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Taking Off

Broome, in the far north of Western Australia, is closer to Indonesia than its own state capital of Perth. This country town is known for many things, from indigenous art, culture and heritage to pearl farming and Cable Beach, a glistening ribbon of sand famed for its spectacular sunset camel rides. Broome is also notorious for deadly jellyfish and crocodiles, so unsurprisingly, surfing has never been high on the list of must-do things for any visitor to Broome. But Aussie journeymen Jay Davies and Harry Bryant decided to roll the dice on a rare cyclone swell — the results were, umm, interesting.

Surfers say raw sewage in the sea off Porthleven is making them ill.

Sanitary waste picked up by Aidan Botha at Porthleven.

Surfers in Porthleven are saying sewage in the sea is making them ill. Despite the main outfall having received a treatment plant that supplies full secondary treatment and UV disinfection sanitary towels and raw sewage are still washing up around the harbour area.

Mitch Holmes said a scratch picked up in the garden in January became infected – causing his whole arm to swell up – after surfing at Porthleven. Other surfers and residents are complaining of a lot of sanitary items washing around the harbour.

Lev had a few good days this winter. If you have been ill after surfing there please fill out an incident form on the links below. Nath Phillips. Pic J Dog

South West Water said the local waste treatment works were working and that it had previously found domestic properties wrongly connected to storm drains.

“Last year we identified three domestic properties who have wrongly connected their foul sewage into the surface water drainage system, which discharges into the harbour. We are working with the householders concerned to resolve this as soon as possible, alongside the Environment Agency.”

The Environment Agency said it was aware of “sewage-related debris” in the harbour and would investigate when weather improved… Which of course, isn’t really good enough…

Hugo Tagholm of SAS said

“Porthleven is full sewage treatment with UV, and we don’t have any notifications of CSO activity although storms of course can elevate this.”

CSO’s (Combined sewer overflows) are usually a big factor in pollution on popular surfing beaches during periods of heavy rain, however SWW say their overflow has screening which would catch any debris. Unfortunately SWW and other water companies switch off the data supply outside of ‘Bathing season” – an outdated concept which assumes no one uses the sea outside of 15 May to 30 September – so we can’t check this fact.

SWW switch off data outside of ‘bathing season’. Maybe because they know how much crap they pump out in autumn and winter?

“The EA is investigating and trying to resolve the misconnections that are believed to be causing the issue.’ continued Hugo

“Sanitary waste is a good indicator of pollution – the challenge is that this problem is everywhere due to CSO’s, and so the water company sanctions that will hopefully be strengthened through the next Environment Bill are all important.

“We are of course very concerned at the national picture on water quality, and have a new ‘citizen science’ testing campaign’ coming this summer, along with new health elements to the Safer Seas Service and a campaigning tool to apply people power campaign pressure on politicians.

“It’s always a huge concern to see local impacts, and suspected sewage-related illness, and we have asked for more details for our medical database. Given there have been quite a lot of good days down there this year, it would be great to know if any of the local crew that have been ill. We’d love to get the data. “

“I would also urge the local surf community to submit the evidence and data to Surfers Against Sewage for any ongoing events and impacts, and submit this to the Environment Agency through their hotline ) where pollution incidents can be logged and action taken. Images, times, dates, medical records are all important.

“These case studies can be very powerful as we lobby MPs through our work inside and outside Parliament. Our ground-breaking water quality report shone a new light on these issues last year and we’d welcome the whole surf community to join us on sewage pollution and water quality actions this year.”

If you believed you have been made ill by sewage at any break in he UK please fill in one of the forms
https://www.sas.org.uk/medical-response-form/

Dryrobe Sponsor England Junior Team

Dryrobe, producers of the world’s most advanced change robe, today announced a new partnership with Surfing England that sees them become the official sponsor of the English Junior surf team. It is hoped to aid the development of young English surfers, helping them reach their full potential.

As the first time that the England Juniors have had their own sponsor, the team will now have access to top level coaching, support staff and training plans as they prepare to compete in events throughout 2020 and beyond, including the 2022 Youth Olympics in Dakar, Senegal, where Surfing will make its debut.

To announce the partnership, dryrobe joined the English Junior squad in training at the Wave, Bristol last week to deliver their official Team England dryrobe gear. In developing the next generation of elite English surfers, the Wave will be a game-changing facility, allowing athletes and coaches to perfect their skills and analyse performance in the state-of-the-art Wave pool.

Dryrobe have also extended their wider partnership with Surfing England – the National Governing Body of English Surfing. Their own personal journey having started through surfing, dryrobe are pleased to support the organisation in shaping the future of the sport.

