page_title: Surfing
section_title: Equipment
hierarchical_section_title: Surfing / Equipment
caption_attribution_description: English: US Marine Corps (USMC) Corporal (CPL) Kimberley Thompson, Public Affairs Officer (PAO), stationed at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Beaufort, South Carolina (SC), waxes her surfboard on the beach at Hunting Island, SC. CPL Thompson is demonstrating surfing techniques for an upcoming video documentary. (Released to Public) Location: MCAS, BEAUFORT, SOUTH CAROLINA (SC) UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (USA)
context_page_description: Surfing is a surface water pastime in which the wave rider, referred to as a surfer, rides on the forward part, or face, of a moving wave, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitable for surfing are primarily found in the ocean, but can also be found in lakes or rivers in the form of a standing wave or tidal bore. However, surfers can also utilize artificial waves such as those from boat wakes and the waves created in artificial wave pools.
  The term surfing usually refers to the act of riding a wave using a board, regardless of the stance. There are several types of boards. The native peoples of the Pacific, for instance, surfed waves on alaia, paipo, and other such craft, and did so on their belly and knees. The modern-day definition of surfing, however, most often refers to a surfer riding a wave standing on a surfboard; this is also referred to as stand-up surfing.
  Another prominent form of surfing is body boarding, when a surfer rides the wave on a bodyboard, either lying on their belly, drop knee, or sometimes even standing up on a body board. Other types of surfing include knee boarding, surf matting, and using foils.
context_section_description: Surfing can be done on various equipment, including surfboards, longboards, stand up paddle boards (SUPs), bodyboards, wave skis, skimboards, kneeboards, surf mats and macca's trays. Surfboards were originally made of solid wood and were large and heavy (often up to 370 cm (12 ft) long and having a mass of 70 kg (150 lb)). Lighter balsa wood surfboards (first made in the late 1940s and early 1950s) were a significant improvement, not only in portability, but also in increasing maneuverability.
  Most modern surfboards are made of fiberglass foam (PU), with one or more wooden strips or "stringers", fiberglass cloth, and polyester resin (PE). An emerging board material is epoxy resin and Expanded Polystyrene foam (EPS) which is stronger and lighter than traditional PU/PE construction. Even newer designs incorporate materials such as carbon fiber and variable-flex composites in conjunction with fiberglass and epoxy or polyester resins. Since epoxy/EPS surfboards are generally lighter, they will float better than a traditional PU/PE board of similar size, shape and thickness. This makes them easier to paddle and faster in the water. However, a common complaint of EPS boards is that they do not provide as much feedback as a traditional PU/PE board. For this reason, many advanced surfers prefer that their surfboards be made from traditional materials.
  Other equipment includes a leash (to stop the board from drifting away after a wipeout, and to prevent it from hitting other surfers), surf wax, traction pads (to keep a surfer's feet from slipping off the deck of the board), and fins (also known as skegs) which can either be permanently attached (glassed-on) or interchangeable. Sportswear designed or particularly suitable for surfing may be sold as boardwear (the term is also used in snowboarding). In warmer climates, swimsuits, surf trunks or boardshorts are worn, and occasionally rash guards; in cold water surfers can opt to wear wetsuits, boots, hoods, and gloves to protect them against lower water temperatures. A newer introduction is a rash vest with a thin layer of titanium to provide maximum warmth without compromising mobility. In recent years, there have been advancements in technology that have allowed surfers to pursue even bigger waves with added elements of safety. Big wave surfers are now experimenting with inflatable vests or colored dye packs to help decrease their odds of drowning.
  There are many different surfboard sizes, shapes, and designs in use today. Modern longboards, generally 270 to 300 cm (9 to 10 ft) in length, are reminiscent of the earliest surfboards, but now benefit from modern innovations in surfboard shaping and fin design. Competitive longboard surfers need to be competent at traditional walking manoeuvres, as well as the short-radius turns normally associated with shortboard surfing. The modern shortboard began life in the late 1960s and has evolved into today's common thruster style, defined by its three fins, usually around 180 to 210 cm (6 to 7 ft) in length. The thruster was invented by Australian shaper Simon Anderson.
  Midsize boards, often called funboards, provide more maneuverability than a longboard, with more flotation than a shortboard. While many surfers find that funboards live up to their name, providing the best of both surfing modes, others are critical.
  "It is the happy medium of mediocrity," writes Steven Kotler. "Funboard riders either have nothing left to prove or lack the skills to prove anything."
  There are also various niche styles, such as the Egg, a longboard-style short board targeted for people who want to ride a shortboard but need more paddle power. The Fish, a board which is typically shorter, flatter, and wider than a normal shortboard, often with a split tail (known as a swallow tail). The Fish often has two or four fins and is specifically designed for surfing smaller waves. For big waves there is the Gun, a long, thick board with a pointed nose and tail (known as a pin tail) specifically designed for big waves.
caption: Waxing a surfboard
exif: {"Image ImageDescription": "US Marine Corps (USMC) Corporal (CPL) Kimberley Thompson, Public Affairs Officer (PAO), stationed at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Beaufort, South Carolina (SC), waxes her surfboard on the beach at Hunting Island, SC. CPL Thompson is demonstrating surfing techniques for an upcoming video documentary.", "Image Make": "FUJIFILM", "Image Model": "FinePixS2Pro", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "226", "Image YResolution": "226", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop 7.0", "Image DateTime": "2004:11:15 09:06:18", "Image Artist": "LCPL AMBER BASGIL, USMC", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image Copyright": "", "Image ExifOffset": "584", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "1238", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6952", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/350", "EXIF FNumber": "19/2", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "400", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2003:09:05 14:07:45", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2003:09:05 14:07:45", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "16/5", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "17/2", "EXIF ApertureValue": "13/2", "EXIF BrightnessValue": "833/100", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire", "EXIF FocalLength": "79", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2265", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1875", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "1322", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "1322", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "3", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "118", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Hard", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0"}