Like I talked about in another post about swells and how they’re formed, without wind there would be no waves. And you’ve probably heard the terms onshore winds and offshore winds thrown around, but don’t fully understand what they mean.…
Like I talked about in another post about swells and how they’re formed, without wind there would be no waves. And you’ve probably heard the terms onshore winds and offshore winds thrown around, but don’t fully understand what they mean.…
Wave period, swell period, interval—they all mean the same thing, and understanding this number is key to reading a surf forecast. That’s because so much of surfing is based on physics: wind velocity, wind direction, swell energy, and of course,…
As surfers, we refer to water in a lot of ways: ocean, sea, surf, swell, waves, not to mention the different types of waves we like to ride (lefts, rights, A-frames). And though we tend to talk about swell and…
Big waves, small waves, hollow waves, mushy waves, smooth waves, crumbly waves… no two waves are exactly the same, and that’s what makes surfing so challenging (and exciting!). A lot of variables are involved in the physics of how a…
Have you ever watched surfers from the beach and thought, “Wow, they make it look so easy” when they know exactly when to start paddling to catch that perfect peeler, or “Why didn’t they go for that wave?” when the…
To the average person, a wave just looks like a wall of water that crashes continually, one after another. But to a surfer, every part of the wave has a purpose, whether it’s for generating momentum, making turns, launching airs,…
Sizing a surfboard leash is actually quite simple. You never want the leash to be shorter than your board, so the quick answer to what size leash you should get is: the same or a little longer than your board.…
A surfboard leash seems like one of those little accessories that you add on and don’t put too much thought into, but I’d say it’s just as important as the surfboard itself. For one thing, it keeps your board within…
Rails are the edges of your surfboard—the parts you grab onto. Since they run the entire length of your board from the nose to the tail, they play a key part in the board’s performance: how fast it glides, how…
Look on the bottom of any surfboard and you’ll notice one, two, three or more fins of different sizes and shapes. These fins—and the way they’re arranged—can have a major impact on your board’s performance, especially as you pass the…