How to escape a rip current?

[surf patrol]

Last sunday my friend got really scared, she said she got trapped in a current and the waves wouldn't let her get to the beach.

My other friend went in her aid and when the wave pushed her out she grabbed the leash and they both were out.

What to do in this situations??

[dtc]

Read this page

http://beachsafe.org.au/surf-ed/ripcurrents

It will answer all of your questions.

[jaffa1949]

That information dtc posted says it all.
Read it and encourage your "friend" to do so too.

Learn to read the surf before you go out to surf.
Going into the surf ignorant is just plain dangerously stupid.

Be aware that as surf conditions get bigger the rips get stronger.

Most people who don't know fear the waves and mistake the calmer looking water as the safe spot, WRONG that is the rip.
Use waves to wash you to the beach.
Waves are your friend, they might spin and tumble you a bit but they will wash you to shore.

[peazz]

Being wary of rips can safe lives. To many times i see unknowing people dragged out to sea, they panic and ignore everyones advice and swim against it.

DTC's link is right on the money.

[ElenaPVR]

Thanks dtc very informative!

[pandarturo]

Charge harder =-O

[oldmansurfer]

Learning about currents is important for safety if you will ever be where there is a strong current. Currents go in circles so if you just stay in the current it will come back to shore eventually however that maybe weeks or months later. Usually most currents travel around the waves breaking so you will just go around them. It is good to look at the ocean before you enter and especially if it is a place you are unfamiliar with. Look at where others are where they get in where they get out look for signs of a current. Often you can see ripples in the water moving along the current. Think about what dangers are in the area so if you get swept by a current into an area with rocks along the shoreline what would you do? Plan for it. The worst situation is a small bay with a rocky shoreline and if you are a novice just avoid those areas. If there is a lifeguard go ask them what you need to watch out for at that beach. The link from dtc is great.

[billie_morini]

Been thinking about this question for a while. It leads me to:

Who wants to escape it?

[peazz]

Rips to a swimmer are dangerous when they dont understand how to get out, However rips to surfers are like a conveyor belt taking them out the back with minimal effort.

One questions I have, what do you call the current that goes parallel with the shore, pulling us surfers up or down the beach? I have noticed they normally go in the direction the wind is going.

[oldmansurfer]

You know I don't really know what significance the direction makes the current goes in a circle if it goes to the left on the inside it will go to the right on the outside and if it goes out somewhere it will go in somewhere too. Particularly dangerous are small bays where the current in is on the surface and the current out is on the bottom. The current can be so strong that if you stand it will sweep you off your feet in knee deep water and the only way in is with the waves. Where I live there is a small bay like that which is where more people drown than any other spot even with signs posted saying danger don't go out. I think they have a sign saying how many people drowned there and still more drown and they put another notch in the sign. You have to hike 2.25 miles to get there and there is no lifeguard. Lot's of people aren't as smart or as strong of a swimmer as they think. I went paipo boarding there and it took me a while to figure out how to get back in to the beach. Wicked current that isn't obvious. I however could have swam a couple miles to the next beach over if I needed to. I come up on the beach and a guy walks up to me and asks me if it's safe to go out. I tell him if you are asking then it definitely isn't safe. Later that day two people drowned one got in trouble and the other went out to "save them" (after I left).

[dtc]

One questions I have, what do you call the current that goes parallel with the shore, pulling us surfers up or down the beach? I have noticed they normally go in the direction the wind is going.

It could be one of two things.

A longshore rip, which is basically when the water that comes in from the waves goes sideways along the beach until it finds the deep channel to exit (the deep channel where the 'traditional' rip is). Sometimes, particularly at steep beaches, the terrain can go beach, channel, sand bar. So the sand bar is fun and where the waves are etc, but then you need to get back to shore and have to go through the channel, which has a strong longshore rip.

These are not usually caused by the wind but the wind may cause the direction of the waves, and thus the way the water is moving (eg: if you are standing on the beach and the waves are coming in slightly angled, say from the left, the longshore rip will usually be heading to the left as well)

Long beaches can also have significant longshore rips, I think because the waves come in at an angle and then sort of 'bounce' sideways and there is no headland to stop the flow (like there is normally at smaller beaches)

On the other hand, if you are surfing off a point, you may actually just be in a current

[oldmansurfer]

The waves push water in it goes to the side then out. You always have a sideways current.

[oldmansurfer]

Here is a photo of the sign. I said there is always a sideways current but I meant almost always. At this beach the current is underneath because it is a narrow bay with rocky sides and when the waves break across the entire bay it pushes water in evenly then the only way for it to escape is under the waves. Normally if you look at the ocean you can see ripples on the surface from the wind and the ripples in a current will move at a different speed from the ripples from the ocean next to it so usually you can see a current but at this bay Hanakapiai the current goes under the waves and it isn't apparent and because of the shape of the bay it is stronger than you would suspect for the size of the waves.

[dtc]

That's a scary sign.

[oldmansurfer]

Not scary enough