Carve Surfing Magazine

the BIG FREEZE: Why Brit surfers were the big winners, p92

SURFING MAGAZINE

Russ and a pack of frothing groms strike Moroccan gold

carvemag.com ISSUE 113

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Sam Lamiroy’s West Coast odyssey Algeria pumps!

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World Surfing Reserves: coming soon to an iconic break near you!

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content s Departments// 14_Takeoff 18_Incoming 20_Go! 26_Bulletin 28_Foam 34_Watch it 36_Sounds 38_Stuff 40_Straight up 110_Final Score 112_Sussed 114_Out There

Features//

42 THE CARVE INTERVIEW: TOBY DONACHIE The kid from Constantine has grown into a man, complete with a rather dodgy tash. (Maybe that was just a Movember thing. Let’s hope so!) He’s just back from a month in Hawaii. So how did it all go?

48 ALGERIA The North African country of Algeria is possibly the last place you’d ever think of to go surfing. But it actually cops a fair bit of swell in the winter months. Sennen lads Sam Bleakley and Tristan Jenkin rolled the dice and discovered some surprisingly good waves.

56 WORLD SURFING RESERVES: COMING SOON! Australia has them, California has them, Hawaii has them...so why can’t some of Britain and Europe’s best waves be recognised and protected as World Surfing Reserves? Ben Mondy reckons it’s only a matter of time.

62 WEST COAST ODYSSEY Sam Lamiroy took a 2,000-mile trip down the Pacific Coast of North America at the end of last year. With the Pacific just shifting in El Nino mode, it turned out to be a good time to be over there, especially when Todos Santos rumbled into life...

72 FOCUS Cornwall’s Egor Harris headed west to hook up with Mickey Smith for this month’s photo profile.

78 LUCKY STRIKE Ronan, Josh, George, Paddy, Iarom and Joss – they sound like Louis Walsh’s latest boy band...and if you turn to page 79 you’ll see they look the part too! God help us. Nah, these lads are actually six of the best British and Irish Under 20s around at the moment.

They all rip...but have they got what it takes to really get noticed or even become national champions some day? We thought the best way to toughen them up would be to send them off to boot camp in Morocco with Sergeant Russ ‘Crimson Chin’ Winter.

92 ICY GOLD A big warm van with wall-to-wall shagpile carpets. Megan Fox, naked except for a woolly hat. A two-litre thermos of hot tea. A portable jacuzzi, set at a baking 40°C. It would have been nice to have had any or all of these things to hand after a session during The Big Freeze. But all you really needed was a decent wetsuit, boots, gloves and a hood...plus a pair of eyes to see that the surf was frickin’ going off!

cover: Nicknames can be so confusing. Until now everyone was quite happy with ‘Bulldog’ for Russ Winter, but since his recent trip to Morocco we’re not sure whether to call him Crimson Chin or the Green Goblin! Photo: Will Bailey. This page: Ferg Smith evades the Gaelic guillotine. Photo: Mickey Smith.

carve surfing magazine 9

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takeo ff

Sticking around Neoprene glue. Bloomin’ marvellous stuff, isn’t it? I reckon it’s right up there

swear I did seven turns on one absolute peach of a wave. Super stoked! The

in The Top Five Most Useful Things In The Universe along with duct tape,

vibe in the lineup seemed to make the Arctic offshore a bit less biting; guys

Swiss Army knives, Maglite torches and, er, more duct tape. The thick clear

were chatting away, hooting, complimenting each other on a good ride or

gloop is the bizz, but don’t breathe the fumes or you’ll end up with nasal

move. After an hour or so the tide got too high for the banks, but by then we’d

passages like Pete Doherty. The list of things I’ve fixed with the sticky gunk

all had our fill.

in recent weeks includes a pair of wellies (leaking), a kid’s toy mouse (tail fell

Sure, I wish I’d been able to jet off to California, Morocco or Hawaii like

off), a pair of trainers (flapping sole) and a random bit of rubbery trim in my

the lucky guys in this issue of the mag. But sticking around for the winter

car (dangling off annoyingly). Neoprene glue isn’t meant for any of those uses

turned out to be okay thanks to that little tube of wetsuit glue, and the

of course, it’s just bloody good all-purpose stuff that does the job. What it’s

relentless offshores. Considerably better than okay in fact, on those

actually for (if it’s not stating the bleedin’ obvious) is bunging up those tiny

perfect days.

holes you start to get along the seams of well-used wetsuits after a couple

This issue of CARVE is my last as editor of the mag. After 16 years in the

of seasons. It’s no big deal putting up with an incoming trickle when the

job it’s time I handed the baton over. I know the crew will take the mag forward

weather’s mild, like last winter. But during The Big Freeze the trickle seeping

and make it better than ever in the months and years to come, so the very

into my old 5/4 felt like liquid nitrogen, and I just wasn’t having it. So out came

best of luck to them. As for me, I’m sticking around and I’ll still be working for

the wetsuit glue.

the company, just moving on to other projects...all will be revealed in good

After fixing my suit, my next session (at a well-known but underrated

time. But before I wander off down that new path I just want to say a massive

beachbreak a few miles from CARVE HQ) was frickin’ magic. A lined up six-

thank you to all the staff here at Orca, to all the contributing photographers

foot swell, really good banks and just a handful of guys out. Admittedly the

and writers, to all the advertisers who’ve supported us, and to all you readers

water was sodding cold...but my suit was now as watertight as a city banker’s

out there who buy the mag. I’ve always loved working on CARVE. From the

bonus contract. No more icy trickle down the back. Stoked! I paddled out,

very first issue right through to this one, it’s been a blast.

caught a nice wave and did a few turns. Really stoked! It wasn’t just me either, all the other guys out there were having a ball, ripping the bowly waves and grinning like goons as they paddled back out. The sets kept pouring through

See you in the lineup,

and while it’s possible that I was hallucinating due to endorphin overload, I

Chris Power, editor

mickey smith

toby donachie, hawaii

photo: lucia griggi

®

S U R F I N G

M A G A Z I N E

editor Chris Power associate Editor Steve England Production Manager Louise Searle Operations Director Mike Searle Sub-editor Kat Dawes Editorial Assistant Rob Barber Graphic Design David Alcock, Mike Searle senior Photographers Mickey Smith, Will Bailey.

Photographers Alex Williams, Stu Norton, Estpix, Chris Power, Mike Searle, Simon

Williams, Tim Jones, Gary Knights, Al MacKinnon, Victor Gonzalez, Kelly Cestari, Karin Seelow, John Callahan, Yep, Rob Brown, Lewis Arnold, Nick Wapshott, Paul Gill, Lucia Griggi, Tony Plant, Jason Feast, Alan Van Gysen, Tungsten, Farscapes, Alex Young, Moonwalker.

Contributing Writers Ben Mondy, Will Bailey, Sam Bleakley, Sam Lamiroy.

Advertising Advertising Manager Steve England steve@orcasurf.co.uk

Tel: 01637 878074 Call or e-mail for advertising rates or a copy of our media pack.

Subscriptions/Merchandise Subscriptions and Merchandise Manager Jane Chambers jane@orcasurf.co.uk

Tel: 01637 878074 Subscriptions are £29.99 for one year (nine issues), or £52.99 for two years (18 issues), see Subscribe Page at the back of the mag. Back issues of most editions are available, see the Orcashop ad at the back of the mag. Moving? Please write or e-mail giving both your old and new address, indicating that it’s a subscription to CARVE; allow three weeks’ notice.

Orca Publications

CARVE is published by: Orca Publications Ltd, Berry Road Studios, Berry Road, Newquay, TR7 1AT, England. • Tel: 01637 878074 • Fax: 01637 850226 • e-mail: info@orcasurf.co.uk Sorry, due to the volume of enquiries we cannot respond to all e-mails. If you want info about where to surf or what equipment to buy, check our website. If you want info about other destinations, check the books advertised in the Orcashop ad at the back of the mag.

Repro, printing and distribution Printing: Garnett Dickinson, Rotherham.

Distribution: Seymour Distribution Ltd, 86 Newman Street, London W1P 7HJ (Tel: 0207 396 8000 • Fax: 0207 396 8002) CARVE is printed on elemental chlorine-free paper produced from sustainable forests

Contributions CARVE welcomes high-quality story and photo contributions. Send contributions to the editor at the Orca Publications address above, and include an SAE. We are not responsible for unsolicited contributions (stuff we haven’t asked for).

Unsolicited contributions sent without an SAE will not be returned. Please do not send us colour prints as we cannot use them; we only accept digital images submitted to our specifications, transparencies (slides) and black-and-white prints. Contributor’s Guidelines for professional photographers available – send request on your headed paper with tearsheets of published work.

Copyright© 2010 Orca Publications Ltd. All material in CARVE is copyright. Reproduction (including by electronic means, such as commercial websites) without the permission of the publishers in writing will result in prosecution. While every care is taken in compiling CARVE, the publishers assume no responsibility for any affect arising from omissions or errors. Views expressed by individuals herein may not reflect those of the publishers. CARVE is a registered trademark of Orca Publications Ltd.

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It’s your mag, so have your say!

– send us your pics or write to us at incoming@carvemag.com

online extras flow

Richard Ireland

Matt Capel, 10’s.

From: Benny, Torbay Subject: Perfect 10 From the days of watching the odd nutty surfer attempt to surf at Shark Island in Australia and then the West Oz crew getting stuck into the Box in Margaret River, it’s incredible to see that this craziness is now occurring right under our noses in Ireland and the British Isles! I was totally blown away by the covershot of Matt Capel at Number 10 on issue 112, it’s crazy shizzle!

The wave looks like one of the most mutant mutha’s to grace the cover of CARVE and the fact that it’s somewhere in the UK, with British guys getting stuck into it, makes it all the more incredible. The boys are having a solid dig at what could be one of the most relevant discoveries since Mickey Smith and the crew unearthed Aileen’s and Riley’s. Keep up the good work chaps, I look forward to checking out future slab action!

From: Cameron Parker Subject: Hey! I’ve been surfing for about three years on a 7´5˝ mini-mal and occasionally on my brother’s 6´2˝ fish, but I need a new board.

I’m looking for something which would be

good transition to a shortboard from what I’ve been surfing. I’ve heard a fish would be a good idea, but I’m looking for something that’s still surfable for my standard but a new challenge, if you get me. Do you have any recommendations? I’ve got £550 so I’m looking for a good board. Any advice would be great. Thanks.

Hard to say without seeing you surf, and it depends on how you get on with your bro’s 6´2˝, but it sounds like a performance fish would be the go.

There are loads on the market these days. Little eggy flyers paddle well, are pretty forgiving and go really fast! If you are coming down from a 7´5˝ then I wouldn’t go below a floaty 6´4˝ biscuit type of board, that way you will turn quicker, but retain your flow and style. Remember the mantra ‘too short too soon, makes you surf like a goon’. –SE

From: Steve in the Channel Islands Subject: A decade on Just thought I’d drop you an email to say that I loved the article that you did about surfing in the UK in the Noughties (The Wonder Years, Issue 112). It’s only when you sit down and have a little think about it that you realise just how much has happened.

Who’d have predicted in 1999 that the

Nick Wapshott / 360

Ask a Pro…

biggest new growth area of the sport in 2010 would involve riding a board that you propel by using a paddle? The technological advances of surf prediction to jetskis and beyond are mind-boggling as well.

So me and the boys got talking and threw a few suggestions around about what will be affecting the sport in 2020. Of the many ridiculous ones that came up we reckon these are pretty likely: • A good few more artificial reefs, after the relative success of the Bournemouth reef.

They will be controlled by councils and only allow surfers of certain abilities to surf them at certain times/tidal states, a bit like colourcoded runs on the mountains.

• More virtual surfing on games and simulators.

• Some kind of ticket machine or time slots at the main breaks to avoid crowding.

• Augmented reality available through your phone to get info about new breaks, where the rips are, best tide, local amenities and so on.

• The end of stills photography. Photogs will shoot video and then take stills from the clips.

What do you guys reckon?

Let’s hear your thoughts…go to Carvemag.com and write your comments — RB

global surfwear company, Flow, Camel is leading a middle-aged male fantasy of gargantuan proportions – wealth, power, world travel, decadent indulgence. But when Camel returns home from a spectacular six-week global bender, he makes a horrifying discovery that triggers a spiralling descent into crisis.

Warning: adult themes, drug references, sexual references.’

Oh goody! Check it out at www. flowbytimbaker.blogspot.com.

SkiSurfing

It’s something you’d expect Laird would have nailed already…hell, he probably has. The skis are fat and look ridiculous, but there’s no denying that these guys are skiing on waves, and bloody fast. You can only imagine the Wolfpak’s comments. www.youtube.com/user/ carvemagazine

Rude Tube From: Taylor Ross Subject: Getting a grip on grabs Me and my mate have been talking about the different kind of grabs that work best for various kinds of airs. I notice that some of the top UK aerialists like Reubyn Ash and Oli Adams use a whole variety. As I only started trying basic airs just before Christmas I now want to try some different grabs, but I’m not sure where to start and what they are? Do different types of grab have different names?

What's the best way to practice them? Any help would be much appreciated and help me and my mate resolve our debate!

Oli Adams: There are many different grabs and they all have different weird names like slob, roast beef, melon…all of them are Oli Adams’ winter boost. difficult to master but once you have them down they can actually help with landing your airs, because they hold and centre you to your board. The best grabs for this are double grabs — with both hands on either rail you will be solid on there. There are certain grabs that actually make it harder to make airs, like stalefish grabs where you hold your inside rail with your back hand, because they throw you off balance. So if you see someone land one of those, show them some love!

Have you got a question for a pro? Email it to incoming@orcasurf.co.uk.

18 carve surfing magazine

Read an installment each week, comment on, and possibly influence veteran surf writer Tim Baker’s novel, Flow: ‘As head of the massively successful

Rude Tube brings you the best of the YouTube phenomenon.

You probably won’t have missed the fat Scottish barmaid falling through a trapdoor, but there are

other gems that you might not have caught — the redefinition of shithead, the puking TV chick, and so on. The ability to endure the foppish drainpipe of a presenter and his Jeremy Beadle-esque script will earn YouTube gold. www.channel4. com/programmes/rude-tube.

ALEX PIPER

go!

James Hick

Waimea Bay, Oahu Jersey boy James Hick has been flying the flag in Hawaii since January, notching up a few sessions in pretty chunky waves. He described this day as ‘fun size, with the biggest ones in the 15-foot range’.

After trashing his big-wave gun in Jersey shortly before he was due to fly out to the islands (see page 101), Jimbo had to shell out for a new 9’8” from Jeff Bushman. “I arrived on a Friday and phoned Jeff to ask if he could make me a board. He said, ‘You’re going to need a board by Monday’, and sure enough I was waxing it up on Sunday night. It went amazingly well. I just hope it stays in one piece for a while!”

Jimbo says he’s lovin’ life over there in Hawaii. “It's just been amazing so far, with solid Waimea swells every week.

Big Monday [in mid January] was the biggest eye-opener of my life, I’ve never seen waves travel that fast. Now I know how good you’ve got to be to catch a maxing set at the Bay.” Fingers crossed the season keeps firing for the boy wonder.

kelly cestari

go!

