February 29, 2012
February 27, 2012
Dark I
As keen as I was for a surf when I arrived at the beach on this May evening last year, the sun was well and truly gone. So I grabbed the camera instead (as you do with no light...), watching the small crew of mostly younger surfers reminded me of being a bit younger myself and just not wanting to get out, when there was less responsibility waiting at home and I'd surf on into the blackness or sometimes by the moon or ambient street lights.
February 25, 2012
February 24, 2012
February 22, 2012
Early Steps
One of the cool things about starting out is that all you need is whitewater. No need to weigh up which beach or bank, what time and tide etc - just point the board back towards shore and go.
February 20, 2012
February 18, 2012
Hey Ho
A surf stoking short by local film maker Nathan Oldfield. Especially inspiring if you're of the "surf it all" persuasion.
February 17, 2012
Thirsty Work
Azza "Sealegged" Frost cross stepping with style, linking every last ripple and refraction all the way to the sand before proceeding to smash a gutful of water on a hot November afternoon.
February 15, 2012
February 13, 2012
February 11, 2012
Epic Africa
It's been around the web for a while now, but if you're yet to see this check it for sure. It looks cold and sharky but the tubes are incredible. Goofy-footers delight.
February 10, 2012
February 8, 2012
February 6, 2012
February 4, 2012
February 3, 2012
Winter's Grey
With plenty of rubber and much cooler temps, a very different vide to our Summer grey days.
February 1, 2012
January 30, 2012
La Niña
She's responsible for the often grey and wet summer we've had, not to mention the pretty underwhelming waves on this part of the coast... Oh well, at least the water temp is magic and my garden's nice and green, plus Autumn and Winter will be here before long.
January 28, 2012
January 27, 2012
January 25, 2012
January 23, 2012
January 21, 2012
January 20, 2012
Spring Surprise
With no work on this Spring day I was stoked to see this peak as I rolled up to the beach. It's great when an obligation free morning and a fresh swell coincide!
January 18, 2012
January 16, 2012
January 14, 2012
January 13, 2012
January 11, 2012
January 9, 2012
January 7, 2012
January 6, 2012
January 4, 2012
Summer Grey
No shortage of grey days this Summer. Just the other week, just around the corner, at least it was clean and uncrowded.
January 1, 2012
Water Time
Happy new year surfer joes. Here's hoping we're all lucky enough to while away hours floating around and staring at the horizon plenty more this year.
December 31, 2011
December 30, 2011
The Boiled Lolly
Envisaged, shaped, coloured, glassed, sanded and ridden by Azz. Seen here eating up some uncrowded Winter walls.
December 28, 2011
Friendly Surfs
Most of the time I go surfing alone. And to be honest most of the time I prefer it that way. But I do enjoy surfing with friends too. Especially when it's on a quiet little peeling point break with a lot of hooting, claiming and general shenanigans. Good times recently with good friends Kyal, Kara, Jason, Azz, Michelle and Katherine. Hope you're enjoying the holiday season with your friends and family too.
December 26, 2011
December 24, 2011
December 23, 2011
December 21, 2011
Queens at Waikiki
December 19, 2011
December 17, 2011
December 16, 2011
December 14, 2011
Slide Hawaii
Included in Surfer Magazine's 67 Things To Do Before You Die (Aug 2006) was "Do Waikiki". My wife had to almost drag me there a few years ago. Crazy I know! I can't really explain why, I just didn't feel like going away at the time... But I'm so glad I went. Both Hawaii and Waikiki were amazing. Even though we only surfed on the south shore of Oahu in their Summer (so no Sunset charging) it was super fun. It doesn't look like much but we had a blast surfing tiny Waikiki. I won't rave on, but I think surfing Waikiki definitely deserves its place on this list.
December 12, 2011
December 10, 2011
December 9, 2011
December 7, 2011
Manufacturing Stoke Reviewed
My wife Katherine has a cool blog called Drawn Lines. She's just written a very eloquent review of the recently released surf flick Manufacturing Stoke. I haven't actually seen it for myself yet, but it sounds like I should. Katherine's review is posted in full beneath the trailer.
