Surfing Phuket ‘Surf Shop’

February 9, 2007 at 9:22 am (SP Surfshop, Uncategorized)

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Well it’s finaly here and there will be more to come! Watch out for new products and limited additions. I think you will enjoy our new surfwear line. We have a large range of T-shirts,sweaters,womens tops,hats,bags and more at our Surf Shop. There is a link below and at the side.

Come visit my store on CafePress!

Happy Surfing Guys and Gals

Marty Ware

PS Don’t forget my other site Asian Surfing Circuit www.surfingphuket.wordpress.com

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Surfing Phuket,” How to Surf Beach Breaks”

February 4, 2007 at 3:05 am (Uncategorized)

This article is huge and quite more in depth than a lot of people would think. The reason there are so many variations of different beaches, shapes, sizes and depths.

Beaches and tides

All beaches are affected by tides and water movement. Tides affect the shape and steepness of the wave. Most beaches are surfed at middle to low tide with an up coming tide, but there some others that are only surfed at high tide, because it is way to shallow at low tide. Also as sand moves around beaches it is constantly changing the water depths creating shallow sand bars and deep holes. These deep holes and sandbars will change with incoming and outgoing tides. Tides are formed by the moon, basically the closer the moon the larger the tides.

Sand movement

Sand is constantly moving on beaches and the stronger the forces the more sand movement there is. Forces are wind, waves, currents and tides. The Australian east coast has strong sand movement. All the sand moves from south to north. Australia hosts the largest sand Island in the world ‘Fraser Island’. This Island is still growing this very day.

Sand movement creates sandbars (sand banks). Sand packs on top of itself compresses down and makes shallow sandbars. Waves always break in the shallowest area first. Surfers look for sandbars and where the waves start to peak (rise up. You can spot sand bars by colouration of water and of course where the waves are breaking.

The tides play a huge factor on how waves break on these sandbars, experience and practice is the real teacher here.But the basics are high tide deeper water over the sandbars,lower tides shallower water. Learn by studying your local sandbars and observe what they do at different tides. (Waves always break from the shallowest part and head towards the deepest water).

When starting as a beginner high to mid tides are the best time to surf. As you progress and build confidence start to surf at lower tides. Waves at lower tides stand up and are a lot steeper on the face. The beauty is with steeper waves, more speed and what all surfers seek ! Tubular Waves.

Beach Shape

There is a huge variety of beaches out there, some beaches have rocky outcrops that help build sand formations, others have huge headlands that protect them from strong winds,but that’s another lesson. The most popular and usually the best beaches for surfing are long and curved, most of the surfing is usually done at the ends of the beaches. This seems to gather the most sands and create the better shaped sandbars.

Looking for beaches

As a beginner I recommend that you look for beaches where you can wade out for a long way without having any sudden deep drop off. Avoid steep beaches as they can be very dangerous. Long flat beaches are really the ones you want, generally better wave shape and a safer environment. OK, so go and find that perfect beach for you!

Happy Surfing Marty Ware

Keep an eye on Surfing Asia for contest updates www.surfingphuket.wordpress.com

All photo’s above have been shot by Marty Ware
Hawaiian Hybrid Buds, Red dawn and blueberry buds combo from. www.herbal-smoke-shop.com

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The right wax for you?

January 31, 2007 at 11:48 am (The right wax for you?, Uncategorized)

”Wax” What do I use? 

 With wax  buying the correct one for the right season is the key. Tropical wax for summer and tropical surfing, cold water wax for cold water surfing and winter time.

Wax is a petroleum product and as such contains oils. These oils sweat with heat and also go extremely hard in cold water and weather. Regularly replacing the wax will keep it grippy and clean. A wax comb is a great way to keep the wax roughed up and also increasing grip. My wax recommendations are Mrs Palmers and Sex Wax.

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