Ben Powis, Commercial and Operations Director for Surfing England said:

“It’s no exaggeration to say our partnership with dryrobe is a game changer for the Junior team. We have our sights set on the Dakar 2022 Youth Olympics and the support from dryrobe means we can put structured training plans in place, bring in top class coaching and support staff, and take full advantage of the amazing facilities at The Wave.”

dryrobe Founder and Director Gideon Bright added:

"We're incredibly excited to be supporting the Team England Juniors at such a monumental time in surfing's history. The pool of talent in junior surfing right now is amazing and we're confident that backing this incredible team of surfers can make a real difference in helping them achieve their potential. The future of English surfing is looking very bright and we're so proud to be a part of it.”

To find out more about dryrobe, visit dryrobe.com

More Acts Announced for Boardmasters 2020

Today, Boardmasters announces over 40 more acts for this year’s festival with their 40th year set to be their biggest yet. World-class acts including Blossoms, Hot Chip, Maribou State, Kojey Radical and Easy Life will be heading to the Cornish coast where they will join headliners Kings of Leon, Skepta and The 1975, and many more for five unmissable days of surf and music from Wednesday 5 – Sunday 9 August 2020.

With Boardmasters announcing their biggest ever line up, tickets are flying. Day tickets for Saturday 8 August, headlined by Kings of Leon, are due to sell out in the next two weeks. Book camping and day tickets NOW via their website before its too late.

Blossoms will be hitting the Boardmasters Main Stage on Friday 7 August. Flying the flag for Stockport, the five-piece are riding high after starting the year off scoring a no.1 album with the widely acclaimed ‘Foolish Loving Spaces’. With a catalogue of joyous hits in their arsenal including ‘Charlemagne’, ‘Your Girlfriend’ and ‘There A Reason Why (I Never Returned Your Calls)’, fans can expect an unashamedly fun and euphoric set as Blossoms’ summery mix of pop, indie and funk makes waves across Watergate Bay.

Hot Chip headline The Point on Saturday 8 August with a very special DJ set on Sunday 9 August. A great British pop sensation, Hot Chip are an unstoppable force who have been delighting fans and dominating dancefloors with their catchy synth-pop for two decades. This summer, fans will be treated to a shimmering, no-holds-barred set sure to keep everyone dancing way beyond sunset.

Also heading to The Point are Maribou State who will take to the decks on Saturday 8 August, to deliver a huge DJ set. Following a year taking the UK, Europe and North America by storm with their latest tour, the duo are heading to Boardmasters with their feel-good fusion of electronica and instrumentation. There will be summer sounds and sunset beats in droves, as Maribou State bring a heady mix of funk, soul and energy to Watergate Bay.

Over at the Land Of Saints, British poet and artist Kojey Radical is not to be missed. The London rapper is widely recognised as one of this generation’s most talented storytellers, with his latest EP ‘Cashmere Tears’ skillfully weaving a beautifully emotive take on modern life. A true wordsmith with social and cultural relevance to his lyrics, there’s good reason why Kojey Radical is at the very forefront of the UK rap scene. Catch him at Boardmasters on Friday 7 August 2020.

Hot on the heels of their NME Awards win for ‘Best New British Act’ this month, the unstoppable Easy Life are coming to the Main Stage at Boardmasters this August on Friday 7 August. The Leicester lads blend a smorgasbord of musical styles, with melodic pop, jazz, hip-hop, electronica and much more creating their unique sound which defies genres and doesn’t play by the rules. It’s been a whirlwind year for the five-piece with festival slots, plus an appearance on Later With Jools Holland. With a hotly-anticipated debut album in the works and hits including ‘Nightmares’ and ‘Earth’, their Boardmasters performance will undoubtedbly be a spectacle.

Boardmasters has also unveiled over 40 more acts for 2020. Camden indie-pop band Kawala is heading to the Cornish shores along with, the refreshingly honest songstress Olivia Dean, Germany’s own Gerd Janson, TSHA with her EP ‘Moonlight’ out now, plus singer songwriter Hannah Humberstone who is supporting Lewis Capaldi on tour this year.

Elsewhere on the line up, there’s a whole host of local Cornish talent. Casino-Rap duo Hedluv + Passman, Garage-Rock four-piece The Eyelids, 60s surf garage collective Palooka 5, DJ Ryan Yeo, plus D&B duo Dub Drenched Soundsystem, Plymouth’s Land of the Giants and Tribo Groove to name a few.

