The Surfing Blog

Thesurfingblog is dedicated to all things surfing. Nothing describes the soul idea of surfing better than traveling to new locations in the search of waves. We want to help you guys score great waves at great prices this summer. So we went out and did just that, we got you an amazing deal on an amazing trip. A deal you can ONLY find here at thesurfingblog.

The Deal:

6 Days and 6 Nights in Panama on the 100’ Lost Coast Explorer for $1,500. This trip is valued at over $1,800. You aren’t going to find a deal this good anywhere else.

Panama is one of the few surf destinations left where you can still score epic surf without the crowds. You can be guaranteed (yes GUARANTEED) that you will not surf with crowds. Not only will you not surf with crowds, you won’t surf with anyone but the people on the boat because The Lost Explorer is the only boat that takes surfers out to these waves. What also makes the Lost Coast Explorer package so great is that epic surf isn’t all you are going to experience on the trip. Here is a list of things included with your surf package.

-    The trip is for 6 days 6 nights. The Lost Explorer will take you throughout the islands of Coiba National Park and the Azuero Peninsula, giving you the option of several different surf spots.

- We aren’t going to name off the surf spots because truthfully, you’ve never heard of them unless you have been on the trip. They are discovering new waves all the time (so maybe you can name a spot or two). As for the waves, there is something for everyone. If you want to surf a right point, they have one. If you want to surf a left barrel, they have one. If you want to surf a mellow wave, yes, they have one. The Lost Explorer can find any kind of wave you want within the National Park and just to remind you, you will surf without the crowds. This is not like an Indo boat trip where the lineup is flooded with boats and surfers.
-    While aboard you will have use of the 24’ boats. The boats can be used for many things. The best use of the boats is to get you to different surf breaks. When you want to get away from the main break the Lost Explorer is anchored at, you can take the boat to nearby breaks. This allows for the 16 people onboard to break off into different groups and have even less crowded surf.

- Go fishing (Marlin, Tuna, Sailfish, Snapper, Rooster fish, etc.), take you to private white sand beaches with umbrella and cooler provided, etc. These boats will give you a lot of freedom while out at sea.

- Surf lessons and surfboards are available onboard. Even though they have boards it is recommended that you bring your own boards. The selection on the boat is limited and is available primarily for guests who break their own boards. If you want a board made by a local Panamanian shaper, let us know and we can work out the details.

- When you aren’t shredding you can use the provided snorkel gear and spear guns for snorkeling and free diving. If you can spear some good fish they’ll cook it up for you too.

- Experienced local and bilingual surf guides will ensure you score the best waves and have the best non-surfing experiences throughout your trip.

- Also while you aren’t surfing the guides can take you on different tours. Tours include: Bird watching, Local villages, Abandoned historical prison and Jungle tours.

- All the surfing you will be doing will work you up a good appetite. Luckily, gourmet meals and appetizers are provided along with complimentary beer and wine. You can eat inside in the dining area or out back on the large deck while watching the sunrise or set over the horizon.

- When there isn’t a lot going on at night you can hang out in the onboard recreation room with card table and flat screen TV.

- Lodging on board the Lost Explorer in one of the 8 suites.
-    Meet and greet service that includes:

-    Meet and Greet at Tocumen International Airport
-    Transfers to the hotel of your choice in Panama City upon arrival
-    Transfers back to your hotel in Panama City from landing strip or transfer to Tocumen international airport for departure flight
-    Ground transfers to and from the Lost Coast Explorer
-    $150 per person Coiba national Park Fee

If you want to book a package or have any questions, contact me at Brian@thesurfingsite.com or call me at 808-349-3220.

This is a surf trip/ Panamanian experience you’ll remember forever. You can be surfing epic/ un-crowded waves, fishing, snorkeling, relaxing, all while drinking all the beer you can handle this summer in Panama if you act quickly. We only have 2 packages available at this low discounted price and the offer only lasts for a limited time. Get ready for the surf trip of a lifetime.

Over the past several years the phrase “Go Green” has been created and used alongside almost everything.  “Go Green” can relate to your lifestyle, your refrigerator, your food, your car and now it even relates to your surfboard.  Green Foam, a company in San Clemente, Ca. has pioneered a new “green” technique of making surfboard blanks.

