hiya wa howa aswat

How big is the largest wave you've ever surfed? If you're proud of a wave's height, it's time to take a look at the weight of the waves you can't escape.

Getting pounded. We know how it hurts. Whether we get caught on the inside or we miss an unexpected wave set, it's always tough to feel the weight of the salted water on our head and back.

When a wave breaks, it loses part of its energy. But until then, those liquid curtains will not wait for the rider's lucky escape, in order to fall over the flats. It's heavy stuff, no doubt about that.

Now, let's do the math. According to physicists, a breaking wave can apply a pressure of between 250-6000 pounds per square foot (1220-29294 kilograms per square meter), depending on its height. Can you handle the numbers?

There are many variables involved. The salinity of the water (the world's average is of 3.5%), the height, thickness and width of the falling lip, the winds involved in the equation, speed, etc. Although the human body will not literally "feel" those massive numbers, it will definitely taste it.

Big waves are surely heavy. If you want to get an overall weight for your specific wave, you can roughly memorize that a cubic meter of water (1000 litres) weighs one metric tonne (1000 kilograms). How about that?

Example: a 33-foot (10-meter) wave with a falling lip that is 66-foot (20-meter) wide will mean that, if you wipeout, you'll feel the equivalent to 410 tonnes (410000 kilograms). That is 488 Volkswagen Beetle (1967 model).

Now, another example from the average surfer's perspective. Imagine a 20-inch (50 centimeter) thick lip, that is only 3.2 feet wide, in a summer three-foot wave. Total weight? A solid 500 kilograms (1100 pounds).

The weight of a wave lip can be tremendous. So, make sure your duck diving skills are up-to-date. Protect your head and your back, too, because oxygen will almost feel like a secondary need.