Step into the world of nomadic wilderness and surf photographer Christian McLeod
Christian’s photography has appeared in numerous international surf publications, including The Surfer’s Journal and SURFER Magazine among others. His client list includes many well known surf company brands such as O’Neill, Hurley, and Billabong, as well as tourism agencies, Tourism Tropical North Queensland (Australia) and Tourism Ireland.
Check out the Surfer’s Academy video presentations here. You can also watch the awesome Surfer’s Academy promotional trailer series and more on the EASD Vimeo page!
Coming Soon…
Stay tuned to the homepage for details of Outreach 2015: Surfer’s Academy!
Boris Bornemann explores the psychological and neurobiological processes underlying why we ride waves at Outreach 2014: Surfer’s Academy (Saturday, 13 September 2014). Learn how Intrinsic and Extrinsic motivation, Flow states, and Dopamine pathways are at play when we ride waves. What drives big wave surfers? The author would like to acknowledge the webpage surfshrink.com/ for the three historical surfing references shown in this presentation. For more on the related concept of Flow, visit: surfingdoctorseurope.com/2014/08/flow/
Boris Bornemann, Dipl.-Psych./Master Sc., PhD candidate at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Department of Social Neuroscience, Leipzig, Germany. Boris has previously presented on “The Psychology and Neurobiology of Surfing” at Conference (2012) in Sagres, Portugal.
The Pipeline Surf Medicine Conference was organised by Waves of Health in conjunction with the Straub Clinic and Hospital, Honolulu, Hawaii, and took place on Saturday, 6th December 2014.
Medical specialists, including Dr. Clayton Everline MD, and allied healthcare professionals gathered to share their knowledge, experience, and insight, into the treatment and management of conditions commonly affecting surfers. The Conference explored topics such as: The Aging Surfer; Ankle Injuries; Mauli Ola; Trauma and Pre-hospital care; Surfer’s Shoulder; and Knee Injuries.
Note: Video footage from the Pipeline Surf Medicine Conference was kindly provided by Chris Bednarek. The final edit was complied by Bas Bartholomeus for the EASD.
“Rip Currents … What Every Water User Needs to Know” by Tim Jones
Rips are, to most of us, a fantastic aid to our surfing when understood. They help us pass out through waves to the takeoff area and often they define the “peak” and create a better breaking wave.
So what are rips? A definition from the US Coast Guard …
RIP CURRENTS ARE POWERFUL CHANNELS OF WATER FLOWING QUICKLY AWAY FROM SHORE … WHICH OCCUR MOST OFTEN AT LOW SPOTS OR BREAKS IN THE SANDBAR AND IN THE VICINITY OF ROCKS AND STRUCTURES SUCH AS GROINS, JETTIES AND PIERS
However, they can also be a source of danger especially to those who are unaware of their existence. So here are a few interesting facts and basic statistics.
Annually, in the US, there are on average 100+ deaths from rips. In the UK, two in every three (2/3) water rescues are because of rips. Rips in the UK account for more deaths than bicycle accidents!
In Australia (2004‚ 2012), deaths per year attributable to Rips = 21; Cyclones = 7.5; Bush fires = 5.9; Floods = 4.3; and Sharks = 1. So when many beach goers in some parts of the world fear a shark attack, they would be far better served to understand and spot rips and respect the dangers they represent.
So how do we change the stats?
We, as surfers, can pass on this basic knowledge to others, surfers, or not. Remembering the US Coast Guard definition above, and observing the simple diagram of how rips work below, we can understand a few key principles.
There are a few different types of rip and these are:
Permanent or Topographic
Fixed
Flash
Travelling or Side Rip. Not long shore drift.
The Permanent or Topographic Rip
Let’s look at how each is defined. Firstly, the Permanent or Topographic rip uses physical features at the beach such as: rocks, piers, groins, sea walls and the water (rip), running out along these features. To help you find it, just look at how next to the feature there seems to be an area of calm water with little or no waves. In this picture below you can see the rip passing along the beach towards the cliffs. This is our Travelling or Side Rip. Then you can clearly see where it passes along the rocks and heads out to sea causing a clear path in the water. Look for the dark blue line with the white water each side. You can clearly see its path along the rocks and out to sea. Check how, as it moves away from the rocks, it loses it power and dissipates.