Who Came Up With The Idea

Joey Santley, co-founder of Resurf.org, has been finding ways to reduce the waste created within the surf industry.  They started with taking old surfboards and finding different uses for them.  The best use they found was to grind them up and add them to asphalt and concrete mixes.  They do a great job at creating more volume and don’t affect the durability.  After awhile, they wanted to do more at resurf.org and started to figure a way to use the polyurethane “dust” left after shaping a surfboard.  Over the last 50 years people have thought of trying to figure a way to use the dust but could never come up with anything.  It became a “fact” amongst shapers that it was unusable waste.  Joey Santley has turned the fact into a myth and now uses the dust to create new surfboards.

Why Green Foam Came About

1,000s of surfboards are created everyday from polyurethane foam blanks.  From these rough pieces of foam, shapers cut and sand away around 20-30% of the foam to create a surfboard.  That 20% of extra foam then becomes waste and is usually found in the form of dust throughout the shaping room.  This polyurethane dust is really bad for the environment because it doesn’t break down and biodegrade.  Before Green Foam came around, the dust was collected and thrown away, ending up in landfills.  Since the dust is so fine it can easily end up in streams, creeks, rivers, or even in a surfer’s playground, Mother Ocean.

How Green Foam Is Made

As stated earlier, 20% + of a surfboard blank is wasted every time a board is made.  Not only is it wasted, but the waste isn’t environmentally friendly nor is it good for your health if inhaled (this is why shapers wear masks while shaping).  With all these negatives surrounding polyurethane waste, it is great that there is finally a positive use for it.  Now the waste is collected and added to batches of new ingredients to make brand new foam blanks.  The green foam blanks being produced now aren’t 100% recycled foam, but they are around 60%+ recycled materials.  This is the process in its most basic form.  What really goes into making a green foam blank is top secret.  I’m pretty sure nobody knows except for Joey Santley and his crew.  We do know that surfboards have finally found their place in the circle of life.

Pros And Cons Of Green Foam

The great thing about green foam is that there are way more pros than cons.  Here is our list of pros and cons.  I had to stretch on the cons since there really aren’t any.

Pros

-       You are lessening your impact on the environment by using green foam

-       All the reviews on how the foam works when being shaped, glassed, and ridden have all been positive.  They haven’t been able to see a difference in green foam vs. traditional foam

-       You can impress the ladies by telling them you use green foam and are trying to be more environmentally friendly

-       Your board will look quite unique with bits of stringer and other things from shaping bays that get swept into the mix when collecting the dust

-       Maybe in the future, Obama will give you a tax deduction for using green foam?

Cons

-       A green foam blank will cost you a tiny bit more.  At Fiberglass Hawaii they cost you $4 more than a traditional blank.  Is $4 more really a con when you are saving the environment though? I told you I had to stretch

-       If you like a perfectly white board, the bits of stringer and things embedded into the foam might bug you.  So this is both a pro and a con depending on your OCD level

Overall, Green Foam is doing great things.  They have taken the surf industries largest impact on the environment and created a way to reduce it and hopefully completely do away with it someday.  If you can look past the bits of stringer and small holes in your blank you should definitely have your board made from Green Foam.  As surfers we need to protect the environment.  Since Mother Ocean gives us so much we need to do all we can to give back to her.  Using Green Foam is one of those little ways we can give back.

What do you think?  Will your next board be Green?

Summer is fast approaching and that means one thing, the sun will be shining. When the sun comes out, so do the sunblocks, sunscreens, face sticks and plenty of kooks. If your skin has been hiding behind thick layers of rubber all year, you are going to want to apply some type of sunblock while you are out surfing. With the amount of time surfers spend in the sun, our skin can be very vulnerable to skin cancer. Here are some interesting facts on skin cancer from skincancer.org.

- Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. More than 3.5 million cases in two million people are diagnosed annually.

- One in five Americans will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime.

- About 90 percent of non-melanoma skin cancers are associated with exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun.

- Up to 90 percent of the visible changes commonly attributed to aging are caused by the sun.

- The vast majority of mutations found in melanoma are caused by ultraviolet radiation.

