TG’s surf forecast

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Surf Reports.

SURF FORECAST ISSUED FRIDAY 6 FEBRUARY 2009 WEEKEND OUTLOOK FOR SYDNEY: Warm and humid with some NE windswell.

Saturday- Sunday: in the 1-2 metre range North East.

Monday: 1-2 metres dead South after a late S change Sunday.

It’ll be hot and humid so every man and his dog will want to get wet. My suggestion would be for the folks out west to consider the Central Coast and South Coast to spread the load around… traffic will be a nightmare… Parking will be all time hard to get everywhere, soo if you don’t have kids and several boards etc you might like to experiment with public transport…again just to make it a bit easier all round.

A Chinese gentleman said to me the other day he didn’t know Australia was such a hot place — !!! duhh???… driest continent… lots of deserts… “I love a sunburnt country…’ etc…

We have lots of people here who’ve grown up in cooler climes…

So for those who don’t know how to handle the hot weather, or are not familiar with the beach, here’s a few suggestions from TG, passed down from generation to generation of Aussies… on how to stay cool….and safe. (in no particular order).

. drink lots of water. make sure your dog has lots of water… and your kids… and your spouse… parents… grandparents etc. make sure everyone’s OK. It’s not the end of the world – it’s just hot.

. do stuff outside early and later in the day – “mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun”….. and adjust what you do to the day – that ditch you need to dig will still be there after the cooler Southerly change. Our original indigenous inhabitants knew how to handle the heat, so
. sit under a shady tree.

. park under a shady tree, if you can.

. swim between the red and yellow flags -days when the surf is smaller are the most dangerous for those unfamiliar with rips .

. if you get in a rip, don’t try to swim back to shore against it…swim across
to where waves are breaking – white water – they will wash you back to shore.

. wear a hat – broad brimmed – cowboys wear ‘em because they can’t take a verandah with them everywhere… straw hats are OK on the coast where it’s humid.

. wear light, loose clothing. (ditch the suit!)

. use the aircon in the car and home if you must, but try natural fresh air!- open the windows and let the breeze blow through.

. get in the water! – it’s a pleasant 22-23.

and enjoy Australia’s warm weather.

TG

Weather from the Bureau:

Forecast for Saturday
Fine. Sunny. Very hot in the west. Light to moderate north to northeast winds freshening near the coast in the afternoon.

Precis: Fine. Sunny.
City: Min: 22 Max: 33
West: Min: 20 Max: 42
Sunday Fine. Late gusty change.
City: Min: 24 Max: 34
West: Min: 21 Max: 44
Monday Shower or two.
City: Min: 21 Max: 24
West: Min: 21 Max: 27
Tuesday A few showers.
City: Min: 19 Max: 23
West: Min: 17 Max: 27
Wednesday A few showers.
City: Min: 19 Max: 22
West: Min: 17 Max: 25
Thursday A few showers.
City: Min: 18 Max: 22
West: Min: 14 Max: 25

BSR 20090206 Legian Bali

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Surf Reports.

Huge European Surf Takes Centerstage in 2009 Billabong XXL Big Wave Awards

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Contests, News Stories, Surf News, Top stories.

Unusual weather patterns in the
North Pacific have produced the hottest January on record in much of
California, and have left West Coast big wave surfers largely starved for
waves for the last two months.  Likewise, the normally battered Hawaiian
coastlines have suffered through a similar drought of extreme high surf
warnings this winter season.  But at the same time, the Atlantic Ocean has
produced a bounty of massive storms and swells, becoming a key focus of
the 2009 Billabong XXL Global Big Wave Awards as the event heads into the
final six weeks of its yearlong event period.

Among the most spectacular images to emerge from the barrage of high surf
is a shot of Benjamin Sanchis (Hossegor, France) at Belharra, an outer
reef located in the Basque Country near the French/Spanish border.  The
photograph by Stephane Salerno is reminiscent of several other massive
rides at the break which earned XXL Biggest Wave nominations in 2003 and
2008.

While some of the Atlantic storms lashing the European coastline have
arrived with unfavorable weather, there have been many days where the
conditions have come together for the surfers who have been on the prowl
for the right window of opportunity.  Isla Pancha, in the Cantabria region
of Spain, has produced some excellent entries for Basque surfers Asier
Muniain, Ibon Amatriain and Aritza Saratxaga along with Cantabrian Oscar
Gomez.  To view these images along with hundreds of additional entries
from around the world, visit the event website at BillabongXXL.com.

According to Surfline, the official surf forecast of the XXL, the trend
continues.

“The North Atlantic has been in a very active pattern over the past few
weeks producing a series of large swells,” said the Surfline forecast
team. “We continue to remain in a very active pattern with plenty of solid
swell due for the region over the coming days. The North Atlantic storm
track is expected to remain fairly active over the next couple of weeks
which means potential for even more XXL swell.”

A number of top International surfers have heeded the call and gone
“Across the Pond” to fill their need for winter power.  Perennial XXL
finalists Greg Long of San Clemente, California and Grant “Twiggy” Baker
of Durban, South Africa gave up their lengthy vigil at Northern
California’s Maverick’s and flew to Ireland some weeks ago.  The pair
connected with locals Fergal Smith and Tom Lowe and the group has been
treated to what Long described as, “Crazy barrels…kinda like cold water
Teahupoo,” in reference to the deadly Tahitian break.  Look for some
Monster Barrel entries from those sessions to appear on the XXL event site
in the coming days.

