Wedge Hammertime
A collection of the 50 best (as in worst) wipeouts from the Wedge. Surfers, bodyboarders and bodysurfers all getting supreme drilled into the sand, seawater enema anyone?
A Masterclass On Motivation With Bethany Hamilton
“I don’t need easy, I just need possible” – Bethany Hamilton.
This new series is a deep dive into her inspirational mind, speaking to you from her home in Kauai, Hawaii. Gain access to some of Bethany’s top tips for learning to surf, learn how she stays fit and healthy, and hear how she keeps herself motivated to move. Consider this your masterclass on motivation from the master herself.
In case you need a refresh, Bethany is one of the most humble, resilient, hardest-charging athletes on the Rip Curl team, and in the world. She had to overcome life-changing adversity after losing her arm following a shark attack as a teenager. But Bethany was never going to let that define her. She kept herself motivated and continued to stay at the very top of her game, competing at WSL Championship Tour events and Big Wave events around the globe, coming up against the best surfers in the world. However, Bethany is so much more than a fearless athlete; she is a mother of three, a devoted wife, a public speaker, and an inspiration to thousands. She is truly unstoppable.
In The Water – Behind The Lens
A new film by Johnny Gonzales takes look behind the lens of legendary surf photographers from iconic water photographers from the Hawaiian hay days to more recent times in Cornwall and Ireland. It’s pretty epic and premiers in Falmouth at the Poly Theatre on April 22nd, 23rd and Sat 30th April, 8pm.
We caught up with him to find out more.
What made you decide to make a film about surf photography?
As a surf photographer early on in my career when people would see my photos they would always ask, “Were you on a boat or a board or how did you get that shot?” At the time I was in film school and one of my assignments was to make a documentary and I decided to tell the story about the dangers and challenges water photographers face when getting the ultimate shot. After graduation I took the advice of my professor to pitch the idea to PBS and make a version where I travelled around the world interviewing water photographers and PBS liked the idea and as they say, the rest is history.
How long did it take you?
The film took me 3 years to make because it was all self funded and I travelled to Hawaii, Ireland, Mexico, and England by myself. I put every dollar I made into this film and gave up a lot of luxuries and thanks to all the people that let me sleep on their couch. Many times I’d get a good gig as a freelance editor and a week later I’d be off traveling with the money I made and come home completely broke and somehow find another job to keep me afloat and then score another good paying job and then off I’d go again. Since I was always traveling I couldn’t get a regular steady job and had to rely on being a freelance camera operator and editor. I really want to thank all the surfers and families down at Lower Trestles that hired me to get their clips at the beach, they really kept food on the table that first year of filming.
There are some diamonds in there. I bet some of the original legends were pretty stoked to be involved.
Yeah, I think I was more stoked than anything because I remember as a grom sitting on the can flipping through the pages of all the surf mags and seeing their names in the bottom right corner of the pages and I really looked up to these guys.
I loved photography at an early age and was just so mesmerized by their images and to be able to have them in my film was really surreal for me. I remember after the film was finished, Jeff Divine sent me a really nice email saying how much he really liked the film and that really meant a lot to me. Also, I’ve become really good friends with Dan Merkel, so much that I’ve become almost like an assistant for him. He still goes out to this day and shoots whatever he can and his images are so good that they don’t need to be photoshopped. It’s actually pretty funny that he’ll be off in Wyoming taking photos of bears in the freezing cold and once he’s done with the memory card, he’ll mail them to me and I’ll transfer them onto a hard drive for him because he doesn’t have a computer and I’ll mail it back to wherever he’s going to be next.
One of my favorite moments was after interviewing Brian Bielmann in Hawaii and he was showing me his record collection and we had a few beers listening to his favorite songs talking “story.” Then Jim Russi is just one of the nicest guys you could ever meet and his photos are all amazing and I’ll never forget the Bill Murray story that he told that ended up in the film.
I feel what they did with equipment back then really has stood the test of time…
What the old school photographers did with the equipment they had back in the day really blew my mind, I couldn’t imagine being out there shooting film and only having 36 shots to a roll and once they’re done they have to swim all the way back in and then do it all over again. It’s definitely not like these days where we can fire off thousands of photos in literally minutes. Those guys were the true photographers and not to mention they had to pull focus and make sure they’re settings were perfect before getting into the water, those guys in my humble opinion don’t get enough recognition that they deserve.
And you came to Cornwall, Devon and Ireland. What inspired you to include them and how was that?I’m from California and if it was overcast there was a good chance I wasn’t swimming out that day and the photographers over in England and Ireland do it more often than not and they’re getting some incredible images and not to mention the water is freezing cold and I gained a whole new respect for what they do. I did some research and found Mike Lacey in Cornwall, Spike Chambers in Devon and David Olsthoorn from Ireland and they were really welcoming and keen on the idea of being included in the film. I really wanted to show the audience that water photographers are everywhere in the world and not just from warm places like Hawaii, California, and Mexico.
