A Wooden Good'un..!

Three weeks ago I decided to document the building of an Alaia board.

I had a broken rusted tripod and a few POV cameras to use and asked my housemate Ryan if I could use his garage and tools.
The timber was delivered and work began, its amazing how quickly the board takes shape once the gluing process has been taken care of.

There are a few stages involved, and each one seemed to blend into the next quite seamlessly, the paulownia timber is amazing to work with, and is as light as a feather. The grain is a lovely sandy yellow colour and it really comes to life as you work. Power tools are overkill for the most part, and I found hand sanding was the best way to get a feel for the boards outline, rails and the all important concaves.

Once I was done sealing the board, I didnt surf it for a week as mother nature threw down a flat spell on Sydney, but when the day came it was perfect.

I had the local point which is normally packed all to myself for over an hour. I was definitely surprised at how easily the board paddles, and catching a wave is akin to doing it on a longboard.
Riding without fins is like nothing I've ever felt, such a weightless glide.
The timber absorbs all chatter off the face making for one of the smoothest feelings I've yet felt in surfing.

Today I saw the video is on Magicseaweed, as Video of the Day and 4500 people have watched it already. I hope its inspired some other people around the world to look into this sustainable form of wave riding.

Wood is Good.

 

New Threads

I just got my first shipment of clothes in the door after signing with HippyTree clothing.

Im so stoked to be associated with this cool eco-conscious label as they design apparel that is built to last which is very important to me as so much clothing we see these days is made in toxic production lines with very little thought to quality.
They are also committed to softening their environmental impact by using organic / eco-friendly materials and manufacturing processes.
Their clothing is inspired by nature, and is made for surfers, rock climbers and outdoor enthusiasts.

For more on them and to check out their amazing prints and clothing go to www.hippytree.com

Ledge at the Edge.

I just got back from a little surf trip down south.

There was a small swell in the water and I saw a place on the map where the Australian continental shelf comes within a kilometer of the coast, so Eliz and I packed the van and started driving. We pulled off the highway and drove down a nondescript dirt road to the coast, bouncing through potholes and scraping the sides of the van on bushes and trees until we came out onto a grassy headland.

We set up right on the edge of the grass overlooking a pretty good looking setup and went to bed in the hope that morning would bring offshore winds and a bump in the swell.

We awoke to this:

It was good to mix it up again amongst some solid slabs, there was a penalty to pay for falling so threading the tube till the channel became the game.
I met a few local bodyboarders out there who said they normally surf it alone, and were happy to see some new faces in the line up, we traded barrels all morning until the tide got too low for me to make the end section over a button of rock, and I walked back to camp really content.

The next day it was cooking again, and Eliz and I paddled out for round two. She was charging and showed the boogies a thing or two about taking late drops, and backdooring the slabs.

Another day drifted away as we surfed our fill, until again the tide got too low. It was back to camp to check the beach break and make some lunch, read a book, do some stretching, etc.

We'll definitely be heading back to the Ledge at the Edge again soon, I want to see what it does when it gets bigger, the boogies also spilled the beans about some even rounder, better waves in the area so my eyes will be glued to the charts from now on.

Billabong XXL Ride of the Year Entry.

Just received the good news that a wave I rode at Mullaghmore this winter has been entered into the Ride of the Year category. Im so stoked and honoured to have been considered for this.
The cold, bleak waters of Mullaghmore feel a long way away from Sydney right now.

I owe a big thanks to this Atlantic onion, and also to my brother Dave for filming that day, and finally to Dylan Stott for driving me into this drainer...http://xxl12.billabong.com/roty/index.html

One final mission.

Its was a fitting way to end the trip.

Rain smashing the windscreen, driving at snails pace around tight turns and braking for tractors, all the way to the secret beachy.
It was a nice walk in, well timed between squalls, and we found a cosy cave of bushes to light a fire beneath, toasted the wetsuits before donning them and paddled out into some heavy wedges.
Its been a fun trip back "home", definitely wouldn't class it in the epic category but there were a few diamonds in the rough.
So now, its time to pack my bags, scrape the cold water wax off my boards and hit the road for the Southern Hemisphere, Sydneys Northern Beaches will be home for the forseeable future.
Ive got a feeling I am the sacrificial lamb for the surfers who will be staying in Ireland, once I go the surf will pump. So enjoy it guys, catch you next time.
Baaaaaaaa.

The Wild Wesht...erly

Opening car doors, going for walks, fixing surfboards, hanging up wetsuits, washing the jetski, cycling down the road are some of the things I would have taken for granted two months ago but now seem like a distant memory.
The wind has been howling for so long its actually like a cruel joke at this stage. Blame it on El Nino, La Nina whatever but we've been living in the North Atlantic jetstream this season and hell Im sick of it.
Ive seen so many days of solid waves smeered by this relentless gale.
Huge seas that have travelled so far to grace our shores only to be watched by red eyed surfers through windscreens of Transits and Transporters countrywide.
Its a shame because I cant remember the last time the charts dropped below 4 meters.

Oh well, time to put another log on the fire. Another shovel of coal. Turn up the volume on the radio to drown out the rattling of the window panes. It can only get better from here!
Thanks to Richard 'Stix' Johnson for the shot.

Unreal Realm

Aye we've had some good sessions over the last 2 or 3 weeks, Christmas just around the corner, fire roaring, waves coming..Cant complain.

Mullaghmore was pumping last monday, it kind of blew me away how many perfect waves I saw that day. It was a day of mental snapshots and adrenalin. I went through the barrier of just being plain cold and thrived on waves alone, they kept me warm and also kept me out there longer, cooling me down. I could'nt come in though, it was too perfect to waste.

 The shot above shows the size of the playing field out there, and how heavy the first bowl is. Theres two, the next one is way out of the shot to the right, and on 9 waves out of 10 you cant make it through both.

This is the end bowl, once you get to this stage of the ride its nearly done..but not without one last shack.

The footage from this day is available to watch at http://vimeo.com/33652914

Its been an awesome end to the year for me, just so stoked and blessed to be doing what I love.

A big thanks to Michael Waters for the shots.