and costs a lot of money at the end of the day. Not to mention the hassle of removing it every once in a while. Additionally, wax isn’t the best for the environment – don’t get me wrong, neither is manufacturing pieces of silicone, rubber or foam, but if you apply your deck pad properly, you will probably have it for a lifetime.

One of my favorite reasons for having a HoStevie! front deck pad is that I don’t have to think about wax when heading out for a surf. So, while the crew is still preparing their boards, I can get a few sneaky ones in before they crowd the line-up. It is just a practical substitute for wax.

The better part of the last two paragraphs is selling the front pad hard, the irony is that I still use wax, I just use much less than I used to. If you are like me, your foot moves up and down the board. Unfortunately, the pad only covers a small portion of the board, so there is still a need for that pesky block of wave. Also, I tend to wax the pad, for extra grip, to ensure when I am doing my Toledo-like power hacks my foot doesn’t slip off. So, that’s a great tip right there, wax your pads – it makes a difference.

More Grip

Overall, wax gives you great traction, but the front deck pad gives you even more traction. The combination of great traction and even more traction will give you ultimate traction. So, combining wax and your deck pad will help you stay on the board, even in the slipperiest situations.

As you stand on your surfboard, your wax gets smoothed out by the pressure of your foot on the board. Over the duration of a long surf session, this can cause the wax to become smooth and slippery, you can imagine the outcome of that. Conversely, the deck pad doesn’t get smoothed out, so you get a grippy board throughout the duration of a super-long surf session.

Front Foot Placement

Foot placement is one of the most important parts of surfing – too far forward and you will botch the rail as they say. Essentially, you are digging too much of the rail of the surfboard on the water which makes it hard to drive and generate speed. Front foot too far back and you will have a hard time keeping the nose of the board down which will slow you down and make the board unstable.

The front deck pad covers a lot of the front of the board, so while it still leaves some room for error, it creates a clear goal for you when landing your front foot on the surfboard. Thus, the pad aids you in both consistency and additional focus or attention that you can then apply to other aspects of your surfing.

Stylish

As mentioned in the opening paragraphs of the post, the surf deck grip is back in style. Nothing better than a practical, stylish item that helps save money and the environment. No green wash, just a fact. There are options of recycling wax, but let’s be honest, how many of us actually do it?

Back to being stylish though. We all want to fit in one way or another, here is your chance to look and feel like some of the most decorated aerialists of our time. Are you truely an aerial genius if you don’t have a black pad on the front of your surfboard? I think not.