If you want to learn how to surf, and you watch a surf competition, you will notice that all of the surfboards are similar in size and are fairly small, around 6 feet in length. But if you want to learn how to surf, you shouldn’t look at the pros and try to do what they do—that skips too many steps. You shouldn’t try to ride the boards they ride. You should ride the long, 9-foot surfboards that the local surf school would point you to, because it’s easier to catch waves on those, even for experts. When you’re just starting out, you might be better off copying a good beginner, not an expert.