The one thing that I really liked about the photos these guys were getting is the backdrop was so different with the beautiful rolling hills, huge cliffs, and 300 year old churches all in the background. Also, I remember filming Mike in the water on my first trip to England at Porthleven and with in minutes the weather went from sunny, to pouring rain, to partly cloudy, to sunny again and I thought that was really cool because as a photographer you can get a bunch of different looks in one session.
I just want to add one last thing, I did have a scary experience at Porthtowan beach on Dec 18th 2017 where I got sucked out and almost drowned and luckily a local surfer saved me. I was so distraught when I made it back to the beach that I couldn’t remember if his name was Brent or Brett. At the time he was surfing on a longboard and had brown hair and a brown beard, if anyone knows him please have him contact me.
“In the water, behind the lens.” will be playing in Falmouth next month on the 22nd and 23rd April.
Boardmasters WSL
Boardmasters began back in ’81 as the UKs biggest pro comp, this year Boardmasters OPEN will play host to the biggest names in pro surfing as they take to the waves to battle it out for the coveted Boardmasters top spots across five exhilarating days.
It’s a pleasure once again to have the WSL return to Newquay for the Boardmasters OPEN; WSL competitions include the Animal Pro (QS1,000) mens and womens division and the BFGoodrich Longboard Pro (LQS1,000) mens and womens division. Athlete registration is open now at www.worldsurfleague.com
Plus festival-goers will get the chance to catch the next surfing generation of hotly-tipped groms in the Havaianas Junior OPEN, boys and girls division. Junior athlete registration is open now at boardmasters.com/surf
Festival goers can also sign up for Surf and Adventure packages to make the most of their time soaking up the best of what Cornwall has to offer. Surf packages cater for all abilities, with lessons available from Thursday – Sunday. Boardmasters works alongside established local surf schools and expert instructors including Fistral Beach Surf School, Escape Surf School, Westcountry Surf School and Blue Surf School to provide these lessons and get attendees in the water, with 2022 surf lessons fuelled by Fulfil.
Adventure packages are available to book too, including coasteering, kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding and snorkel SUP safari, perfect for anyone who loves the great outdoors. Leading local activity providers Newquay Activity Centre and Bare Feet Coasteer partner with Boardmasters to put these packages on.
Fistral Beach will transform into a bustling Surf Village with the help of Boardmasters 2022 partners including Animal, BFGoodrich, Fulfil, Havaianas, Lidl, Sperry and many more – with lots of exciting surprises in store including Animal and BFGoodrich WSL pro surf competitions, the return of Lidl Mudder, the infamous Havaianas flip flop shower plus Fulfil’s surf simulator.
See you at the beach…
99 Shades of Crazy
What do you do when you combine an American Southern Soul Rock musician and surfer from Florida, with South African professional surfer, Beyrick De Vries’ (Beyrick is on track to be the first surfer ever to represent the Netherlands at the 2024 Olympics). Well it appears you get the above edit, hit play to rock, roll and rotate.
• JJ Grey •
“The nearest thing I’ve ever done to playing music, besides playing music, is surfing. The wave is the rhythm and what happens on it is all the twists and turns of melody.”
From the days of playing greasy local juke joints to headlining major festivals, JJ Grey remains an unfettered, blissful performer, singing with a blue-collared spirit over the bone-deep grooves of his compositions. His presence before an audience is something startling and immediate, at times a funk rave-up, other times sort of a mass-absolution for the mortal weaknesses that make him and his audience human. When you see JJ Grey and his band Mofro live—and you truly, absolutely must—the man is fearless. On stage, Grey delivers his songs with compassion and a relentless honesty. Grey and his current Mofro lineup offer grace and groove in equal measure.
• Beyrick Thulani De Vries •
Surfing and music share an open-hearted, creative, improvisational artistry and ethos. It’s a natural, authentic relationship. We had this epic opportunity to do something unique, get creative and collaborate with JJ, integrating his music video with Beyrick’s surf edit. “I’ve always felt that surfing is like visual music. The surfer being the musician, the surfboard the instrument, and the wave the genre. After 79 days of surfing being banned in South Africa, and being cooped up inside my house, I was literally going “99 Shades of Crazy”… to say the least. I was invited on a surf trip with Mikey February whilst he was filming the first episode of his series “Sonic Souvenirs”. Naturally JJ’s song fit perfectly with the way I was feeling, and the way I was expressing myself during that surf session. Getting the crazies out, getting a little silly on the waves, and being super stoked to be able to get in the water again after so long, and just let loose!”