Shocking isn’t it. As you can see, skin cancer is a serious problem. It is easy to think it won’t harm you until you personally, or someone you know, gets cancer. As annoying as it can be, there are simple ways to help you prevent getting cancer. When you are going surfing make sure you put on products that block the sun. Products like those made by Panama Jack Suncare. We were able to get our hands on some products they make for surfers and try them out on the sunny North Shore of Oahu.

Sunscreen Stick: One of the most important suncare products for surfers. This should be used year around because even if you are wearing a wetsuit, your face is exposed to UV rays. Panama Jack’s sunscreen stick is SPF 50+ and goes on clear. You can use it on your face, lips, ears and nose. If you are going out for a long session, throw the stick in your board shorts side pocket and apply it every 2 hours. This will help save your face from taking on to much sun and keep you from needing a facelift later on in life (too much sun can cause wrinkles with age).

Zinc: Panama Jack makes a small can of zinc SPF 30+ that goes on white but when you rub it in, it turns clear. A little zinc goes a long way so don’t use too much. Zinc is good to use on your face on those super sunny days.

Sunblock vs. Sunscreen: Just in case you didn’t know, there is a difference in sunblock and sunscreen. Like its name, sunblock blocks the sun, while sunscreen allows some sun to get through. So it would be smart to start the summer off using sunblock and as you get more and more sun, and you skin can handle it, you can switch to a high SPF sunscreen. Panama Jack makes both sunscreen and sunblock lotions of different SPF levels. All their lotions are very water resistant and only need to be reapplied after long periods of sun exposure.

After Sun Burn Relief: If you forgot to apply some type of sunblock or sunscreen and come back from surfing looking like a lobster, Panama Jack still has you covered. After Sun Burn Relief is made to provide relief for those who get a little too much sun. The bottle of blue gel is made from pure aloe, lidocaine, and menthol. It will not only help soothe the pain of your burnt skin but will also help prevent your skin from peeling. Other than protecting your fried skin, you can use the gel to give relief to insect bites and minor cuts when you are in that exotic location and the mosquitoes and reef won’t leave you alone.

If you are looking to start using sunscreen or are sick of the one you use and want a different one, try out Panama Jack. We also want to know which sunscreens you love, which ones you hate, and why. Or if you have any of those awesome “magical” remedies for sunburn that your grandmas’ grandmas’ mother has passed down, let us know.  It doesn’t matter how weird it might be. Posting comments below is much easier than covering the middle of your back with sunscreen without help.  The guy in this picture definitely needed some help.

If you are going to buy your first surfboard, or are just thinking of adding a new board to your quiver, you will have to choose between buying a board off the rack or finding a local shaper and have him make you a custom surfboard. It can be a tough decision and there truthfully are pros and cons to each one. Let me help you make your decision a little easier with an explanation of the pros and cons of each.

Off The Rack: Buying a brand new surfboard off the rack feels great. It’s even greater than that time your mom let you go to the toy section and pick any toy out, because unlike that toy, your new surfboard is your baby and you love her. You don’t want her to get dinged or scratched, you rinse her off after you get out of the ocean, and you make sure she is kept in a safe place in your room. With how much money you will have to spend for that brand new, off the rack surfboard, it should receive that kind of treatment. In fact, the high price of off the rack surfboards tops our pros and cons list.

- Pro: Expensive boards are highly priced because they have been proven to be the best boards money can buy.

- Con: Unless Mom and Dad are paying for the board, or you have a great career job, buying a board off the rack will take some time to save up enough money. New shortboards start around $450 and can cost as much as $850. Longboards cost anywhere from $550- $1400. SUP boards will break the bank costing from $900-$2500.

- Pro: Surf shops carry boards made by the best shapers in the world. You will find Merricks, Firewire, JS, Lost, Stretch, etc.

- Con: The best shapers in the world make all kinds of boards, but you might not find a shape that best suits your local break.

- Pro: The day you see the board and have the money to buy it, you walk out the door with it and can surf it right away.

- Con: There really isn’t a con to having the board right away.

- Pro: You can see and feel the board before you purchase it.

- Con: You might not be able to find the exact board dimensions you want.

- Pro: When you are going to spend hundreds of dollars on a surfboard, the shop employees (especially those getting paid commissions) will treat you like royalty. Try and get a discount. Tell them you really want the board but you can’t afford a new leash or traction pad and you’ll seal the deal if they throw one in free.