Manufacturing Stoke (directed by Pierce Michael Kavanagh, misfit pictures)
Rob Machado, Dan Malloy, Kassia Meador and Alex Knost do not appear in this film. The first surfer featured is 9-year old Tiara Thompson: an environmentally-aware, frothing girl-grom from California. And that is perhaps the most refreshing aspect of Manufacturing Stoke — it is one of very few independent films not relying on 'in-crowd' surfers to garner appeal. In fact, the lack of prominent surfers and locations makes this almost an anti-surf film. If sponsored shredders are the tip of the surfing iceberg, Manufacturing Stoke goes below the surface to bring up a colourful and varied cast of pioneers and commentators including the eccentric and inspirational Carl Ekstrom, Richard Kenvin, Jon Wegener and others.
For the first part of the movie, you could be forgiven for thinking you were watching an episode of Grumpy Old Men — grey-haired blokes with a malibu-chip on their shoulder about an industry that is partly responsible for propelling the planet towards environmental doom. And you could also be forgiven for thinking that the man behind it all is Grubby Clark. But as the film rolls on it becomes apparent that there is a future for surfing — and it's getting progressively greener. The old guard are graciously handing the baton to a new breed of environmentally conscious independent surfers, shapers and manufacturers like Danny Hess, Lucas Dirkse, Ed Lewis, and Clay Peterson of Marko Foam. As the focus shifts to this new generation, the outlook seems increasingly positive. Here are a growing group of modern-day pioneers whose innovations are starting the next big and much-needed change to the surf industry paradigm — what some commentators are labeling surfing's true renaissance. It's an exciting time to be a surfer, and Manufacturing Stoke gives us a peek into future possibilities.
Manufacturing Stoke's production values follow the lead of pictures by directors like Jason Baffa and Thomas Campbell — with plenty of atmosphere, sensitive camera work, a palpable story-line and a bespoke soundtrack. But it's the film's core message that makes it so different, and so challenging. This is not the sort of movie you put on to fill the background. It demands concentration and a willingness to look at your own surfing habits in the cold green light of environmental responsibility.
Much like the nature of the youthful surfers featured, Manufacturing Stoke asks hard questions and urges you to answer them. While it provides an insight into how the industry is changing for the better, at the end of the day it is up to individuals to make responsible choices and change their own habits at a personal level. There's no neat-and-tidy happy ending here, but the education that this film provides brings us one step closer.
December 5, 2011
December 3, 2011
December 2, 2011
November 30, 2011
Chunky Thruster
A favourite chunky thruster of mine. And like my favourite board ever from last week's post, this is another Valla custom by Paul Joske. I had it made back in 2007 and it's far thicker and wider than most thrusters from then or now. It's 6'1" with a rounded pin tail and a double 6oz top and bottom, so it was never intended for airs! I was after something that rode a bit more like an 80's thruster, it goes great. I took the board photos before waxing it up for a first surf at middle Narrabeen, and the surfing picks are from a really fun and uncrowded mid day session about two years ago.
November 28, 2011
November 26, 2011
November 25, 2011
November 23, 2011
Favourite Board Ever
As I've said in the past this blog's not intended to be all about my own surfing, but about everyday regular surfers, or surfer joes. But as I'm a surfer joe myself, sometimes I get a pic or two as well. I'm going to pop up around once a week over the next few weeks—please excuse me if it comes across as self interested... And it won't always be this verbose!
Now that I'm getting older, I find I'm becoming less certain or definite about a lot of things. A little slower to make absolute, finite, best-ever kind of calls. Like for instance "this is my all-time favourite surfboard". But I thought it might make for an interesting post.
To begin, I considered my first ever board. It was a pre-loved 6'1" Sam Egan thruster (complete with the dinged rails from my first attempt at balancing on it in a backyard pool). After all, those first rides will remain some of my most memorable. Or perhaps my favourite board was my first custom, shaped by Brett Warner at Brookvale when I was not long out of high school? However, these are both fairly conventional thrusters which I haven't ridden so much in the past few years.
