Surfboard science is big business. It’s becoming increasingly more difficult to distinguish between what actually works and what’s just a bunch of bullshit, which is why it’s it’s extraordinarily useful–for those interested, at least–to have a simple explanation for what’s really going on down there. That’s where Riccardo Rossi, an Italian scientist who’s worked extensively with CFD, or computational fluid dynamics, comes in… because let’s be honest, this shit gets complicated.
He sat down with Firewire and, in layman’s terms, explained a whole bunch of things that affect the everyday surfer, like what’s happening to the water depending on the shape of the rail, what those tiny changes in rocker do, and how, exactly, drag and lift affect a surfboard’s performance.
Although most surfers don’t really need to be concerned with many of the tiny details, it’s helpful to understand what’s happening under your feet when you stand up on a surfboard, isn’t it?