Other artists added today include AKA Juan, Argh Kid, Brian Summers, Catalyst, Crawford, Crisis MC, Demonise, Designate & Apostle, DJ BORING, DJ Darko, DJ Smooth, Hot Blood, Jolla, Josef, Klimax, Lulah Francs, MC DET, Not The Beatles, Olivia Dean, ONO, Redlight, Shagrat, Starz & Deeza, Stray Beast, The Allergies, The Good Old Fashioned Lover Boys, The Menendez Brothers, The Mongolian Disco Show, The Tribe, Visionobi and WUH OH.

Boardmasters will continue its tremendous work to keep the festival and the Cornish coastline cleaner than ever before. There will be beach cleans in partnership with Surfers Against Sewage throughout the year as well as during the festival. The successful re-useable cup scheme will continue, along with a litter bond on all camping tickets to incentivise campers to pick up their litter and recycle, and much more in place to make Boardmasters as clean, environmentally-friendly and enjoyable as possible. This is all part of the mission to have eradicated all non-essential single use plastics from Boardmasters by this Summer’s festival.

Beyond the music, Boardmasters returns with its epic World Surf League Qualifying Series surf competition, where the biggest names on the international surf scene will battle it out in the Boardmasters Open and BFGoodrich Longboard Pro at Fistral Beach. Past winners include the who's-who of European professional surfing, as well as international athletes enjoying the British summer vibes. It's an opportunity for local athletes to challenge some of the best competitors on the QS tour, and British fans to feast on high-performance surfing at their local beach break.

The festivals dedicated wellbeing area, Zennor Haven will be the perfect place to unwind and relax, with yoga, mental health workshops, healthy food offerings, meditation and much more.The UK’s largest Silent Disco will make a hotly-anticipated return on Wednesday 5 and Thursday 6 August as scores of festivalgoers kick-start 2020 proceedings at the Watergate Bay Main Stage.

Inspired by the freedom, adventure and creativity of surfing and music, Boardmasters was born in 1981. Expect parties that run late into the night and a beautiful beach to recuperate on during the day. The five-day event is situated across two stunning locations in Cornwall – UK surfing mecca, Fistral Beach, where world class International Surf Competitions take place, and the most stunning location in the country to watch live music, Watergate Bay.

Book your tickets here now, and see you at the beach!

BOOK TICKETS HERE

Noosa Longboard Open

NOOSA HEADS, QLD/AUS (Tuesday, February 25, 2020) - Hawaiian youngster Kelis Kaleopaa (HAW) and surfing icon Joel Tudor (USA) have seized historical victories at the Noosa Longboard Open, presented by Thomas Surfboards, the opening event of the 2020 World Surf League (WSL) Longboard Tour (LT). On what was the best day of conditions for the entire event, the pair overcame a field of reigning event winner’s and former world champions, to each take monumental wins in clean two-foot surf on Noosa Main Beach.

15-year old Kelis Kaleopaa (HAW, below) travelled to the Noosa Longboard Open 12 months ago to compete in her first-ever WSL event. One year later and Kaleopaa is the Longboard Tour Rankings Leader and in the box seat to claim her maiden World Title. After an impressive performance all week at Main Beach, posting some of the highest wave and heat totals of the event, Kaleopaa eventually met her good friend Sophia Culhane (HAW) in the Final. Culhane looked solid from the start but couldn’t overcome a rampaging Kaleopaa, whose poise on the nose and ability to read waves, saw her take the win with a two-wave total of 12.26 (out of a possible 20). Kaleopaa has shown that she is at the forefront of a huge push coming from Hawaii on the WSL Longboard Tour.

“I’m so happy right now I don’t really know how else to explain it,” Kaleopaa said. “Sophia is one of my best friends from home and we surf together every day so this is such a dream. I cried when she made it into the semifinals because I was so happy for her. It’s been amazing here in Noosa to have all of the crew from Hawaii and Waikiki supporting each other. All of the Hawaiian’s were surfing so well which was awesome to see. We all surf together, all day every day and this week was no different. We’ve all had so much fun.”

Almost 20 years after his last appearance at the Noosa Festival, and 16 years since his last ASP / WSL event win, Joel Tudor (USA, below) has taken another major victory, at the ripe age of 43. A two-time World Longboard Champion (‘98 and ‘04), Tudor is an icon of surfing and longboarding in particular, winning his first professional event at 15. He is now running his own logging invitational events, the ‘Vans Duct Tape Series’ globally, celebrating traditional longboarding. Tudor made a trip to Australia to surf with his sons on the points of Noosa and check out the Noosa Festival and was given a wildcard into the event, which he then went onto win. Tudor now finds himself sitting in No. 1 on the World Longboard Rankings and with no choice but to go for his third World Longboard Title.