In this picture from Australia, the lifeguards have placed a coloured dye in the water to define the Permanent or Topographic rip.
The Fixed Rip
It’s quite a misleading name, “Fixed”, as these are rips that stay in one general area of a beach, but can move even up to 100m from one side to another. This is due to the change in density of the sand by wave action and the general topography of the beach. The picture on the right shows the gap in the surf line and the travelling rip which is coming from the left hand side of the beach (looking out to sea) and feeding into the rip.
Of course, we may get more than one type, or even all types, of rips occurring on a beach. Here is a particularly illustrative example. At the top of the picture we see a Permanent or Topographic rip running out by the rocks and road (note the absence of surf) and then below is our fixed rip causing a break in the surf line yet again.
Flash Rips
These often occur when a sand bar on a beach breaks down by wave and tidal action or as the tide moves past an outcrop of rocks. The diagram below illustrates typically how such a rip can arise. As the name suggests, they occur suddenly and can often be a great danger to swimmers who often do not know what to do if caught unawares in them.
How wide are rip currents, how fast can they flow, and where do they go?
On average, rips are typically about 9.5m or 31ft wide, but this is a real average as they can be less or more, and particularly the flash rips ‘begin’ by being very narrow. However, it’s a good rule-of-thumb to remember that they are normally about “as wide as a bus is long”!
They move on average at approximately 6.6kph or 4.1mph. That’s some speed, about the same pace as Olympic 400m Gold Medallist, Sun Yang’s average pace. Little chance then of out swimming or out paddling the rip.
Rips flow out to sea to a distance really depending on the volume of water that’s flowing into the beach. They go to an area we call the Head. So on a small day of surf the rip may stop and form the Head only a few hundred metres out to sea. On a big day of surf you may find it flowing kilometres out to sea. Below is a classic example of a beach break rip leading to a head, but of course heads can be found on reef set ups as well. The famous Sunset Beach in Hawaii is a great example. Lost boards there are often never found again!
Caught in the rip?
Now let’s hope that this advice is not needed if you’re a regular surfer. But do pass it on to others new to the sport or those who are just happy water users anyway. Firstly, prevention, don’t let the situation happen in the first place. Get advice about the beach and the surf you’re using and be able to spot the rips before entry, but more of that later. If someone is stuck in a rip, the first rule is don’t panic, and don’t whatever you do try to paddle or swim against it. Remember how fast it is going and just go sideways and towards the breaking waves that can help you. The picture below is simple and a good example of the action to take.
NOTE: Emerging evidence suggests that simply threading water and waiting for the rip to dissipate may be a prudent approach when caught in a rip. Currently, the approach described previously and illustrated above, i.e. swimming parallel to the shoreline/at right angles to the direction of the rip, is advocated by most surf lifesaving institutions and lifeguard professionals. Further research is required to definitively determine the safest strategy. For further information, check out this insightful article New Scientist article on research conducted at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey, California, USA.
Know the Emergency Signal
It’s worth keeping in mind that people often want help even if they know what to do in a rip or when they see others caught in a rip. It’s a simple one arm in the air and waved from side-to-side to attract attention. This is like a 112 or 999 call of the sea and should be known by all and passed onto others. Just knowing this could save someone’s life and perhaps your own.
Many beaches now carry signs to remind us as shown here. Of course, just getting advice from locals and particularly lifeguards at beaches is number one. Remember, prevention is always better than cure.
So, we need to be aware of the dangers of rips, but also we may be experienced enough to want to use them to access the best surf.
So how do we spot them?
Here are some simple indicators:
1. A gap in the waves or where waves break then “back-off” (die out) and then reform again. The water moving out either stops the waves, creates a channel, or just stops the wave from breaking.
2. The surface of the water has ripples on it even if there is no wind at all. If there is wind, it seems more wind affected. Again, this is the outward movement of water creating the surface affect.
3. The rip will carry sand, seaweed, derbies and pollution. This is often a very clear indicator of a rip.
Line-ups
In order to help us use rips correctly, or to keep others away from them, we need to develop the skill of using line-ups. These are markers on the beach that help keep position in the best surf zone, and thus getting the best waves.
