What Role Does Physical Geography Play In Surfing

Physical Geography is all around us at all times. It is a part of our daily lives. It has many roles. But what role does physical geography serve in surfing? For years now, many have taken on the challenge of surfing. Certain beaches and locations around the world are known to offer awesome waves to ride for professionals and novices. Many focus on the challenge of getting onto a surfboard and learning the ways to balance themselves to ride waves out and soon be labeled a surfer. Many however, do not think about the challenges of learning how to read waves and know how they work. According to Chris Woodford who wrote the Science of Surfing, he says mastering surfing is about being able to master the science behind it. Learning how the
Surfing is about wind speed and wind direction, swell periods, ocean floor (bathymetry), tides, storms, currents and how to properly forecast swells. Surfing just got harder. It is important to start somewhere. First off, how do waves function? According to Wayne Presnell, who is a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service Marine and Coastal Services Branch, says the driving force or what causes waves is the wind. He further explained that wind speed and duration help in establishing the frequency and size the ocean waves can form. A “fetch” is the horizontal distance over which wave generated winds blow which is also a supporting factor. (Hadhazy 2013). Waves that come from a storm go by the name “sea”. The sea travels in the direction the wind blows. The smaller waves get taken in by the bigger waves, faster waves overtake the slower one, and other waves end up cancelling each other out. Organized waves are called swells which travel across the ocean in wave train-like pattern. The wave then sends a wave energy through the water. Not much water moves forward. Swells end up lying low and wide with a surge but do not create a lot of resistance with movement. (Dorn
The world’s best surfers arrive in hope of catching some of the biggest recorded waves in surfing history. When the waves and weather combine for the perfect conditions contestants have only forty-eight hours to arrive. Winter storms from over thousands of miles away near Alaska, give off energy followed by northern low pressure fronts colliding with southern high pressure which results in pressure giving off strong and fast winds blowing over large areas of the ocean for a long time. That wind energy is then transferred to the ocean which results in creating big swells. Maverick’s huge waves get a boost from the tides as well. When there is a transition from high to low tides, the wave energy then meet the seafloor and since the energy can only go up from there, its drastically increases the wave’s height. (Ghose 2014), (Vann