- Con: The same shop employees will say anything they can to sell you the board. As nice as they are, they will stretch truths to sell you the board.

Custom: The day you pick up your custom board from your shaper will be one of the happiest days of your life. You will finally get to see and hold the creation you have dreamed of and sketched all over different bits of paper. The waiting process was between 3-5 weeks and the call that your board is ready couldn’t have come and quicker. Topping off the list of pros and cons for custom boards is the dreaded amount of time you will wait for your surfboard to be made.

- Pro: Your board took a couple weeks to make, but for good reason. The board is made exactly how you wanted it to be made.

- Con: Waiting for your board to be finished is worse than waiting for Steve Jobs to announce the latest Apple product. Depending on how long your shaper takes, the 3-5 weeks spent waiting can be the longest of your life. And if a good swell rolls in while you are waiting, those weeks will be that much harder.

- Pro: Your local shaper will know how to make a board for the local surf breaks in the area. The board will be specifically made for the spots you surf most often.

- Con: When you take that trip to some exotic island with hollow reef breaks instead of the usual mushy beach break you surf, your board won’t perform as well.

- Pro: As you get all your boards made from the same shaper, you start to create a beautiful relationship that allows the shaper to better understand your style and likes and dislikes in boards.

- Con: You and your shaper might never click and you never find that “magic” board that works best for you.

- Pro: Custom boards from local shapers are much cheaper than off the rack boards. Also as you order more and more boards from the same shaper they will often charge you less and less.

- Con: Some shapers that are super cheap are cheap for one reason, their boards suck. So ask around before you dedicate time and money to a shaper.

- Pro: By buying custom you are supporting your local surf community and are keeping that little bit of “soul” in your surfing.

- Con: There are none.

If you feel there are too many cons to both buying off the rack and custom surfboards, remember that you don’t always have to buy a brand new board. Check out Tyler’s article on used surfboards. Buying used might be the better option for both you and your bank account.

We want to know what you love and hate about both custom and off the rack surfboards. Leave a comment and let us know your opinion.

I’ve never really thought about wearing sunglasses while surfing, but it makes sense. We make sure we have our shades on when we step out the door on a sunny day and others even “wear their sunglasses at night”. So why not wear shades while we surf all day in the sun? The answer is simple; sunglasses would fall off in the surf. Luckily, Ocean Sunglasses has the solution.

Ocean Sunglasses specializes in making sunglasses you can wear while doing extreme sports, like surfing. They have a wide variety of styles to fit each sports specific needs and conditions and they all will give your eyes 100% UV protection. So whether you are just cruising around on the beach cruiser, or charging 10 foot Blacks Beach, there will be a pair made just for you.

We got a hold of two pairs of Ocean Sunglasses and took them for a whirl in the ocean. Here is our review.

The Australia Model is made with a built in strap on the back of the glasses that help hold them to your head. When I tightened the glasses strap as tight as possible, they fit snug to my large head, (I wear a 7 5/8 fitted cap) but they were not tight. Because they aren’t tight like goggles, this model is great for surfing smaller waves and for those flat summer days out on the SUP. If you want to take them out on a bigger day, make sure you have the glasses leash (also made by Ocean Sunglasses) so you don’t lose them. Overall the glasses are very comfortable and when you duckdive, the lenses clear out quick making them great for surfing.

The other model we tested out is the Tierra De Fuego. These are great because they are 2 pairs of glasses in 1. They come with regular earpieces for use on land, and when you hit the surf you can easily pop them out and pop in a strap to hold them tightly to your face. These shades have a padding you can add or remove and they can fit as tight as you want them to. Being able to tighten them super tight makes them more like a goggle than sunglasses for when you surf. Just make sure you have the face pad on when you tighten them up so they are comfortable to your face. If you are going to get tossed around a lot and don’t want to lose your sunglasses, or use the leash, these are the surfing shades for you. After you duckdive, keep your eyes closed for a second or two because it takes a bit for the water to drain out.

Overall, if your eyes struggle in the sun or you just want to be smart and protect them in the surf, make sure you pick up a pair of Ocean Sunglasses. Make sure you check out the many styles of shades they have at http://a-o-sports.com

Don’t forget to let us know how you like them and if you would wear them in the lineup?

Here are some extra photos we took while trying the glasses out: