Posted on: January 20th, 2012 | Written by | 4 Comments

Carver Skateboards – The Ultimate Surf Training Tool

Looking for a new type of cross training to improve your surfing? Check out Carver skateboards, now available at SWELL. These specialized surf skates feature a swiveling front truck equipped with an embedded spring system to propel the board forward when it’s pumped like a surfboard.

The power is in the patented, swiveling front truck!

What you get is a new type of riding that truely mimicks down the line surfing and helps keep your legs fit while you are out of the water. With the Carver boards you will stay in shape and improve your surfing even when away from the coast or during an extended dry spell.


Team rider Laird Hamilton cross trains on his Carver skate

Created by surfers for surfers, this board will turn a parking lot or driveway into your very own standing wave and is a must have for everyone’s quiver. You’ll be able to pump this board uphills or even get it going from a dead stop. This is not a skateboard, this is The Ultimate Surf Training Tool.

Grab yourself a Carver skateboard here and get ready to Surf your Skate!

Check out the video below to see the board in action:

Posted on: January 19th, 2012 | Written by | 3 Comments

Functional Trunks -Autonomous

It’s a new year, so you need new gear to stay active and hit those exercise goals. Face it, you spend 90% more trunk time on the turf than in the surf, so why not wear a trunk designed to excel in any sport? Autonomous solved this age old issue by partnering up with Olympic athletes and local surfers to develop more versatile gear.

We caught Autonomous founder and Manhattan Beach Volleyball champ Aaron Wachtfogel, on his daily cross-training regimen around the South Bay to get the latest on his fast growing brand.

Swell: Hey Aaron, everyone wants to know, What’s the secret to the flexi-perfection behind those comfy trunks?
Aaron: Its called autoFlex fabric, a breathable, flexible material that’s built to last and even dries fast. Auto-flex also allows some water to pass through, preventing the dreaded ballooning you get in traditional trunks.

Swell: Tell us about the heavy hitting (PUN Intended) Olympians we’ve seen in Autonomous.
Aaron:That’s right, Gold Medalists Todd Rogers and Phil Dahausser won a recent tournament wearing the Autonomous Original and AVP Champion Matt Olson won gold in our Lion tee and So Solid trucker

Swell: Before we let you get back to the grind, is there anything else happening this Spring?
Aaron: Thanks, we’re always helping support the prostate cancer foundation, and just so stoked to see our spring line getting waves in the surf, victories on the court, hikes on the trail, and sweat in the gym.

In case you haven’t heard of them Autonomous was born on the in Hermosa Beach Ca, where volleyball, surf, and style runs the town. They’ve become a favorite brand of SWELL over the last year for their versatile active-wear that our customers love. See the whole line here

Posted on: January 17th, 2012 | Written by | 2 Comments

Half-Pipe Wave Pool Planned for San Clemente

Greyson Fletcher tests the Wave Pool Prototype c/o OC Register
Just down the street from the SWELL hq at the Vista Hermosa Sports park a new, one-of-a-kind attraction is in its final stages of development. Surf N Turf, an 18 hole mini golf course, restaurant and 75,000 gallon wave pool combo will feature a unique half-pipe style wave pool as it’s crowning feature. It will be the first real water half pipe with sloping walls and gushing water that can adjusted for various skill levels and riding capabilities. Located right in the breeding grounds of a surfing, skating and skimming hotbed, owners hope to inspire a new type of extreme sport and raise the bar for riders the world over.

Surf N Turf San Clemente Development

Drawings have yet to be released of the wave pool, but owners said you will be able to drop into the wave as you would a normal half-pipe when completed. This pool will use the same sheet wave technology used at the WaveHouse in San Diego, but this new skating inspired design might just be a little more user friendly than its San Diegan counterpart.

Project engineer of the wave pool, Andrew Street said, “We want take this up a notch. We want to provoke the extreme attitude of athletes to come be part of our group, as well as younger children… something fun, exciting new.”

While construction of the mini golf course and restaurant are set to begin as early as spring with a completion in summer, the wave pool does not have an expected completion date as of now.

Read More about this at:
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/wave-335212-pool-san.html?pic=2
Photos c/o Fred Swegles OC Register

Posted on: January 13th, 2012 | Written by | No Comments

Top Tweets of the Week: Happy Friday the 13th

Enjoy another dose of surf speak being flung around this week in twitter-land. This Friday the 13th list celebrates the odd-balls of the industry, and those who encourage getting weird on the job.


Uh oh… It’s Friday the 13th! Stay away from black cats, evil knock-offs and be sure to wear your lucky Sanuks… http://t.co/F0nIZPA1
@SanukFootwear
Sanuk Footwear

Our friends Sanuk recommend to fend off phonies with some fresh footwear. Take it from Rae at Sanuk, she’s got “sole”


Going on another swimsuit issue shoot Wednesday so I’m gonna have to look at more of this for a week. http://t.co/DcWEOFXF
@Jimmicane
Jimmy Wilson

Fan of fashion or not, the guys at Surfing Mag have an eye for aesthetics. Follow @Jimmicane for an opinionated trek around the globe. Thanks for Sharing Jimmy


it used to be a bad thing to have crabs! Allow me to introduce the newest crab to the planet…The Hoff Crab! http://t.co/efmxgBao
@DavidHasselhoff
David Hasselhoff

It’s Hofficial, Mitch Bucannon has Crabs! C.J. you better get checked


DO YOU HAVE AN INAPPROPRIATE STORY FROM A XMAS WORK PARTY? WE WANT TO HEAR IT. WIN VOLCOM PRIZE PACKS EVERY DAY!http://t.co/Cgq438ws
@VolcomOzNz
Volcom Oz & Nz

Sloppy hook-ups, dosing the baked goods, top-shelfing…please share your stories with us too. And maybe we’ll share our after party involving a very phallic beer bong.


Send your “lifes better” Instagram shots to billabong.com”>lbib@billabong.com to raise money for @ http://t.co/D9aRn1IM #lifesbetterinboardshorts
@billabong1973
Billabong

Sharing is caring. Send Billbong a photo of some beachy dream scene, and they’ll donate $1 in your honor.


I can assure you this guy is getting weird on this Friday the 13th. Not really sure what Hoyo is saying here about a Zoo, but nothing much makes sense when you party with the legend Matt Hoy. Is that Parko in the purple wig? So if you jump on the Hoyo party train, prepare to time-travel into the seventh ring of hard rocking shit-head ripper land. Trust me.

Happy Friday the the 13th. Follow @Swelldotcom