Surfers in Alaska ride waves for an astonishing five miles

[tabatha]

For most surfers, a really long ride might last about 20 seconds and cover 50-60 yards, so imagine the thrill experienced by a group of standup paddlers recently when they rode waves for a distance of nearly five miles -- amid the splendor of the pristine Alaskan wilderness.

The magical event played out on the Turnagain Arm in the Cook Inlet near Girdwood, thanks to a phenomenon called a tidal bore, caused when the leading edge of an incoming tide pushes against an opposing current or the direction of a river. This creates actual tidal waves.

Tidal bores occur in very few places around the world and the Turnagain Arm exhibits a tidal bore only when conditions are right.

http://www.grindtv.com/surf/blog/23568/surfers+in+alaska+ride+waves+for+an+astonishing+five+miles/

[dipsydoodle]

1. I thought it must be a bore.

They are travelling waves as opposed to vertical ones.

[CrispyQ]

2. That video was cool!

:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[The Backlash Cometh]

3. Can they predict these things?

In a year there will be hundreds out there.

[dipsydoodle]

4. As far as I'm aware the UK one is annual

The Severn Estuary, which empties into the Bristol Channel, has the second largest tidal range in the world — about 49 feet (15 m),<2><3> exceeded only by the Bay of Fundy; and during the highest tides, the rising water is funneled up the estuary into a wave that travels rapidly upstream against the river current. The largest bores occur in spring, but smaller ones can be seen throughout the year. The Environment Agency publishes timetables and predictions of bore heights on its website.<4> Being the onset of the flood tide it is accompanied by a rapid rise in water level which continues for about one and a half hours after the Bore has passed. The Severn Bore is not a self-reinforcing solitary wave or soliton, but rather a shock wave which is formed because the wave is travelling faster than the wave speed in water above the Bore (see tidal bore for more details).

The largest recorded Bore was on 15 October 1966, when it reached a height of 9.2 feet (2.8 m).<5>

>

River surfing enthusiasts attempt to surf along on the wave, which can be 2 metres (7 ft) high. The river was first surfed by WWII veteran Jack Churchill, a military cross awardee renowned for both carrying a claymore, and for being the only Allied soldier to kill an enemy with a longbow during the war. He became a surfing enthusiast in his later life and rode the bore on a board he designed himself.

In March 2006, Steve King, a railway engineer from Gloucestershire, attempted to set a record for the longest-ever surf. However, the exact distance of the ride was never verified and the record was later rejected by both the British Surfing Association and Guinness World Records.<6> The Gloucester Harbour Trustees, as competent harbour authority for this part of the river, explicitly advise against this pastime.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Severn_bore

[bluedigger]

6. Fighting Jack Churchill

This guy was amazing!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Churchill
:wow:

[KittyWampus]

8. a guy killed an adversary in WW II with a LONGBOW?!

[Demoiselle]

5. Amazing!! Thanks for this.

[Motown_Johnny]

7. tidal bore comes in, tidal bore goes out, never a miscommunication

IT MUST BE A MIRACLE!


Maybe we should canonize Poseidon

[roguevalley]

9. I drive that stretch when I go to and come home from Anchorage.

It is an amazing sight to see it come in. Sometimes the waves go out and stands a pod of belugas who go out when the tide comes in. Its an amazing stretch. If you want to come down to the Kenai, you have to drive along it. You can see wind surfers and others out there. Cold water all year.

[Catherina]

10. That picture and video are amazing