I don’t really like the ocean. Let me clarify: I don’t really like the idea of the ocean. Who knows what’s down there? Not me. So you might not think of me as a prime candidate for a surfing class. Luckily, a surfing class on dry land is no longer a myth, for I have seen it.

Not on the beaches of Long Island in the middle of summer, but in the depths of winter on the hardwood floor of a Manhattan dance studio, where SurfSET Fitness recently organized a string of introductory pop-up workouts. The sessions were so successful that organizers decided to offer classes at the Sports Center at Chelsea Piers through March 4.

SurfSET Fitness Promo – The Rip Surfer X from SurfSET Fitness on Vimeo.

The goal is not necessarily to teach participants how to surf but to simulate the exercise of surfing for 40 minutes without a little thing like an ocean bothering you.

This is made possible by an apparatus called the RipSurfer X. Imagine a surfboard less than two feet off the floor and sitting on top of a handful of miniature body balls that shift and displace air as you perform moves that cause the muscles in your legs, stomach and arms to work hard to maintain your balance. This alone is enough to break a sweat.

read more at nytimes.com

Fixed skateboard trucks, no matter how loose, just can’t flex enough to match the carving ability and dynamic movement of a surfboard. The SurfSkate’s specially-designed front truck, however, lets you carve tarmac like swells in the Pacific.

The SurfSkate features a 360-degree rotating front truck that’s significantly more narrow than the fixed rear. The free-rotating truck reportedly allows a greater degree of movement and allows you to pump for speed. The SurfSkate comes in two varieties: the 42-inch Premiere, which retails for $259 and the 36-inch Stunner, which goes for $239. Both are constructed from seven-ply Canadian maple and available through SurfSkates online store. I’m not sold on it really matching the ride of a surfboard—though it looks damn close—but it certainly beats replacing the front wheels with office chair casters.

read original at gizmodo.com

We’ve been anxiously awaiting seeing Lib Tech’s new surf line in the flesh since we started hearing about them from Lib Tech Founders Mike Olson and Pete Saari last year. The wait was finally over at this year’s SIA Snow Show, where Lib Tech gave the industry its first look at the boards and their revolutionary new design.

“Every material in these has never been used in a surf or snowboard before, except for the [fin] screws,” says Olson of the boards. Olson began shaping surf boards in the early 80s and actually funded the launch of Lib Tech snowboards with his efforts. “It has been a dream forever to bring surf back in the mix,” he says.

The line includes three different series with 14 distinct shapes, all of which include grab rails, honeycomb construction, rubberized elastomer sidewalls, and concave tops. They also feature a non-absorptive foam, so even if you get a ding you don’t have to get out of the water. That said, following two years of protos being ridden around the world, dropped on rock beaches, and other pummeling conditions, riders have only been able to get two dings. Lib’s calling the boards “2D to D” or Dang Difficult to Ding.

As with all its other products, Olson and his crew have focused on the environmental impacts of the boards, as well as their toxicity for the shapers, and the lay-up process uses no brushes or sand paper. The honeycomb weave you can see on the boards is the result of a process called Isotropic Fusion, a one-step reaction that bonds all of the board’s materials incredibly fast. ”You can make a board at six in the morning and surf it by noon,” adds Olson. The honey comb construction also adds strength to the boards, whose flex Olson describes simply as “awesome.”

read more at transworld