To calculate wind fetch over water I need to create a point on the shoreline and then calculate the distance to to other shorelines all directions (0 - 360 deg). The shortest distance to another land feature = the short fetch = low waves. On the other hand, a long fetch or distance to another shoreline feature allows large waves to propagate. (In the extreme case fetch may be huge- crossing the Gulf of Mexico for example- in which case fetch is considered infinite).
How can I perform this calculation? The NEAR tool does a great job at measuring the distance to the nearest feature but not the furthest. This seems as though it should be simple but I haven't been able to come up with a clean workflow.