Then I thought about my funky purple double-ender—a thick, short and wide Chris Brock number complete with a deep single Ben Lexcen winged keel fin. My first summer riding that board was super fun. But then, I've also had massive amounts of stoke in recent years riding longboards. So, what about my first custom McTavish malibu that I picked up second hand for a song at sleepy Evans Head? Or maybe one of my sweet single-finned Valla longboards by Paul and Sage Joske?
I'm tempted in my old age to temper the absoluteness of my initial quest and tweak it to "favourite shortboard" or "favourite fish". But that just won't do. I've gotta say it loud and proud: the Valla fish pictured below is a dream board. I just love it! Now I sound like a teenage girl...
It was hand crafted by Paul Joske over 8 years ago now. After my first surf on it I wrote to him gushing that I felt "destined to ride this board". Unlike a lot of the closer-to-a-thruster "fishes" that get around, it's a traditional, timber keel finned, wide swallow tail fish—far closer to the original design that came out of California in the 1970s.
For a few years previous I'd been mesmerised by the footage of Curren riding a true fish at Jeffreys Bay. The high-line speed runs and massive drawn out cutbacks looked like so much fun, and so different to how a thruster would have performed in the same waves. Paul's been building all kinds of boards for over 40 years, and when I saw his son Heath ripping on a fish his dad had made him, it finally dawned on me I could have one under my feet too.
As with a lot of good things in life, you have to wait for them. I'm sure it was at least 6 months before I paddled the fish out for it's maiden voyage at the south end of Mona Vale in October 2003. It was a dawn session and I quickly took these board photos before heading out. It was only small, but I was alone and just so stoked on the unique way it rode. Still am. The surfing shots are from a great afternoon session a few winters back—at least 6 years on and the fish is still going strong.
So there you have it, my favourite board ever. So far at least...
Now that I'm getting older, I find I'm becoming less certain or definite about a lot of things. A little slower to make absolute, finite, best-ever kind of calls. Like for instance "this is my all-time favourite surfboard". But I thought it might make for an interesting post.
To begin, I considered my first ever board. It was a pre-loved 6'1" Sam Egan thruster (complete with the dinged rails from my first attempt at balancing on it in a backyard pool). After all, those first rides will remain some of my most memorable. Or perhaps my favourite board was my first custom, shaped by Brett Warner at Brookvale when I was not long out of high school? However, these are both fairly conventional thrusters which I haven't ridden so much in the past few years.
Then I thought about my funky purple double-ender—a thick, short and wide Chris Brock number complete with a deep single Ben Lexcen winged keel fin. My first summer riding that board was super fun. But then, I've also had massive amounts of stoke in recent years riding longboards. So, what about my first custom McTavish malibu that I picked up second hand for a song at sleepy Evans Head? Or maybe one of my sweet single-finned Valla longboards by Paul and Sage Joske?
I'm tempted in my old age to temper the absoluteness of my initial quest and tweak it to "favourite shortboard" or "favourite fish". But that just won't do. I've gotta say it loud and proud: the Valla fish pictured below is a dream board. I just love it! Now I sound like a teenage girl...
It was hand crafted by Paul Joske over 8 years ago now. After my first surf on it I wrote to him gushing that I felt "destined to ride this board". Unlike a lot of the closer-to-a-thruster "fishes" that get around, it's a traditional, timber keel finned, wide swallow tail fish—far closer to the original design that came out of California in the 1970s.
For a few years previous I'd been mesmerised by the footage of Curren riding a true fish at Jeffreys Bay. The high-line speed runs and massive drawn out cutbacks looked like so much fun, and so different to how a thruster would have performed in the same waves. Paul's been building all kinds of boards for over 40 years, and when I saw his son Heath ripping on a fish his dad had made him, it finally dawned on me I could have one under my feet too.
As with a lot of good things in life, you have to wait for them. I'm sure it was at least 6 months before I paddled the fish out for it's maiden voyage at the south end of Mona Vale in October 2003. It was a dawn session and I quickly took these board photos before heading out. It was only small, but I was alone and just so stoked on the unique way it rode. Still am. The surfing shots are from a great afternoon session a few winters back—at least 6 years on and the fish is still going strong.
So there you have it, my favourite board ever. So far at least...
5' 8 1/2" X 21" X 2 7/16"
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