Additional new video clips and still photos continue to arrive from around
the world week after week in all key categories of the event including the
Billabong XXL Ride of the Year Award, Billabong XXL Biggest Wave Award
powered by Honda, Monster Tube Award and Monster Paddle Award.  Also
featured are the Surfline Best Overall Performance Award and the Billabong
Girl’s Performance Award.  In total, over $130,000 in prize money will be
awarded in the ninth annual edition of big wave surfing’s top event.  The
competition is open to all qualified, invited surfers at any surf break
around the world over the course of a full year and is based on the
photographic evidence.

Although there is still plenty of time for more shocking swell events to
occur before the event period concludes with the Vernal (Spring) Equinox
on March 20, 2009, the world’s big wave elite are already making plans to
attend the gala Billabong XXL Awards ceremony this April 17 at the Grove
Theater in Anaheim, California.  While the 2000 seats at the Grove are
invitation only, the entire evening’s activities from Red Carpet arrivals
to the final award will be broadcast during a live webcast at
www.BillabongXXL.com and televised as a one-hour special on ESPN2 on the
evening of May 28.

Wind builds, waves come?

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Collaroy, North Narrabeen.

Hello Friends,

Spent a fair amount of time driving around this morning to get a good sense of the conditions. As I’ve already noted below, the conditions are pretty similar to yesterday, but maybe a touch better. There just seem to be a few more waist high sets, and it looks like slightly more of them are standing up on the inside.

The Collaroy-Narrabeen stretch is about where it was yesterday afternoon, ie sort of rideable at Northy and less consistent but not much smaller down the beach where the NE’r is getting into it more.

The call is for the wind to build up to 20-30 kts by the close of play and I reckon that should mean that your fave NE windswell spot should be showing a little more than this morning. Could be a plan…

Curly ones

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Curl Curl.

Looks to be around 40 people in the water along the length of Curly at 0900. As with Freshy, the best moments happen when you get inside and the wave gives up a little juice for a turn. Objectively speaking, I’d say Curly is just a touch better than Freshy, but it’s not a big difference. Both places require a fairly intense effort to actually get into ‘em.

It’s warming up to a classic summer day of tiny but not totally unsurfable conditions. As the wind starts to pick up, I think the surf zone will gradually contract to the north end. That is unless you don’t mind a bit of onshore action (which can actually be pretty fun).

go well!

Slightly better for the desperate- which is all of us!

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Curl Curl.

A little increase in the size has given hope for the desperate, which is all of us right now.  It’s 2 feet from the east and south Curly has a few little ones if you are keen to get wet.  Manly had some onshore slop but it was slightly bigger than Curly’s slop.  Looks like early signs of a recovery from the mush fest early next week- fingers crossed- and expect a crowd if it’s any good ‘cos we are all getting pretty damn toey! Enjoy.

Freshy not firing but…

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Freshwater.

Freshy was reasonably populated this morning when I stopped by. Conditions were pretty similar to yesterday, ie long waits for something catchable. Difficult to get into them for the most part, but then that’s the deal with little, short period windswell. The best moments come in the last few seconds as the waves stand up for their finale. So, a lot of working weak little lumps until you get a couple seconds of juice. Average size was around the waist high range on the sets. Surface conditions okay, but a bit choppy.

Almost there

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Mona Vale.

There’s almost good waves again at Mona, it’s still small, but probably the best it’s been in a couple of weeks. Needless to say, it’s crowded with all those lovely summer surfers we all enjoy sharing the line up’s with.

Friday and where we were

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Big Picture, Dee Why.

Hello Friends,

According to the latest data from the MHL Sydney buoy, yesterday’s little windswell is still hanging around. Yesterday afternoon it moved around from the east more to the NE. The average size bumped up from around a metre to maybe 1.5 metres and the period’s about 7 seconds.

The practical consequence of these minor re-adjustments by Huey is not  overwhelmingly obvious at Dee Why. A SUP rider was sweeping the surface with all the panache of an experienced janitor mopping a vast floor. The other water users were few and far between because it looks to me as though a waist high set would be the highlight of one’s day.

Think  I might go for a bit of a wander on your behalf to see if I can spot anything more interesting… stay tuned!

Wind on the weekend, some surf coming next week!

Posted on February 6th, 2009 in Surf Reports.

Don’t get your hopes up for anything happening this weekend but if the models are correct we’ll start seeing some swell around Sydney about Monday, persisting through the week. Bad news is it’ll also probably be accompanied by southerly wind so expect it to be in the form of quantity, not quality–and fairly short-interval stuff too. Meantime it’ll be hot and windy today and tomorrow with 20-25knot nor’easters both days–a bit less on Sunday. This morning at Dee Why, it’s the usual knee-high dribble. Already very hot at 0700hrs and due to hit the lower 40s out west and mid to upper 30s on the beach. Not a day to be working outdoors. Cheers, Rob