Also, choosing line-ups keeps others safe. Lifeguards do this all the time, setting safe swimming areas marked by flags. If you check the photo below you could choose many line ups from houses, trees, etc. But never choose objects that may move like an umbrella on the beach or a parked car for example.
So rips, although dangerous to those who are unaware of them, are often our best friends in surfing. Take time to observe the ocean before entering and never be afraid to ask questions. Be aware that some rips will take us out to surf we just can’t and don’t want to handle, and other rips will take us out to the best waves of our lives. The main reason for this article is to get you to transmit this basic knowledge to others so we can all enjoy the ocean in a much safer way. Thanks. Stay safe in the water.
The author carving a roundhouse cutback!
Tim Jones is an EASD Scout, International Surfing Association (ISA)/Surfing Great Britain (Surfing GB) certified Surf Instructor and Coach. He is¬†Director of Surf School Lanzarote. Tim has a long and active history with Surfing GB, beginning the first special needs initiative for surfing in the UK, and continues to contribute to the development of coaching skills within the organisation. The current women’s Welsh Junior and Senior Champion, Emily Williams is coached by Tim, as have past champions in Europe such as Mark Vaughen and Nathan Phillips.
Dr. Clayton Everline lecturing on Surfing Injuries at surfer’s Academy – a Full-Day Symposium on Health-related issues affecting the Surfer and Surfing Communities. With topics such as: Dangerous vs Safe, Causes, Manoeuvre preceding acute surfing injury, risk factors, and severity of injury.
Dr. Everline is a Sports Medicine Physician based on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii. He has served as Contest Doctor at numerous World Tour Events, including the Pipeline Masters. He is co-founder of Waves of Health and co-author of “Surf Survival: The Surfer’s Health Handbook”.
Thumb Nail Image Credit: Jim Davidson/Australia’s Surfing Life
You can always try this … or … come to the Surfer’s Academy! (Image Credit: TSJ)
External Auditory Exostosis/Exostoses, or “Surfer’s Ear”, are generally painless, benign, maladies that do not require surgical intervention. Progressive growth leads to increasing external auditory canal obstruction, conductive hearing loss, and possible frequent episodes of otitis externa (i.e. infection).
Whilst the cause of surfer’s ear, has yet to be conclusively established, prevailing clinical consensus accepts cold water exposure as an initiation factor.
There is even anthropological evidence to support this hypothesis. Kennedy et al.1 showed 30% prevalence (i.e. burden of disease) in populations with known frequent cold water-based activities. Another study examined crania (i.e. skulls) from Northern Chilean coastal dwellers and found coastal residents to have a 30.7%, compared to 2.3% and 0% for valley inhabitants and highlanders respectively2.
Interesting … Right? So Read on…
The scientific and medical community has also delved into this topic. In 2004, Altuna et al.3 looked at the prevalence and severity of surfer’s ear in surfers on the Basque Coast. The study included 41 surfers: 39 male and 2 female, none of which used ear protection whilst surfing. Sixty one percent (61%), or 25 surfers had surfer’s ear, and in all but three cases the findings were bilateral. This contrasts with other reported data focusing on surfers. Prevalence ranging from 38%4, in a sample of 202 surfers, to 80%5 (Study Population: 51 individuals) have been reported. Studies by Wong6 and Chaplin7 have found prevalence levels of 73.5%, and 73%, respectively.
The existing evidence points to a higher burden of disease amongst surfers than the general public. Furthermore, increasing prevalence and severity seems to be associated with cumulative years of surfing and intensity of practice. Wong suggests 10 years or more as a plausible boundary, assuming active surfing between 10 and 12 months annually with an average daily surf session of 2-3 hours duration. Whereas, an earlier study by Deleyiannis et al.8, following Oregon and Northern Californian surfers, reported that individuals surfing five (5) years or less were unlikely to develop surfer’s ear unless they surfed greater than 50 sessions/year. Kroon et al.4 showed that those who surfed predominantly in colder waters had a significantly increased risk of surfer’s ear (Odds Ratio: 5.8), and that the number of years surfing increased the risk of developing the condition by 12% per annum.