Pablo Gutierriez

Cloud Nine, Philippines Cloud Nine often gets really good as autumn turns to winter and the super-typhoons crank up the action in the West Pacific. Rip Curl pro Pablo Gutierrez, photog Victor Gonzalez and a couple of amigos from Spain wanted to score it at its best, so they headed over for a few weeks of late season keg action.

“Hey man, Cloud Nine just is amazing!” reported Victor in his slightly sketchy English. “I was dreaming with this travel for three years, I wanted to go here always. I can say that this was one of the best travels in my life. We have surf almost every day – was flat only two days. There is a lot of really good waves in the area, past Cloud Nine. We were in Sagana Resort and we almost get fat, they cook the best food!”

Victor Gonzalez

go!

Billy Kemper

Jaws, MauI “When it comes to tow surfing, Jaws is hands down the most hectic place in the world,” says Aussie photo hound Tim Jones. “They’re gonna need traffic lights and cops out there pretty soon!”

This session before Christmas drew some 17 tow teams, two boats and three helicopters to the mutha of all big-wave spots on Maui.

“Yeah, it was pretty crazy.

That day had about a week’s hype behind it due to everyone knowing there was a massive swell on the way. It was carnage out there. There were some f--king heavy holddowns after guys hit chop and fell, and three skis got caught inside trying to rescue people.

But I don’t think anyone got hurt.”

Among the standouts were Ian Walsh, Laurie Towner and local dude Billy Kemper, who stormed his way through a barrel section the length of a football pitch...then claimed the thing like he was Emmanuel Adebayor!

tim jones

bulletin lucia griggi

Magnificent Mick Fanning clinches the 2009 World Title at Pipeline

The race for the 2009 ASP World Title went right down to the wire, with Aussie mates Mick Fanning and Joel Parkinson going at it hammer and tongs in the final event of the year, the Billabong Pipe Masters.

Fanning looked the favourite going into the contest as he’d won two of the three previous World Tour events in Europe. So the pressure was on Parko, who needed to finish at least two places better than Mick to take the title.

The waves pumped for most of the comp with epic six- to eight-foot grinders rolling through at both Pipe and Backdoor on the penultimate day.

In Round Three, Fanning dispatched Hawaiian wildcard Torrey Meister without too much trouble, so the ball was in Parko’s court once again. He was up against another local wildcard, Pipeline specialist Gavin Gillette. Looking nervous, the Aussie picked off a couple of medium-sized Backdoor barrels while his opponent sat waiting for bigger lefts. With 35 minutes gone, Gillette only had one decent wave under his belt...but his patience finally paid off when a last-minute set lumbered into the lineup, allowing the Hawaiian to deliver the killer blow to Parko’s championship hopes. It was all over. Parko threw himself off the top of the next (unmakeable) wave in frustration, and new world champ Mick graciously paddled out to console his friend.

A huge crowd gathered to watch Fanning being presented with the World Champion trophy at the end of the day. "I'm at a loss for words,” said Mick, “it's been such a crazy year. I’ve had so much fun. I'm just shaking!"

Taj Burrow went on to win the event (see Final Score, page 110).

26 carve surfing magazine

Courtesy ISA

Top British pro Russ Winter is joining forces with CARVE to offer a series of special surf coaching weekends this year. The courses will be run from a new surf training centre on Headland Road in Newquay, overlooking Fistral Beach.

“I’m stoked to be in a position to put something back into the sport,” says Russ. “The coaching weekends will be for individuals or groups who want to take their surfing to the next level.”

Russ will be running the coaching weekends over the following dates: 10-11 April, 15-16 May, 19-20 Wanna learn how to do this?

June, 10-11 July, 11-12 September and 2-3 October. For full details about the 2010 coaching weekends check out carvemag.com.

Russ is also offering individual coaching and is planning to run a number of surf coaching holidays abroad next winter; stay tuned to CARVE or log onto Russ’s own website (www.russellwintersurfcoaching.co.uk) for updates.

British Juniors on the up The British Junior team finished in 11th place at this year’s Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Games, improving their previous ranking by five places. The event was held in challenging surf up to eight-foot at Piha Beach in New Zealand at the end of January.

The lads ‘n lasses, ready for action at Piha.

Team manager Jo Hillman said the team’s training programme had paid off with improved results in all divisions, adding: “They represented themselves, the BSA and the country impeccably.”

Alex Baker from Croyde made it through some tough heats to finish 25th in the Under 18s, while Jersey’s Nathan Elms placed a credible 31st. In the Under 16s Joe Paris from Bude impressed with a 31st and Newquay grom Luke Dillon placed 37th. Tassie Swallow from St Ives got the best individual result for the team, coming home 21st in the Girls division.

A talent-studded Australian team finished at the top of the medal table, winning the team title for the fifth time in a row. But the star of the event was Brazilian phenom Gabriel Medina, who scored a near perfect 19.90 in the final of the Under 18s to take the title.

Geoff Tydeman

Will Bailey

Sign up for Russ’s coaching weekends

John Holmes, 1980 - 2009

The Newquay surfing community was shocked and saddened to hear of the death of John Holmes just before Christmas, after he’d recently been diagnosed with leukaemia. He was 29. John was a well-known face on the Cornish scene and was a regular in the lineup at South John in action at South Fistral earlier last year.

Fistral. He was a member of the British Team in the ‘90s and also won a number of local comps. He was the son of the late Rod Holmes, the TV presenter and author. John’s fiance Amy will be running the Bath Half Marathon in March to raise money for Leukaemia Research, supported by John’s mum Jane, friends and family. If you knew John and would like to donate, please do so at justgiving.com/amyhurst1.

digi carve You can now access your favourite mag everywhere you go.

www.issuu.com/carve

go online and flick through the pages of past issues

will bailey

foam

Cornered Josh Piper

Sometimes, a sportsman hits form at such a key time that it totally changes the rest of his career. The goal he scores, the innings he racks up, or the time he runs elevates him from his previous level to a whole new, higher echelon. The recent CARVE trip to Morocco saw 17-year-old Josh Piper step his surfing up to a different level.

He’s gone from being a just another hot young Cornish kid to guy who can rightfully claim a place in Britain’s top 10.

How old are you and where are you from?

I’m 17 and I’m from Watergate Bay. Don’t put me down as being part of the Newquay scene and all that TR7 stuff.

I’m TR8, so keep me out of that business!

Well, I want to try to make a living from surfing, but if that doesn’t happen I wouldn’t mind being a PE teacher, and maybe moving to Bali. My friend’s done that and he’s loving life.

I hear you’ve been training pretty hard.

Yeah, I go boxing twice a week at Pauly Jefferies’ place, I swim or cycle two or three times a week, and I surf whenever there are waves.

You’ve been to Bali a few times, haven’t you?

Yeah. That’s where I learned to surf, funnily enough. My mum and dad took me around the world when I was four and we stopped off there. We had an old Chris Harris board with the nose snapped off. My mum has photos of me riding these little green waves on it when I was really young. Since then I’ve been there three times, and I’m going again in April. The summer before last I went for a couple of months and it was so good for my surfing. I stayed with a friend of my mum who lives over there and just totally concentrated on my surfing. I surfed Kerama’s, Canguu, Bingin and a few other spots. My favourite wave is Kerama’s...just a wide barrel then a sick air section.

And you’re a pretty good swimmer, aren’t you?

I’m okay. I used to be the county champion but I don’t compete anymore, I don’t have time with my surfing.

Do you work or are you studying?

I’m doing a sixth form course called OCRPE. It’s basically PE, the equivalent of three A-Levels. I do three hours a day, mostly in the mornings. The school are cool with me having time off for trips and stuff.

So what’s the long-term plan then?

Any ladies in your life?

Yeah, I’ve got one, for once! Her name’s Jess and she’s

Check the Josh Piper profile clip of him blowing up in Morocco at www.carvemag.com

28 carve surfing magazine

from Plymouth. We met in Portugal. We started hooking up before Christmas.

How much time do you spend talking to her on Skype each day? Tell the truth!

Probably two hours a day. It depends on the waves. I’m nowhere near as bad Lyndon or Toby. They’re ridiculous!

Have you got any brothers and sisters?

Yeah, I’ve got a brother, Joe. He’s 11-years-old and goes to a special needs school in Redruth. He’s autistic and has epilepsy. He’s super-cool though and a good laugh to hang out with.

Who are your biggest rivals?

Well, Toby Donachie and Luis Eyre are the ones I’m up against most of the time, but also Reubs and Jayce.

Those guys all rip, it goes without saying. Hopefully this year I can up my game and win a few more comps.

Interview by Rob Barber

e r e i m e r p ’s k u e Th board store dick van straalen simon anderson dhd • banks webber • chilli morning of the earth murray bourton bear • mccoy pipedreams firewire

DTL surfer:matt smith location: ireland photo: Mickey smith

Boardriders • Hayle • Cornwall Market Square Arcade, Copperhouse, Hayle, Cornwall TR27 4EA Email: downthelinesurf@btconnect.com • Tel: 01736 757025

www.downthelinesurf.co.uk

foam Karin Seelow

Air Time Luis Eyre

Red hot junior has racked up an impressive 14,931 miles in the last couple of months, jetting around Europe, over to Hawaii, back to California and then onto New York. (He’s planning to plant a small forest to make up for all the carbon emissions when he gets home.) We asked him for a few long haul travel tips.

mike searle

Which airports do you reckon are worth avoiding at all costs?

There’s probably quite a few, but the one I really hate is Madrid airport because I always seem to have to wait there for about eight hours for a connection flight, and they always lose my boards.

Do you get treated differently to other passengers at the check-in because you're a surfer? Yeah, the check-in girls always try and do me for excess baggage because of my boards. I try to go for the nicer looking and friendlier ones, but it doesn't always work.

Any tips for getting good seats? Get there early, be polite, dress smart and smile.

Do you eat airline food, or pack your own? I do both as those tiny little meals wouldn’t feed a growing boy like me! Also, on the domestic

There’s nothing like

Mole Joel celebrates the rebirth of the reef.

Porthleven. Hallelujah!

...the first duckdive after finding out you’ve forgotten your hood. ...an onshore squall from hell arriving just as you jump off the rocks. ...hailstones pinging off your face.

...going over the falls feet first and getting flushed up your inside leg. ...forgetting to bring your suit in off the line and finding it in a pile of slush, leaves and grit in the morning.

...four foot offshore Monday morning after a two foot onshore Sunday arvo. ...you mate saying “last wave” then staying out for another hour leaving you to freeze to

Luis likes to fly.

death because he has the car key. ...new towels that don’t dry. ...Facebook photos of the boys in Indo. ...16 second wave period, long distance swells that don’t turn up.

sequence: jacob cockle

bonus mini sequence 30 carve surfing magazine

flights in the US you have to pay for your food, so I always hit the Starbucks or MacD's at the airport and stock up for the flight.

What's the most disgusting airline food meal you've been served?

The other day I was on an American Airlines flight and they gave us this amazing-looking box full of multicoloured fancy little squares. I thought they were something like Turkish Delight, but they tasted hideous, just revolting slimy gunk. For dessert they gave us fruit that tasted like puke!

How do you pass the time when you're on a long flight? I watch all the movies, eat all the food, listen to music and sleep.

Have you had any romantic interactions with air hostesses? What on American Airlines flights? They’re older than my great grandma!

–CP

simon williams

out at easter!

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on! on fir e The world’s besT

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to takeE loveWARDROB Top trips you’dWINTER 24

25

STYLE YOUR PERFECT

9 771754 878009

UNDIES KIM SAIGH • J BAY • SIZZLING GEAR • TATTOO QUEEN • FESTIVE FINDS • KASSIA MEADOR PLUS: BEST SNOWBOARD WINTER EXERCISE SARAH BEARDMORE •

“I feel like I’m going to

explode and surfing is my

creative outlet...”

Meet the ASP A- team Destinat ion Canary Islands Your best wetsuit buys Autumn fashion

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surfgirl is available in all good surf shops, newsagents and online at www.orcashop.co.uk go to www.issuu.com/surfgirl to flick through the pages of surfgirl plus you can read surfgirl on your mobile!

foam BERNIE BAKER/OCEAN PROMOTION

You Tube-Rider Challenge

Judge runs off and wins Volcom Pipe!

You just can’t get the staff these days. The vids were up, the votes were in, but as the grand finale of the 2009 Etnies YouTube Rider Challenge raced down the line and prepared to spit out a cool G to the winner, the head judge went MIA. Turns out some ‘Volcom Pipeline Pro’ was on in pumping surf, and Jamie O’Brien had decided to enter. Of course he won, went to celebrate with his bro’s and left us in the lurch on deadline.

If you haven’t been following the comp, it’s been pretty epic with barrels from all over the country. Our particular favourite was Dan Chapman, who got barrelled under some portable spotlights off a pier in Kent – at night, in winter.

Dan wins a free subscription to CARVE for a year, two pairs of etnies daps, a pair of flip-flops and a hoody. Should do it for going beyond the call of duty.

The top five, well, they’re all going to get a pair of Etnies shoes, and the winner will get their £1,000 and a LowePro camera bag. Jamie has checked out all the vids and he was about to record his verdict and presentation

sequence: coursey

speech in good old Oscar-stylee when Pipe started throwing out bombs, and to cut a long story short we hadn’t heard from him at time of going to print.

(Presumably he’s lost in Club Femme Nu.) Anyways, if you go to volcompipelinepro.com you can see why he failed to do his homework, and if you log onto the CARVE website you’ll see the event finale in all its glory…if he’s sober enough to do it.

The 2010 Etnies YouTube Rider Challenge has now kicked off, with two categories (we’re listening to you!), Tow and Paddle, so get out there and start pulling into some bombs!

fergal smith (above) and some of the other entries (right). go to carvemag.com to view them all.

32 carve surfing magazine

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watch it

Lives of the the film Artists A ProvocAtive FeAtUre-LenGth DocUmentAry

‘DiviDeD by their Art. UniteD by their Artistry’

Presents

The snowboarder, the surfer, the musician: each is the master of his own realm, but they are all just Artists, men driven to extremes, consumed by that same singular desire to leave their mark on the world.

From Relentless Energy comes the provocative examination of surf triumvirate Tom Lowe, Fergal Smith and Mickey Smith, freerider Xavier De Le Rue and volatile punk rock outfit Gallows as we journey from the crystal waters of Tahiti to the untouched snow peaks of Greenland and the furious circle-pits of America. Beautifully shot and interwoven with commentaries from all the Artists, the film shows us that, though they may be different men of different ages from different walks of life, if you look past the surface details, you’ll see that they’re not so different after all.

. 4 ArTISTS LIVES OF

.

Presents

featuring

tom Lowe

XAvier De Le rUe

FerGAL smith

GALLows

mickey smith

‘DiviDeD by their Art. UniteD by their Artistry’ © 2009 BEVERAGE SERVICES LIMITED. ALL RIGhTS RESERVED

DVD_FRONT+BACK_AWK_1.0.indd 1

11/12/09 18:24:09

“Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal — a commitment to excellence — that will enable you to attain the success you seek.” Okay, so that was a quote from Mario Anderetti, a legend in motorsports, but in essence that is what Lives Of The Artists is about.

