Economic pressures are taking their toll on surf sims in Second Life and it seems certain that more surf sims will close during the coming months, according to the Second Life surfing blog SurfWatch. Rezzable, one of Second Life’s leading sim owner/developers, announced the closing of Surfline Aloha and Surfline Epic sims at the end of June, just a couple of months after completely redesigning and relaunching the surf sims.

“When the the bulk of the surfing community is spending time at only a couple of surf locations in Second Life, those locations that don’t see traffic will close down,” said ATown Fall, owner of TCH Estates and one of the entrepreneurs behind a massive Second Life watersports development called Broadwater Antilles. “There is no reason to offer something that is expensive to run when people are not using it. For the record, TCH Epic Surf zone will remain open and fully operational.”

Surfing community sources blame the Second Life economy and the difficulty of making consistent revenues via surfing sims. However, this hasn’t stopped sim owners launching new surfing sims and, whilst some surf sims close down, several new ones are opening. Radical Twang, co-owner of Reaction Pro has just opened an innovative new surfing beach called the Boneyard next door to his flagship Reaction and Reaction Girl stores. Combining surfing sims with other economic activities certainly seems to be the key, “I certainly wouldn’t have a full beach sim without my store to cover the costs,” says Radical. “I foresee more closing due to financial issues, not everyone can afford to provide something so expensive, without any real return.”

Picture credit: Dharma Austin
Submitted by Barchan Paderborn

Second Life surfers Christine Daffodil and Craig Stallion have announced a cancer benefit surfing competition to be held in Second Life, called the Flynn Sheridan Invitational Surf Contest to benefit the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. The contest, named after Flynn Sheridan, founder and former director of the Second Life Surfing Association (SLSA), will take place at the Surfline Epic Rezzable sim on Saturday 21 June 2008 starting at 10am SLT.

Full details on how you can help to fight cancer by participating in the event as a competitor or a spectator are available on the Second Life surfing blog SurfWatch.

Pic above: Flynn Sheridan
Submitted by Barchan Paderborn

Three Second Life entrepreneurs, ATown Fall, Phelan James and Niki Wilder, have announced an ambitious new project that will include what could be the largest watersports development in Second Life. According to the Second Life surfing blog SurfWatch the new mega-estate or ‘continent’ called the Broadwater Antilles looks set to become a powerful force in Second Life diving, sailing, surfing and other watersports. The group of sim estates, currently includes TCH Estates, Wilder Estates and Hedonism Estates. The estates will be linked together by a large collection of open space ocean sims landscaped and ’seascaped’ especially for watersports and other leisure activities. Photo: Barbuda, one of Broadwater Antilles surfing sims.

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Posted by Barchan Paderborn

Linden Labs completed the roll-out of its new Second Life Simulator v1.20.83683 on Wednesday morning, leaving a devastated Second Life surfing community in its wake.
According to the Second Life surfing blog SurfWatch (surfwatch.blogspot.com) the new code is upsetting surfable waves, surfboards and other objects that are rezzed in the water. Surfing sim owners all over Second Life have been contacting Linden Labs support staff as their simulated waves crash, stop, sink, fly into the air or simply make it very difficult for surfers to ride them. At least one sim has had to switch off its big surfable ‘Epic’ wave, while other sim managers have been kept busy trying to keep their waves running.
Meanwhile, due to changed ‘physics’ in the new ‘Havoc4′ software code, surfers are finding that their boards float 6-12 inches below the waterline not on top! Surfers and sim owners alike are hoping that Linden Labs or Second Life’s principal wave developer Heather Goodliffe find a solution quickly, but industry sources say that practically speaking it could take weeks to find a solution.
Top of mind for many Second Life surfers, is the Second Life Surfing Assocation’s SurfLine Shortboard Pro surfing competition scheduled for Saturday 5 April. Competitors have been practicing for weeks in anticipation of the event and sim owner Rezzable has created a new surf sim especially for the competition day, which by all reports was performing exceptionally well right up until Linden Labs’ simulator update. Surfing has gained a great deal of momentum in Second Life during the past 12 months, with thousands of surfboards being sold, which now may not function properly as a result of the new software code, and some sims being established and funded specifically to provide surfable waves for Second Life communities.
Hundreds of regular surfers in Second Life stand to be affected during the next few days by the disruption. “With no immediate fixes from Linden Labs or wave-creator Heather Goodliffe in sight, surfers may be in for a bumpy ride over the next few weeks,” says SurfWatch. Photo: SLSA ranked surfer VW Sands, happily shreds up a big Epic wave prior to the Havoc4 software update

Submitted by Barchan Paderborn

Oki Dufaux defended his SL lightweight boxing title against newcomer Shonen Beat.
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Submitted by Whyspe Wylie

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