A good tripod used to be one of the essentials in surf photography. In these image-stabilised times the good old three legged beast is not so essential anymore unless you are: a) Very weak b) Roll with a 400/500/600mm L series lens and a 1 series body. I haven't used one in years, sure I've still got the old girl (a Manfrotto 055 series with mid range head) but in these days of tight ass weight restrictions when traveling the tripod is just too big and too heavy to bother with.
If you are driving to your shoot then fine have a tripod, make sure it's solid and the head is rated to take the weight of your rig cos they will bend and snap otherwise (a head like the Manfrot 229 will do ya, avoid video heads as they are designed for smooth panning and weigh extra, unless you have a 7D/5DMk2 at which point you will need one).
The only time I use a tripod is for HDR bracketed sequences, long exposures etc and I can generally get round that with a clamp and mini ball and socket head. For shooting surfing I roll with a Manfrotto carbon monopod (the 695CX to be precise) it's light as hell, closes to 46cm (so will fit in most Peli cases) and is really stable. It's the ultimate travel support. Shooting with a mono you are free to change angles at a moments notice without having to fiddle with three legs and it's a hell of a lot easier to lug down the beach. Monopods also keep you alert as you have to hold the damn thing all day.
Stability isn't an issue as IS lenses keep everything tack sharp (when shooting on a tripod ensure IS systems are turned off as it can damage them, they should auto detect but I've never been too sure about the capability) on a mono leave IS on. I shoot with a 300mm f2.8 (& 1.4x & 2x Mk2 convertors) and have never had issues with this set up (I used to shoot with a 500mm f4 as well, again all cool). Thing is with modern IS lenses you can hand hold the things and still get pin sharp images so support is just down to giving your arms a rest really... Only downside with a mono is shooting on soft sandy beaches- best get a cup/bit of rubbish/stone/driftwood to plonk it on or you'll find your camera gradually sinking into the beach (I use me flip-flop). Whatever support you are using just make sure your damn horizon is straight! No excuses...
Stoker in Indo. Shot handheld from a boat with 500mm f4L and Canon 30D.