Dr. Frederique Elffers-Tan (ENT Specialist)
Want to find out more?
For more on Surfer’s Ear why not come to the Surfer’s Academy. Listen to EASD Surfing Doctor and Consultant Ear Nose Throat (ENT) Surgeon, Dr. Frederique Elffers-Tan, share her knowledge on the Surfer’s Ear and other surfing-related ear issues. Also, check out this informative case study from Surfing Medicine, The Journal of our US counterpart, the Surfer’s Medical Association (SMA).
The European Association of Surfing Doctors (EASD) “Keeping the Surfer Healthy and Safe”.
REGISTER now for the Surfer’s Academy before it’s too late!
References:
Kennedy GE. The relationship between auditory exostoses and coldwater: altitudinal analysis. Am J Phys Anthropol. 1986;71:401-415.
Standen VG, Arriaza BT, Santoro CM. External auditory exostosis in prehistoric Chilean populations. Am J Phys Anthropol.1997;103:119-129.
Altuna Mariezkurrena X, Gómez Suárez J, Luqui Albisua I, Vea Orte JC, Algaba Guimerá J. Prevalence of exostoses among surfers of the Basque Coast. Acta Otorrinolaringol Esp. 2004 Oct;55(8):364-8.
Kroon DF, Lawson ML, Derkay CS, Hoffmann K, Mc Cook J. Surfer´s ear. External auditory exostoses are more prevalent in cold water surfers. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg.2002;126:499-504.
Umeda Y, Nakajima M. Surfer’s ear in Japan. Laryngoscope.1989;99:639-641.
Wong B, Cervantes W, Doyle KJ, Karamzadeh AM, Boys P, Brauel G, Mushtaq E. Prevalence of External Auditory Canal Exostosis in surfers. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 1999;125:969-972.
Chaplin JM, Stewart IA. The prevalence of exostoses in the external auditory meatus of surfers. Clin Otolaryngol 1998;23:326-330.
Deleyiannis FW, Cockcroft BD, Pinczower EF. Exostoses of the external auditory canal in Oregon Surfers. Am J Otolaryngol 1996;17:303-307
Papa-he-nalu, planches de surf, surfbretter, サーフボード, tablas de surf; call them what you will, it really doesn’t matter: WE LOVE SURFBOARDS. What’s more, wave riding is our passion. So, no matter whether it’s on a mat, your belly, or with a hand plane, keep on doing it!
That’s why we have invited the very best in Irish surfboard shaping and design to the Shapers Forum at the Surfer’s Academy on Saturday 13th September 2014 in The Glasshouse.
Fergal Smith at the Moy Hill Community Garden (2014).
The first time I met Fergal I was pleasantly surprised by how affable, unassuming, and down-to-earth he was. We talked about common interests; no, not surfing especially (although it may have been discussed), but trees. Fergal and his brother, Kevin, had only recently begun posting their Growing Series online. It was through this medium that I became aware of the full extent of his horticultural endeavours and, perhaps lesser acknowledged (in media circles at least), passion. Fergal and a motley-crew of locals, nomad surfers, and on any given day, warmly-welcomed volunteers, are staging a silent revolution at the Moy Hill Community Garden.
That same initial meeting, at the Shore Shots Irish Surf Film Festival, occurred shortly after watching the excellent documentary Unchartered Waters by Craig Griffin about Wayne Lynch. In the fullness of time, I can’t help but smile when I reflect on the uncanny coincidence, or rather resonance of both surfers’ journeys; the parallel, or blurred, lines if you will.
Wayne Lynch: The surfer who took wave riding out of the horizontal and into the vertical (2013).
Both goofy-footers, both prodigiously talented – Fergal will deny this, attributing his prowess to hard-graft – surfers at an early age, both seemingly ‘dropped off’ the radar at the peak of their success.
Lynch, once described by Reno Abellira as “…the Future of Surfing Incarnate”, shied away from publicity saying that he wanted to be “just a surfer, not a star”. Later it emerged he spent close on three turbulent years on the run from conscription and Vietnam! For many, Jack McCoy’s 1978 film, A Day in the Life of Wayne Lynch, defined what we’ve come to know as the ‘Soul Surfer’.
