bail out

Abandoning a surfboard in one of two ways. 1) Jumping off during a ride; almost always performed as a last-second alternative to wiping out. This type of bail out is in fact a controlled wipeout. 2) Diving off one side of the board after getting caught inside; that is, trapped while paddling out toward a nonnegotiable breaking wave.

The bail out—either kind—is a common occurence for beginning surfers and a fairly regular occurrence for intermediates and even experts. Before the development o...