Surfing

Now that 2016's jetting toward a close, we've gone back through our coverage to bring you our very favorite water toys in a list that includes multifunctional jet drives, floating multi-person lounges, folding and inflatable watercraft, deep-diving personal submarines and more.

Having set out a snooze-worthy pair of concepts in the leadup to SEMA, Chevrolet has finally found its mojo. The Colorado Z71 Hurley Concept has been designed with surfers in mind, and uses a clever bed liner to deal with all the wet, salty gear you could possibly throw at it.

​Even though they don't have a layer of blubber, beavers are still able to stay warm when diving in frigid waters. How do they do it? Well, they trap a layer of air in their fur. Scientists have taken that concept and run with it, creating a material that could be used to make warmer wetsuits. ​

There are a number of places you might choose if you want to go surfing in Perth, Australia, but Alfred Cove, on the Swan River, probably isn't one of them. It might be soon, though, courtesy of plans for an artificial surfing lagoon aimed at improving the options for surfing around the city.

Lampuga, the maker of one of the world's fastest electric surfboards, now makes it easier to get out onto the water and motor your way to fast-paced thrills. Its Air board is an inflatable jet-drive surfboard designed to pack small and ride fast.

Traditional PFDs are an important part of water safety, but they can be entirely uncomfortable to wear in or out of the water, especially during activity. To improve comfort, startup Aegis Lifeshirt integrates inflatable protection into the shirt you're wearing anyway.

Perhaps the most interesting style of wearable tech is the category of wearables that turns you into a piece of action sports equipment. The WaveWrecker joins the category as a wearable surf suit that turns the bodysurfer into his own board.

The Trideck is a three-wheeled longboard-style skateboard with pneumatic tires and a built-in brake. A detachable handlebar can turn it into a skating scooter for added stability. The first prototype of the Trideck was built in a garage and has since seen refinement to become production-ready.

Australian motorcycle daredevil Robbie Madison has dropped into a massive Tahitian wave and surfed it... On a lightly modified KTM dirt bike. This is one of the most supremely ridiculous and jaw-dropping things we've ever seen.

Surfline is an established service that provides information on surf conditions, in the form of alerts on a smartphone app. Now, Surfline has partnered with Nixon to provide such alerts on an easier-to-access sports watch, known as the Ultratide.

Over the years, various skateboard manufacturers have designed boards intended to simulate the feel of surfing. One of the latest, the Deska Board, sets out to do so via a low, wide deck and three smooth-rolling 200-mm wheels, plus it even has an input for a user-supplied windsurf sail.

Always looking for a new excuse to run its electric jet drive through the water, WaveJet has released a new board designed for fishing. The Pau Hana Big EZ Angler is the jet-powered stand-up paddleboard that provides stand-up fishermen with a new way to quietly troll the local fishing hole.