Surf’s up! Participation Regimes and Motivations for Surfing in Wales Jon Anderson Katie Jones June 2008
Figure 4.9 Length of time surfing
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- 4.4 Participation in surfing
- 4.4.1 Most popular surf beaches in Wales
- Figure 4.10 Popularity of beaches by region
- Figure 4.11 Top ten most popular beaches 4.4.2 Most frequently visited surf beaches in Wales
- Figure 4.12 Most frequently visited beaches in Wales by region
- Figure 4.13 Top ten most frequently visited beaches
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Figure 4.9 Length of time surfing In addition to finding out the length of time people had been surfing for, respondents were asked to identify their level of surfing ability. The majority of respondents (54.5%) identified their level of surfing ability as “intermediate”. 28.4% were “advanced” and 17.2% “beginners”. These combined figures show that a lot of people have been surfing in Wales for a long time, the majority of whom consider themselves to have intermediate ability level. It is thought those who class themselves as ‘advanced’ would be highly competitive or people for whom surfing forms part of their professional lives. 4.4 Participation in surfing We wanted to know where surfers chose to surf in Wales, how frequently they surf in these locations and the types of surfing activities they do there. From documentary and web-based searches, 48 key surf spots were identified by the research team along the coast of Wales, as shown on the maps in the Preface. It is widely accepted and (re)iterated through interviews that other ‘secret spots’ are often frequented by surfers. However, these spots are never publicised and will not be disclosed within this report. The 48 spots were all beaches found to be regularly publicised in various surf literature and websites. However, knowledge of good surf spots is valuable information and some people felt concerned that our research would elicit could potentially make certain beaches even more popular and lead to overcrowding, as this post on surf-related message board in relation to the web-based questionnaire demonstrates: “I got to the drop down bits [detailing the 48 surf spots], then realised that if everybody filled it out, the owner of the survey would have a very in depth knowledge of where's best to surf, when it is busy, when it is quiet, and all the knowledge that every surfer wants … Closed the page after that...” (Post on bbc.co.uk off the lip message board) Respondents were asked which spots they surfed in and how often. The first aim of this exercise was to determine which beaches were popular amongst the most people, and second aim was to determine which beaches were visited most often. The results are displayed by region. 4.4.1 Most popular surf beaches in Wales The table below shows the total number of respondents who said they visited beaches in each region. It is worth remembering however that some regions are larger than others, have longer coastlines and better located beaches to benefit from incoming swells. It is also important to be mindful of the number of respondents living in each region who filled in the questionnaire i.e. the most responses were received from surfers living in West and South Wales, which could potentially distort some of the figures.
Figure 4.10 Popularity of beaches by region Using figures from the table above, we can now define the 10 most popular beaches in Wales overall, as show in the table below. It is interesting that these top ten beaches are spread across 3 main ‘surfing hot spots’: the Gower, Porthcawl and Pembrokeshire.
Figure 4.11 Top ten most popular beaches 4.4.2 Most frequently visited surf beaches in Wales The following table demonstrates which spots were the most frequently visited beaches, being visited once a month or more frequently i.e. daily, weekly or monthly.
Figure 4.12 Most frequently visited beaches in Wales by region Using figures from the table above, we can now define the 10 most frequently visited beaches in Wales, as show in the table below. The majority of these beaches are also included within the 3 ‘surfing hot spots’: the Gower, Porthcawl and Pembrokeshire.
Figure 4.13 Top ten most frequently visited beaches Respondents were also asked about the length of time they spend at each beach, the main surfing activities they do there and how they accessed the beaches. According to the results, the average time spent at each beach is between 2 and 5 hours per visit. Respondents reported a mix of both short boarding and long boarding activities. The majority of respondents said they travelled to the beaches by car/van. Hardly any respondents reported using public transport to get to the beach. This was also highlighted as an issue in an interview with a representative from one of the surf schools, although she was primarily talking about encouraging young people to participate in surfing, her response highlights the need for better public transport routes that make beaches more accessible. “I suppose the best way to bring people into surfing is to be able to provide transport for them to get to the beach because so many parents work nowadays, and have other commitments. I think if that factor was taken away, the fact that they have to actually bring them to the beach and sit and wait for them, if there was some form of transport link. Few of the beaches are accessible by public transport. We do have like a bus service that comes round but it’s so infrequent, so you’d pretty much have to spend your whole day at the beach to able to make sure you get it back again.” (Outer reef surf school interview) Directory: wp-content -> uploads -> 2011 2011 -> Voices of the Old Sea Norman Lewis 2011 -> Malevil Robert Merle 2011 -> The Elephant Keeper’s Children Peter Hoeg 2011 -> Jv packet •Mars Colonization Affirmative •Mars Colonization Negative 2011 -> Registration Form (Rev. 8-86) omb no. 1024-0018 2011 -> All America Looks Up to Virginia;” Virginia and the Declaration of Independence 2011 -> Rao bulletin 2011 -> Christopher Columbus was born between 25 August and 31 October 1451 in 2011 -> The Battle of Frenchtown (1855), Washington Territory: the Political and Demographic Context rev 9/4/11 2011 -> Seti aff •seti neg •Asteroids Aff Download 0.76 Mb. Share with your friends:
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