Tapped in the words of producer/surfer: @peterlaing

After making what my British peers considered a relatively controversial decision: moving to Indo during COVID (clearly, not all my mates in the UK are surfers), I stumbled across Evan Puma.

One day at a bar in Ulus, I heard this loud Bajan/English/Canadian accent say, ‘cool shorts, man, I was there too.’ As a typically stingy broke surfer, I was still wearing the free boardshorts that were handed out to competitors at the 2017 ISA junior world champs in Japan. A competition we both attended where Evan did pretty well, and I was humiliated (Scotland U18s were dismantled by the lethal combination of big sponsor stickers and supplement-fed super-groms). In short, without wanting to portray this as a tropical teen love affair, Evan and I met at sunset in a cute beachside bar.

Now that our romantic foundations are covered, we can talk about the project. The waves showcased in the film are all from the 2021 Indo dry season. Amongst the lockdowns and epic crowd-less days scored together, the first conversation about the edit happened when we were on a boat trip in the Ments. It was the afternoon after a freak session at Greenbush, where Evan took the first wave of a set and I took the second. With what was undoubtedly an overly exuberant claim, my stoke overflowed and Evan (relieved not to see me bottle the perfect wave) was there to share this priceless moment with me. During the high of that trip, we realised the potential of all the clips that he had accumulated. It was not until returning to Bali that Evan transferred all the footage he had gathered throughout the season. After first viewing the waves from countless perfect sessions, all together on one timeline, I understood that we could make something special here.

Just as I started to go out and film all the cinematic footage for the project, I came across Ohad Eshach, who had just moved into the same homestay as me. The highly talented Israeli sound designer and understatedly good surfer showed me the sound recordings he had taken throughout his travels across Indonesia. They were spectacular, and after discussing the ideas I had for the short film, he was equally excited to be part of the project. As things often are with surfers, this whole piece began spontaneously, and in the least spiritual nut job way, it genuinely felt like it was meant to be.

The film not only seeks to highlight the talent Evan has in the tube but also to show what Indonesia 2021 was like for us. Despite much of last year’s fearmongering and growing socio-political tensions, we hope that everyone who has the time to watch ‘Tapped’ is entertained and sees how pristine and stunning all Indonesia’s natural ecosystems are when left relatively untouched for a brief period.

I hope this offers good context to the film and a glimpse of the authentic moments and memories we are all so fortunate to have as surfers.

Surfer: @evanpuma
Producer/surfer: @peterlaing
Sound designer: @eshach___ 

Twin brothers Arch and Van are different. One stocky and reserved natural footer (who hates a cuddle). One lanky and loud goofyfooter (loves a cuddle).

Both rip it up and both love getting barrelled. Follow the boys as they set out on their first overseas adventure, to gouge rail and get deeply pitted through South Sumatra. A trip that saw some epic waves, but also some head wounds, reef cuts, Indo belly and an emergency appendicitis taken out in an Sumatran hospital. They say what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.

Thanks for watching! There’s some words below if you got time to read!

Honest insight:

In the grand scheme of things our goal was to create a video that brought us closer to the world of surfing, we were almost certain we could do that if we only had the right waves. What we thought would be the perfect storm popped up on the charts and with the last of a small budget we decided that Chile would be the hill that our short lived time in the surf industry died on.

After a 13 hour flight and a 6 hour drive; we got to a stretch of coast that was a creation of none other than god himself. Potential was all we could see yet the waves were underwhelming. In Part One, you’ll see clips from the first 12 days out of our 2 week stay in South America. Many of those days we didn’t surf at all, holding onto this dream of endless perfect waves only made matters worse, we had realized it was time to wake up and see our world as it is. We saw paradise, waves or no waves we were in the most beautiful country I’d ever seen. The locals were welcoming and as we gathered to break bread each night we all understood the gift of life which was connection. Quickly, the narrative that this may be the end of a short but fun ride in the surf industry changed to gratitude that it ever happened at all.

Like any 20 year olds out there, Noah and I feel an urgency to overcome the slow process of finding our Identity. Luckily we’re able to discuss these feelings of limbo openly as they arise. Our dilemmas differ but the theme is constant, thoughts interrupting action. Throughout this trip, conversation lead to the discovery that our awareness about the absent presence was birthed from our relationship with surfing. We realised we’re drawn to surfing because it forces us to face patience, commitment, struggle and uncertainty with trust only in ourselves; mimicking this approach to life on land is where we find ourselves stuck.

