The data can also be used to find out what the surf might be like in a few hours time (perhaps when you finish work), since it takes a few hours for the waves to travel from the buoy location to the coast.

Wave buoy data can be used to work out what the surf's like at your local break. It tells you wave height, wave period (used to work out whether it's just local wind chop or long distance swell), and wind strength and direction. After a while, you will get to know that if the buoy is over a certain height, then there will be waves. For example,

2m SEVEnstones = 3ft at Fistral, if westerly swell
1.5m LYME buoy = 2ft Bournemouth
2.5m CHAN buoy = 1ft Bournemouth
<1m SEVEnstones buoy is flat on N coast of Cornwall