subsurfing = underwater tracking

[The111 1]

There's a cool new sport being developed by a few people around the world that combines elements of freediving, surfing, bodysurfing, and swimming. It's called subsurfing and is basically surfing the way that dolphins do - inside the wave.

I found this cool picture on a freediving website of someone subsurfing (Laird Hamilton, I think).

Does anybody else think his body position looks remarkably like a good track?

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[Darius11 12]

Now i want to track with my fins

I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not." - Kurt Cobain

[The111 1]

I'm pretty sure they use a monofin for this subsurfing.

I think jumping with regular (i.e. "short") fins has been done.

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[JohnRich 4]

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Does anybody else think his body position looks remarkably like a good track?

I used to bodysurf a lot, and I used a "track" position for that, both before and after I learned to track for skydiving. It works. It gets your center of balance rearward so that you naturally angle down the wave, and keeps your head out of the water for breathing.

[Stumpy 284]

This is a bit like skydiving disciplines - its nothing new, someone has just given it a new name. But yes that is Laird, and he is extremely good at it! (but check out the wave - we don;t get many like that in north devon......!)

Never try to eat more than you can lift

[DTOXX 0]

I did not know it had a name but this is fun to do over coral reefs. You can "fly" though the canyons pretty fast.

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D.T. Holder
SIMstudy

[The111 1]

This is what I have heard about it... that the visuals are amazing if you have clear water and good reefs to go over. People who have done it in good conditions say between the flow of the water over your body, and the visuals you get, it feels much "faster" than surfing on top of the water. Obviously it's not faster (compared to riding the break sideways on a board), but the feeling definitely sounds cool.

It's true people have been doing similar things forever, and this name may not stick... but it is being brought to a very new level today, and the variant of it I am referring to is done entirely submerged (including your head) which is where freediving (apnea) skills come into play.

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[Peej 0]

Quote

I think jumping with regular (i.e. "short") fins has been done.

Ahem, Point Break?

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