In these days of social media and digital everything, everyone has the ability to achieve their five minutes of fame via a never-ending trail of dross. Here in mag world we hear our fair share of big claims and promises, but there is world of difference between desire, interest, dreams and commitment. I’m talking real commitment, when there are no excuses, no shoulda, coulda, wouldas or if-onlys to stand in the way. These words never enter their heads of the committed — they are foreign concepts. They see no barriers, they accept only results. Lives Of The Artists is testament to this. Ross Cairns’ film examines three types of artist willing to put body and soul on the line in pursuit of their passions.

At the centre of our surfing interest are Tom Lowe, Mickey Smith and Fergal Smith.

You know them by now? Yes, I am sure you do. The thing is about these three is behind the scenes in ‘media world’ there has been a lot of sniping about how much coverage they have received over the last year. We hear the complaints: “I could do that if…”, “They are only there because…”. In the meantime most real surfers recognise their unfailing commitment, stand back and give respect. And the general public, well I think the global interest Powers of Three stirred is testament enough. In Lives Of The Artists the lads go to find their Holy Grail, the wave at Teahupoo. Funnily enough, when they got there it wasn’t quite the experience their imagination had conjured. As a huge anticipated swell approached a bullshit world fuelled by ego and glory descended and tainted their love for the place. International pro’s, cameramen and a whole circus entourage invaded the

34 carve surfing magazine

sleepy Tahitian village. It was surfing, but not as they knew it. Or at least not as they had become accustomed too. It’s interesting stuff.

Frank Carter of the Gallows is an interesting chap. He’s deep. Intelligent. He thinks about the world. It f--ks him off. A ball of pent-up, twitchy energy and emotion, he has taken a different path, one forged by punk pioneers in the ’70s who railed against a stagnant music scene and corrupt society. He is committed. His passion and intensity are palpable. He will either die young, throw it all away, or become legend. That is his destiny.

You either love the Gallows, or hate them, but you can’t ignore Frank Carter. Lives Of The Artists follows their tour through the US. It documents their commitment in taking their art to fresh new audiences.

Freeride World Champion Xavier De Le Rue’s is one seriously cool dude, the kind you could have beer with in a quiet bar one minute, then go watch as he puts his life on the line the next. He got run over by an avalanche. Yeah, seriously! Xav is different. He is committed to his art in the same spirit as you or I. You can relate to his passion. He feels the power of nature. He commits to his love and dedication as a surfer would. And by that I mean ‘a surfer’, not one that just talks about it. He has flow and style too, in abundance.

If you seek to fulfil your life, Lives Of The Artists should provoke a sense of inspiration. Few will get to surf Chopes, or throw themselves off a cliff, or stand in front of 30,000 people, but we can commit to being the best we can be. And that is all anyone can ask.

–SE

photo: will bailey

Coaching from Europe’s most successful surfer

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sounds

Seb Smart has hit the big screen…well, little screen, but in a big way. The Sennen surfer was employed to star in a video for the new London indie band Goldhawks.we caught up with them to find out more.

A five-piece from London, Goldhawks are named after the West London street they were born and raised on. The Goldhawks unmistakably British sound is mixed with a sprinkling of Americana thrown in – think Tom Petty, Springsteen, Echo and the Bunnymen, The Cure and U2 (when they were really good) and you’re somewhere in the right ball park. With a single in the offing in March and a new album Trick of Light out in May, Goldhawks look set for big things in 2010. CARVE punted a few questions at the band.

jacob cockle

What’s the best thing about being in a band? Playing music every day with your mates is pretty sweet!

What’s the motto that you live and die by? Have a good time…all the time.

Who’s the worst drinker in the band? Easy. Colin.

As a new band are you going to make any money in future? F--king hope so…or it’s back to the Jobcentre.

A gig at O2 or a date with Kate Moss – which one would you pick? Gig at the O2.

What keeps you stoked? Doing music, playing with the band, getting in rehearsals and writing new songs. That’s what keeps us all going.

Have you ever tried surfing? No, we’ve always wanted to but you can’t really do it on the Thames…

To see the new video go to www.goldhawks.co.uk

Band on a roll Win this Goldhawks have three Rip Curl E-Bomb wetsuits to give away, plus a weekend of surf lessons for two at the ESF Surf School in Newquay. All you have to do

is watch the video, then answer the question at the end. Check www.goldhawks.co.uk for more details.

“Seb Smart stood apart – he looked natural and confident on camera but was also one the best surfers of his age. Seb couldn’t have been more committed, putting 100 percent into the project.” – Directors Ben and Nick.

17-year-old Seb Smart featured in the video. CARVE asked him what it was like and if he’s was bitten by the acting bug.

The shoot, was it like Hollywood coming to Sennen?

Yes, it was in a way, due to the fact there were runners, a director, plans and routines.

Did you meet the band? Yes, but not during the filming.

A week after the release I went to London with the editing team and record company. We watched the band play live and afterwards I sank a few with them.

What did you think of the final video? I loved it; it came

36 carve surfing magazine

out really well. I didn’t feel my acting was great, I could have been better.

Is that the kind of music you’re into? I’m into a lot of music ranging between S Club 7 to 50 Cent! I’ve always got into any music that’s on the go; I think if I had to choose it’d be indie and electro. I like anything that’s a bit different, songs without lyrics for example Bonobo, sebAstian and a few songs by Metronomy.

Will we see you on the London stage anytime soon? My parents have actually mentioned it a couple of times! I think I might get into a few drama classes, it would be great for self confidence and I’d learn a lot about the industry.

Where in the World LIMITED EDITION NUMBERED PICTURE DISC AND DOWNLOAD

m a r c h 2 9 TH

To watch the amazing video featuring the surfer Seb Smart & for your chance to win a weekend of surf lessons or 3 ripcurl wetsuits go to www.goldhawks.co.uk

stuff Power Stroke Feel you’re missing out on waves due to lack of fitness? Then get super-strong paddle power with the Power Stroke Bungee Cord!

Fully portable, the Power Stroke Bungee Cord can be attached to door handles, posts or any fixture that is not going to move during exercise.

It includes a free instructional DVD with Ben Skinner and Oli Adams. £29.95 [www.orcasurf. co.uk]

J’taime

February is the month of love, so put a smile on your lady’s face with some romantic Pull-In lingerie. Plus you may get a pass next time it’s pumping! Lingerie sets: from £55.00 [www.streetfusion.co.uk]

Billabong Jacket Brighten up a dull day with this cool windshell jacket by Billabong. Made of taffeta polyester, the Counter jacket is available in either block colours or solid silver. £70 [www.billabong.com]

Legends of Surfing, Duke Boyd; images by Jeff Divine Duke Boyd is the creator of Hang Ten and ‘knew many of the surfing pioneers as well as champions of today’. This big, heavy coffee table book includes profiles of more than 180 surfers. Each legend has a couple of paragraphs of gushing prose and a photo or two. £22.50. [www.amazon.co.uk]

Firewire Firefly The Firewire Firefly combines a thicker foil from nose to tail with the outline of a performance surfboard. With a wide swallowtail and a 5/4/3 fin option, the Firefly offers multiple choices in the pursuit of small wave fun without sacrificing performance.

Available from 10 March, in sizes from 5´5˝ to 6´3˝. Check them out at www. firewiresurfboards.com. There’s also a cool blog where you can ask for advice.

Quiksilver Cypher Heat Vest A battery-powered vest that can be worn under any wetsuit with two heat panels to increase your time in the water and eliminate the chill of those winter sessions. Two heat settings, (55 degrees and 44 degrees) lasting two hours at the highest heat setting, longer at the lower. £178 [www.quiksilver.com]

Busting Down The Door Bustin Down The Door is a gripping DVD with classic footage and stories from true surfing legends Ian Cairns, Pete Townend, Shaun and Michael Tomson, Rabbit and MR all arriving on the North Shore, challenging the locals’ surfing and pretty much inventing pro surfing along the way.

There are so many amazing stories from that era: the crew taming Pipeline backhand; days on the North Shore when it was pretty much considered unridable by the locals but all the travelling surfers would go out and pull into death pits; Shaun Tomson’s groundbreaking tuberiding which still stands up against today’s pros; and of course ’the hit’ that went out on Rab with half of Oahu’s criminal element wanted to rip him apart. The hairs have greyed, but the spirit and emotion displayed by the surfers is still pretty intense. A must see DVD. Available from [www. orcasurf.co.uk] £15.99

38 carve surfing magazine

FCS K2.1 Grom This is a grom-size version of Kelly Slater’s popular signature fin, with a flat-sided foil. Suitable for surfers under 55kg. £60 [www.surffcs.com].

check out our new site!

surfgirlmag.com news tips wetsuits travel environment video gear beach guides blogs events fashion competitions

for girls who ride Check out our 2010 event schedule, there is something for every age and ability!

April 10-11 Russ Winter Coaching Weekend May 15-16 Russ Winter Coaching Weekends May 29-30 Bodyboard Coaching Weekend June 6 Silver Surfer Day June 12-13 Bodyboard Coaching Weekend June 19-20 Russ Winter Coaching Weekend July 3-4 Bodyboard Coaching Weekend July 10-11 Russ Winter Coaching Weekend July 17-18 Surfgirl Coaching Weekend September 4-5 Bodyboard Coaching Weekend September 11-12 Russ Winter Coaching Weekend September 12 Silver Surfer Day September 18-19 Bodyboard Coaching Weekend September 25-26 Surfgirl Coaching Weekend October 2-3 Russ Winter Elite Coaching Weekend October 16-17 Bodyboard Coaching Weekend October Half term Student and kids surf week

straight up

What lies beneath Surfing is a brilliant lark, and travelling to warm water waves is even better. But don’t forget, the oceans are also home to some frickin’ horrible creatures that want to sting, bite and maim you, says Ben Mondy.

Blue-ringed octopus

Sea Snakes

In Australia, these innocuous-looking floating clusterf--ks cause more irritation, upset and genuine pain than any of their more venomous sea creature cousins.

Bluebottles (Aussie scientific name ‘Blueys’) get blown in from the open ocean by summer onshores. Their stinging tentacles look like threads of blue cotton, and they’re almost impossible to remove once they get caught in your watchband or down your boardshorts. Cue a pain that can instantly transform the gnarliest Aussie hard man into a whimpering four-year-old girl.

Another of Australia’s cute furry creatures, the blue ring hangs out in tidal rockpools along the southeast coast.

When disturbed, the golf ball-sized creature turns from dull grey to bright yellow with shiny blue rings, so you’ll know if it’s angry. You’ll also know if you've been bitten as this is the world’s deadliest sea creature – each one has enough venom to kill 36 humans.

There’s absolutely no good reason why a snake should be swimming in the bloody ocean – it’s as perverse as seeing a dwarf trying to mount a ferret, just less erotic.

Sea snakes are commonly encountered in Indo and the Pacific, and the fact that they have useless tiny fangs is somewhat mitigated by the strength of their venom – it’s ten times deadlier than that of a rattlesnake.

Sea Lice

Fire coral

Saltwater crocodiles

Sure, no-one has ever died from lice bites, but I’ve seen surfers driven from the water at absolutely perfect G-Land such was the ferocity of a sustained lice attack.

In most cases they are actually jellyfish larvae that hunt in packs of millions. The Mexican name Pica Pica (‘itchy itchy’) is perhaps the most apt, although I’ve heard surfers calling them a lot worse names than that.

The clue is in the name here. A slight brush against this organism (it’s actually more closely related to jellyfish than coral) and you’ll experience a feeling akin to someone trying to alleviate the pain of nasty graze...by using a flame-thrower. This eye bleeding pain often lasts for a couple of days, or, if you’re really lucky, a whole week.

What’s not to love?

Sure, you’d have to be goddamn unlucky to encounter one of these f--kers at low tide Fistral. But in some parts of the world saltwater crocodiles and surfers frequent the same stretches of water. When they meet (the rivermouths of Costa Rica spring to mind) there tends to be only one winner. Crocs have 90 million years of killing experience on their side and no real knowledge of the drop-in rule.

Weeverfish

Stonefish

Great whites

The UK’s nastiest seaside treat, the humble weeverfish just might be responsible for more lifeguard jobs than low-tide rips. Sadly, modern first aid treatments have superseded the old advice to urinate on the affected limb to lessen the pain. A shame, as there was perhaps no better feeling than pissing all over a mate’s feet as he writhed around suffering the telltale burning pain of a weeverfish sting.

The most venomous fish species in the world, the stonefish is also arguably the ugliest. They behave a bit like a particularly misshapen girl might in a night club at 3.00 am. They camouflage themselves in their surroundings, then pounce when you least expect it, causing intense pain, and in some extreme cases, death.

As for the stonefish, they just hurt like hell when you step on one.

The saying goes you’ll only ever get the chance to see one great white...and that’s the one that eats you. What else can you say about a top-of-the-food-chain predator the size of a Kombi that kills other animals (including the odd human) just ‘cos they can. A masterclass in evolutionary maritime evil.

40 carve surfing magazine

illustrations: rory walker

Bluebottle jellyfish

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the carve interview:

toby donachie With a thatch of white-blonde hair, a perma-tan and piercing blue eyes, Constantine Bay’s Toby Donachie looks as though he has been popped straight out of the Californian surfer boy mould. The fortunate lad is never going to struggle for female attention. With the British Junior title added to his swag of trophies last year, he is fast becoming the hottest property in British surfing and has some of the most solid sponsorship backing as a result. He spends more time abroad than Alan Wicker and is training hard this winter for another attack on the European contest scene, with a good result on the Pro Junior tour high on his list of priorities. Fresh from a month on Hawaii’s North Shore, he’s scored a hat-full of shots, charged Waimea, and finally sat down long enough to give Steve England an eyeball account of everything that went down. Read on…

How many times have you been to Hawaii?

I’ve been quite a few times now, this was my fourth season. I was staying right on the beach at Rocky Point for a month with my parents and my best friend Nathan Bennetts from Constantine.

You look really comfortable in the shots, where were you surfing mostly?

Anywhere that was breaking on any given day really, the best spots. I thoroughly enjoyed surfing Rocky Point and the more gentle waves, but I also had a few good sessions at Waimea, Pipeline and a couple of the heavier ones. There was one day at Rockpiles that was three foot and clean, with really nice little left hand barrels and only about two guys out, which was one of my best surfs. I also surfed Sunset loads. It’s so crowded there now though. Because in a way it’s an easy wave to surf, everyone paddles out and sits in the channel and then if one comes through everyone goes for it. One of my favourite waves was the section between Rocky Rights and Gas Chambers. The odd one comes through there with the gnarliest, heaviest beachbreak barrels. Ian Walsh was comparing it to Puerto Escondido. I just got so raped on one wave it was stupid. I got my top ripped down the middle, leash snapped in two places and came up swearing blind I just walked back up the beach and said, “I’m going home.”