SURFER Magazine (2012). Telling the world what Irish surfers already knew.
In many ways, Smith’s trajectory is not dissimilar. Thankfully, no military-service or conflicts to mention; sponsor courtship, fanfare wildcard invitations to spots like Cloudbreak and Teahupoo: All heady stuff for a young surfer! Gone (partially) are the cover pages (see SURFER Magazine cover) and fewer sponsors remain. Nonetheless, Smith carries on regardless. Paddling heavy waves is what matters. For him, this is where the heart runs deepest in surfing.
Most of the breaks that he, and a core group of surfers based in West Clare, ride are relatively virgin waves in the Irish surfing historical timeline. The rulebook is quite literally being rewritten with each substantial swell. The unprecedented swells of last Winter are case(s)-in-point, making for limit-testing feats and pioneering wave riding on these shores.
Feel from sponsorship agendas and the distraction of ‘Surfing Industry’ concerns, Fergal can now dedicate himself wholeheartedly to the pursuit of waves of consequence on his own terms. The reality of the opportunity afforded him by past sponsorship is not lost on Smith. Yet, central to his decision to change tack was Health and Well-being. Stepping aside from the corporate surfing world has enabled focusing on his other great interest in life: Growing Your Own. Easily understood in the context of his upbringing, Fergal grew up on an organic vegetable farm outside of Westport, Co. Mayo. Now based in Clare, he is the talisman of a community-supported renaissance in growing wholesome nutritious food. ¡Viva la Revolución!
Fergal Smith will speak about his personal journey at the Surfer’s Academy – Chasing Dreams, Charging Waves, & Coming Home to Ground.
Why not check out the Surfer’s Academy Trailer Series – Four Boards and A Piano by Kevin Smith, featuring Fergal’s masterly wave riding, will be shown during the Surfer’s Academy at The Glasshouse on Saturday 13th September 2014. Tickets cost €25/person.
“I paddled fast to my left, angling toward the next wave, stroked and stood and felt the board accelerate and pumped once and into my bottom turn, and then the world vanished. There was no self, no other. For an instant, I didn’t know where I ended and the wave began. This was an instant beyond the redemption I had hoped to find.”
The Eternal Present: In-The-Green-Room
Excerpt from West of Jesus: Surfing, Science, and the Origins of Belief by Steven Kotler (1).
Kotler goes on to describe surfing as “a game of such [transitory] instants”. Transitory in that those moments are both “staggeringly impactful and simultaneously vanishing”. The Glide, In-the-Green-Room; familiar terms which attempt to capture our experience, but “truthfully refers to the feeling of being utterly, finally, fleetingly, awake”.
The Concept of Flow
Getzels and Csikszentmihalyi (2) looked at the creative process artist during the 1960s. They found that when work on a piece was going well the artist persisted without distraction, ignoring tiredness, hunger, and discomfort. Further research by Csikszentmihalyi (3) went on to examine the subjective phenomenology of intrinsically-rewarding activities in groups such as rock climbers, dancers, and chess players. They found remarkable concordance across work and play settings. The general conditions of flow included:
Being engaged in an activity that ‘stretches’ one’s existing skill-set at an appropriate level commensurate with capability
Clear proximal goals and instantaneous feedback regarding progress made
Greenough: Surely the foremost proponent of Flow in every meaning of the word
Nakamura and Csikszentmihalyi reported that being “in flow”, and under such conditions, our experience “seamlessly unfolds from moment to moment” (4). They described the subjective/experiential state one enters as having the characteristics listed below. It’s worth noting the undeniable corollary to Mindfulness.
Intense focus and concentration in the PRESENT moment
The moment, awareness, and the action (i.e. doing) become one, with a loss of self-reflection (i.e. ‘external observer-like awareness’ of oneself as a social actor)
A sense that one can respond to, perhaps even anticipate, imminent events
Temporal distortion (e.g. ‘time slows down in the barrel’, or perhaps speeds up)
The activity and experience of same is intrinsically rewarding to the extent, perhaps, that the end goal simply becomes an excuse for the process – Sounds familiar?
