Latest news with #surfcommunity
Daily Mail
09-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Surfer nearly loses his arm after shark attack in Florida
A Florida surfer almost lost his arm after a shark attack at New Smyrna Beach. Dramatic video captured the moment Matt Bender, 40, of Orlando, was bandaged up as blood gushed from his limb. The surfer was riding the waves at around 3pm on Sunday when he was mauled by the shark. The video shows the chaotic moments after the attack as beachgoers rushed to help. Blood can be seen on Bender's arm as his hand appears to be hanging on by a string as a fellow surfers wrap it in towels and attempt to calm him down. 'I felt it clamp down like a bear trap out of nowhere,' he told Fox affiliate WOFL–TV. He said it felt like 'electricity' when the shark bit into his right forearm. 'I never saw the shark, but it bit really forcefully. It felt like electricity.' Bender was rushed to a nearby hospital and is now in recovery, his friends said. Despite the gruesome photos of his savaged arm, his friends shut down rumors that his hand had been completely bitten off. They shared on Facebook: 'Our good friend and fellow waterman Matt Bender was bit by a shark today while surfing in New Smyrna. 'Contrary to what's said in this video clip that's circulating, his hand was not bitten off - he's doing good considering, but he was injured and needs our support and prayers right now.' 'Matt is a strong, godly man and part of our surf family - so we're asking all our Raw Surf friends and fans to lift him up in prayer tonight. Let's cover him in love and healing energy as he begins to recover.' In July 2024, New Smyrna Beach was named America's deadliest beach - mainly due to hurricane fatalities - and has also been dubbed the 'shark bite capital' of the world.
Yahoo
28-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Biggest Wave Ever Paddled? Wilem Banks Has A Case On This Jaws Bomb
There's a chance that a sauna builder in Santa Cruz County could have a world record to his name this fall. Wilem Banks is a soft-spoken woodworker from Santa Cruz who, in December, paddled into the biggest wave of his life, and potentially the biggest ever, in his fourth session at Jaws. Is it bigger than Aaron Gold's 63-footer from Peahi? Or Shawn Dollar's 61-62 ft bomb at Cortes Bank? On the face of it, maybe. We'll let the 2025 Big Wave Challenge crew decide that in September when the awards are announced in Newport Beach. For now, let's admire the guts and skill it took for Wilem to dodge the horrific shorebreak breaking on slippery boulders, maneuver around 60-foot peaks, then put his head down on a rising swell during one of the largest Jaws days in recent memory. Advertisement Listen here for an in-depth breakdown of the experience with Wilem and podcaster/writer Kyle Thiermann. Here's a quote from Wilem that gives a sliver of insight into what it was like that historic day. 'Jaws comes from such deep water, you don't really realize the position you are on the reef until the wave is pretty close to you,' he told Kyle. 'Especially for me because I'm new there and not that comfortable with it yet. As that thing was approaching, I was like, am I inside or am I too far out? In my mind, I was probably not going to go as I paddled over (the first wave) but as it approached, I realized I was in a pretty prime spot.' Related: How A Santa Cruz Charger Paddled into the Biggest Jaws Wave of the Winter On His First Trip Prime indeed. The positioning, the drop, the balance and the technique to hold through the white choppy foam on the bottom is masterfully done. It's one helluva wave, regardless of a record or not. Biggest Wave Ever Paddled? Wilem Banks Has A Case On This Jaws Bomb first appeared on Surfer on Jun 27, 2025
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
What Is Wave Refraction?
There are many glorious science-based terms when it comes to surfing. We all talk about swells, of course, the underwater energy that creates a breaking wave. But we'll look at swell angles and bathymetry and energy, a new term making the rounds at the moment, and all these phrases eventually gel together to form our understanding of what's going on in the ocean. There are also dozens of different types of waves to get to grips with as well—reefbreaks, A-frames, points, beachies, slabs, big waves and the list goes on and on and on. This is just the tip of the surf science iceberg. There's so much that goes into it that you can dedicate your life to figuring out the many nuances that the ocean can (and will) throw at you. And then there's the fact that when you look at your local surf forecast, not all information is present to give you the best idea of what's going to happen at your beach. There are some forecasting models these days that bake external factors into them, away from just wind, swell and tide—maybe a slight whiff of bathymetry. But for the most part, some data may be missing. And it's important factors in the ocean that will really impact how waves break. This leads us neatly into wave refraction. It's probably a term you've heard over the course of your surfing life. Either that or wave reflection—which is something completely different. Lots of people use both terms interchangeably, but, well, they're wrong. Sorry. When talking about ocean waves, wave refraction is when a wave bends or changes direction as it propagates (i.e., travels at a specific speed) over changing depths. This also happens when there's a shift in wavelength and speed. However, in the water, this usually means when the wave hits a different depth. Imagine a wave that has traveled for thousands upon thousands of miles. Waves approach the shore from incredibly deep water and then arrive onto a much shallower ocean floor. When the waves reach this shallower basin, they slow down, and the part of the wave still in deep water will