“I think the last time I won this event was 20 years ago and most of the competitors here this week weren’t even born,” Tudor said. “Then I won my last ASP event 16 years ago so it’s been a long time since I’ve been here. I didn’t really plan on competing in this event, then I got the wildcard and kept making heats and found a rhythm, it wasn’t until the semifinals though that I knew that I could win. It was cool to come up against Kevin (Skvarna), he is one of the best guys at the Duct Tape events so it was rad to share a heat with him. The best part of this win is that my kids are here. They’ve seen the trophies and heard the stories but now they’ve seen their dad win, something which is really cool. I suppose I’m going to have to go for my third world title now, which will be epic.”

A solid member of the huge pool of talent coming out of Hawaii on the WSL Longboard Tour is 14-year-old Sophia Culhane (HAW) who came to Noosa this year to compete in her first-ever WSL event. Hoping to enjoy some fun with friends and gain some experience surfing heats with the world’s best, Culhane was the most surprised when she earned her spot in the
Final, with good friend Kelis Kaleopaa. Although she finished short of the event win, the new world number two leaves Noosa as a leader of the huge pack of surfing talent, representing Hawaii on the 2020 WSL Longboard Tour.

“I can’t believe I’m number two in the world at the moment,” Culhane said. “That's not what I was expecting this week. I couldn’t have done it without all of the support of my Waikiki family who has been cheering me on from the beach all week. Surfing a final with Kelis was so amazing. She is such an amazing surfer and I’m so happy that she got the win. She deserves it so much. I can’t wait for the year ahead -- I’m so stoked.”

At only 22-years-of-age, Kevin Skvarna (USA below) could almost be seen as a veteran of the WSL Longboard Tour, with the Californian competing for a world title since 2015. A true believer in the traditional aspects of surfing, Skvarna has found his feet on the new look WSL LT and today his success was a testament to his persistence, as he found himself in his first-ever WSL event final against one of his idols. Skvarna will now focus on the year ahead as he looks to clinch an event win and with it his first WSL World Longboard Title.

“Surfing in a final like that has been a long time coming,” Skvarna said. “I’ve been doing this for a long time now and I feel like the direction the WSL LT is now taking suits my surfing a lot more, which is cool. This new direction has opened it up to a lot greater young surfers and it’s really cool. We are all a big travelling family and the tour is really fun these days. I can’t believe I just surfed a heat with Joel Tudor, let alone a final. He is the man -- like there are only a few godfathers of longboarding and he is one of them. I’m just so stoked to have made the final today. It’s an amazing feeling

Britains Ben Skinner (below) went out the semi final by 0.07 of a point after Kai Sallas racked a buzzer, and Ben, beating last ride of 5.87 in the final seconds to join Joel Tudor in the semi finals.

Fight for the Bight claim victory as Equinor withdraw oil exploration plans

Massive paddle outs happened right around Australia.

Norwegian state owned oil company Equinor has announced that it will abandon its plans to drill in the Great Australian Bight. The campaign to protect the area was led mainly by surfers under the "Fite for the Bite” campaign with numerous paddle outs, presentations and a share holder action.

Fight for the Bight say “This a huge result for local communities, traditional owners and everyone who has had their voices heard.

Taking the fight to Norway

“ Surfrider Foundation Australia, The Wilderness Society, The Wilderness Society South Australia, Sea Shepherd Australia, Patagonia and so many more local community groups, local councils and surfers right across the globe got involved in the fight to protect a pristine area of ocean including travelling to Equiniors AGM in Norway and presenting their case to the shareholders..

“The people have clearly demonstrated they want the Bight protected from oil drilling and it is time for the Australian Government to provide permanent protection.”

"This result would not have been possible without the communities and organisations that came together to #fightforthebight as a part of the Great Australian Bight Alliance

Thank you Surfrider Foundation Australia, The Wilderness Society, The Wilderness Society South Australia, Sea Shepherd Australia, Patagonia and so many more local community groups, local councils and people right across Australia!”

Wilderness Society South Australian Director, Peter Owen said

"Equinor is the fourth fossil fuel company to withdraw from the Bight in recent years, following the exit of BP, Chevron and most recently Karoon Gas.

“The Wilderness Society welcomes Equinor’s decision to responsibly withdraw from the marine wilderness that is the Great Australian Bight. It’s been a while coming, but the right decision is the right decision and we have no doubt that the hundreds of thousands of people that have supported the campaign to Fight for the Bight will be both delighted and relieved to hear this news.”

For more information click here