Surf Shop and Surf Gear

You have to see this video of Tahiti Surf

admin — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 01:06:42 +0000

Watch this video…best waves in one of the most beautiful places on this planet.

Don’t Do The Red Lobster

admin — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:59:36 +0000

Sun damage builds over time

You may walk away from the beach with a suntan, but that’s not all you’re getting. Excessive sun exposure is responsible for most of the skin damage associated with aging. This damage accumulates slowly over time and starts at an early age. Much of the skin damage is merely cosmetic, but some effects, such as skin cancer, are more serious.

Do you know how the sun damages your skin? Try some color sun block.

Churchill Fins For Bodyboarding

admin — Sun, 10 May 2009 16:57:51 +0000

Invented in 1936, Churchill Floating Fins utilize a patented design which gives you optimum power and acceleration for catching waves. Makapuu fins also act like a skeg on a surfboard to help maintain total control. The rubber soft foot pocket covering your foot is soft for complete comfort and includes a drain hole while the yellow rubber found on the blade is stiff for more kick power! Price has never been lower.

Mother’s Day Ideas for the Surfer

admin — Sat, 09 May 2009 17:15:41 +0000

Albeau interview - Day 4 PWA Surf World Cup fails to deliver breeze

‘Albeau no handed! (Sylt 2008)’ PWA - Professional Windsurfers Association World Tour - © John Carter

With the wind failing to deliver the goods, day four of competition was spent waiting patiently in the hope of suitable conditions arriving to start race 5. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be, and another day passed with no racing completed.

During the afternoon’s wait, we talked to three-time PWA World Slalom Champion and current event runner up, Antoine Albeau (JP / NeilPryde) about competition and the season that lies ahead.

PWA: You’re currently ranked second here in Austria behind Ross Williams. Would you be happy to finish there, or are you only satisfied when you win?

AA: ‘No, I would be happy because second is a good place to finish, it’s not a disaster you know. And it shows my new board sponsor, JP, that I can go fast as well, and that I’m still in the game.

For sure Ross is racing good, but Bjorn also won one race you know, and for example in the first three finals there were only three guys who made all three. It just goes to show that the level is really high. The most consistent guy will be first at the end of the year, so second here would be really good.’

PWA: With such depth and such a high level within slalom, do you think retaining your title this year will be harder than previous years?

AA: ‘I think the general level of sailing is coming up, but it hasn’t been easy winning over the past three years. It’s only the start of the season, I need to practice more, and work on the tuning of my new boards and for sure I’ll start getting quicker. Before this event I hadn’t really had a chance to measure my speed over a slalom course. It’s only when you get on the race course that you see how quick you really are.’

PWA: Who do you think poses the single biggest threat to you this season?

AA: ‘I can’t really say as it’s the very start of the slalom season, but it seems that Ross is the quickest guy right now. So far we’ve only raced here on a lake, where it’s really gusty, and all the other events are on the sea, so it’s really hard to tell, but right now I would say Ross, for sure.’

PWA: Now you’ve switched board sponsor to JP, do you feel pressure to deliver them a World Title?

AA: I don’t feel any pressure, I mean for sure there’s always pressure on you when you’re racing, but I’d say the people who have the most pressure are the ones that have moved to Starboard, because I won three Slalom World Titles with the Starboards, so everybody thinks that they are the best boards. A lot of people have moved to Starboard and now they have no excuses. I think that with my new JP boards, I will show that with another brand’s boards, I can go fast.’

PWA: You got knocked out in the first round of race two here in Austria. Can you tell us what happened?

AA: ‘In the first round, the level isn’t so high so it’s normally not too hard to make the top four and qualify. Even if I have a bad start I can normally catch up, but this time I think I took too much of a risk, I don’t know why. I was going quite downwind and Manev was going upwind, and his mast hit my boom, which made me over sheet. I didn’t fall off, but my 9.5m fell fully in the water downwind. I almost came back, but it wasn’t enough.’

PWA: Last year in Pozo you won eight out of the nine races completed there, are you disappointed to see racing removed from a location you clearly dominated at?

AA: ‘I’ve been going to Gran Canaria every year since I started competing on the PWA, and I’m really disappointed to see that slalom won’t be happening this year. It’s one of the best slalom locations because the conditions are really tough, and it’s really windy with rough water and we can go really, really fast. It looks like it’s going to be a tough year for the industry, we just have to go with it and hope for the best in the future.’

Thanks to Antoine Albeau for taking the time out to speak to us. Tomorrow morning’s skippers meeting is scheduled for 8.00am (8.30am first possible start) to take advantage of a promising window of wind forecast for the morning.

The Wild Side Of My First Surfboard.

admin — Sat, 09 May 2009 16:59:51 +0000

Nothing is more important to the beginning surfer than having the right board. Those thin, narrow rockets the stars are riding sure look exciting, but they are a disaster for surfers learning initial techniques. Therefore, keep these tips in mind when choosing your first surfboard.

Go Cheap

While learning how to surf, you’re going to ding and scratch a board if you really put it to use, so don’t spend too much cash. A $400 surfboard will ding as easy as a $100 surfboard. It’s not about looks, so ignore minor yellowing and small dings.However, dings that show foam or any delamination should be avoided. As a beginner, you’re going to beat the heck out of your surfboard, so pay the least amount of cash possible.

Go Big and Thick

All the cool girls and guys have small, narrow surfboards, right? So what! You’re not cool yet. Get a board that will give flotation and allow for easy paddling.A good average size board for a beginning surfer would be around 7 feet long and 19-21 inches wide and at least 2-3 inches thick. This all depends on your size, so be sure you can comfortably carry and wield the surfboard in the water. Just make sure your surfboard stands at least a foot taller than you.

