Surfing Waves

I just had a long swim after my leash broke. The material that connects to the ankle strap broke, the elastic band is fine.

It was a nearly unused 8ft FCS leash, I bought it for my 7'9" malibu for bigger surf. But since I moved to shortboards 2 years ago I hardly ever used it, and left it in the back of my car (hatchback) for backup. Until today when I took it out with my 7'4" semi gun for a 6ft swell at Batu Bolong.

I gave it a good stress test before I used it, everything seemed fine, but I guess a 6ft wave pulls alot harder then me.. It is a bit scary that a leash that looks perfectly ok can break this easy.

Could it have been because of heat in the back of the car storage that weakened the plastics?

The temperatures in the back of your car for 2 years will have been baking hot in Bali. Probably better to leave them somewhere cool-ish in your house.

Luckily the car has a sheltered place at the house, but yeah when I park it near the beaches it'll get the full load. Heat damage is the only thing I can think of that weakened it, so this was definitely the last time I stored a leash in the car..

I'm sure the car storage and length of time in there didn't help matters, but I've heard of 5 cases now concerning FCS leashes bought and used locally that have broken at that same spot.

They are put together using screws, so eventually they will rust and break. 2 years seems about right, high usage or not it was time for it to go

Some pics, just to give you an idea of the state of the leash and the break spot.

Big H wrote:I've heard of 5 cases now concerning FCS leashes bought and used locally that have broken at that same spot.

Hmm.. Could it be maybe that the FCS leashes that are sold here are produced in the same fabric as the Ripcurl leashes? I know for a fact that there was a production problem with that same weak spot in the Ripcurl leashes in that time, about 2 or 3 years ago.

Tudeo wrote:

Big H wrote:I've heard of 5 cases now concerning FCS leashes bought and used locally that have broken at that same spot.

Hmm.. Could it be maybe that the FCS leashes that are sold here are produced in the same fabric as the Ripcurl leashes? I know for a fact that there was a production problem with that same weak spot in the Ripcurl leashes in that time, about 2 or 3 years ago.

That's the exact same break I've seen in the FCS around here. I'd stay away from the FCS and the Ripcurl....had good luck with shapers, O&E and Dakine bought around here.

Big H wrote:That's the exact same break I've seen in the FCS around here. I'd stay away from the FCS and the Ripcurl....had good luck with shapers, O&E and Dakine bought around here.

I must say I still have two 6ft Ripcurl and a 9ft FCS leash for the longboard that have performed good up until now, but for sure I will try the other brands on my next buy. Any suggestions where to buy them here?

Also I've got a 7 ft Wavehunter leash that performs well, came with a secondhand board I bought. Those are for sale here under 300k. Did you hear any opinions about them too maybe?

I have a second hand wave hunter....has been good and have heard good things. Drifter has Dakine and O&E...Ripcurl stores stock Creatures (good but expensive) and Shapers.

I'm kinda spooked because I have the same leash except the 6ft size, though I don't go in surf that big since the break I go to can't hold up more than 5ft before getting mushy and blown out

icetime wrote:I'm kinda spooked because I have the same leash except the 6ft size, though I don't go in surf that big since the break I go to can't hold up more than 5ft before getting mushy and blown out

Just make sure your swimming stamina is good enough, and always check for rip patterns before you go in so you can plan where and how to swim if needed. A leash can break, we have to live with that, just be prepared!

I was surfing in a crowded area on an outside reef about 400 meters from shore when my leash broke. First I signalled the closest surfer for help, then I started swimming with the guy paddling next to me for just in case I didn't make it. I was luckily just at the side of the impact zone, I only had 1 holddown. But spinning around in the dark is no fun without your leash telling you which way is up.. But I could control myself, never panicked, and got to the surface with plenty breath left and started swimming in an relaxed tempo. Halfway back I thanked my helper, he was an older surfer on a shortboard, I felt sorry for making the guy do an extra paddle. When I swam alone soon another surfer game paddling towards me asking if I was ok, he told me they had found my board and put it in a safe place. I could see it from where I was.

Nice how surfers that fight each other over waves turn to help each other when needed.

There was a strong parallel rip to the beach, it was only another 30 meters but the big hightide shoredump made the last meters hard. I knew this rip to the west would hit the reef at Oldmans soon and then the rip would turn 90 degrees and go out. But I was fine, I swam at a relaxed tempo so had enough energy for a sprint on the back of a big wave that delivered me high up the beach.

If I would have been got in the outgoing rip next the Oldmans reef I would have known how to get out of it, but it can be tricky then, and it would've cost a lot of extra energy.

If you surf alone everything is much more under stress with nobody there to check on you. I only go out alone when I know I can handle the conditions because I know my leash will not be always there to safe me

I still got an FCS leash on my longboard that already proofed to be strong, also I got two 6ft Ripcurl leashes that are strong. But my next buy will be one of the other brands for sure..

Anybody that thinks a leash is a lifesaving device, and the board personal flotation safety equipment will be caught short in one of their surfs.
Too many people are surfing without being able to swim these days!

Lots of landlocked Eurpean flounderers at name breaks .