I trudged back to Rocky Point. I don’t like being hurt! They were calling it five-foot Hawaiian and I was riding my 6’4˝. It was pretty solid.

lucia griggi

Pitted, OTW.

You had a good dig at Waimea as well…

Yeah, I went out there four or five times. The first time wasn’t particularly big, it was the day of the opening ceremony of The Eddie. They were calling it 15- to 18-foot Hawaiian. I borrowed a friend’s board, a bigger guy than me, so I found the board good and the session was quite easy really. So then I tried to prepare for the next swell that was due to be bigger. I went to buy a gun but couldn’t find one that I wanted. The shop that had the board I wanted was closed; luckily I managed to contact the owner and he opened up early for me on the morning of the big swell. The board was a 9’6˝ Dick Brewer and it cost me $1100. A lot of money but it was so worth it in the end.

That’s a man’s board!

Yeah, it is a man’s board! I was shitting it when I first paddled out. Surfline were calling it the warm-up day for The Eddie and I was paddling out there! The first person I spoke to out there was Ross Clarke-Jones. The day before that I’d surfed at Waimea, riding one of his old boards, and I mentioned it to him and he was really friendly and chatty. I’d told him that it was my first time out there, and he told me that the first time he went out there he was a 7´0˝ board and he was 18 years old. It was really special actually, because the first wave I rode on the new board we rode together — he called me in, so it felt really good. My confidence began to grow and seeing guys like Shane Dorian out there, it was just nuts seeing what those guys can do. Just crazy.

What was the vibe like?

It was heavy. Surprising really, ’cos you expect that everyone out there is a big-wave surfer and they are all eternally respectful to each other and all that crap that Laird talks.

Generally the non-locals are friendly but there are more locals out there as it gets bigger. I was sat a bit further on the inside feeling weaker than the rest of them, I got in the way of one guy and he started shouting “F--king haoles, get out of the water!” And more than half of the people in the water were haoles so we all kind of looked at each other. I started to get a bit deeper on the peak as the session went on. At one point I found myself deeper than Shane and I went on one, it wasn’t a big one at all, it wasn’t even close to a big one. It was just brilliant to get a nice wave out there.

What’s the deal with lots of surfers taking waves out there, because sometimes there can be like eight people on a wave?

You don’t even know that they’re there! You know when you paddle into a normal wave, and you take five strokes before you catch it and pop up? Well, out there you need to take an extra five strokes again so you’re literally going down the wave before you pop to your feet. You’re concentrating so hard on when your feet are landing that you don’t give a shit. You get to the bottom and you realise that you’re two feet away from another surfer and people start going straight, the person in the whitewater is getting nailed cause they can’t cut across, everyone feels a little bit guilty but ’cos you’re stoked that you made it and didn’t get hammered. I only had one really scary

44 carve surfing magazine

tim jones

lucia griggi

moment out there, when I got pitched on Christmas Day. That was the biggest day I surfed it and that was proper Waimea. It was a grey, misty morning and the wind was blowing really hard up the face. Sounds like a classic fisherman’s tail doesn’t it? I just paddled into it and I felt nervous — I didn’t feel confident and I didn’t paddle as hard as I should have. I thought I could probably make it and just tail-dropped from the lip down the whole thing. I got absolutely pounded. Occy paddled up and asked it if I was okay, and I was like, “Yeah, I’m cool.” I got like five or six waves after that, it was a brilliant day.

Were you there for the Pipe Masters as well?

Yeah, I watched the whole of the Pipe Masters. I watched if from the Billabong house which I shouldn’t have! [He’s sponsored by Quiksilver - ed.] I ended up getting to know loads and loads of people and got invited into the house and got free lunch and stuff. It was a bit naughty really but I had a great time.

lucia griggi

What was it like watching it live? It was epic enough watching it on the web!

There was one barrel that Kelly got where the whole beach was just like, “No way! That wave wasn’t doing anything!”

He took off on a foamball, dropped down into it, stuck his arm in and it just opened up. From the Billabong house you’re literally looking straight into the Backdoor tubes, and he crossed us and went through the section at Off The Wall and came out way down the beach. Firstly, I dunno how that wave peeled all that way because there were no other ones doing it, and then secondly how did he make it through so many sections? To be there and watch it is so different to watching it on the web. On the internet they tend to slow it down and replay it. When it’s live you’re standing on the beach and in the space of about three seconds Taj will take off and do an alley-oop and you’ll be like, how did he do that? It was so quick. It happens in just a glimpse of a moment.

What was the most impressive surfing that you saw?

That’s really hard. There was this one Rip Curl guy at Rocky Point one day who kind of appeared out of nowhere and then disappeared after that so I don’t know who he was — it wasn’t Gabriel Medina, this guy was like twice as good as him, about 24 and just incredible. It was Hawaiian six-foot Rocky Point, pretty solid with some decent sets rolling through. Only like seven or eight other guys out so really uncrowded. He’d take off and do a turn where anyone else would just have done a tiny, safe lip bash. On one wave he did this huge alley-oop over the tube on a solid, solid wave. I must have orgasm’d or something, it was a special moment for me!

How long were you there for?

I was there for a month with my mum, My step-dad Adrian and my best mate. Adrian had a bit of a bad back halfway through so didn’t get to surf as much as he would have liked.

Did that come on when the big surf hit?

(Laughs) Yeah, weird that! He actually ended up shaping himself a board out there, at the First Foam factory. He shaped himself a big old man’s board. I actually rode it a bit and it went really well! It was easy to throw around, I really liked it.

What are you up to now?

I’m in Bristol attempting to pass my driving test.

What are you up to after that?

I’m going to the Gold Coast for two months and then I may be going on a coaching trip. I’m going to continue my coaching programme in Polzeath with Kelly O’Toole and Surfs Up! Surf School. Also I’m going down to France to compete in the Pro Juniors, then next winter back to Hawaii and hopefully Australia again.

Are you doing the UKPST this year?

Yes, I’ll be doing the whole tour and also the junior events.

I’ll be at the British Juniors to defend my title and hopefully get another. I want it, I want it a hell of a lot.

The Hawaiian quiv.

46 carve surfing magazine

“I thought I could probably make it and just tail-dropped from the lip down the whole thing. I got absolutely pounded. Occy paddled up and asked if I was okay, and I was like, “Yeah, I’m cool.” I got like five or six waves after that, it was a brilliant day.”

lucia griggi

Bustin out, Rocky Rights.

Le Mistral, the northerly wind which periodically blows across the western end of the Mediterranean, is renowned for its ferocity during the winter months.

When it howls, short-lived but solid swells bombard the coast of north Africa...and one of the countries right in the firing line is Algeria. Sam bleakley, tristan jenkin and a few friends went to check it out.

Words by Sam Bleakley • Photos by John Callahan (unless otherwise indicated)

don’t look down.

48 carve surfing magazine

the highlight of the trip was finding this virgin left point.

A

lgeria is the second largest country in Africa. It offers an impressive 1,100 miles of stunning Mediterranean coastline, most of which is unsurfed. A former French colony, it’s

now a prosperous Muslim nation, rich with gas and oil reserves, where both Arabic and French are widely spoken.

The indigenous Berbers are at the heart of the culture, having inhabited the region for more than 10,000 years.

Over the centuries all manner of traders, conquerors and missionaries have come and gone, from Phoenicians to Romans, Catalans, Moors and Ottoman Turks. After a long struggle for independence in the 1950s and early ‘60s there followed two decades of economic prosperity. But

in the late ‘80s things went downhill, and eight years of civil war tested two contrary visions of a modern Muslim state, long before 9-11 would make this a worldwide issue.

More than 100,000 people were killed in the genocidal conflict between Islamist terrorists and government forces.

Thankfully, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika (elected in 2000) restored stability to the country, pardoning certain individuals convicted of armed terrorist violence against the government. This policy was given approval by a nationwide referendum and 80 per cent of those fighting the regime have since attempted to reintegrate back into Algerian society. In recent years the security situation has improved markedly, making foreign travel safe again. That said, visitors are still required to travel with a driver, a tour guide and occasionally even a military escort.

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half close your eyes and it could almost be cornwall.

a low-key arrival To take professional camera gear into Algeria you need a media visa. John Callahan, the photographer on our trip, spent weeks trying to get one from the French Embassy in Paris, but eventually discovered this was only possible with a letter of invitation from the government! So in the end we all applied for simple tourist visas, which necessitate prebooking accommodation with an Algerian tour guide. We located a guide, Mr Nasr-Eddine Abdedaim (nasryoyages@yahoo.fr), paid a deposit, received the necessary forms by e-mail, and got our tourist visas. We flew to Tunisia for under £150, and planned to cross into Algeria when the swell chart looked promising. Mr Abdedaim agreed to collect us in his van once we’d crossed the border, and after six mind-numbing hours of form filling and thumb twiddling we successfully smuggled John’s camera equipment into Algeria, sans media visa.

Just as we finished loading our gear into the van, two estate cars packed with

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National Guard soldiers pulled up alongside. Our guide explained that the soldiers were going to escort us all the way to our hotel...some three hours away! I’ve been on trips to numerous different countries in Africa, and from experience I know that you can never second-guess what your hosts may have in store. We would obviously have preferred a low-key arrival, but our hosts laid on a full military escort.

Our little convoy set off, and as we approached the first town our escort used their sirens and flashing lights to clear a path through the traffic. We stopped in the town to report to the police headquarters, and subsequently picked up a third escort vehicle which wasted little time forcing a bus off the road. After driving through the countryside for an hour or so we stopped again to check in at another police station. When we finally hit the coast road our progress was halted by a herd of cows, which raised the volume of the sirens to a completely ludicrous level. We cracked up at the craziness of it all – we were just a bunch of surf explorers hoping to experience a taste of Algeria, raging through the country like important diplomats!

“

Everywhere we were met with clasping handshakes

and smiles from the football crazy kids who still idolise retired French-born star Zinedine Zidane

” yep

french rider vince chasselon gets stuck in at filfilla.

When we finally reached our destination, the port of Annaba, our military escort turned back leaving us in peace. The soldiers said they would not return until the end of our trip, when they’d escort us back to the border. They were under the impression that we’d be spending all our time in the safety of the pre-booked hotel. Phew.

Zidane’s (still) the man The steel port of Annaba is hardly the most picturesque city in the Med, but the welcome we received was warm. Everywhere we were met with clasping handshakes, and smiles from the football-crazy kids who still idolise retired French-born star Zinedine Zidane (whose parents are Algerian).

Football was the subject everyone wanted to talk about as the national team had just qualified for the 2010 World Cup. It was a close call; Algeria faced bitter rivals Egypt in a crunch play-off and the game was marred by some vicious fouls. Eventually a sizzling volley from Algerian defender Antar Yahia crashed in off the crossbar, providing the 1-0 winner. The whole country erupted in a joyous celebration of national pride – it was the first time in 24 years that Algeria had made it to World Cup finals.

tristan hacks a clean face.

Uncharted territory

looked like a Mediterranean version of Cornwall, with the stack of a disused mine overlooking a semicircular bay. We watched a few small swell lines wrap into the bay and wondered how it might look on a good day.

The abyss On the only flat day of the trip we went for a drive to the ancient city of Constantine. It’s a dramatic place, perched atop a huge gorge.

Over millions of years the river here has carved out a jaw-dropping landscape with towering cliffs and 600-foot vertical drops. The city sits either side of the gorge, interconnected by four iron suspension bridges built in the early 1900s. One is only wide enough for pedestrians, but the other three are roadways. We gingerly stepped onto the pedestrian bridge, which swayed eerily as flocks of people

yep

Inevitably, the number of unridden waves in the Med is slowly decreasing. But with 22 countries bordering this colossal inland sea (the world’s largest), it remains a fantastic place to discover new breaks.

The surf in Algeria, like that of neighbouring Tunisia, is fickle and highly dependant on Mistral winds sending swell from the north.

The prime months are November and December.

There are a number of decent beachbreaks around the capital, Algiers, where there are a handful of local surfers. But we were interested in exploring the pointbreaks of the northeast, where there are currently no locals.

The terrain of the northeast coast is mostly hilly, the slopes cloaked with pine trees and cork oaks. Every so often a river plain cuts through the hills, and where the river (usually dried up) meets the sea there’s a low ridge of sand dunes. There are beachbreaks and left points but they are spread out, inaccessible, or reached only by tortuously winding roads. Before we set off on the trip we spent hours locating all the most promising points on GoogleEarth.

But actually getting to these on the ground was an altogether different challenge.

You have to be opportunistic in the Mediterranean, able to accurately interpret swell charts and local bathymetry, and quick to benefit from any short-lived storm activity. We made the most of two small west swells at a handful of exposed beachbreaks, but we were determined to get our teeth into the pointbreak waves when a solid swell eventually hit. Between beachbreak sessions we meticulously checked the points one by one. The best set-up

two thousand years ago you might have seen a fleet of roman warships in this bay.

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yep the punchy beachbreak at manjam offered a few ramps. felix delanne.

“

Inevitably, the number of unridden waves in the Med is slowly decreasing. But with 22 countries bordering this colossal inland sea (the world’s largest),

it remains a fantastic place to discover new breaks.

“

We paddled out and scratched into a few overhead smokers, the spray billowing in the strong offshore.

As we got the feel of the waves we started mining them deeper and deeper into the shallow sections.

�

(above left) Sam, erwan and tristan check the options. (left) sam styling on an algerian peeler.

frenchman erwan simon pulls in at the point.

walked across. Peeking over the edge into the abyss on this antique structure was a bone trembling experience.

Constantine sits at a strategic spot, the junction between the Mediterranean, the Aures Mountains and the vast expanse of the Sahara desert to the south (which, to the outside world, defines Algeria). A natural fortress, it has been occupied since Neolithic times and was the capital of the Roman province of Numidia. Today it is Algeria's third largest city. While the scenery of the gorge and the engineering of the bridges are undoubtedly impressive, the overall scene is spoilt by some shocking pollution. All the city’s rubbish and sewage is disdainfully tipped into the ravine, and not surprisingly, it stinks. Beauty and ugliness seem to go hand-in-hand in Algeria.

The monster from Marseilles We were up early on the day a solid north swell finally struck. We’d been watching the weather charts closely and once again the Mistral lived up to it’s promise, generating a

hefty swell we dubbed 'the monster from Marseilles'.

We headed for the prime pointbreak, buzzing with excitement. The road weaved its way through thickets of aleppo pines on the hillsides and we made it through an army checkpoint without too much delay. Approaching the bay we saw the old chimney stack and beyond it line after line of iridescent whitewater churning down the point into the mercurial coloured bay.

We paddled out and scratched into a few overhead smokers, the spray billowing in the strong offshore. As we got the feel of the waves we started mining them deeper and deeper into the shallow sections. It was a tricky wave to ride with pitching sections that seemed impossible to tuck into, and sticky faces that were difficult to carve up. We ended up just racing the sections, going as far as we could and as fast as we could, hooting each other as we christened a perfect pointbreak in Algeria.

A few hours later the swell began to fade and the Mediterranean returned once again to its calm quiet self. The colours and smells of the seaweed scattered across the beach were unforgettable, and the sea shimmered like molten metal.

