How do I learn this stuff?

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bumfluff
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How do I learn this stuff?

Post by bumfluff » Wed Sep 01, 2010 4:55 pm

Will keep this short and to the point. Where do I start when learning to forecast? Are there any good sources on the net to get information? Any good books? Im starting from scratch here.
Thanks...

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Trev
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by Trev » Wed Sep 01, 2010 7:18 pm

Someone's already been down this road.
Mical???
Hatchman???

One of the Mexicans anyway.
Beanpole
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by Grooter » Wed Sep 01, 2010 8:54 pm

What for fluffy? Vicco?

Plenty of good places to start with, by and large a combination of Swellnet, Coastalwatch and the BOM plus a few wave buoys is all you need.

If you're after the stuff Don, sasurfa, shearer and NC go on about though I ain't the guy - way out of my league
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by carvin marvin » Thu Sep 02, 2010 7:05 am

Check out Fleet Numerical the American navy weather site.
The key thing is swell wave period forecast maps and this site has that information for 6 days in advance.

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Trev
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by Trev » Thu Sep 02, 2010 8:07 am

Actually fluffy, Don's really great. And he's local (SE Qld).
Hey Don, I don't suppose you'd start a "Reading the Weather and Predicting Surf" thread? 8)
Beanpole
You aren’t the room Yuke You are just a wonky cafe table with a missing rubber pad on the end of one leg.

Skipper
I still don't buy the "official" narrative about 9/11. Oh sure, it happened, fcuk yeah. But who and why and how I'm, not convinced it was what we've been told.

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steve shearer
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by steve shearer » Thu Sep 02, 2010 8:30 am

Actually swell period is of far lesser importance in SEQLD than swell direction and proximity of source fetch.
Many of SEQLD best swells are relatively short period surf generated locally by trough induced fetches AKA Parko's foot gash swell at the Superbank.

Most long period surf has very little effect in SEQLD as it is heading in the wrong direction.
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crabmeat thompson
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by crabmeat thompson » Thu Sep 02, 2010 9:14 am

Buoyweather is a great site for reasons Shearer just listed. Tells you swell direction and period. Anything with S will be refracted to the point where SE Qld will get little or none at all. But that's letting someone else do the work for you.

I only know the absolute basics:

Do you know how High pressure systems and Lows move, anti clockwise & clockwise? Once you know that when you see the synoptic chart on the news, it's all you need know. Follow the synoptic lines. You'll see the direction the swell will hit the coast and you get a fair idea from how close the synoptic pressure system lines are together as to how strong the winds are/ will be. The more ocean these lines get to operate in before they hit the coast is the fetch, and this determines the period of the swell.

So when you hear people say there's an easterly 5 ft swell at 9 seconds hitting SE Qld, due to the swell direction we will get close to the whole five foot. There won't be a lot of punch to it, but the beaches & points would be firing.

Your big S swells in winter can be 6-8ft at 14 seconds and Dbah will be 3-4 foot but punchy as all hell, and the central beaches like Miami close to dead flat. All the swell will be out to sea going straight past us. Look out there and you'll see the bumps

Cudgen reef will be all time, but that's another story all together.
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by Donweather » Thu Sep 02, 2010 9:44 am

Trev's right, this has sort of been discussed previously in this thread:

http://forum.realsurf.com/forum/viewtop ... 24&start=0

I've posted the links to some good information which introduces you to the basics of surf forecasting in the above thread.

I also regularly post on the following blog of any particularly things that may interest SE Qld surfers

http://www.surfphotos.com.au/

Enjoy the learning experience as once you've got it, you'll never look back.

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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by mical » Thu Sep 02, 2010 9:50 am

TrevG wrote:Someone's already been down this road.
Mical???

Unfortunately no help here mate.

Kid, work, shaping and some surf .. all I've had time for lately.

Forecasting 101 had to be put on the back burner for a spell :?

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Trev
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by Trev » Thu Sep 02, 2010 9:59 am

mical wrote:
TrevG wrote:Someone's already been down this road.
Mical???

Unfortunately no help here mate.

Kid, work, shaping and some surf .. all I've had time for lately.

Forecasting 101 had to be put on the back burner for a spell :?
Nah. That's cool. I thought it was you who made the earlier enquiries. I only listed Hatchy as an option to stir him up. :lol:
Beanpole
You aren’t the room Yuke You are just a wonky cafe table with a missing rubber pad on the end of one leg.

Skipper
I still don't buy the "official" narrative about 9/11. Oh sure, it happened, fcuk yeah. But who and why and how I'm, not convinced it was what we've been told.

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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by carvin marvin » Thu Sep 02, 2010 12:28 pm

Also the longer the period means these swells refract more onto the north coast points.

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bumfluff
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by bumfluff » Thu Sep 02, 2010 12:52 pm

Thanks guys, will flick through those links and check out the blog!

carvin marvin
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Re: How do I learn this stuff?

Post by carvin marvin » Thu Sep 02, 2010 1:50 pm

A good book is 'Surf Science' an introduction to waves for surfing, by Tony Butt and Paul Russell.

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