A Portuguese startup company is developing an electronic system capable of monitoring the behavior of the surfer's body related to the surfboard.
All In Surf was born out of an academic project led by Márcio Borgonovo-Santos in University of Porto's Biomechanics Lab, and it was later merged with Bio Boards, a sustainable skateboard company.
The technology developed by All In Surf allows surfers, biomechanical engineers, high-performance sports centers, doctors, physical therapists, and sports coaches to understand how the human body interacts with the ocean, its currents, and the waves.
"My Ph.D. studies in Sports Science involved surf and skate biomechanics and allowed me to identify a significant opportunity. I found out that there was a lack of analytical information on surf and skate performance," Borgonovo-Santos told SurferToday.
"Therefore, I developed a device - All In Surf - that monitors, evaluates and provides parameters for surf and skate analyses, including kinematic data that can be related to physiological parameters and levels of physical activity. This information is extremely useful to accelerate the learning process, improve the performance, support the judgment and improve materials."
All In Surf could be the ultimate surf training tool, especially at a pro surfing level, where small mistakes cost heats, finals, and seasons. At a life-threatening level, the surf gadget can help reduce the number of dangerous wipeouts in big wave surfing environments.
"The real challenge came when we were invited to test it with Sebastian Steudtner in the giant 50-foot plus surf of Nazaré's Praia do Norte. For the surf session, we installed a device on his surfboard, and later we got him to the lab for further experimentations," adds Márcio Borgonovo-Santos.
All In Surf can also deliver intelligent data regarding the behavior of materials, like for example, the performance of a board's polyurethane core in extreme conditions. In other words, the Portuguese technology transforms quantitative information into meaningful recommendations, advice, and solutions for specific circumstances.
Why isn't a surfer landing a simple frontside air? How can a competitor throw more spray out of a cutback? What can be done to execute a perfect closeout re-entry?
Meanwhile, the groundbreaking technology developed by All In Surf will be implemented in all the cork longboard cruisers for surfers produced by Bio Boards. In the near future, pro surfers will understand the power of biomechanical engineering in their own progression as athletes.
All In Surf and Bio Boards are headquartered at the Science and Technology Park of University of Porto (UPTEC).
