Archive for November, 2007

Heated wetsuits

Thursday, November 29th, 2007

Ripcurl H bomb wetsuit
Rip Curl’s H-Bomb is the world’s first power heated wetsuit. It’s a wetsuit designed to keep you super-warm by positioning a source of heat on your upper back. This heats your core and allows your body to experience warm blood to your extremities.

The heat is generated by two coated fibre elements positioned on your upper back. The elements conduct electricity that generate the heat which warms the blood. Simple.

The elements are made of fibre – there’s no metal here – so there’s no electromagnetic field generated by any metal component and there’s no metal to corrode when it’s in salt water and you’re in the barrel.

Imagine adding the warmth of the H-Bomb to your current suit type say, a 4/3mm or a 3/2mm to let you surf longer and get more waves, or bend your mind a little further and imagine dropping back to a 2mm E2 for more flexibility without sacrificing warmth.

How hot does it get?

The H-Bomb has two temperature settings…

Low: 50 – 55C (120 – 130F)

High: 60 – 65C (140 – 150F)

A thin layer of neoprene lies between the elements and your back to spread the heat evenly and protect your skin.
It’s an infra red heat with a therapeutic quality usually used to relieve muscle soreness and tension. The first test pilot was 2005 World Championship Tour number 7 Nathan Hedge, who commented “It’s one out of the box, it feels sooo good! You keep really warm, even on the low setting and it just keeps you feeling warm all over throughout. I didn’t want to give it back after the R&D session”.
This may sound like your ideal winter wetsuit but its gonna cost you £600 at least !!
To check out more from Ripcurl’s heated wetsuit go to ripcurl

A much cheaper option is brought to you by HOTSUITS A rechargable heated kidney belt to keep your core warm during Surf or Kitesurfing sessions read on-

Technology
A Hotsuits® Heated Kidney Belt utilises a non-toxic, food grade solution of super-cooled sodium acetate and water sealed inside an ergonomically shaped heat pack. The heat pack takes advantage of the fact that although sodium acetate ‘freezes’ at 54 degrees C, it is happy to remain in a liquid state at temperatures well below that. Pressing the activator button integrated into the pack triggers the process of crystallization, changing the solution from a liquid to a solid state and producing a constant heat which lasts until the solution has fully ‘frozen’ – this usually takes between 45 and 60 minutes.

Dimensions
The Hotsuits® Heated Kidney Belt consists of a high-quality one-size-fits-all soft neoprene waist belt which weighs in at a very lightweight 130g. The actual heat pack is a svelte 260g, 23cm x 13cm x 1.2cm ‘butterfly’ shape.

hotsuits heated kidney belt
Hotsuits Neoprene Belt
The Hotsuits® Heated Kidney Belt in Use

The heat pack is stored in liquid form in a pouch in the neoprene waist belt beneath a standard wetsuit where, due to its small form factor and low weight, it sits virtually unnoticed. When additional heat is required, the user simply pushes the easy-to-find activator through the material of their wetsuit. The process of crystallization begins immediately, which results in a pleasant warming sensation through the lower back and kidneys which gently intensifies over the first few minutes of activation. To maximize comfort and even distribution of the solution as it solidifies, it can be beneficial to massage the heat pack through the wetsuit during the first minute or so.
Recharging the Heat Pack
After use, the solid state sodium acetate in the heat pack can simply be returned to liquid form by placing the heat pack in the reactivation bag supplied, and immersing in a pan of boiling water for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the pan and allow the pack to cool before re-use.

Here @ Gower kite Riders we think this product rocks so stay tuned and let us know if your interested.

Carbon Fiber surfboards

Monday, November 19th, 2007

carbon-surf.jpgCarbon fiber is showing up repeatedly in extreme sports equipment these days including the new craze ‘stand up paddle surfing’. The surfing community has always been aware of the materials ominous black color, but carbon fiber seems to be a mysterious scientific miracle that nobody truly understands.As we move deeper into the next generation of surfing materials. shapers are starting to be more open minded to its dynamic performane attributes.
Stand up paddlesurfers are using carbon paddles and Boards of the same material not only because of their fanatastic weight characteristics which for Stand up paddleboarding is a good thing (they are quite heavy!!) but for the materials fantastic secrets.
A french company ‘Galaxy of new Generations’ is producing a range of stand up paddleboards in carbon- see

www.gongsup.com

gongsup-carbon-range.jpg

Carbon fiber is a composite material often found the construction of race cars and motorcycles, airplanes, and bicycles for its light weight and high strength properties. It is derived from petroleum pitch that comes from the processing of oil. The fibers produced contain about 85% carbon although the exact composition may vary from one manufacturer to another.

gong-carbonteck.jpg
Production includes heating raw materials up to 5,500° F in an oxygen free chamber followed by a series of spinning, winding and weaving to produce what we know as carbon fiber. In fact, several thousand fibers are spun together to form a carbon fiber yarn.
Carbon fiber has remarkable reflex memory with an ideal coefficient of restoration, a property inherent in any rigid structure that allows it to return to its original state after a physical force is applied which makes it ideal for stand up paddlesurfing whether that be for the paddle or board.

