Surfing Waves

hi im a design student in uk, and im currently doing a project for the brand Speedo. i am at the stage of researching into what surfers' needs are, and looking for an idea for a new product that Speedo could produce.
therefore I NEED YOUR HELP! do you ever think "i wish someone would invent something to do this" or "i need someting that can store/carry/protect this". what problems do you regularly encounter which could possibly be solved by something?
im not just looking for ideas for new products, but also just general problem areas and activites that need solutions. and it doesnt have to be just actual surfing, it can be for lots of other things you do when you go surfing, such as where do you put your car keys and leaving things on the beach.
any suggestions would be really appriciated! this is a real design project so the end result is very likely to go into production!

I suggest a button that turns the surf on whenever you are at the beach - that's what surfers really want :)

Let's hear some ideas - there must have been plenty of times that we've all said "I really need this"

Yup - youve already said it - where do I put my keys when Im surfing - major windup...

dunno if theres anything that could be done about it, but i keep gettin my legs caught in my leash... i dont have a clue for something to stop that. or maybe its just me that gets this problem...?

The legs caught in leashes are a problem for any surfer but you can get a surfboard leash that has a swivel where the leash joins the ankle attachment which helps a great deal.

Ok,...what bugs me when i am surfing?!

Its difficult to say really, as surfing is not the most complicated thing in the world product wise. Im sure people used to just get planks of wood, splinters in their feet and STILL have a great time, thats why we love it!!!

But your right, there is always room for a little tweak, to make it just a bit more comfortable....

Um, id agree with the keys thing,....maybe a trap door on your surfboard,...james bond style, maybe a cruise missile in their too in-case of sharks!!!!

Or an onboard heater,...for those cold days in British seas.

Is there anything you can do to stop board rash? Maybe a surfers lube....that doesnt get washed off by the sea.

Il give it some proper thought sometime

im also doing design graphic design so am designing my self a tribal tatoo and also a tribal design to paint on my board but ne way heres an idea, how about some gloves made out of a simular material to the wetsuit. the fingers are webbed and then you can paddle allot paster as well as not loosing energy while padaling plus it can also keep ure hands warm. u could do some funky fabric design aswell a a kewl grip. good luck p.s. i want at least 10% if ure gonna make big dosh on it.

ive thought of more, god im good ok how bout an elecronic charge when sharks come near or some water proof music player maybe built into the baord sending infered signals to and ear peice or two which will not fall off or get in the way when ure gonna catch that big wave uve been waiting for.

my problem with the leash is also because i'm goofy footed, but right handed. so when im walkin out into the surf, just after putting my leash on, im holding the board under my right arm, while its attatched to my left leg. and i keep trippin up, lol. n/m, i'll just have to look like an arse!

ok what about this. this is for all the guys which are stuck inland and have to travel miles to get a good practice.

Its an indoor dry surf machine.

every one has there own massive hollow barrel with little brushes inside (soft brushes so no carpet burn) (also nice and long so when it speeds up it lifts u off the floor)
this barrel spinns around and acts like a wave lifting u up and you and ure baord to do different tricks and turns without falling off.

wicked huh, not as good as the real thing but could give a good experiance for a larger wave which u mite not be able to get in england.

or u could design a sertain type or explosive which has a 10 min timer and flaots just rite place to cause a masive wave for all the guys out there in uk which wanna have a challange.

ok i doubt ne of these are gonna make the market but u never know in a few years time...

catch ya later

Ally

when I was doing my design technology A level, I did a safty fin. I saw injurys in surf magasines where fins had sliced through skin. I came up with a fin on a spring mechanism where the fin flips up through the board when it comes into contact with another object, and automaticaly flips back down again. I like the idea of the indoor wave. theres a indo-surfer or whatever its called but it isn't as good as a barrel in lour front rom :D

The safety fin sounds like a good idea - did it work?

yep, it did work. the only problem is that i left it at collage when i left so its probably in the bin know. :(

P.S. When I say it worked, i set up a test rig and hit it with a pneumatic piston a few hundred times but It water never tested on a board or in the water.

for the people who have problems with keys... why don't you get a wetsuit that has a little pocket somewhere, or get one of those watertight compartments that can be built into your board?

tHERE ARE A FEW POSSIBILITIES FOR KEYS:

tAKE A CHICK WHO COMES ALONG TO THE BEACH AND STAYS AT YOUR CAR

bUY A REAL SHORT WITH THE SPECIAL KEY POCKET

BUY A MANETIC BOX IN WHICH YOU CAN PUT YOUR KEY AND HIDE IT ON A GOOD PLACE UNDERYOUR CAR

DRIVE ALONG WITH FRIENDS

ON A ROPE AROUND YOUR NECK UNDER THE LICRA ENZ ENZ ENOUGH WAY'S TO HIDE IT

as for changes in the suit, I think there needs to be more womens long board shorts I sometimes wear guys and well not good. The other thing is now I wear a lot of rash guards but most of my bikini tops come open mainly when duck diving. Not that the guys have issues with seeing boobs but I have issues with that. The other thing is any suit top that will block the apparence of T H O... much appreciated! :)

yeh im with you on that beeichbum, secure bikini tops and more boardshorts :) not that i get to surf much in them, im generally in full wetsuit with gloves boots and hood, lol. but for the summer...

Sunglasses that you could wear while surfing so you don't get blinded when the sun is on the horizon - something that would be attached to you but wouldn't wrap around your neck and strangle you, and which wouldn't get all salty and blurred after one dip in the water.

Given that most female surfers in this country have to wear full wetsuits, I like the idea of a wetsuit that falls open exposing the chest in the same way as beeichbum's bikini"!!!

No, I'm only joking. I saw a cool - quick drying T-shirt in the US last year, kind of like a baggy rashvest that could be worn as a T and dried within seconds of leaving the water.

Something along the line of the Rip Curl hotskins would be good - something to stop you getting the 'flush' of cold water down the neck/ through the zip of your wetsuit.

Decent wetsuit bags are difficult to come by for transporting wet wetsuits. Rip Curl do a changing mat that you stand on to take your suit off and then it folds up into a bag - something like that is cool.

Cheers

Sinista

I like the idea of having a built in waterproof radio or something. That'd be pretty cool. Tunes while you surf. Could see how it may bring loads of problems with it as not everyone wants music blaring when they're surfing etc but hey, it'd be pretty cool to try. :P