But for now we embraced surfing as an art in which we are forced to surrender to the present moment as it is.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading!

-Quinn

On January 5, 2023 the recent storms brought massive waves to the California coast. While most spots were huge and messy there were some protected breaks that saw some clean sets. It isn’t too often that waves come pushing into the San Francisco Bay but the bomb cyclone blessed surfers with some fun waves at Fort Point. 

Yesterday saw the second day of surfing get underway, and the first day of competition for the women. Surf fans were treated to some iconic performances on both sides of the draw. Conditions were big and unruly, yet scattered with moments of Pipeline beauty, reminding us why it is considered one of the best waves in the world. The leaderboard style of competition meant that surfers had to secure themselves a place in the Top 4 in order to advance to the final. This was determined by their two best scores from either of their non-elimination heats.

This made for exciting viewing as the leaderboard jumped around as the day progressed. In a truly pivotal moment for women’s surfing at this iconic venue, Carissa Moore came out and stunned everyone with her last-minute heroics at Backdoor, getting the highest single wave score of the event, man or woman. The women then continued to carry this momentum through the rest of the day, raising the bar for female competitive surfing at Pipeline. Some incredible performances soon followed from the men, with Oahu local, Kaulana Apo stunning the crowd with two classic Pipeline barrels, earning him the top spot ahead of finals day. As the day came to a close, the men’s leaderboard was finalized and the stage was set, with Kaulana Apo, Griffin Colapinto, Balaram Stack, and Joao Chianca heading through to the final.

Finals day kicked off with clean, fun-sized waves on offer. A dreamier, much more inviting image of Pipeline, as opposed to the chaotic version we witnessed the two days previously. The women took to the water for Round 2 and picked up right where they left off. Molly Picklum managed to find herself a runner at Backdoor to jump to fourth place on the leaderboard, displacing the Queen of Pipeline, Moana Jones-Wong, and clinching her spot in the final. Carissa Moore, Bettylou Sakura Johnson, and Caity Simmers claimed the other top spots and also secured their chance to vie for the title of Pipe Master.

The Final came next. After a slow start, Kaulana Apo opened his account with a stylish tube at Backdoor, locking in an early lead. Griffin Colapinto then went on to link four critical turns, showcasing exactly why he’s on the Championship Tour and taking him into second position. The no-priority rule had Joao Chianca’s competitive juices flowing as he searched around for a score, breaking his board on a big air attempt. After a series of exchanges resulting in Griffin taking the lead and with twelve minutes left on the clock, Balaram decided to kick into gear, locking in a 19.3, and then backing it up soon after with a Backdoor bomb earning himself a 23.0. After sitting atop the leaderboard for almost the entire event and sealing the deal with the wave of the final, Balaram proved himself a worthy Pipe Master, with Griffin Colapinto taking out the runner-up position.

Keeping the momentum going, the Women’s final got off to a quick start with Molly Picklum attacking the Backdoor end section and taking the lead. Carissa Moore, Bettylou, and Caity Simmers all answered back with a rapid succession of waves, with Carissa coming out on top. The heat leader then proceeded to change countless times throughout the heat, as the women battled the elements with the strengthening wind and heavy rain squalls. Molly found the highest score of the final on a technical backside tube and kept a stylish wave at Backdoor as her backup. Bettylou locked in a series of graceful turns that earned her a 15.3 while Caity Simmers showed off her trademark style but struggled to lock in anything substantial. Carissa found herself in an unfortunate interference situation right at the end which impaired her scoring potential and cost her the runner-up trophy, handing it over to Bettylou. Molly claimed the win and the $100k prize and proved she will be a surfer to watch at the Billabong Pipe Pro in January.

With all four women’s finalists, and two out of four men’s finalists all competing on the 2023 WSL Championship Tour, the Vans Pipe Masters has no doubt been a great preview for the CT opener at the Billabong Pipe Pro on January 29. The Vans Pipe Masters has no doubt ignited the fire ahead of the Billabong Pipe Pro next January.