Their are various shapers using this technology for surfboards and paddleboards the only downside is the price of your ‘black beauty’

http://www.avisosurf.com

Ultimate Stickers

Friday, November 16th, 2007

If you want some cool stickers to pimp your car or anything you have got to check out STICKERGIANT

They supposedly have the Largest sticker selection in the world. Over 1000 categories and over 1 million bumper stickers.devil.jpeg

Stand up Paddleboarding

Friday, November 16th, 2007

stand up paddlesurfingStand up paddleboarding or paddlesurfing as its also called is the newest watersport to hit U.K shores.

The sport which originated in the Hawaiian islands involves standing on a Huge surfboard not to dissimiliar to an ordinary surfboard but much larger and able to support a person standing up.
Hence the name ‘stand up’ paddlesurfing.

The sport has two aspects – On these huge boards you can decide whether if the surf is flat, to paddle around your local coastline taking in the views from a commanding position. Alternatively catch ocean swell or small to medium sized waves before they have even started to break which is very exhilerating.

As well as being lots of fun, stand-up paddling is a very good aerobic and strength training exercise – depending on how vigorously you attack it, stand-up paddling can be anything from a comfortable cruise down the coast to a heart-pounding, calorie-burning workout for your CORE muscles.
You may ask yourself ‘doesnt sound new and exciting to me’ however all you have to do is keep you eyes peeled down at your local beach and you will see more and more of stand up paddlesurfers parading the lineup or coastline.
A quality stand-up paddleboard is the best investment you can make in watery fun much more versatile than a kayak for instance. The ways in which you can have fun with your stand-up paddleboard are endless! You can use your stand-up paddleboard to fish, dive, explore, travel, ride waves, sail (some stand-up paddleboards have mast tracks so you can attach windsurfing sails)

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Here at Gowerkiteriders.com we are all super soked and love standup paddlesurfing and paddleboarding.

For us kitesurfers if the wind isn’t blowing and the surf is flat or even pumping there is nothing like catching a solid 5ft wall of water on a paddlesurf board. Its really exhilerating to catch waves so early or surf an elusive spot which shortboards and even longboards would struggle on.

We have a range of Demo boards for you to try so give us a bell alternatively check out the range of boards availiable online:
Shop at: www.gowerkiteriders.com/kitestoreStand up paddlesurfing On the Gower

Newgale Downwinder 10/11th November

Friday, November 16th, 2007

BB kitesurfing & Gower Kite Riders Downwinder

The downwinder this last weekend was a great success !!

For those that are new to kitesurfing and Downwinders .A Downwinder is a run taken downwind from point A to B and in this case 5 miles in length

The event had been initially marked for 6/7 of October .. but we had to postpone because of a poor wind forecast.

However at 10am on saturday 10th Big blue kitesurfing and Gower Kite Riders briefed the 20 or more riders on the safety of the proposed 5 mile downwinder from Newgale beach to Broadhaven.

With a good wind of 17 knots NW the first 10 riders set off into the big blue supported by 2 Zapcats as safety boat cover.

A great first run with plenty of sunshine piercing through the clouds and supported by Richard and Alan who followed us on land down the coastal road as Taxis to take riders back to Newgale.

With all 10 riders safely on Broadhaven beach after an awesome run which took around an hour the zapcats sped off back up to Newgale beach to re – fuel for the next Run.

By the time the 2nd run started the wind had dropped to around 15knts but all 9 riders managed to successfully cruise downwind to Broadhaven with beaming smiles.

The weather was perfect and we could not have had better wind, Sunday saw the majority of riders who had stayed over enjoying a brief play in a good NW wind and small surf before the switch was thrown around 12 as the wind died.

A big thanks to all who attended and to the ‘South and west wales kitesurfing club’ who supported the event .

If you read this post and want to be included or involved for our next event join the SWWKSC online at (www.kitesurfing.org )

Thanks The Gower Kite Riders Team