World Surfing Reserves Coming to an iconic break near you Words: Ben Mondy

Scotland’s north shore is now recognised by the Scottish Parliament as a significant asset to the country.

jason feast

Think you can’t make a difference? Think any from of environmental activism is akin to pissing into a 40 knot onshore? Think surfers and surfing can’t stop the inexorable march of development? Well think again, because the concept of World Surfing Reserves has already proved to be a groundbreaking and thoroughly effective model that can protect surfing breaks for generations to come.

The germ of the idea of surfing reserves came after a Plymouth University student intern Steve England, worked with Brad Farmer, a long time Australian environmental activist at the Surfrider Foundation Australia . Using the Bells

Beach surfing reserve (formed way back in 1973 and never replicated anywhere else in the world) as an example the pair drafted a proposal for a similar concept for the the Gold Coast break TOS (The Other Side) in the early ‘90s. Farmer then

delivered the idea to the Queensland Premiere. However be it due to the atrocious spelling, or more probably a change in government, the proposal never got off the ground.

Fast forward to 2005 and Farmer,

encouraged by the appointment of former Midnight Oil front person, Nuclear Disarmament Party president and environmental good guy Peter Garrett as a Federal MP, picked up the surfing reserve ball again and starting running with it. “I and many other activists had spent decades fighting battles for individual beaches and areas — some we we would win, some we would lose, but it was a constant and all-consuming struggle,” Farmer told CARVE. “The aim of the National Surfing Reserves was to make them a pre-emptive strike, to

paudie scanlon

Bundoran locals have long been fighting for the protection of their breaks, both from ongoing developments and antiquated sewage systems. cian kearns, bundoran barrel.

target places and make them parks or reserves in perpetuity, and then enshrine them in legislation to protect them for future generations. By nominating famous surfing breaks or beaches that had yet to be developed we could make a stand, before any plans were made.”

Farmer started with his and Peter Garrett’s home break of Maroubra, which became the first National Surfing Reserve in 2006. “The first stage was mainly symbolic,” said Farmer. “By nominating beaches or breaks and making the case

that these were sacred grounds for surfers and that surfers were the prime carers and custodians of the area, we established the importance of the role surfing and surfers play.”

Other beaches soon followed, with famous breaks like Merewether, Crescent Head, North Narrabeen and Lennox Head to name a few, following the template set by the Maroubra reserve.

However, perhaps more importantly, the next big transformation came in 2007, when not only was Angourie was

accepted as National Surfing Reserve, but the symbolic rights of the reserve were actually enshrined in government legislation. “This was phenomenal,” says Farmer. “It was the first time in history that surfing and surfers had been recognised in government legislation.

The key point was that surfers were sanctioned as the primary users and therefore have to be consulted and factored in any use of that beach, be it by developers, governments or community groups.”

Another key point was that these pioneering legislative advances came without the usual battles, protests and court cases that accompany environmental wins. “These reserves have had absolutely no detractors, something I have never come across in all my years of environmental activism,” said Farmer.

“Local government, surfers and business have all unified around this concept and there’s been no impact or protest from any other users. It’s a simple, organic concept, which is the key to its success.”

Here are 15 of the 100 waves located around the world nominated for the World Surfing Reserves Programe.

See them all at www. savethewaves.org/news/view/91

1. Kimmeridge Bay, Great Britain 2. Bundoran, Ireland 3. Sagres, Vila do Bispo, Portugal 4. Jardim do Mar, Madeira, Portugal 5. Supertubes, Jeffrey's Bay, South Africa 6. Pavones, Puntarenas, Costa Rica 7. Pascuales, Colima, Mexico 8. Mavericks, Half Moon Bay, California 9. Long Beach, Vancouver Island, British Colombia, Canada 10. Mentawai Islands, Indonesia 11. Burleigh Heads, Queensland, Australia 12. Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia 13. Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia 14. Gisborne, New Zealand 15. Jaws, Maui, Hawaii

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8 4 7 15

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“A World Surfing Reserve is like a World Park, but with more dynamic local interaction. A WSR is a sort of coastal appreciation zone, and it’s an opportunity zone and a possibility zone, which happens to be on the coast, in a place where surf culture has taken root.”

right from top to bottom.

Brad Farmer marking the first National surfing reserve in Maroubra.

Crescent Heads.

Michael Peterson gets behind the campaign.

Luke Egan and Occy get involved.

Local community groups in other Australian states soon began tweaking the template to fit their state’s legislation. And from there world domination beckoned — surfing and environmental groups in California were quick to implement their own Surfing Reserves, and thus the concept of World Surfing Reserves (WSR) quickly took hold. In California, Drew Kampion, the former editor of Surfing and Surfer, has championed their cause by becoming a founding member of the WSR Vision Council. They have been fighting

for iconic breaks like Malibu to be rightly recognised with the California Coastal Commission, the government agency responsible for coastal development.

“Creating World Surfing Reserves may not in itself save the world, but it’s a step in that direction,” wrote Kampion. “A World Surfing Reserve is like a World Park, but with more dynamic local interaction. A WSR is a sort of coastal appreciation zone, and it’s an opportunity zone and a possibility zone, which happens to be on the coast, in a place where surf culture has

taken root.”

And so the march continues, with the World Surfing Reserves template so unifying and implementable, there is absolutely no limit to their growth. “The simple existence of the WSR acts as a tactical wedge that inserts itself into every future discussion concerning the fate and destiny of the reserve area,” writes Kampion.

Farmer, though, is at pains to stress that the reserves must meet the criteria of being iconic sites of environmental,

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al nicoll

K-Bay. Surely gagging for protection?

“The next phase requires individuals and surfing community groups to get active and start the ball rolling for the UK’s best breaks.” cultural and historical significance to the area’s surfing culture. Recognising this, Surfers Against Sewage have been lobbying the Scottish Government for World Surfing Reserves to be included in the Scottish Marine Bill, citing Thurso as an example of a wave that would fit the criteria. SAS Campaign Manager Andy Cummins said, “Adopting SAS’s Surfing Reserves initiative within the Scottish Marine Bill was a fantastic opportunity for Scotland to position itself as a world leader in protecting and managing the marine environment. Surfing Reserves could cement Scotland’s world class waves and environmental policies on a global stage.”

SAS’s proposals gained strong support from Scottish Members of Parliament, but Surfing Reserves weren’t, in the end, included in the Scottish Marine Bill. However, SAS were encouraged that the importance of surfing in Scotland is on record in the Parliament. Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment Richard Lochhead said, “I well understand the purpose behind the amendments, which is to protect our waves. After my summer holiday with my family on Tiree, I am certainly aware of the importance of surfing to that island’s economy. Scotland has world-class surfing beaches. For

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example, Thurso hosts an annual World Qualifying Series event that attracts hundreds of the world’s best surfers. I want surfers to continue to access beaches, including the important beaches at Thurso, Tiree and East Lothian. Just as important is the need to look for opportunities to ensure that our wave resource is recognised, valued and promoted. Surfing has quickly grown into a well-established sport in Scotland, and a great number of Scots and visitors hugely enjoy our beaches and make a significant contribution to local economies.”

There are rarely easy wins in campaigning, and as one door shuts SAS just search for a window to bust open.

Within the Marine Bill there are Regional Planning Partnerships being proposed.

These Planning Partnerships could offer surfers a legitimate and more powerful platform to raise any concerns about offshore and near shore developments at the earliest stage. As I write this SAS are currently lobbying MSPs to include recreational water users in this platform, an idea that has gained wide support from Scottish Renewables and other Scottish Environment groups. SAS are currently planning another trip north of the border to ensure surfers have the best chance of

being heard.

The next phase requires individuals and surfing community groups to get active and start the ball rolling for the UK’s best breaks. “If you think your break meets the criteria for nomination then it’s a fairly straightforward path to nominate,” advises Farmer. “And the great thing is that it has already been been tested to minimise resistance. The concept works, it just needs time and motivation, something surfers should have in bucketloads when it comes to protecting their iconic breaks for generations to come.” The concept is there, now it’s up to you to start making a difference.

What more information?

Email Brad Farmer at natsurfsites@sydney.net.

The nominations for the first three World Surfing Reserves at Malibu, Manly and Waikiki are in their final stages of approval and announcement will be made very soon.

Surfers Against Sewage (www.sas.org.uk) can also provide advice on their campaign in Scotland and their Protect Our Waves initiative. www.youtube.com/user/savethewaves

Join the campaign at www.sas.org.uk

Words: Sam Lamiroy

rob brown

an all-star crew showed up for this session at todos santos but sam got his share of the waves.

jeremy koreski

W

me too.

hat do you know about Canada, or more specifically the towns of Tofino and Ucluelet on Vancouver Island? I know,

Until I went over there a couple of months ago I was utterly clueless! Which is exactly what made this trip such a treat for me. My plan was to surf a whole range of spots on the Pacific Coast, from Canada down to

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Southern California and beyond. As I hadn’t visited many of the breaks before I really didn’t know what to expect.

It was like opening box of chocolates and just dipping in without bothering to read the index card.

I packed five boards, three wetsuits, boots ‘n gloves, a hood, big-wave leashes, comp cords, a selection of fins, plus a whole load of Arctic winter clothing. My wife Hannah and 10-month-old boy Huxley were coming too, so that meant more bags, a baby buggy, a car seat, toys, bottles, nappies…all the gear we’d need for six weeks on the road, which came to around 120 kgs of stuff altogether.

Thankfully there are still some humane airlines out there (Virgin, Air Canada and Singapore Airlines to name three) – shining beacons of hope in a pretty dark aviation wilderness of excess baggage charges.

For me the trip would be a combination of work and play. Vancouver Island and Santa Cruz were the venues of the last two contests in the O’Neill Coldwater Contest Series (following on from the comps in Tasmania, Thurso and Cape Town last spring); the series winner would collect a handy $50,000 bonus. I’d been asked to work on the webcast commentary team, and I’d also be competing.

local lad sepp bruhwiler.

Aside from those commitments I was free to roam the West Coast...when not on bottle-feeding duty, of course.

Canada is a stupendously beautiful place. The scenery is breathtaking: snow-capped mountains, empty beaches strewn with driftwood, endless forests of Douglas firs and giant sequoias. We felt like we were driving through the film set of Twilight for hours on end. We didn’t see any werewolves, but we did get pretty close to bears, wolves, eagles, whales and various other wild animals I couldn't even put a name to.

For the first week we hung out with Marc Fuller (who organised the Vancouver Island contest) and his family, Andrea and baby Takaya. They live in Scandinavian-style wooden house in the little town of Ucluelet.

Ucluelet and nearby Tofino are the hub of surfing on Canada’s Pacific coast. The locals refer to the former as ‘Ukey’, which confused me for a while as I thought they were talking about Newquay. What a coincidence! Tofino is the larger of the two towns with a handful of surf shops and even a locally owned surf brand, ADANAC, who sponsor a core local crew. The main industries are fishing and logging, but it’s also quite touristy in the summer. You get the feeling that rising real estate prices are changing the face of the whole area here.

I went for a few sessions before the event with Marc and some of his friends. We scored a couple of good days at a remote secret spot which is probably the best wave in

the area. It's a really fun right-hand pointbreak with a heavy takeoff then a long wall. It’s super fickle, needs a massive swell, and if you want to find it you’d better ask the local surfers for directions...nicely!

I was amazed at the level of surfing of the local guys...and also how nice they all are. The standouts are Noah Cohen, Shannon Brown, the Bruhwiler brothers and a quiet, gentle guy called Peter Devries who is genuinely good on a world class level.

The water was a couple of degrees colder than Cornwall, but quite bearable. With a 5/3 and a decent pair of boots you’re fine right through the autumn. I imagine it gets pretty Baltic around January though.

For me, the O'Neill Coldwater Classic Canada provided a new definition of ‘feel good factor’. I’ve never been to any event with such a magic vibe in the air. The place, the people, the waves and the fairytale narrative of the week’s competition left me with tears in my eyes and goosebumps all over my body. In fact, even writing this weeks later, my eyes feel a little moist, there’s a silly grin on my face and my body feels all weirdly tingly...like a girl (or even some fully grown men, you know who you are!) watching the last three minutes of Dirty Dancing or Pretty Woman. It feels wrong...but somehow so right!

The comp was held at two beaches, North Chesterman’s and Cox Bay, and the waves peaked at around the eight-foot mark. Local pro Peter Devries did

jeremy koreski

jeremy koreski

jeremy koreski

jeremy koreski

sam slaps a vancover lip.

something pretty incredible; with his mix of solid power surfing and aerial craziness, he calmly dispatched a dozen top WQS surfers and fought his way right through to the final. Then, in front of thousands of screaming supporters on the beach (and tens of thousands more watching online), Devries held his nerve and won the thing, reminding everybody that fairytale endings can happen, dreams can come true, and nothing is impossible.

The home of cold water surfing

There was never any question where the Coldwater Classic Series would play out its final scenes. Santa Cruz is the home of cold water surfing, it’s where Jack O'Neill started making wetsuits way back in the day, and it’s still the hub of surfing in Central California. A classic place.

Every time we cruised along West Cliff Drive towards Steamer Lane we’d see the full cross-section of Californian culture. Surfers, kids on skateboards, old folks going for a stroll, tattooed heavies, toned dudes, fit women, downand-outs, joggers...all either surfing, checking the waves, hanging out, drinking coffee, dozing, running, cycling or driving slowly with the windows down. The surfboards in the backs of the ubiquitous pickup trucks were just as varied: thrusters, twinnies, quads, guns, eggs, longboards, stand-up paddleboards, alai boards. Anything that floats and trims has a home along this stretch of coast – just wax up, paddle out and take your place between the otters, the seals and the gliding pelicans.

The surf for the contest was up one day and down the next, but thankfully it was big and perfect for the finals.

Steamer Lane pumped and it was standing-room only

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along the clifftop edge. Santa Cruz surfer Kieran Horn kept the local crew stoked by making it to the quarterfinals, but in the end it was Nathan Yeomans from San Clemente who laid down some big man-carves to win the event. In doing so he booked himself a place on the 2010 Dream Tour... nice work Nate!

The overall winner of the Coldwater Classic contest series was Aussie Blake Thornton. He undoubtedly deserved it, although my heart went out to Jarrad Howse who missed out on the $50,000 series winner’s bonus by a mere few hundredths of a point.

SoCal knowledge Twenty million people crammed into a narrow coastal strip, six-lane freeways, Malibu, Hollywood, Orange County, a critically overloaded ecosystem...and underneath it all the San Andreas fault line, creaking. There’s an uneasy balance to Southern California, you can sense the tension crackling in the air.

SoCal has loads of epic surf spots, but whenever they’re good (even in winter) the lineups are incredibly crowded. In the built-up areas, the best spots see some of the fiercest guerrilla-style urban surfing in the world. Yet there are enclaves of tranquillity – you just need to know where to go, when, and who with.

