TW Blog :: Entries for Surf and Travel
Each man believes only his experienceEmpedocles
Imagine Surfing a Tidal Bore for 20km
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Imagine surfing a tidal bore for 20km!
That is 12.5 miles for all us metric folk. And for all those west bank Severn surfers past and present that is like jumping into your car at Newnham, driving the A48 all the way to Over bridge and not stopping until you reach the curry houses on Bristol road…! That is a long way. Some pundits believe on the perfect tide the Severn horseshoe bend could be connected producing a ride in excess of 10 miles on the River Severn. But anything further than this really becomes the stuff of legends.
On the Araguari Pororoca it is a very different story… In fact this Spring, Sergio Laus, Pororoca pioneer and tidal bore emissary, has already breached the 10 mile mark. Unofficially. It has been an exceptional season for tidal bore surfers in Brazil with the wave reaching 15 feet in the wet months (February and March) and consistently reaching 8 feet through the drier months. Ideal conditions for distance surfing and Sergio clocked up a ride of approximately 16.5 km (10.3 miles) surfing for over 40 minutes. Just this Monday, Sergio put in a claim for a new distance surfing world record of 11.8km, exceeding his previous mark by 1.7km.
The dream mark is 20km - about 50 minutes constant surfing on the wave. That is 50 minutes on a wave travelling at around 15mph with the full power of the Atlantic tide behind. No mean feat! Sergio believes it is possible and 2010 might be the year…
An average day in Amapa state surfing the Pororoca!
Sergio Laus - the master of the Pororoca tidal bore
Photos © 2009 Copyright Sergio Laus
Posted on Jun 11, 2009 at 20:24:50.
Tidal Bore Surfing - New World Record!
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My good friend Sergio Laus has once again broken the world record for distance surfing on the Araguari Pororoca in Amapa state Brazil. On Monday morning Sergio surfed the tidal bore a distance of 11.8km (7.4 miles) for 36 minutes. As with his previous world surfing record the ride was recorded with GPS and currently Sergio waits for official verification from the Guinness Book of Records.
This spring produced some of the largest Pororoca tidal bore's experienced in the last 15 years and in May Sergio clocked up his 50th ride on some of the largest tidal bores in the world.
And if you think surfing a wave for 36 minutes sounds like hard word, in February he surfed the Araguari Pororoca continuously for 45 minutes without official adjudication. An incredible distance on a very sizeable wave which probably pushes the world record beyond the reaches of what is attainable surfing on the River Severn tidal bore. That must take a lot of leg work!
Keep up to date with Sergio's adventures on his Pororoca surfing blog.
Auera Auara!
Posted on Jun 11, 2009 at 09:25:16.
First Signs of Spring
Also relates to Blogging
Nothing like a sun fuelled walk along the rugged coast line of the Lizard peninsula breathing in the fresh sea air straight off the Atlantic to loosen the shackles of modern day living! Olive and I were blessed with a glorious February afternoon for a brisk hike from Gunwalloe to Mullion on Tuesday afternoon.
I chose to travel light and photos were captured with the Canon Powershot automatic.
Posted on Feb 18, 2009 at 22:33:18.
Denia, Spain - Photo Gallery
Also relates to Photography
In November we finally cashed in our well needed holiday break and spent a week in the pretty town of Denia on the Spanish Costa Blanca. Despite the spell of bad weather which had beset the Mediterranean as much as the British Isles we were scored a near perfect week of sunshine with temperatures that were quite comfortable for our little bambino experiencing here first journey on a plane. On top of this most tourists had left the Costa for the winter and most places we visited were deserted - making for plenty of opportunities for photography away from the hustle and bustle of tourists.
10mm - 1/100s @ f/7.1, ISO 100
10mm - 1/320s @ f/10, ISO 200
20mm - 1/60s @ f/8, ISO 100
20mm - 2s @ f/29, ISO 400
10mm - 1/160s @ f/10, ISO 400
A huge thanks to Matt and Sarah for letting us stay in their cosy and stylish holiday flat in Denia.
Posted on Jan 21, 2009 at 10:03:23.
Sergio Surfs the China Qiantang Dragon Tidal Bore
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Most excellent news! My good buddy and bore riding compatriot, Serginho Laus (aka Sergio), has realised his dream of surfing the mighty Qiantang Dragon tidal bore. Last week he and fellow Brazilian Pacelli spent the new moon syzygy scouting and surfing the Qiantang bore over an area agreed with the Chinese government. While no records were broken, some good clean sections and peaks reaching 10 feet were found - in between the occasional ferocious Asian squalls.
Check out some of the photos of Sergio and Jorge surfing the Dragon.
The trip was principally a relationship building exercise with the Chinese government, to strengthen a bond Serginho has been forging for several years. With the intent of returning for the equinox festival in September to deliver a display of tidal bore surfing to the hundreds of thousands of people that flock to Hangzhou every year to revere the tumultous power of the Dragon at full force.
I have considerable respect and admiration for Serginho. He is a great ambassador for the sport of tidal bore surfing and no one has pioneered this unique sport more than he over the last 10 years. Having spent many years learning every aspect of the Pororoca and showing a true passion for the spirit of the tidal bore Sergio has taken gradual and delicate steps towards realising his achievement in China. It is for this very reason tidal bore pioneering should stay the realm of the tidal bore specialist and not be absorbed into and saturated by the all-consuming materialism of the surfing industry's Search.
I hope that Team Gerlach showed the same respect AND the Chinese government doesn't get greedy!
Keep up to date with Sergio's adventures at the brazilian website Waves.
Posted on Aug 11, 2008 at 12:01:45.