Generally, a 120 pound surfer should look for a 6 feet 10 inch board while a 140 pounder might look towards a 7 feet 2 inch board. At 170 pounds, try to go above 7 feet 6 inches.

Don’t Go Chasing Tail

Don’t worry about the tail shape or number of fins on your surfboard. These parts of a surfboard shouldn’t matter. For the first 3-6 months, you really shouldn’t worry about turning or doing maneuvers any way, so whether your board is a swallow tail or a pintail or even if your surfboard only has one fin is really pointless.For the record, 3-fin boards are the easiest to turn and the most functional fin set up for the advanced and intermediate surfer.

Final thoughts…

Several companies make soft surfboards that consist of a bodyboard-like material, and the fins are flexible to help prevent injuries while learning your craft. This is a good way to get the kids up and riding without a ride to the emergency room.

These are the most basic rules to choosing your first surfboard. It doesn’t matter if you buy a board from a friend, a local surf shop, or from the Internet; just find a big, cheap board that you can carry to the beach go get stoked and learn how to surf.

Carbon Fiber Boards Are Showing Up In Surf Shops

admin — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 20:12:20 +0000

If you have taken a walk through a surf shop lately it is hard to miss the new carbon boards that are popping up everywhere.

Carbon fiber surfboards allows for the same kind construction as hand crafted foam core surfboard. The main elements of the carbon fiber board include carbon fiber of varying orientations or directions, specialized high density foam, and epoxy resins. The carbon fiber boards are hollow. These boards are some of the lightest and strongest boards ever designed and produced. These fiber boards have a unique feature of allowing the deck and the bottom to flex independently which acts as a suspension system to launch the surfer from one turn into the next with remarkable control and momentum.

Carbon fiber is starting to be used because it has a number of characteristics that make it well suited for the construction of a surfboard its lightweight, its high tensile and load bearing strength based on orientation of fiber, remarkable reflex memory, extremely low flex fatigue over time, carbon fiber is non flammable and stable in the environment.

Because these boards are hollow, pressure is very important part of these boards maintenance. With proper maintenance these board should out last any conventual’s surfboards. Check with your surf shop for the maintenance for these boards. Surf On!

Want To Buy A Previously Owned Surfboard

admin — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 22:21:08 +0000

Have you ever been asked, where to purchase a used surf board? Where is the best place to start. Certainly one of the best places to start is a friend, although just because a board works for your firend doesn’t mean it will be the best for you. Take into consideration your friends height, weight, ability. A big advantage for you is your friend should let you surf the stick before you purchase. You will not be able to do this if you buy from a surf shop.

Other options when looking for used surf boards are online sites like ebay, Amazon or local surf shops. All of these options will have not only surfboards but all kinds of surf gear.

Before you start you search you need to do a little homework, think about the surf break you are going to use this surfboard at the most. What type of conditions are normal at the break. Take note of what other surfers with similar skill levels and body type are surfing on.

If you are 6′ tall and 200 pounds you will not be able to surf the same surfboard as another surfer that is 5′ and 250 pounds. If you decide to buy online ask lots of questions, who surf on the surfboard, where it was used, how much repair has been done on it etc. If you would like to see used surfboards up for auction as well as other surf gear check out our surf store.
If your are interested at looking at all types of surf gear new or used visit our Mega Surf Shop

Stand Up Paddle Surfing and Surf Shop

admin — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 07:34:11 +0000

Have you noticed the amount of stand up paddling that has been going on? At surf shop we have been noticing stand up paddle board every where we go. I first notice them at Catalina Island of So. Cal. a few years ago. Mostly I just people enjoying paddling their boards around the boats in the coves. Then I started see a girl in Marina Del Rey and there are quite a few stand up paddlers around the marina.

I stopped into a surf shop in the Marina where I saw a few stand up paddle board, to my surprise when I went into the surf shop there were quite a few boards and paddles. Pete at the surf shop told me about all the surfers that were surfing with these paddle boards. With that I started watching the surf spots from Marina Del Rey to Long Beach also the surf shops and I’ve notice on nice days there is a whole group of surfers, surfing on these stand up paddle boards.

I was just wondering if any of you out there have tried these boards and how difficult it is to get started. Anyone have any input?

Video from Sunset Beach

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 06:19:50 +0000

Here is some great video from the second stop of the Triple Crown of Surfing at Sunset Beach North Shore on Oahu.

Enjoy

O’neill World Cup Of Surfing Sunset Beach

Beach Bonfires A Tradition In Southern California

admin — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 19:57:03 +0000

As a kid growing up in So. Cal. bonfires on the beach were always a time honored tradition for me. We would surf all day and by the end of the day as the sun would set we would start a big bonfire and watch the sunset into the ocean. We would burn anything we could get our hands on. Most of the time it was an old pallet we would find behind the market or on the side of the road. As we got older sometimes we had to buy firewood at the store, but it was always more fun to burn what we could scrap up.

Someone always had a boom box for music and the fires always attracted friends or the girls around the beach. We would sometime cook hot dogs and just sit around and drink and tell stories. It was just part of growing up near the beach in California.

These fire pits were big cement rings and they are on most beaches in Calif. and best of all they were free. Most of the time they were on a first come first serve basics. A lot of the State beaches have campsites at the beach as well and on holiday weekends some of these fire rings were hard to come by.

These fire pits for bonfires are instant gathering places for entertainment and sharing so they are popular especially during the summertime!

I was just wondering if anyone else has the same memories of beach bonfires.