page_title: Surf culture
section_title: Big wave culture
hierarchical_section_title: Surf culture / Big wave culture
caption_attribution_description: IMG_0364-1
context_page_description: Surf culture includes the people, language, fashion, and lifestyle surrounding the sport of surfing. The history of surfing began with the ancient Polynesians. That initial culture directly influenced modern surfing, which began to flourish and evolve in the early 20th century, with its popularity peaking during the 1950s and 1960s. It has affected music, fashion, literature, film, art, and youth jargon in popular culture. The number of surfers throughout the world continues to increase as the culture spreads.
  Surfers' desire for the best possible waves to ride make them dependent on conditions that may change rapidly, given the unpredictable nature of weather events and their effect on the surface of the ocean. Because surfing was limited by the geographical necessity of an ocean coastline with beaches, the culture of beach life often influenced surfers and vice versa. The staff of Surfer Magazine, founded in the 1960s when surfing had gained popularity with teenagers, used to say that if they were hard at work and someone yelled "Surf's up!" the office would suddenly empty.
context_section_description: The non-competitive adventure activity of riding the biggest waves possible (known as "rhino hunting") is popular with some surfers.  A practice popularized in the 1990s has seen big wave surfing revolutionized, as surfers use personal watercraft to tow them out to a position where they can catch waves previously unrideable because of the speed at which they travel (see tow-in surfing). Some waves reach speeds of over 60 km/h; personal watercraft enable surfers to catch up to the speed of the wave, thereby making them rideable. Personal watercraft also allow surfers to survive wipeouts. In many instances surfers would not otherwise survive the battering of the "sets" (groups of waves together). This spectacular activity is extremely popular with television crews, but because such waves rarely occur in heavily populated regions, and usually only a very long way out to sea on outer reefs, few spectators see such events directly.
  Though surfers come from all walks of life, the beach bum stereotype comes from the exuberant enthusiasm for their sport that surfers often demonstrate. Dedication and perfectionism are also qualities that surfers may bring to what some observers have traditionally regarded as a commitment to a lifestyle as well as a sport.
  For specific surf spots, the state of the ocean tide can play a significant role in the quality of waves or hazards of surfing there. Tidal variations vary greatly among the various global surfing regions, and the effect the tide has on specific areas can vary greatly among the individual spots within a given area. Locations such as Bali, Panama, and Ireland experience 2-3 meter tide fluctuations, whereas in Hawaii the difference between high and low tide is typically less than one meter.
  Each surf break is different, since the underwater topography of one place is unlike any other. At beach breaks, the sandbanks can change shape from week to week, so it takes commitment to get good waves.
  The saying "You should have been here yesterday," became a commonly used phrase to refer to bad conditions. Nowadays, however, surf forecasting is aided by advances in information technology, whereby mathematical modeling graphically depicts the size and direction of swells moving around the globe.
  The quest for perfect surf has given rise to a field of tourism based on the surfing adventure. Yacht charters and surf camps offer surfers access to the high quality surf found in remote, tropical locations, where tradewinds ensure offshore conditions.
  Along with the rarity of what surfers consider truly perfect surf conditions (due to changing weather and surf condition) and the inevitable hunt for great waves, surfers often become dedicated to their sport in a way that precludes a more traditional life. Surfing, instead, becomes their lifestyle.
  The goals of those who practice the sport vary, but throughout its history, many have seen surfing as more than a sport, as an opportunity to harness the waves and to relax and forget about their daily routines. Surfers have veered from even this beaten path, and foregone the traditional goals of first world culture in the hunt for a continual 'stoke', harmony with life, their surfing, and the ocean. These "Soul Surfers" are a vibrant and long-standing sub-group. Competitive surf culture, centered around surf contests and endorsement deals, and localism's disturbance of the peace, are often seen in opposition to this.
caption: Surf in southern California 2008
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