Scottish National Surfing Championships 2022
Scottish National Surfing Championships 2022 from Scottish Surfing Fed on Vimeo.
The 15th-17th April saw the 2022 Scottish Surfing Championships. This year, a straight west swell took us a few miles around the headland to Brims Ness, a wild and rugged slice of coast, home to one of the heaviest slabs around.
Watching the competitors in the first few heats, you’d find it hard to believe it was only half a year since they last threw on the rashies. In the space of one winter season, the level of surfing has visibly improved across the board. No matter the age or gender, everybody in the water is charging, trying to edge out their competition.
Friday morning arrived before the swell, the competition going on hold early. Blue skies, offshore winds & excited surfers crowded the reef, the anticipation building. All eyes were out west praying the waves were on the way.
First light the following morning revealed ‘The Bowl’ had awoken. The right-hand slab was hammering some sketchy, rippable waves onto almost dry reef. This wave is a spectacle, and even before the surfers paddled out for reference, it’s clear that the rides will be all or nothing. After the steepest of drops, the wave opens up only for a couple of seconds, then squeeze in a turn before your fins hit the reef, boom, done. In theory.
Open men’s got off to an electric start, the pushing tide bringing plenty of waves, and wipeouts to boot. Everyone trying find the limits of point scoring possibility. Once again, the SSF were on the ball. With new contest Director Jason Simpson ensuring a smooth running of back to back heats. From 8am until the tide inevitably killed the party, we saw Men, Women, Masters and Longboard all making progress with the good conditions. Lining us up for a finals day to be remembered.
“It was a fabulous weekend helped by some glorious weather. I was really impressed by the young surfers and especially the women. They charged on the death-defying slabs at Brims. A giant leap in the progression of Scottish Women’s surfing.”
~ Ester Spears // Head Judge
An Easter gift on Sunday morning, the Atlantic had delivered us a couple extra feet of swell. Paired with a complete lack of wind, the Bowl had become a lot more critical. This time the girls got the spotlight, being the first to test out the glassy conditions. Some heavy sets later and Iona McLachlan leads Clover Christopherson, Phoebe Strachan and Catriona MacDonald into the finals later that morning. The men’s semis followed, with Chris Noble scoring the highest heat total the entire weekend with a 15.83. Cementing his place in the final alongside George Watt, Boydie and last year’s winner, Craig McLachlan.
Finals kicked off with a bang, Phoebe Strachan scoring the joint highest wave score of the entire weekend. An 8.83 on the biggest wave I saw come through all weekend. Phoebe took a decisive win to retain her title from last year’s Champs.
“I was impressed to see the North Shore Surf Clubs (NSSC) Mark Boyd win the double taking first place in both the Master and Men’s Open but the highlight for me was the women surfers, surfing the same wave as the men in heavy conditions at the Bowl, with the NSSCs Phoebe Strachan winning the Women’s Open scoring the highest wave score of the competition. It’s great to see the Women raising the bar and taking women’s surfing in Scotland to the next level.”
~ Jason Simpson // Contest Director
Women’s Open Final:
Phoebe Strachan (NSSC)
Iona McLachlan (NSSC)
Clover Christopherson (BHSC)
Catriona MacDonald (MFSR)
“I am stoked to get my 3rd title and come away with the joint highest score of the comp. The standard of woman’s surfing is getting better each year and the girls raised the bar by taking on the bowl. We were so lucky to have pumping surf for Saturday and Sunday. The event was a great success from start to finish and so good to be live streamed.”
~ Phoebe Strachan // Women’s Open Winner
In the men’s open Semi’s, a buzzer beating tube-ride secured Mark Boyd’s berth in the final with only 5 seconds on the clock. Boyd went on to take his 3rd National Open Men’s title ahead of fellow North Shore Surf Club member and runner-up Craig McLachlan.
Men’s Open Final:
Mark Boyd (NSSC)
Craig McLachlan (NSSC)
George Watt (BSC)
Chris Noble (NSSC)
Masters was a hotly contested final. Mark Cameron, last year’s winner, put on a stellar performance with two high scoring waves in the final. However, Mark Boyd seemingly unbeatable this weekend, took the win by some margin, in his first ever entry to the master’s category. Joining the list of those who have won both masters & the Men’s open in one sitting.
Masters Final Results:
Mark Boyd (NSSC)
Mark Cameron (BSC)
George Noble (BSC)
Mark Yeadon (LSC)
After taking his tenth championship title last year, Malcolm Findlay retired from competition, leaving the longboard field wide open. Sam Christopherson’s style and grace on his log saw him take the top step, just ahead of Chris Clarke.
Longboard Finals Results:
Sam Christopherson (BHSC)
Chris Clarke (NSSC)
Zach Marritt (NSSC)
Owen McQueenie (EBSC)
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