[andy_e]

Travelling without moving!

[Obi-Wan is lost...]

There's a standing wave like this in the centre of Munich.  Has a fully fledged surf scene around it and the locals make special boards to ride it.

Looks fun.

This guy is dedicated/crazy [delete as appropriate]
http://www.surfberlin.com/

[gme]

I have always thought that waves like this must exist in the UK just no surfer has found them/ looked.
Must be some on one of the scottish rivers.

If not i bet it wouldnt be hard to build one and a lot cheaper than a flowrider.

[SA Chris]

There probably are, but no-one in the UK is far enough away from the sea to be too desperate to find them. And if there are any they probably have an insitu playboat. be nice if the kayakers stuck to the rivers and we stuck to the sea.

[hongkongstuey]

Okay, so its taken me thirteen years to realise this but I’ve finally become aware that its far more sensible to play in waves than try and dangle off cliffs when the weather is typically about 33-34 deg with 80-90% humidity…

In other words I’ve recently been bitten by the surfing bug and am now more frequently found at the beach than the crag, to the point where I’m looking to make that all important step of buying a first board – which is where I hope you guys can come in and share your collective advice / experience

A bit of background to help any tips you can provide:
- This is my nearest (and most regularly visited) spot: http://magicseaweed.com/Big-Wave-Bay-HK-Surf-Report/1163/
- I’m about 5’11” and fluctuate around the 80 kg mark (looking to bring this down but I enjoy my food and drink a bit too much to get too anal about all that…)
- Have generally been hiring a 7” floaty foam thingy to learn on and seem to do okay on this – i.e. can regularly catch waves and stay on them in a straight line to the shore (no days bigger than 3-4ft so far but there’s a typhoon brewing for this weekend…), but certainly not actually ‘riding’ them at this stage…
- This place ships world-wide for free and gets things to HK in about 4-5 days apparently (http://www.surfdome.com/ ) so something they have in stock, or suggestions from elsewhere that can get it to HK without charging an arm and a leg for shipping
- This month was pay rise and profit share month so not too fussed about shelling out for something, provided its good and a) won’t be too small / low volume to progress on or b) won’t be too big / cumbersome that I’ll grow out of it quickly

Any tips very much appreciated – I’d forgotten how much fun it was to be a beginner at something…

[SA Chris]

Getting the balance between something to progress on and just getting frustrated is tricky.

The standard answer is a minimal of about 7ft in size, but a single fin egg with a bit of volume will probably be more fun on once you progress a bit more, as you are fairly athletic and assume got good balance from snowboarding and yoga and shit. (Plus you've been at it since the sick Buffel's Bay sessions at the turn of the millenium). Is there a second hand market, or a possibility to hire some boards other than beginner's foamies?

Or you can just get a 10ft barge like your brother.

[SA Chris]

When we went to Jackson Hole there were some surfboards in the corner of one of the ski hire shops, and when I asked the guys said there were some great river waves round there they rode in the summer.

http://www.tetongravity.com/blogs/Surf-Jackson-Hole-6539372.htm

Must be so wierd

[hongkongstuey]

Or you can just get a 10ft barge like your brother.

Tried this approach today as the waves were crap - didn't like it, longer rides but seemed to miss 2/3 of the waves i went for. Switched back to the 7' Egg i've hired the past few trips after an hour or so and had far more fun on that.

Unfortunately its not looked like this for a few weeks now and the forecast is for a millpond for the next week or so (so i guess i may actually do some climbing instead...):


Ended up placing an order for one of these (7') based on advice from people i've met on the water:
http://simonandersonsurfboards.com/au/?portfolio=mollusc-robo

[SA Chris]

Looks like the business. Nothing guarantees getting a flat spell like buying a new board.

[hongkongstuey]

Big Wave Bay in HK living up to its name thanks to a nearby typhoon



you know conditions are bad when not one person is out in the water...

[SA Chris]

Should get a bit smaller and cleaner at some point?

[tomtom]

Superb!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7STUcOTk8wU#at=88

(via @fieldproducer)

[SA Chris]

These little remote control helicopters open up a wealth of possibility. Shame that wave goes the wrong way!

[gme]

You need to check your monitor Chris, its going the right way on mine.

Skeleton Bay i guess, one on my list of spots i really want to visit (but probably never will).

[SA Chris]

Only because you are spaz footed

[fatdoc]

This won't be new news to the well established UKB surfers...

But  for those of us camping en famille  for the summer holiday that want to have the opportunity of  climbing, lots of beach and some bodyboarding that is a little more than than the usual slow and weak waves the uk offers in August....

May I seriously suggest a holiday on the Gower..

Have a google about mewslade bay, staying at pitton cross campsite.

Not an easy wave, even for sponging.. But great great fun in a stunning location.

I'm going back. It's really good!

[SA Chris]

Going to be a whole lot of mediocre sport routes there soon too!

Love the Gower, Llangenith is a great beach, did a lot of my formative surfing there. Bitch to paddle out with a minimal when it's big.

[philo]

Just got back from Ireland, what an amazing place it is.

[SA Chris]

3km wave. Shame Angola is such a hole.

[Dr T]

  but.....

I'm guessing the surfing population on here is the best source of advice on waves and beaches in the UK

Any knowledge out there about beaches in the UK that might have beach breaks suitable for skimboarding..

i.e. like....

[Johnny Brown]

Most of the beach breaks in my experience. Plus lots of beaches that never get waves or surfers. Anywhere where its sandy and doesn't shelve too steeply basically.

[Falling Down]

It depends what you're looking for.  There are loads of flatland skimming spots on every coast where you can have fun flat skimming and trying 360 spins 'n stuff.  Proper skimboarding where you pump out to ride real waves are much harder to come by and you need a steeply shelving beach which has a clean break close to shore and there aren't very many of them with a good wet run in,plus wetsuits make things more difficult.  I've got a Victoria glass/fibre skimboard and its fun but I went to Florida in Winter and spent some time with guys skimming on the gulf coast and realised my board is massively undersized for riding waves - I rented a 4.5 footer and it was piss to ride out into breaking waves with a good fast run up. Made me rethink some spots here...

[Falling Down]

I'm not sure if this link works but this gives a good idea of what some of our shores might have in store.  Refracted waves  like The Wedge http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2sUbVwxg7B0&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D2sUbVwxg7B0

[SA Chris]

http://www.zavvi.com/dvd/bruce-brown-signature-collection-magna-finished-stock/10620166.html

Bargain for 10 hours of nostalgia.

[hongkongstuey]

New toy finally arrived (had to wait for them to make it...) - been out on it the past two days and am a very happy bunny