We spent three weeks in SoCal, and although we were based in a great spot just outside San Clemente, somehow I felt like I never fully connected. I had some fun sessions at Black’s, Rincon and Trestles, but I struggled to be in exactly the right place at the right time. You know how it is when you show up somewhere new, it takes a while to

jeremy koreski

canadian number one Peter devries, at his favourite local break.

al mackinon al mackinon

sam puts a 5'10" firewire dominator through its paces.

al mackinon

black’s beach, looking fun.

figure out where you should be on any given swell and tide.

All the SoCal superstars were away in Hawaii, which in theory meant there were more waves to go around, although you’d never have known it! I mainly surfed with low key local guys like ex-pro Chuy Reyna, who now works for Firewire and still surfs so good.

Yeah, SoCal is a funny place. I'm going to have to go back sometime and put in a few more hours...I feel as though there’s some unfinished business there.

Guns ‘n pro’s

Two days before we left a massive northwest swell rocked the West Coast. A heavy session went down at Mavericks and within hours the photos were all over the internet. The swell was heading south, and it looked as though Todos Santos (just over the border in Mexico) could soon be on... really on!

Thanks to a friendship between Brit photographer Al MacKinnon and brothers Greg and Rusty Long, I suddenly found myself on the dock of a Mexican fishing harbour, helping to load a stack of eight- and nine-foot guns onto a small boat. It was still dark, we’d already driven for four hours to get here, and the talk was of possible 40-foot waves. My weapon was a rather skinny looking 8’0” that Rusty had kindly lent me, and I was a little nervous to say the least. Then the crew started to arrive. First Grant 'Twiggy' Baker, then Mark Healey, Alfy Cater, and Ramon Navarro. Then another car arrived and out stepped Mr Todos himself, Mike ‘Snips’ Parsons, and a friend...none other than Kelly Slater. It would be pretty difficult to gather a better big-wave crew. I felt humbled and privileged to be in their company...and thoroughly out of place!

The boat ride out to the island took about an hour, and we chatted about the impending session while watching a glorious sunrise. As we approached the back of the

island the indicator wave was about six feet, suggesting it could be really big. We rounded the headland and...YES! It actually looked really fun, the waves mostly in the 10-15 foot range rather than anything ridiculous. Time to get in there...

Twiggy caught everything that moved – some big, some smaller, some tubing. Greg and Snips sat out the back, patiently waiting for the biggest sets. Rusty rode some of the best waves of the morning, later swapping his 8’6” for a 7'0” so he could hack some turns. Alfy and Ramon also picked off some nice ones, showing how quietly comfortable they are in solid waves.

Kelly – riding a 5’8” – scurried around all over the place and got properly barrelled on a couple of hollow inside waves. Then he paddling off around the corner to surf a mysto left for half an hour...and got properly barrelled there too. Pretty impressive.

All these guys were just playing – for them the

al mackinon al mackinon

session was a wind down after the big day at Mavericks, and (although they didn’t know it yet) a warm-up before The Eddie at Waimea. Initially I was relieved that it wasn’t 40 foot...but by the end of the session I actually felt a little disappointed that it hadn’t been crazy big. It would have been great to see these masters in their element, and maybe to have even caught a chunky one myself. Oh well, maybe next time. As the Governor of California (in a former job) once said, “I'll be back!”

On the drive back we stopped at a local taqueria for a beer and a bite to eat. Best Mexican food I’ve ever tasted.

40 days, 2000 miles, three countries

Looking back on the whole adventure, I’m just amazed how everything seemed to flow so smoothly. We travelled something like 2,000 miles in 40 days. We made new friends who now feel like old mates. Canadian underground hero Peter Devries became the surf star he was destined to be. Jack, Pat and the whole O’Neill family made us feel so welcome in Santa Cruz, the town that still defines what it means to be a cold water surfer. And it was great to end the whole trip with that terrific day at Todos. (A couple of weeks later Greg Long won The Eddie in epic conditions at Waimea Bay. Kelly came second, Ramon won the award for biggest drop, and Twiggy got a special mention for charging like a loon. So I must have really inspired them out there!)

All in all I just want to say a massive thanks to everyone who made our trip so enjoyable. I’d thoroughly recommend going on an adventure yourself sometime soon, if you have the chance. Just get yourself out there and we might see each other on the road. Good luck!

sequence: rob brown

greg long outruns a todos bomb.

riding a 5'8", kelly had a barrelfest on the inside section.

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Three days lost in Ireland a

ph ot ograph i c prof i le M ar k ‘Egor ’ Har r is

of

P h o t o s a n d i n t r o b y M i c k e y Sm i t h • C a p t i o n s b y e g o r

This issues Focus went down to the wire. The carnage of Christmas and New Year took their toll, and I found myself a little disorientated with my responsibilities come the January deadline. Things got intense when editor Power hit me up, snapping me out of delusional daydreams and causing me to headbutt reality hard. With literally nothing prepared I started scouring old scans and throwing down vague ideas as bait.

With not even the faintest bite back I started to think there’d be trouble ahead. Then, a few days before all hell broke loose, my phone twitched, revealing the golden words: “I’M COMIN OVER TOMORROW! BUZZIN TO HANG WITH THE BOYS! OWWWW!” After trying to get him over here for years, ‘The Gor’ was finally en route, his timing as impeccable as ever. Salvation was in sight.

Ever since I first met Egor in Madeira five years ago, I can’t think of a bad experience with the man. He’s one of the most genuinely stoked people I’ve ever come across. His sense of fun is completely infectious. He’s a mentalist of the highest calibre, and that’s no accolade I’d throw down lightly. As a competitor he’s one of the finest talents these shores have produced, and as a freesurfer he’s one of the most casual and stylish you could hope to witness. I think it's fair to say I was a little excited to see the ol’ pard.

Serious man love unleashed, we tumbled straight into three days of solid waves, tripped out in the craziest fog I’ve ever seen here, lost our minds in the pub, and generally laughed ourselves into oblivion. I honestly hope this mission is the start of many visits from The Gor to these shores. I think we could all do with a little more Egor in our lives, and all deadline madness aside I’m psyched to be able to offer up this months Focus on the man himself. Three days lost in Ireland with Mark ‘Egor’ Harris. Enjoy!

1 This was my last surf in Eire, on the last day of the swell, and it was also the biggest session we had. With the swell too chunky for the other reefs, the boys and I went on a mission to this bommie, miles out to sea. I was blown away by the attitude Mickey, Fergal, Lowey and the boys have to surfing and exploring. To go out and find waves like this in the freezing cold you’ve got to be so keen and dedicated. They just love it! It was real inspiring, full respect to them. After a bumpy ride out on the jetskis we reached the lineup where large lumps of water were unloading on the reef. It turned into a great evening session with ace waves, lush golden light, and the added buzz of stepping into the unknown. Between the sets, when the skis were turned off and we weren’t talking shite, it was amazingly quiet and still. When it was my turn on the rope I got whipped into this beautiful bowl, courtesy of Ferg, and it made my trip. Cheers boyos!

2 There was a plenty of swell the day I arrived, but we couldn’t surf due to the fog of doom. Seeing as it was Saturday night we hit the town and things got fruity! We sacrificed ourselves for the swell and had a good time, a strategy that always seems to work miracles. Sure enough, the next three days pumped. We didn't get much sleep that night, but we were still on it at first light! 3 This is me sat out back at the 'Leen with the Skajarowski brothers and Lowey. The light was fading and it was getting chilly but we were buzzing. 4 Out in the lineup under the cliffs. It’s a challenge just to catch a wave out there, the place demands respect.

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5 This is me dodging sparkly afternoon rays at Riley’s...and keeping an eye out for the reef. 6 Time to feel the power of the ‘Leen! 7 Checking the swell on a golden afternoon. 8 The fog of doom! It followed us everywhere the day I arrived, and when we went to check the cliffs at low tide it was trippy and surreal. From the charts the boys reckoned the surf was probably 10 feet and perfect, but we couldn’t see anything, just a thick blanket of fog. We stayed all arvo in case the fog cleared in time for a surf, but it never did. Then we decided to stay ‘til dark because it was just so cool up there. Then to make things even weirder, two base jumpers launched straight off the cliff edge right by us. They just jumped off and disappeared into the fog with parachutes. Nuts!

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9 Getting a feel for Riley’s and just about holding a rail in the face. What a wave. 10 Ever since Mickey first told me about Aileen’s (on a trip to Madeira with Rusty Long and Robin Kent years ago) I’d conjured up thoughts about how it would feel to surf it. But the reality blew me away. The adrenaline was pumping before I even got near the water! You have to fully focus on the track down. And when you make it back up to the top after the session, you’re buzzing. 11 I remember making the drop and looking for the bowl on this one, it felt ace. Just catching a wave out there is hard, let alone riding one well. But you don’t have to get many under your belt to feel very satisfied. 12 Out at Riley’s with the boys. 13 Cold, wet and grey... but if you don’t go you just won’t know!

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Russ Winter, pretty much our greatest-ever surfer. Defeated the likes of Slater, Occy in perfect surf on the ’CT, charged Chopes, owner of the heaviest hack this side of Sunny Garcia’s log shed.

Lucky Strike

It was 7.00 am and there wasn’t a breath of wind. The sun was rising over the foothills of the Atlas mountains. My eyeballs were on stalks as I watched overhead barrels unloading on the slab in front of me. The boys were waiting for me: six of Britain and Ireland’s hottest young surfers plus a certain Russell Winter. Something told me this was going to be a good session…

Story by Rob Barber • Photos by Will Bailey

“In the eyes of these grommets, the only way is up for surfing at the moment. Literally.

They want to punt off every ramp going.”

W

hile the British Isles did a passable impression of icy Narnia back in January, Morocco was cooking with scorchio Saharan temperatures and pumping waves. Russ Winter and six of Britain and Ireland’s top under 20’s (Josh Piper, George Picking, Joss Brooks, Paddy Daniel, Ronan Oertzen and Iarom Madden) flew down for a combined photoshoot and training trip, accompanied by photographer Will Bailey and myself. I reckon we got the timing of the trip just right.

There was so much swell sloshing around the Atlantic I felt like Ricky Hatten on the canvas when I checked Magic Seaweed – all I could see was stars.

Our base for the two-week trip was the camp run

by Surf Maroc in the iconic fishing village of Taghazout.

The variety of waves along this stretch of coast is mindboggling with reefs, points and beachies everywhere you look. There are 22 named spots within a half-hour drive to the north, and another 10 to the south. With so many waves on offer, plus six grommets frothing like rabid jackals, the trip soon turned into a surf frenzy. The competitive little buggers pushed each other to surf harder, deeper and

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higher every session.

A few days into the trip we scored a certain right-hand slab that the groms were already familiar with, having watched footage of it over and over again on a couple of their favourite DVDs. Russ was first out the back. He let a few waves roll through while he got his bearings, then heaved himself over the ledge on a choice set wave. After dealing with the slight warp he got shacked from beginning to end in his patented Soup Bowl-honed tube stance. Watch and learn, boys.

Josh Piper has slowly and quietly been earning a lot of respect from some pretty good surfers and photographers.

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15-year-old Joss Brooks throwing fins and spray.

The soapy looking, greeny-blue water drew off the slab time and time again while Russ and the older boys traded waves. Josh Piper plumbed some clean tunnels and George Picking tried to slide into a few on his backhand.

The boys hooted each other until the tide got too high and the backwash began to mess up the waves; it was like the fun police had arrived to close the party down.

above: Checking another training ground. left: “Don’t call me camel breath.”

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In the eyes of these grommets, the only way is up for surfing at the moment. Literally. They want to punt off every ramp going, so somewhere that could facilitate their Kerrupts, rodeos and alley oops was demanded. An hour or so south, after making it through some huge sand dunes, we rocked up at a small bay that was the surfing equivalent of a skatepark. The set-up straight out of a PS3 game: there was a wedging lefthand reef at one end of the beach, a bowly beachbreak peak in the middle, a righthand point at the other end, and a slab just around the corner. All clean and three to four feet. The only question the boys had was, “Why isn’t there anyone out?” In a flurry of stickers, wax, fin keys, wetsuits, half-nakedness, towels and sunscreen, the gang were changed and out there in seconds. I swear Josh Piper morphed in to Squiddly Diddly the cartoon octopus as he tightened fins, waxed up, and put sunscreen on all at once!

Ireland’s Ronan Oertzen stood out from the pack straightaway. The Spanish-born 19-year-old from Bundoran

“I swear Josh Piper morphed in to Squiddly Diddly the cartoon octopus as he tightened fins, waxed up, and put sunscreen on all at once!”

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A nice fan from Bundoran’s Iarom Madden

has been travelling the world since finishing his exams last year. But instead of holing up in Kuta, surfing once a day, and spending the rest of the time with his laughing gear around an Illusion Shaker (like most young surfers who head abroad to ‘train’), he actually set himself a strict regime.

“Ronan surfs really well, he’s one of the most impressive Irish guys I’ve seen for a long, long time,” reflected Russ.

“He’s got a powerful style and he puts some real flair into his turns, especially his forehand cuttie to tailslide. I think he’s got a great future.” Ronan flew to Morocco from Australia, where he’d been training at the High Performance Centre on the Gold Coast. The kid has a seriously focussed approach, not dissimilar to that of a young Fergal Smith (and look where he’s ended up).

The middle peak offered some really smashable sections, especially the rights. Newquay’s George Picking

revelled in them, boosting out of his bottom-turns like a coiled spring and attacking the unsuspecting lip. “I couldn’t help comparing George’s backhand to CJ Hobgood’s,” said Russ. “The training that he does as a gymnast really shows in his surfing – his flexibility makes his turns link together nicely, and he recovers really well after laybacks or if he gets clipped coming out of the barrel.”

Iarom Madden is a gentle giant from Ireland; he’s only 15, but already 6’1” tall. He hails from Bundoran, so as you can imagine he’s no stranger to the tube. Russ was well impressed to see him nail the longest shack of the day.

“Iarom’s tube-riding style is really good for his age. That barrel he got was the longest of the trip so far – he just kept on travelling!” With a relocation to Newquay on the cards in the next six months, it looks like we’ll be seeing a lot more of Iarom in the years to come.

The lefthander at the far end of the beach was Newquay goofyfoot Joss Brooks’ favourite spot, and he was having a good dig on his forehand with some nice snaps and good wave selection. Coach Winter commented, “I surf with Joss a lot at home and he’s improving exponentially. He’s getting quicker and stronger, and he’s also a really nice kid.”

The surprise package of the trip was Hayle’s Paddy Daniel, in more ways than one. To say he’s got the face of an angel and the tongue of the devil would be letting him off lightly! When he wasn’t merrily calling the boys into closeouts, he’d be making up abusive nicknames for anyone older or bigger than him...which was everyone. Fifteen minutes into the second session he squealed, “GO ON, CRIMSON CHIN!” as Russ paddled into a bomb. Paddy was referring to Russ’s rather pronounced square jaw and likening him to Continued on page 106

Russ showing the way.

“

CARVE: How’s the trip been?

Russ Winter: Really good. I’ve been here before but the waves were nothing like we’ve had them on this trip.

We’ve had a really good variety of waves. We’ve surfed most of the points, beachies, rights, lefts. Lots of good quality waves, so I’m really happy.

This has been your first coaching trip, how’s it all panned out?

