I took the opportunity on a nice sunny day recently to remove the old wax from my board. Having got the board to that nice new look perhaps with a few deck compressions, it occurred to me that perhaps I should try a front pad instead of putting more wax down. Luckily there was a crazy good special online for this cheap and cheerful channel islands front pad, so I was off!
![Front pad vs wax](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/916edc_ca015c1c76bd4c4ba3c658df6f9c6c24~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_425,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/916edc_ca015c1c76bd4c4ba3c658df6f9c6c24~mv2.jpg)
The idea of a front pad appealed to me on a number of levels.
First of all, one of the staples of a decent surf is sand. Wax and sand don't mix and if you're not careful, you end up with a sandpaper deck - especially if it's warm.
Secondly, I live a fair way away from the beach and still don't have the packing gene down for surf trips. There is nothing worse than an hour plus drive to find out you have no wax. Not to mention jumping up on the board and slipping straight off again.
After getting all the wax off and using a bit of white spirits to ensure it was clean I stuck the front pad on. A couple YouTube videos helped me ensure the positioning was right (pretty much do a pop up next to the board and make sure the front pad is fitted in the middle of where your front foot lands. After pressing it down firmly it was time to get wet!
I found I had to adjust my hands on the deck slightly as the first pop up or so, my hands slid straight off the board. Once I got past that slight hiccup we were in business. I tend to wear boots religiously and I was initially worried they mightn't grip the front pad very well but I've been pleasantly surprised and after half a dozen surfs I've never once lost my footing.
I've found it is slightly easier to move your foot around on the pad if you pop up a bit weird or need to reposition while standing. Additionally feeling the pad under my front foot as well as my back foot give me an ever so slight level of comfort that my feet are in the right spot on the board.
I suspect if you're a real shredder you might need more grip than a front pad can provide (especially when wet) and I'm sure we've all seen Gabriel Medina waxing up his tail pad before he runs into a swell.
For a lower end intermediate like myself I'm quite pleased right now with the front pad and I'm interested to see how well it weathers over time.
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