Key factors of reading surf forecasts are:
- Swell size. The size of the wave, or swell height, is a measure in feet or meters.
- Swell period. The swell period is measured in seconds.
- Swell direction. Swell direction tells you where the swell is coming from in degrees/bearing.
- Wind direction.
- Wind strength/speed.
- Tide.
How do you read directions of waves?
So, how do you read a wave?
- While sitting on your surfboard, look at the horizon line.
- Compare the angle of the wave with the skyline.
- The side of the wave with the steepest angle is the direction in which the wave will break, and that’s the direction in which you will ride.
How are waves measured surfing?
Wave heights are generally measured two ways, face scale and Hawaiian scale. In scientific terms and most used by the surfing community around the world, the wave height is measured vertically from the trough to the crest and is known by surfers as face scale.
How do you tell if a wave is a right or left?
The direction “left” is used by the surfer when describing the direction of the wave while facing the shore. Therefore, from the beach, a “left” is described as a wave that breaks from left to right. “outside” – when paddling for a wave, “outside” refers to the person further away from the peak of the wave.
What do surfers say when the waves are good?
When the waves are good, it’s said to be cranking. This is the art of walking up and down a longboard, foot over foot. When you see some guy / gal running up and down their board, you’ll now know what to call it. Making a cutback is reversing the direction that you are surfing in one smooth fluid move.
How do you read a swell map?
The swell direction is usually expressed in cardinal points (N, E, S, W). As a general rule of thumb, a beach facing directly west will get bigger and better waves if the swell comes from the west. The swell direction is important — if the swell doesn’t hit your region correctly, you will not receive good waves.
How big is a 4ft wave?
wave heights for surfing
| wave height in feet | distance from base to lip of wave measured on front of wave |
|---|---|
| 2 – 4 | knee to shoulder high |
| 3 – 4 ft. | waist to chest high |
| 3 – 4 ft. | waist to shoulder high |
| 3 – 5 ft. | waist to head high |
What size waves should a beginner surf?
GOOD WAVE HEIGHT FOR BEGINNER SURFERS? Generally speaking the smaller the better — but not too small that you can’t get moving. This usually means waves in the 1.5 – 2ft range (occasionally 3ft if you’re up to it).
How big is a 2ft wave?
The Traditional scale corresponds to approximately one half the height of the wave face, i.e. a wave estimated to be 4 feet from crest to trough (or chest-shoulder high on the average surfer) would be called 2 feet.
What does surf right mean?
Whose wave is it anyway? The direction the wave peels in determines who has the right of way. The surfer that is closest to the peak of the wave has priority over the wave. If there is a surfer beside your left shoulder and you are paddling for a right-breaking wave, you should give up the right of way.
What is a right and left in surfing?
A wave is either a left or a right, depending on which direction the wave breaks from the point of view of a surfer paddling and riding the wave. If a surfer is paddling to catch the wave and it is breaking from right to left (the surfer will have to turn left to get on the wave) then this wave is a left.
What do you call a surfer girl?
There is no specific term for a female surfer. You can call a girl who surfs just “surfer”, although, there are terms like gurfer, wahine that are used to refer to a female surfer.
What do surfers call a big wave?
When used as in “heavy waves,” it means big, gnarly, kick ass waves. Teahupoo, Mavericks and Pipeline are three waves that would have to be described as heavy with a capital “H.” The same term can be used to describe the locals at a spot.
How do you read sea swell?
Swell speed is measured at nautical miles per hour or knots. (1 knot is 1.2 miles on land.) In order to work out the speed that a swell is travelling multiply the wave period by 1.5. The result is the speed the swell is travelling in knots.
Is a 3ft wave big?
As far as I’m concerned, three feet is the perfect size for a wave. It’s big enough that you can ride a shortboard and still have some decent faces to work with, but it’s small enough to bust out the longboard and work on your nose-riding without worrying about bouncing your head off the reef.
Is a 2m swell big?
Sea waves caused by the local wind, are often superimposed on swell moving in from a distance.
Sea waves and swell.
| Height | Description |
|---|---|
| Low | 0-2 metres |
| Moderate | 2-4 metres |
| Heavy | over 4 metres |
What are surf breakers?
In fluid dynamics, a breaking wave or breaker is a wave whose amplitude reaches a critical level at which some process can suddenly start to occur that causes large amounts of wave energy to be transformed into turbulent kinetic energy.
How do you surf books?
Your surfing library should feature the following books:
- The Encyclopedia of Surfing. The most important surf book ever published.
- The History of Surfing.
- The World Stormrider Guide.
- The Surfboard.
- Surfing The Manual: Advanced.
- The WetSand WaveCast Guide to Surf Forecasting.
- Fit to Surf.
- Surfer Magazine: 50 Years.
Can you surf 1 foot waves?
Tiny surf is really unforgiving when it comes to turning. A one- or two-foot wave is usually good for one, maybe two turns. Pick your section wisely, as you may only get one chance to turn–don’t blow that chance. “On a tiny wave, a big move is likely to be your last,” says Taj Burrow.
How big is a six foot wave?
Thus, a “3-foot” wave is roughly six feet high (in actuality an Hm0 of ~1.8 m), i.e., head-high to a 6-foot (~180 cm) person; a “2-foot” wave is roughly four feet high (Hm0 of ~1.2 m), i.e., chest-high to such a person; and a “6- to 8-foot” wave would be 2 to approaching 3 times head-high to such a person (Hm0 of ~3.5
Can you surf 4 foot waves?
Although 2 foot waves may sound tiny, they’re perfectly surfable. In fact, what’s called a 2 footer may technically be 3 or 4 feet due to the way surfers measure wave height.
Contents