Yes, that turquoise and purple shortboard will look great tucked under your arm at the beach – but will you actually be able to surf it?

If it’s your first board, the chances are you’re going to doing something stupid with it – like leave it propped up against a car in a gravel car park. Not that we’d ever do something so kooky….

Get a decent board that’s the right shape and size for you, you can always decorate it yourself if you think it looks a bit dull.