Well that is exactly the way I do it, even in big surf that requires me to power through at speed. But then again the boards are attached to my boat by a bungee. This bungee also pulls the board towards the sidestay so that is stays at the level I set it. I have a homebuild boat however and thus don't have that carpet stuff in my daggerboard wells. So I need this trick to prevent my boards from floating up on me during tacks. Yes you heard that rights, they float upwards through my daggerboards wells.

Another trick is to just make them flush with the keel line and make a mark on the board so you can place them that high before you come in.

Ohh by the way when I come in, my lee daggerboard is on the trampoline still attached by bungee to the sidestay (it always just lays there without any trouble), my luff boardis partly raised and I or my crew are holding it. As soon as my luff rudder comes up will lift the luff board fully up and lay it on the trampoline. By the time it is layed flat, we have beached.

Leaving the beach in any surf is the same procedure in reverse and I do it like that singlehanded as well. I sail from sandy beaches with only 2 or 3 sandbars. My rudders are uncleated before I enter the surf and the friction between rudderboard and its housing keeps the boards down. Now only a very very very small touch of ground it needed to unstick them and have them floating up. My rudder boards still look like new after 3 seasons of sailing, so this works very well. Additionally you have full control all the way to the surf till the water is less deep then about 2 feet by that time the danger is gone.

Wouter