Why are Virginia beach waves so small?

Pretty much. When the swell makes it, it actually has more juice than the waves here in Florida. But the flat spells are just unbearable. 2 weeks of absolutely nothing sometimes during my time there, not even a loggable wave.

 

we are protected from the south and north, and have a long shallow shelf out front. That means we really only get NE, ENE, E, ESE, SE and the occassional wrap, though that is always better on the other side of whatever it is wrapping around. The water gets nice and warm in the summer and in the winter is somehow as cold as the f**king arctic, not even joking, look at a surface temp map.

Being in the worst position on the east coast, well I don't really know about that. I can drive 2 hours north and be at chincoteague with a much wider northern swell window. I can travel 1.5 hours south and be on the outer banks, or even 2.5 hours to rodanthe and buxton. That's a pretty easy road trip for some juice.

There are a lot of days where it is just too windy to surf in the obx. A LOT OF DAYS. On these days, it's usually ride-able in vb. Also, some forget that vb actually connects to the outer banks via back bay wildlife refuge. So if you know where you are going, you can essentially surf from hampton down to the nc state line. THAT's actually vb, not just the dreaded oceanfront. The waves are almost always better in sandbridge than the oceanfront, yes, quote me on that pier crew.

But alas, the wildcard. You can surf in the Bay. I'm not willing to offer much more than that but lets say if the wind is howling out of the north for a few days straight there is plenty of fetch coming down the bay and plenty of little points out there to make it happen.

Also, have you ever seen more bikini's per square foot than at the virginia beach ECSC?

 

^^^^Some dude posted a few pics a while back of some waves in the bay...didn't say much other than it didn't happen often, but man they looked good...

 

Thanks Seldom, that was awesome.

Do you have a boat? Do you like jumping from bridges and ditching federal ranger type dudes? Do you like creeping through an island inhabited by varmits and pirates? Have you ever stopped your car on a bridge and just jumped into the water?

1989....Hurricane Gabrielle...... Driving back home from 1st ST.............look into bay from bridge......jaw dropped........best waves I have ever seen in person....still to this day......incredible........I was really stoked back then and it was torture.

And supposedly there is others out there. Wow, what a wonderland of adventure. Damn, I need some adventure. Does anybody remember adventure? Does anybody want to bring adventure to me?

 

Blame Obama

 

Thanks Bear, but I gotta say, Thank You, that was as Epic as it gets...no motor boat but I do have a canoe. I'm game to jump off bridges(as long as they're no too high) and duck rangers. I've kinda been mildly obsessed with these bay waves ever since I saw that pic, they looked absolutely amazing. Alright boys I'll be back in a while I gots to git some work done...man, truck work...

 

There are places to surf in the bay where you just simply park and walk about a block.

 

Dude, I've actually been hankerin for a bay wave now that ya mention it. Gotta love those (slightly) warmer temps in there. I was going through the HRBT the other day and just thinking how nice it would be to hit up Ocean View/Willoughby and ride a wave there. Checked it during Sandy after hitting up Chix Beach but it was no where near as appealing. Screw shotting the pier, have you shot the bridge before?

It's been a while since we have had a honkin North wind for days on end. I've been able to paddle out in the ocean at not low tide and have had a blast, but I think I will relocate to Belmar to right my life.

 

I think you nailed all the positives about VB in this post. I admire your optimistic view on the world. My most fun VB session are usually large windswells in the summer or fall. Aside from that, VB absolutely sucks. Every time I go down to OBX, I question why I even paddled out the other day at VB.

 

http://vimeo.com/45750544

is this how yall do it in vb? if so im never going there lol.

 

I've only surfed the bay once this year... and its been better than vb... aside from that I don't surf vb but every so often, and thats usually at the pier because it actually barrels sometimes. First street is packed with old loggers and people that think they can surf... When I do surf this ****ty place, all I want to do is surf not talk to you and listen to how good your last stomach high head dip was... Anyway.. Buxton was pumping last Sunday, 68 degree water and barrels ahh anyone else score?

 

^^^^Yes, looks like what I was thinking of...thank you kind sir.

***As an aside, to the OP/title of thread, I don't have an answer but it does spark a question in my mind...why the F is BELMAR so GOOD??? I mean, I know why it breaks so good, but why so CONSISTENT???

 

that would be in frisco nc at the graveyard of the pier. that place is magical when its on... and yea lee i just never have the gas or time to get out to SB. id love to go explore back bay and the FI area when its on. i've heard rumors of some very good waves up there when it's on. i know a guy with a boat as well...

 

That's a good question Seldom! Its totally a mystery why it could be 1 or 2ft or even flat everywhere else, but its still chest to head high in Belmar, NJ...

One time I was talking to an old timer and I asked him the same question.

He said that back in the day there was a very few hardcore surfer guys who has a lot of say within the town and they had the town fund artificial canyons way out that filtered and amplified the swell, but also caused the swells to break far out, thus when the waves hit the beach/high tide line they did not have much power, thus hindering beach erosion... anyways... that's what he said...

sorry tho, I don't mean to hi-jack a VA Beach thread and talk about Belmar, but really its just a better break... its always head high in Belmar...

#Belmarartificialcanyons

 

After this post I'll leave this thread for the VB guys, but man I was thinking something along those lines...whatever they did, they sure as sh!t did it right. Maybe part of it is just some freak anomaly type stuff too...like the bermuda triangle of waves.
#Belmarbombs
#BarreledinBelmar
One thing's for sure, and that's


BELMAR >

 

Didn't Edgar Kasey say that VB is a special and safe place? Think about it...we are sheltered from the hurricanes, (hopefully) if a tidal wave/tsunami was rollin through it would lose a lot of its energy and (hopefully) diminish the effects that would be felt in places like Florida, OBX, NYC and Belmar. That Eastern Shore is instrumental in that as well. That comet that hit the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in like the Cretateous Period did give us a wave that rivals even that of Belmar (wave swept clean to the Blue Ridge/Appalachians).

#CosmicWave
#vb2300footer

 

HAHA sounds like a DEAL with Belmar!!!

 

Have you Jersey guys considered a Cosmic Belmar Wave? Perhaps this is the future of travel. Think about it, we transport product over water because its cheaper and aircraft is quite pricey (despite 110 years of flight anniversary yesterday). Here is a dope futuristic outlook...

Dude, I gotta get to DC for work
Word, you taken the cosmic wave.
Hell Yeah
Next impact is in 12 minutes. Better paddle out to the channel markers fast.

 

The christian surfers assoc needs one more commandment:

Thou shall not cut other surfers off. Sheesh does every wave have to include the whole congregation???

 

Vb just sucks, its the bunny slopes of surfing