A 2015 study by Jeff Nessler and colleagues at Cal State San Marcos investigated how wetsuits affect our paddling mechanics. While thicker suits like 8mm clearly restrict movement, the impact of standard Southern California 3/2s and 4/3s remained unclear.
I’m out in Ireland at the moment on a bit of a roady and it’s my first time surfing in a hood with boots and gloves. It’s been a mega adaptation for me! I’ve got the Finisterre 5mm and I couldn’t be warmer but man it’s tight!! I absolutely agree on the proprioceptive feedback front, I’ve felt very ‘in’ my body which is its own learning curve out there
Absolutely! I had a similar experience when I moved to the West Coast from Florida and went diving for the first time out here. An 8mm suit is absurd, and no one can change my mind about it, but I refuse to give it up.
Hah! That's my diving suit, I can attest that the results from this paper do not apply to something that thick. A 4/3 is more like it for the winters here.
Interesting in an abstract kind of way. As a science teacher and life long surfer, I have always taken an interest in the science. I think the major scientific contributions to surfing have come from research on other issues. For my money, the advances in materials and weather forecasting have had massive impacts. The standardisation and precision of compterised design and shaping have also been influential, though the bigger picture is that surfboard design has never developed from a theoretical base. Trial and error and a selection process related to evolution have been dominant.
I agree to some extent, but it is pretty cool to see that even through trial and error, surfboards have evolved to use airfoil shapes in both rail and fin design. I like to geek out on the why behind decisions, but at times, it is very nice to just make something that works and not know why.
The trial and error was far from random. They copied fins from fish and foils from wings. A lot of the better shapers also had a good grasp of the basic physics but it was never the starting point for a design.
I’m out in Ireland at the moment on a bit of a roady and it’s my first time surfing in a hood with boots and gloves. It’s been a mega adaptation for me! I’ve got the Finisterre 5mm and I couldn’t be warmer but man it’s tight!! I absolutely agree on the proprioceptive feedback front, I’ve felt very ‘in’ my body which is its own learning curve out there
Absolutely! I had a similar experience when I moved to the West Coast from Florida and went diving for the first time out here. An 8mm suit is absurd, and no one can change my mind about it, but I refuse to give it up.
8mm is heavy stuff!!! it's always worth the paddle out, even if it cooks your shoulders ha!
Hah! That's my diving suit, I can attest that the results from this paper do not apply to something that thick. A 4/3 is more like it for the winters here.
Interesting in an abstract kind of way. As a science teacher and life long surfer, I have always taken an interest in the science. I think the major scientific contributions to surfing have come from research on other issues. For my money, the advances in materials and weather forecasting have had massive impacts. The standardisation and precision of compterised design and shaping have also been influential, though the bigger picture is that surfboard design has never developed from a theoretical base. Trial and error and a selection process related to evolution have been dominant.
I agree to some extent, but it is pretty cool to see that even through trial and error, surfboards have evolved to use airfoil shapes in both rail and fin design. I like to geek out on the why behind decisions, but at times, it is very nice to just make something that works and not know why.
The trial and error was far from random. They copied fins from fish and foils from wings. A lot of the better shapers also had a good grasp of the basic physics but it was never the starting point for a design.