Its been a busy couple of weeks but everything has gone really well. I’ve had a really good time with the lads. I think everyone has improved, plus we got some great shots and it’s been a right laugh too.

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What has each day entailed?

We’ve been getting up early every day, checking spots.

Normally we’ve had three surfs per day. We’ve worked on specific aspects of each person’s surfing. We’ve also done a lot of stretching and fitness stuff. Then in the evenings, after dinner, we’ve been sitting down and going through the video and photographs from the day’s sessions, analysing the footage and trying to find areas for improvement the next day.

Who’ve been the standout surfers?

Well, they’ve all been standouts in different ways, but ability-wise I’d have to say the three older ones: George,

Josh and Ronan. I didn’t really know Ronan before, but I was really impressed with his surfing – he’s dedicated to what he’s doing and really focused, which is good to see.

George has also been impressive to watch – he’s really consistent and he’s got a good solid backhand. For me, Josh has been the standout of the trip – big strong power turns and also all the air tricks. He’s definitely got a bright future ahead of him. The younger lads, Paddy. Joss and Iarom, have also really improved throughout the trip and I think they’ll definitely mark their mark on the scene in the next few years.

Have you found it hard adjusting your focus, from being

a full-time pro to being a coach?

Well, after 16 years of doing the Tour it’s taken me a little while to get used to doing something else. But I’m definitely over that sort of lifestyle and travelling all the time...it’s really good to be at home a lot more with my family. It’s also a bit of a relief not having to think about results all the time. It feels good having the coaching academy to focus on. I’m ready for a new chapter in my life.

Has the level of the UK juniors pushed your surfing?

Yeah, like, on this trip Josh has really been pushing me.

It’s good to see the younger guys doing some really progressive surfing. They’re at the same level as any other

groms in the world.

You’re known for your power surfing, but on this trip I’ve noticed that you’ve been sticking some big airs. Is that something you’ve been working on?

Yes, definitely. I’ve always loved being able to do the biggest turn possible and putting a lot of power into my surfing, but lately I’ve been trying to incorporate more airs. I’ve been landing quite a few at home and it feels so good when you land a big air reverse or something.

How’s life as a dad?

It’s really good. Our boy, Marley, is 16 months now. We take

him swimming and he loves it...he can swim underwater pretty well already. I haven’t really been away since he was born and I’ve missed him loads on this trip. So it’s good I’m not on the Tour any more so I can spend more time with him and Suzi.

So are your competition days behind you?

Nah, don’t be daft! (Laughs) I’m still as competitive as ever, I’ll always be wanting to enter and win events. Look at Slater, he’s 38 and he’s still a world title contender. And Occy was on tour until he was 40. I still feel when I put my mind to it I can win big events.

– Will Bailey

West Cornwall’s Paddy Daniel went home with half an eyebrow.

“Ireland’s Ronan Oertzen stood out from the pack straightaway. He’s got a powerful style and he puts some real flair into his turns” a cartoon superhero whose chin sticks out like a gurning Desperate Dan. The name stuck immediately, and as you can imagine Russ was well stoked!

After the session we were getting changed when Paddy sidled up to Russ and stared intently at him for a moment. Russ awaited a question about his feats at Teahupoo, or how it felt to win the Boardmasters in front of thousands of fans at Fistral. But Paddy wanted to know about something entirely different. “Shave your chest, don’t ya?” he blurted out and burst in to hysterics. Russ was lost for words. “I’m gonna call you Crimson Chin Prickly Chest!” laughed the mischievous grom. So that was that.

Paddy earned top marks from Russ for his cheekiness, and also for his surfing. “Paddy is one of the funniest little groms I’ve ever met. Good surfer too. His forehand cutbacks got better and better throughout the trip. He did a grab-rail cuttie the other day at Anchor Point which was sick. He gave everyone loads of stick, but the boys caught up with him in the end!”

Yes indeed. A week or so into the trip, martial law inevitably took its course. One morning Paddy awoke and went to splash his face in the basin; when he glanced in the mirror he realised that he only had half an eyebrow left and his hair had been shaved into a mohawk. If you want to dance all night, you gotta pay the band.

After the sessions at the slab and ‘Skatepark Bay’, we finished our day with a fun sesh at the little wedge

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right in front of our pad. This is where Newquay’s Josh Piper put some distance between him and the pack, quite literally. He took to the air more often than a Top Gun pilot and showed off a whole arsenal of moves. He’s got excellent timing, a good range of grabs, and he sticks a high percentage of his punts. “I reckon Josh is going to be right up there among the best British surfers pretty soon,” commented Russ. “He’s fit, he trains hard, and has all the moves down. It was inspirational for me to go head-to-

How many turns could you do on this wave?

George Picking’s backhand hack has been duly noted.

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Ireland’s Ronan Oerzten. Another young Irish buck who quietly goes about his business.

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“The crew returned with a wealth of surf knowledge, a few life lessons, and collectively looking like a cross between Sid Vicious and that freaky dude out of The Goonies.”

head with him doing big turns and aerials. We worked on the variety of his moves, and the sections he does them in, and he put all that in to practice really well.”

So that’s what went down on one of our best days, and most of the other days followed a similar pattern. Over the course of the two-week trip we surfed every single day.

All too soon, however, it was time to pack up and haul our aching sun-baked bodies back to the airport. The six groms who boarded the plane sported six freshly-shaven mohawk hairdos and possessed a grand total of three eyebrows between them. “Always sleep with one eye open,” was the final bit of advice Crimson Chin dealt out to the crew of young scoundrels.

The crew had left their homes a fortnight earlier as six innocent young groms; they returned with a wealth of surf knowledge, a few life lessons, and collectively looking like a cross between Sid Vicious and that freaky dude out of The Goonies. One thing was for sure though, they had all surfed their brains out.

“If I hear the words ‘crimson’ or ‘chin’ one more time…”

• This trip wouldn’t have been possible with out the support of Surf Maroc (www.surfmaroc.co.uk). With packages to suit all tastes, abilities and budgets, Surf Maroc run a tight operation and see that you get the best waves, accommodation and food. So huge thanks to Ben O’Hara, Dale Adams and all the crew at Surf Maroc for making the trip happen.

• Russ Winter will be running a series of coaching weekends in Newquay through 2010 (see Bulletin on page 26 for details). Further coaching camps to Morocco are planned for next winter. Check carvemag.com for further info.

• Check www.carvemag.com for video profiles on the boys and sick footage from the trip.

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jason feast

Icy gold The non-stop boozing and partying this Christmas and New Year must have induced protracted hangovers for about 30 million people up and down the country. And with all the snow and ice, the other 30 million weren’t rushing out the door either, except to go sledging. But us surfers had plenty of reasons to sober up and get out there during The Big Freeze, with quality sessions going down at one prime spot after another, on virtually every coast of Britain and Ireland. Yup, this winter has to rank as one of the best for yonks.

sam mathers scopes a wintery mid-cornwall lineup.

Alex Young

While shivering pensioners cursed January’s biting northeasterly winds, one bunch of Cornish folk were jumping up and down, or rather sliding about. As anyone who surfs Porthleven regularly will know, the last three winters have been pretty disappointing. But this year was different – the blocking high moved into a perfect position, and with long distance swells pulsing irregularly there were plenty of sessions for those who know the fickle moods of the queen of the south. It all came together just after Christmas and plenty of fun sessions ensued with barrels and frozen smiles all round. It wasn't really macking at any point, but it sure was fun! Hallelujah!

(Right) King of the Lizard Luke Donavon throws a victory salute to Dark Knight of the Badlands Martin Mynne.

(Below) This dropping tide session in January served up some of the best waves of the winter season. Robin Kent.

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farscapes Alex Young

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Lewis Arnold

Up in the Northeast, adopted Geordie Richie Sills has been enjoying the surfeit of snowy days this winter because a decent blizzard invariably means a decent north swell is on the way. The esteemed Saffa pro has become a regular in the lineups and has an uncanny ability to sniff out a barrel from miles away. He describes this spot in Northumberland as “the roundest wave on the East Coast, bar none!”

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Lewis Arnold

Nick Wapshott / 360

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Cornwall may lack reefs but its coastline is about as convoluted as the plot of Lost, so even on stormy swells you can always locate a sheltered cove somewhere. Oli Adams found this north-facing secret spot very much to his liking on a windswept day just before Christmas. “It’s been an amazing winter, I’ve surfed every day pretty much.

Loads of good sessions at Fistral, and some at more sheltered spots like this one. Plus the south coast has been breaking more than I can ever remember. Loving it!”

Mike Searle jason feast

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Dave Ferguson Dave Ferguson

A huge swell hit the Channel Islands a couple of weeks into December and thanks to a ridge of high pressure Jersey's classic mysto spot La Rocco broke big and clean for a couple of days. Mark Durbano (top) and Chester Macklay towed chunky 15-foot waves on the first day, surfing around avalanching sections and occasionally getting engulfed by the giant walls of whitewater.

The second day dawned with light variable winds so Mark and Chester headed out for another tow session, this time joined by James Hick (right) who paddled out on a brand new 8’0” gun. “The first wave I caught had a perfect wall so I rode it all the way through,” says Jimbo. But on the way back out I got cleaned up by a massive wave which Mark was riding. The lip landed halfway down the face and I made the mistake of trying to duckdive it. The wave picked me up, threw me over the falls and generally showed me who was boss. When I popped up I saw that I’d creased my board, so I knew that if I fell on another wave my new stick would be a goner.

“With this in mind I paddled really hard into my next wave...but halfway down the face the wave decided to step out in front of me. I tried my best to ramp off it and keep my body centred, but the wind caught my board and it blew up vertically. I tried to stick the landing but there was no chance. After popping up and taking two more waves on the head, I found my board waiting for me in the channel in two pieces. The boys shooting photos from the boat reckoned it was one of the funniest things they’d ever seen.”

Peter Journeaux

“This winter has been one of the best I can remember here,” says longtime Lahinch resident Mickey Smith.

“Despite the cold, consistent heavy groundswells have kept us in the salt more than our frozen limbs could usually tolerate. Seems like every week we’ve had at least one heavy day to deal with. We’ve even been getting amongst it twice a day for four or five days in a row at times. Your energy levels and keeness get pretty drained when that happens, and you begin looking for imperfections and excuses where there really aren’t any. But having a tight unit around you tends to sort all those kind of negative thoughts. One or two of us are always mad for it, and that soon forces everyone else into the deep freeze once again!” Tom Lowe, Riley’s.

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Mickey Smith

Mickey Smith

Will Bailey

Meanwhile, in the snow-covered vales of South Wales, lensman Will Bailey and a few friends set themselves a New Year’s challenge. “We came up with this idea to go surfing and snowboarding in the same day, as if we were in California or somewhere,” says Will. “I grabbed Canadian snowboarder Davey Wright (below) and surfers Sam Bailey and Nathan Phillips. We surfed one of the Vale reefs which was small but perfect with no-one out. It wasn’t that cold either. Then we headed for the hills and found a steep slope on the Bwlch [a mountain near Cardiff -ed] where we could build a kicker. Davey did a rodeo flip off it first go! He then persuaded us all to hit it at full speed, as if we could snowboard like him. There were some serious slams but thankfully no broken bones this year. In fact only Davey got injured, he nearly bit his tongue off!”

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Will Bailey

The Black Middens doesn’t break many times during the year, but it's not rocket science to work out when it’ll be on.

From the top of the hill it looks like a dream of a left with an easy peasy paddle out. But when you're doing the rock dance over the slimiest boulders in the Northeast, and you can smell the water, it’s a different proposition altogether.

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Lewis Arnold

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Just before Christmas, with one of the biggest swells of the year battering Ireland’s west coast, Fergal Smith and friends saddled up their skis and went looking for a challenge. “It was probably the biggest day we've had all winter and nowhere was really handling it,” says lensman Mickey. “Ferg, Pete [Conroy], me and George [Franklin] hit the deep water, scoping giant slo-mo outer bommies that hardly ever break. One of them is probably the spookiest lineup I've ever floated around in. I couldn't begin to imagine anyone having to take a serious beating out there. But, as ever, Ferg was loving a chance to roll the dice with some giant near-closeouts. The kid’s a casual customer in situations that faze the hardiest of seadogs, that’s for sure. I doubt we'll be going back out there in a hurry, but it was pretty cool to witness all the same.”

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Mickey Smith

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lucia griggi

finoarle sc

quarter finalist CJ hobgood pulls under the lip of a pipeline grinder.

lucia griggi

Taj Triumphant taj burrow won the 2009 billabong pipe Masters in december, beating Kelly slater in clean three- to five-foot waves. Burrow wasted little time in putting Slater on the ropes in the 35-minute final, racking up a 7.00 out of a possible 10 on his opening ride for an electric air reverse followed by some solid forehand maneouvres.

With deteriorating conditions, Burrow stayed busy before collecting a 5.83 for an incredible full-rotation alley-oop, putting the pressure on Slater as time ran out. “There were perfect Backdoor waves this whole event and then for the final it went onshore,” Burrow said. “it was all about turns and hopefully doing a few airs. i dropped down to my shortboard and my plan was to just to let loose. it was tough because i knew Kelly could do anything. Even when there were 20 seconds to go and i had priority, i was still scared. i just had nothing to lose. This is the best victory of my career.”

Slater said, “unfortunately the final had the worst conditions of the contest, but there are still fun waves out there.” in terms of returning in 2010 for an unprecedented tenth aSP World Title, Slater is characteristically guarded. “i don’t know if i’m going to do the tour full-time next year,” Slater said. “i’m sort of feeling it out. i’ve just competed for so many years, doing the same thing and going to the same places, it’s a little monotonous. When you find some meaning in it and it’s bigger than just going and surfing, then it becomes more exciting, but, unfortunately, this year i had a pretty lacklustre year in a lot of ways, both personally and competitively and it probably showed in my surfing.”

Joel Parkinson blew his chances of winning the World Title when wildcard gavin gillette beat him in round three, leaving the way open for Mick Fanning to lift his second World Title trophy. However, Parko did secure his second consecutive Triple crown: “This is my consolation prize,” said Parko. “To me, the Triple crown is the next best thing to the World Title.”

This year, the aSP will begin to use a new system, called One ranking, for the World Tour and the WQS. a surfer’s best eight results from WcT and WQS events will count towards their ranking, which will determine whether they can compete in WcT events as one of the Top 32 surfers. Surfers’ points will change as the year progresses, always counting their best results from the last 12 months, and thus the Top 32 will change about every three events.

2010 is a changeover year where surfers will begin to accumulate points. The aSP World champion will be determined by counting only results from aSP World Tour events. The idea behind all this is to avoid surfers chasing WQS points to qualify and to level the playing field. More details of the system is available on the aSP website aspworldtour.com.

—Kat Dawes / ASP

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masstser cla

How to boost an

air reverse words: russ winter

To punt and land an air reverse on a nice wedgy section is one of the most fun things ever.

A good air reverse will maximise the amount of air that you can get out of a bowl as the rotation launches you up and out into orbit. It’s also a great way to snatch vital points in a heat.

