Innovation Centre work on new surf products

17 September 2015

Innovation Centre work on new surf products

17 September 2015

The Surf Access Vehicle

Surf access vehicle: SAV

One of the new products being pioneered by CIC this summer has been the new Surf Access Vehicle (SAV).

Being developed in conjunction with Surf Tonic, a West Wales based surf school which specialises in surfing for people with various conditions, the SAV is aimed at transporting people from the car park to the water’s edge, and then into the water to aid transferral onto a surfboard. The cool design was created in partnership with a student who did a short internship with CIC called Ben Hammonds. The concept is designed such that a person of any size, any ability and condition, can sit in the seat comfortably and with dignity, be transported across rough and sandy terrain and then plunge into the waves. At this point, the seat can lay flat, allowing the surfer to slide off the SAV and be transferred onto the board.

Surfing is well documented as a great treatment for many conditions. Being outdoors, the fresh air, the sound and the motion of the water all conspire to make us feel great, so the more people who get to experience this fun sport the better. And with the length of coastline we have in the UK we are spoilt for choice!

The SAV is nearly complete after a long summer of development, but we hope that it will be in service during September and due to its superior materials and construction should see many years of use. We look forward to updating you with stories of its success and some photos of the real thing in action!

Tandem seated surfboard

Another surfing product that CIC have been asked to assist with has been a tandem surfboard which has a seat on it. This enormous surfboard can be ridden by two people: an instructor, who will paddle, surf and control the board, and a surfer who will sit in the seat and experience all the fun and motion of the waves.

CIC surfers, Ross and Dan designed and developed the board in collaboration with Ben Clifford from Surfability in Swansea, and Roger Cooper surfboards in Cwmafan, near Port Talbot. The board measures 12 ft long, and 36 inches wide and has an adjustable bucket seat from a racing car. The seat was very kindly made and donated by Jamie McDonald from Techneat Tanks.

The board has been made for Kai,  a local Swansea surfer with Cerebral Palsy, but it is hoped that as many as 50 children will benefit from the board each year and with a life expectancy of 5 years, there will be many hours of great surfing to be done!

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