Rip tide or riptide, also known as a ebb jet or tidal jet is a strong tidal flow of water within estuaries and other enclosed tidal areas. The term `rip tide` or `riptide` is often incorrectly applied to rip currents, which are not tidal flows. The US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration comments: `Rip currents are not rip ti... Found on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rip_tide