The catch is, learning them isn’t easy! You need to first learn tailslides, then reverses, then standard airs, then put all those things together to nail an air reverse.

The best kind of wave to learn on is a medium-sized (no bigger than three-foot) wedge, rip bowl or any regular section that offers a consistent launch ramp. You need to practise it parrot fashion, over and over, until you get the timing right, so your local wedge will probably be the best option. Sand bottom waves are good as you will fall off (quite often backwards) while you’re learning them.

The wave must offer speed from the takeoff, and if it allows you a couple of pumps to set up your approach to the lip then that’s a bonus. The wind will preferably be blowing cross-shore or slightly onshore as this helps to keep the board stuck to your feet. It’s not a problem if the section you’re going to hit is crumbly, in fact some times that’s best, as pitching lips that throw out a long way are harder to time.

1. I’ve already gained plenty of speed, kept a high line on the wave (look at my foam trail) then angled up towards the lip so that my board is launching off it as it pitches. The timing here is really important, so as soon as you’ve taken off you should keep your eyes focussed on nothing but the oncoming lip. My back leg is slightly bent to apply pressure to the tail, while my front leg is beginning to bend, ready to unweight as I go in to the boost.

I’ve lifted my arms up high quickly to create upward lift and

1.

4.

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2.

prepare my upper torso to go into the rotation.

2. Now I’ve twisted my head and shoulders to begin the rotation.

I’ve widened my stance quite considerably and my front foot has actually come away from the board, in the same way that your front foot goes forward and slightly off the deck when you ollie a skateboard. I’m throwing all my weight over my left shoulder and my left arm is leading my body through the rotation. I’m eyeing up my landing spot and beginning to twist my head through the spin.

3. My right hand has grabbed my inside rail to really pull me through the spin and hold the board under my feet. The nose of my board is pointing back in the direction that I’ve come.

4. Always try to land on the whitewater cushion after it’s broken and not in the ‘V’ as the lip hits the trough. It’s important to have your tail pointing straight towards the beach, then you are less likely to catch an edge or dig a rail. Now complete the spin on landing by keeping a wide stance and a low centre of gravity for balance. As quickly as possible, rotate your shoulders through the last degrees of the turn and use your arms and hips to keep your weight over the board.

5. Get your weight over your front foot, flatten your board out and keep your arms wide to keep your balance. Don’t fall off now – you’ve done the hard bit! Try to get out of the whitewater as quickly as possible, keep the nose of the board pointed towards the shore until you have your balance and then get your weight back on your rail edge, and, if the wave allows, carry on to the next section.

3.

5.

sequence: will bailey

Russ’s mini-tips:

Inspiration • Guys who do good air reverses are Reubyn Ash in the UK and Taj Burrow internationally.

They both have excellent technique.

Troubleshooting • This move won’t come quickly – you need to practise, practise, practise. Break the move down into parts and achieve it bit by bit. Get dialled into a local wave with a puntable section,

#

and make sure that you’re there every time it breaks. In doing so you will improve lots of aspects of your surfing: fin wafts, airs, general reverses and becoming comfortable with spinning moves and riding fakie (backwards).

• It’s easier to keep your tail high and the nose pointing down than to do a flat spin. This will keep your chest facing the beach and make it more likely that you’ll make it. Plus, with the board on an angle you’ll benefit from any cross or onshore wind blowing the board against your feet, rather than blowing the board away from

your feet if you are in a flat spin.

• Keep grabbing the board all the way through the turn for safety. As your confidence improves, try to let the grab go earlier and earlier until you can manage without it.

• When you land with your tail pointing towards the shore, apply just a little bit of pressure to your toes to make the fins catch and spin you out of the rotation.

See Bulletin om page 26 for details of the special coaching weekends Russ will be running this year.

Check out this vid clip and Russells description of how to bust an air reverse on www.carvemag.com.

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Over in County Clare, the number of quality waves being ridden is increasing every session, according to photographer Mickey Smith. “The crew here at the minute is definitely evolving with lads like Pete Conroy, Ollie O’Flaherty and Hugh Galloway getting more and more confident. Hugh, Stef Skajarowski and George Franklin now have a ski of their own and they’ve been practising every session they can, doing their time and starting to reap the rewards in heavy pits. Pete broke his back a year ago, but he’s returned this winter with a vengeance. Local shaper Tom Doidge-Harrison has been quietly cruising the lineup at Aileen’s, picking off a few the choice waves, then slipping back into his workshop to refine another board for the next session. St Ives boy Patch Wilson came over for his annual visit last month, and impressed everyone with his full pelt attack at Riley’s.”

stu norton

2 Up in the Northeast, 15-yearold Ross Hargreaves has been one of the standouts at South Shields 2 in recent months. King of Watersports and Xcel have been helping him out with gear, and he’s hoping to head off to Indo in June with some of the local crew...if he can get a job as a paperboy to raise some cash.

Residents of the St Merryn area were recently made aware of a worrying planning application to put in a drainage (including treated sewage) pipe flowing onto the beach at Booby’s Bay in North Cornwall.

Read the application at http://old.ncdc.gov.uk/media/ adobe/l/8/2009-01754.pdf. The lowering of the water table would affect a large area of both Special Scientific Interest and Outstanding Natural Beauty; also, all sewage would be treated on the premises and the resulting liquids to be disposed of through a soakaway and hence into the groundwater. (Comment or object to the proposal on the Cornwall County Council website: http://onlineplanning.ncdc.gov.uk/eaccess/planning/ Application-summary-Information/SubmitComments. asp?AppNo=DCFCFC6C0DFCEC8CACBC)

Andy Haworth has launched a website to help promote Devon Lanes, a film he is making for charity: http:// born2surf.info/born2surf/Devon_Lanes_Surf_Film.html

114 carve surfing magazine

The Red Bull Illume is the largest action and adventure photography competition in the world. Illume have teamed up with the Red Bull Wings For Life charity, which raises funds for research into and support of athletes seriously injured and or paralysed while taking part in adventure sports, and have produced a stunning calendar: http://www.wingsforlife.com/ If you want to find a job in the surf industry then you need look no further than the innovative Cross Step project, which is now recruiting surf hungry individuals for its new wave starting in March 2010. The four-week scheme gives young people from across Cornwall the opportunity to gain new qualifications in surf coaching and lifeguarding, as well as growing marketing and presentation skills, developing their CVs and building industry contacts at no cost to themselves. The Real Ideas Organisation (RIO) has been working with Chris Thomson, Managing Director of Errant Surf and Cornwall Business Awards' Young Business Person of the Year 2009, to set up Cross Step. Surfer Mitch Corbett has been through the programme and is now an ambassador for RIO. For more information about Cross Step please visit www.realideas.org/real/work/cross-step.

3 Eric and Annie Davies, Steve and Amanda Daniel (who took these shots), Simon Eaton and Kate Johnson visited Playa Guiones in Costa Rica this autumn, and scored perfect head to overhead waves for two weeks.” Late November sees the start of the dry season, so most of the bugs were dead and the rivers were shallow enough to cross in 4x4s,” says Eric. “The local Tico surfers were cool, yet still pushing hard and landing some amazing and inventive airs yet they never dropped in on us. Respect!”

3

On 30 November 2009, Newquay surfer Tom Clinton tragically lost his life aged 26 in a bike accident on the island of Bali. Tom was born in Swindon, moved to Rhosneigr and then to Newquay at the age of 17. He went on to travel the world, surfing some of the best spots on the planet due to his passion for big waves.

He was a top class surfer by anyone’s standards who will be dearly missed by all who knew him. The Catch A Wave fund has been set up in his memory and aims to provide surfing equipment for poor youngsters in Java. Donations can be made to J Clinton at Santander Bank (Abbey): a/c 44623294 s/c 090127. Further information on catchawavefortom.blogspot.com.

Morocco’s definitive surfing holidays surf camps  coaching  apartments & cars  luxury  yoga surf retreats  roxy girls weeks

www.surfmaroc.co.uk e:contact@surfmaroc.co.uk T:+44(0)1794 322709 Untitled-1 1

directory // 115 03/06/2009 12:10

carve surfing magazine

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5

LOZAPALOOZA is a special tribute event in memory of Laura Hardman, taking place on 21 February at the Acorn Arts Centre in Penzance. It will feature an eclectic extravaganza of music, film and live performance specially commissioned for the event. All proceeds from Lozapalooza will be going towards The Max and Jasper Trust Fund, which has been established to provide financial support for Loz’s two sons Max and Jasper.

You’ll find all the latest news on the Lozapalooza line-up and ticket prices at www.lozapalooza.co.uk.

Tiki are bring in the new range from Aussie quad master

116 carve surfing magazine

5 Up in North Cornwall, ‘Spot B’ has provided a few lively winter sessions. Check Stokesy (above) on this frothy drainer, photographed during a sesh back in early December. “Like most surfs out there, it was pretty wild.

You try to position yourself in the right spot for the bomb wave, but you inevitably get smashed by the odd heavy closeout. It’s a spot that keeps you on your toes, that’s for sure! - “So far this winter has been fun. I haven’t stayed home for this long for a few years, so it’s nice to see the seasons change. The waves have been good, although it’s been freezing. Today [21 January] was great — big, offshore North Fistral, some good tubes, all the boys out hooting...just like it used to be when I was younger. It’s cool — we get older but the waves stay the same and draw us all back.” Stokesy is off to Central America soon for some warm water training before starting his 2010 campaigns on the WQS and UK Pro Surf Tour. “I’m really looking forward to the WQS comp in Thurso — we always seem to luck into a nice chart around that time.” He also has a new website, check it out: www.AlanStokes.co.uk.

Irish group Surfers Against Pollution have set up a Facebook page for all water users who would like to see clean Irish coastal waters, free from raw sewage, toxic chemicals and hazardous litter. There are plenty of places in the ’lucky country’ that suffer from pollution so check it out and get involved.

6 Congratulations to Oli Adams and Emma Skinner on the birth of their baby girl Daisy in December. Oli says, “She’s a little legend and I’m calling her a future women’s

world champ because her feet are massive! I’ve had so many funny moments with her — every time I take off her nappy she does a wee all over me but I don’t care because I love her so much.”

6

7 Newquay shredder Mitch Corbett was recently hospitalised after receiving a severe head injury and being found unconscious following a night out in Newquay. He’s on the road to recovery now and will be back in the water just as soon as he possibly can. “It’s driving me nuts not being able to do anything. I’ve been fishing quite a bit but I’m just taking it easy,” said Mitch. Best wishes for a full and speedy recovery mate!

7 nick wapshott/360

kelly vander kaay

4

4 SOMA are so convinced their boardbags are the most protective in the world they have been throwing them off cliffs.

Check out the cliff toss and MX vid at www. airbagdesigns. com. They also have the convenience of compact portability along with less weight (they deflate and roll into a 26˝ x 7˝ carrying bag), and you can use them as air beds while camping. The 6´6˝ (single or double) and 7´0˝ (single or double) are available in the UK from February.

Bruce McKee, developed for the UK in sizes from 5´8˝ to 6´6˝. McKee was the guy that shaped Curren’s quad back in ’92, the one that decimated J-Bay. Check out www. tikisurf.co.uk for more details.

directory // 117

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CJB’s Surf Co Ltd Tel/Fax: +44 (0) 1208 78845 Hillfield, Copshorne Rd info@cjbsurf.co.uk Bodmin Cornwall PL31 2PA www.cjbsurf.co.uk *New trade enquiries welcome carve carve surfing surfing magazine magazine 117 117

farscapes

outere th 8 Furniture designed by Will and Sam Boex is now being stocked by Liberty’s in London. The lads are really creative so if any surf companies out there need some fancy-arse design, check out www.boex.co.uk.

If you mention CARVE they might may actually start giving us decent swell reports, instead of insisting everything is two foot.

It may come as a shock to you to find out that a handful of Aggy residents have decent jobs, but Sean Lascelles, Richard White and Kiwi Shane Goodwin all found themselves on tour big time recently. Sean works for Lily Allen, Rich is on tour with top act The Horrors and Shane is a long-time Muse roadie. All were playing The Big Day Out tour of Australia so the lads partied, worked, surfed and partied their way VIP-stylee across the country. Nice work if you can get it.

8 involved at your earliest opportunity. If it goes, it will go BIG! Jack Johnson will be on tour in the UK this summer and has already confirmed a gig at the Eden Project’s Eden Sessions.

9 A ‘Bring back the Ball’ campaign has been set up on Facebook. For those of you who may have missed the SAS Ball, it was THE party of the year on the surfing calendar and a great get together for the surfing community. SAS are 20 this year so what better way to celebrate than bringing back the Ball. Sign up and get

Breakdancing party machine Sarah Beardmore has signed with Protest. Look out for her at a break near you in the coming months because this girl rips, and she can do a good job at drinking you under the table. In other team news, Russ ‘The Bulldog’ Winter has signed up with Santa Cruz, Bundoran grom Conor Maguire has joined Alder. Gul are helping out Scottish grom Ali Coghill with wetties and Alex Piper has signed with Electric.

9

Mickey Smith, photog, filmmaker, muso, but more importantly our mate, managed to survive more killer winter bombs to notch up the big 30! No doubt the size of his pending hangover was more scary than actually reaching the

5 from the carvemag.com online gallery

Josh Shapland // Indo Photo: Josh Shapland

118 carve surfing magazine

Unidentified // North Fistral Photo: geofftydeman

Unidentified // West Cork Photo: shaneog

Unforgettable duo Angus & Julia Stone are coming back to the UK in April and have a new album out in March.

They have played in Cornwall several times, including at the 2008 Rip Curl Unleashed festival, and will be at Falmouth Princess Pavilions on 14 April. Get tickets from www.seetickets.com.

Swansea shaping leg-end Johnny Purton forgot to take home something important from Langland after a surf… his 9´ plank! Good mate Johnny James found the board and took it to the local surf shop where it hung for three days until the boys decided to end JP’s misery and tell him they had it.

10 A few good men in a 10 rather dodgy boat re-enacted the opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan to try and surf a West Wales reef before Christmas. The reef lies beyond a MOD firing range and is often closed to surfers. Paul Gill and Lloyd Cole got Lloyd’s brother’s summer fishing boat out and snuck under the radar to sneak some bombs of their own. Lloyd returned intact, but suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome…after being subjected to Gill’s porn collection.

upload your photos and you could win some great prizes!

Unidentified // St Ives Photo: markthecat

Alex Piper // Little Fistral Photo: geofftydeman

paul gill

Congratulations to Gerran Bennett from FCS and partner Louise Morris on the birth of their baby girl on 30 January.

Baby Hazel weighed in at 8lb 8oz.

dirty 30s! Here’s to 30 more you crazy cat!

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Jacob Cockle

nesxute is

Seb Smart takes flight a long way from home, somewhere in Indonesia.

120 carve surfing magazine

Things get blurry a long way off the beaten track in Indo.

We probe deep inside the heads of our top young surfers..It ain’t that pretty!

Plus a whole heap of other stuff to get you stoked

On sale: 25 March Contents may vary due to spring swells, Leven barrels, Rattler hangovers, and temporary bouts of insanity.

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