Surfers are riding a wave of new technologies to their Olympic debut
Riding waves is physically demanding, and preparing for competition requires intense cross-training that's being bettered by precise motion and muscle tracking. (Jake Marote/Red Bull/)Popular Science’s Play issue is now available to everyone. Read it now, no app or credit card required.One of the best surf spots in the United States to practice aerial tricks is in central Texas, some 200 miles from the Gulf Coast. On a brisk December day at the BSR Surf Resort, Caroline Marks was ripping a front-side air reverse. Aquamarine water sloshed off the concrete rear wall of the wave pool as she pumped down the line and flew off the crest of a head-high breaker into a clockwise spin. She grabbed the rail of her board as she came around and landed with a splash, sunlight glinting off the spray. She looked like she was having a blast.The 18-year-old Californian has ridden in artificial lagoons before,...