The latter recalls the Pezman–Leary (5) interview referenced in our previous post Drop-in Turn-on Tune-out: Commitment, Death, and Anxiety. Leary, in response to the author’s statement that surfers are discovering that “surfing is pretty much a head game in a fluid medium”, offered his understanding of the surfing experience:
“…a merging of your own body neuromusculature, or brain body, with the power/energy/rhythm of nature. That’s what’s so jewel-like precise about mind/body/sea energy interfacing together. One thing I like about surfing is that it is all out. You can’t be half-hearted, or you can’t be thinking about something else. You’ve got to give up all the land, social, cultural, moral, political whatevers … you’ve got to be totally there.”
Far out dude; perhaps, yet there’s no denying the underlying grain of truth. Pezman went further, making a keen observation, when he said:
“It’s also interesting to note that surfing is non-productive…non-depletive, almost a nonentity. Your wake disappears from the ride, the wave dissipates on the beach. The surfer leaves at the end of the day, and there’s no trace. And yet you get hooked on doing this thing.”
Well, you can say that again!
Boris Bornemann
Cool, I’d like to know more about Flow States and Mindfulness
Boris Bornemann, Dipl.-Psych./Master Sc., PhD Student at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Department of Social Neuroscience, Leipzig, Germany, will explore Flow and Flow States in Surfing at the Surfer’s Academy on Saturday 13th September 2014.
Dr. Tony Bates, Clinical Psychologist and Founder of Headstrong will discuss Resilience, Living Mindfully, and Mental Health at the Surfer’s Academy.
All attendees must REGISTER Online. Under sixteen (16) year-olds go free. Ticket Cost: €25.00/person.
References:
1. Kotler S. West of Jesus: Surfing, Science, and the Origins of Belief. Bloomsbury, New York, USA. 2007
2. Getzels JW, Csikszentmihalyi M. The Creative Vision: A Longitudinal Study of Problem Finding in Art. John Wiley & Sons, New York, USA. 1976
3. Csikszentmihalyi M. Beyond Boredom and Anxiety. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, USA. 2000
4. Nakamura J, Csikszentmihalyi M. The Concept of Flow. Snyder CR & Lopez SJ, Handbook of Positive Psychology, pp89-105. Oxford University Press, New York, USA. 2001
5. Pezman S. Dr. Timothy Leary, The Evolutionary Surfer. SURFER Magazine. Jan 1978, Volume 20 Number 8
Note: Featured Image on front page that accompanies this post is ‘Tales from the Tube’ (1971) by Rick Griffin.
“Surfing gives you very elemental illustrations of broader truths by serving as a microcosm that we can grasp”
“Turn On Tune In Drop Out”: Timothy Leary, captured by Art Brewer, in existential chat mode, 1978.
– Steve Pezman, surfing sage, The Surfer’s Journal Publisher, and then SURFER Magazine Editor in conversation with countercultural icon, Timothy Leary, in 1978 (1,2).
Just one articulation of why surfing means so much to us. There are many lessons in surfing that we take ashore for life after the ride.
How to balance the fearsome view of a story-high barreling wave and the urge to ride it?
Bated-Breath: Brock Little during the Eddie Aikau, Waimea Bay, 1990. Can we learn from this? Photo Credit: Erik Aeder
Life is inconsistently peppered with critical moments, crossroads, dilemmas that test our confidence, courage, and resolve: illness, trauma, loss. Often, we find ways to avoid these moments. Dropping-in serves as a model for confronting anxiety. A thorough understanding of the psychology of dropping-in can lead to a more engaged and contented life.
Dr. Greg Dillon is a psychiatrist and dynamic psychotherapist with a special interest in the uses of experiential therapy, particularly surfing, as a visceral and metamorphic point of access to intra-psychic processes. He has written and lectured on his theories for Psychology Today, and is working on a book and seminar series called Surf-Head, exploring the lessons of surf and sea towards a better self understanding (3).
Dr. Greg Dillon (USA)
How can I learn more about this topic?
Dr. Greg Dillon will lead the workshop The Surfers Head at Conference 2014 and explore the Psychology of Dropping-in during the Country Soul section of the Surfer’s Academy on Saturday 13th September 2014.
Step into the world of nomadic wilderness and surf photographer Christian McLeod