continue at the same speed. Basically, this means that waves hitting shallower water slow the wave down, while parts of the wave continue on in deeper water. This is refraction, and the way a wave breaks can also be impacted by what's going on under the surface on the ocean floor. So every surf spot in the world has its own unique footprint. Because of this, you are more likely to have refraction in ground swells than wind swells. This is because wind swell is formed by the wind blowing over the surface of the ocean, and doesn't have an impact on the ocean floor. Also, wind swells tend to have a much lower period than ground swells. Surfing, there's always more to it than you think. Concave and convex are the different terms of refraction and describe two different ways waves can refract. Let's take concave as a start; imagine a wave heading towards some shallow reef, surrounded by deep water. It slows down as it hits the shallow water, and the water on either side of the wave continues to run at the same speed, effectively creating a bend in the wave. This focuses the energy toward the middle of the wave and results in steeper and more powerful waves to surf. Think of Teahupo'o or Pipeline; these are good examples of this science at play. The other side of the refraction coin is convex refraction. Imagine a headland jutting out into the ocean, as the swell fires in, it hits this point and breaks—but could continue running into deep water to the side of the point. The energy focuses towards the shallower water at the headland—and what we know about shallow water is that it slows waves down. This happens while the side of the wave continues at the same speed across deeper water. This is also known as "defocusing the energy" and makes up the bulk of the mechanics of point breaks. They usually have less "power" than concave refraction but can run for a long, long way, given that the wave farthest from the point will continue to travel over deeper water. J-Bay, anyone? Skeleton Bay? There's actually a whole lot of other bits going on at Skeleton Bay than just this, but that's another story. And while this accommodates some of the theory around pointbreaks and reefbreaks, you may be wondering—"So, what the heck is happening at beach breaks?" Well, the humble beaches have a combination of so many factors going on—but the clue here is in the name; beach breaks work over sand. And it's how these waves interact with the sand bottom that can produce hollow, heavy gold or straight-up closeouts. It's why, when looking at your local forecast, you don't want to be at a beach break when the swell period is into the high teens. This means a solid ground swell is approaching and requires a good, solid bit of reef or point to chop the swell up. If it hits a sand bar, they might not be able to do as good a job of cutting through the swell as rock, and the wave breaks all at once—meaning you're looking at a giant closeout. Where refraction is the changing of waves as they pass from deep to shallow water, reflection is when the wave changes direction as the result of hitting a barrier, or when they bounce off something to create a different beast altogether. Imagine a wave bouncing off a seawall or harbor. This is when reflection is in play. The angle the wave hits any hard surface, the angle of approach and the angle it bounces away from the object all play a part in wave reflection—and can create some warped-looking mutants. Imagine some wedge-type waves; a lot of these are down to reflection being at its absolute chaotic best. The Wedge and Portugal's Molhe Leste are good examples of reflection at play. What Is Wave Refraction? first appeared on Surfer on Jun 14, 2025
News.com.au
26-05-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Sally Fitzgibbons missed the mid-season cut again, denied in cruel fashion by the world No.1 at Margaret River
Australian veteran Sally Fitzgibbons had her heart broken at Margaret River again this time in the final seconds of her clash with world No.1 Gabi Bryan who cruelled her dreams of making the mid-season cut and earning automatic qualification for 2026. Having made the final at the last World Surf League event on the Gold Coast and riding some real momentum, Fitzgibbons, 34, needed a deep run in WA to avoid missing the mid-season cut for the third successive year and make the top-14 to be back next year. When surfing resumed on Monday, Fitzgibbons charged out of the blocks against Bryan, the reigning champ at Margaret River, and was still leading as the pair latched on to waves in the final few minutes. But just as victory looked within Fitzgibbons grasp, Bryan delivered the most powerful combination of their round of 16 showdown and a nine-point ride on her final wave to storm into the quarterfinals. Massive two piece combo earns a 9.00 âœ�ï¸� and the crew goes wild. Gabby's got a spot on Finals Day â˜'ï¸� The Western Australia #MargaretRiverPro is LIVE. Watch on — World Surf League (@wsl) May 26, 2025 The abject despair was evident as Fitzgibbons lay on her board in the surf, her fate sealed, again, forcing the three-time world championship runner-up back to the qualification tour. Only the top 10 surfers after Margaret River will continue the rest of the season, and only the top 14 are readmitted for 2026 to what will be an expanded women's field for the main tour. Fitzgibbons dropped to 15th after and having been surfing in 'survivor mode' despite her good run on the Gold Coast, the exit of the 12-time tour winner, leaves only Molly Picklum, Isabella Nichols and two-time world champ Tyler Wright in the top 10 to chase a world title. Both Picklum and Nichols progressed to the quarter-finals at Margaret River, but Wright was bundled out by Lakey Peterson, whose victory sealed Fitzgibbons' fate. Wildcard Jacob Willcox is the only Aussie male still alive and will head to the quarter-finals.
