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The British Surfing Association (BSA) needs an energetic and enthusiastic Liaison Officer to lead its Surf School Approval programme and to support the Surf Schools within the scheme. The successful candidate will have experience of BSA Surf Coaching at the highest level and an understanding of workplace Health & Safety Risk Assessment Procedures. If you think you fit the bill, you could find yourself working on the beach between April and September this year, for £15,600 p.a (pro rata). Sounds good. If you fancy it, send an email to the BSA's National Director, Karen Walton, who's at karen@britsurf.co.uk.
See www.britsurf.co.uk for more information.
The contest season is upon us. Well, us Brits that is. I know that the Formula 1 surfing circus is already well underway and that event No. 2 of the ASP World Tour, the Rip Curl Pro, is set to kick off on 3 April at Bell's Beach. However, closer to home the BPSA Tour starts again in under two weeks with the Saltrock Open in North Devon. The venue is Downend Point, between Saunton and Croyde, and recent events have seen pumping surf. Last year's winner was Toby Atkins and he will be one of many surfers hoping to depose the reigning champion, Micah Lester, come the final BPSA event in early November. However, as I contemplate the forthcoming festivities, I quite fancy the chances of Sam Smart from Sennen Cove - so long, that is, as the hard-hitting amateur boxer doesn't find that 2007 sees him doing more boxing than surfing. I wouldn't mind a bet on Smart's prospects, but, as ever in this country, the bookies will only take bets on the mainstream sports. It's an outrage, but still: for a cracking weekend, you could do a lot worse than head to Croyde for 7, 8 and 9 April (that's Easter weekend for the Philistines).
See The BPSA website for more information.
Marcus Aurelius' Meditations has never been out of print since its rediscovery in the archives of Byzantium in 1559. Since finishing Surf Nation, I've been enjoying dipping into the Roman Emperor's musings on how to live the good life, not least because one encounters lines such as this: Pride is a master of deception: when you think you're occupied in the weightiest business, that's when he has you in his spell. The Meditations is full of beautiful vignettes on the human character and insightful, succinct analyses on how to live one's life with dignity and integrity, posing questions of the thinking man or woman which are as relevant today as they were when Aurelius first committed his thoughts to writing some 2000 years ago. And, yes, his reflections on pride couldn't be more timely. For today and yesterday, surfing at Sennen Cove, the weight of too long an absence from the sea was all too pressing. The "weighty business" with which I have been occupied has been the book, and, before that, other work, all of which took me away from the ocean for much, much too long. Now that I've finished the book, a part of me - the vain, egocentric, charmless part - thought that I would hop on a surfboard and, if not rip, at least ride waves with some measure of skill within, oh, maybe two or three sessions in a row. The reality, though, is proving somewhat different.
Continue reading "On pride, stoke and humility" »
As ever, the latest Huck is well worth checking out. See www.huckmagazine.com for more info and if your newsagent doesn't stock a copy, tell him to get his act together!
I've just discovered www.yousurftubes.com and this awesome footage of arguably the world's gnarliest beachbreak going off. There's a lot more where this came from - check it out.
Few would argue with Dick Dale's claim to surf music's Hall of Fame - but how many viewers of Pulp Fiction knew that he was a surfer?
It's a beautiful day in west Cornwall. The surf is between six inches and a foot - perfect for taking my sons, ages 11 and 9, surfing. My wife has gone to work so off we go to Sennen Cove. Once there, Sam Smart of www.bluelagoonsurf.com takes a bit of time out from working at The Chapel Idne Surf Shop to find my sons a couple of boards. He gives my younger boy, Elliot, a few tips, but Elliot is adamant that he knows how to surf, despite not having been on a board since last summer. Harry, the elder one, plays it cool for he is old enough to be moving subtly into grom mode. He is aware that respect for one's surfing betters is a good call. We head to the water's edge and I stand there as the boys wade out to waist depth. There Harry catches a succession of waves and is thoroughly stoked. Elliot, however, is not faring so well. His confidence on dry land is proving misplaced; in effect, he has forgotten how to get to his feet. He soon announces, because of cold and frustration, that he never wants to surf again and joins me on the beach. Yet more rapidly he declares that he wants to go back to the car. I can sympathise with his frustration and yet Harry is happy as can be out there in the sea. One boy is tugging me one way (literally), while the other can't hear anything I say. The longer Harry remains in the sea, the more exasperated Elliot gets - and all the while I can't get Elliot warm because I can't leave Harry unattended. Eventually Harry comes in, but by then Elliot is apoplectic with rage. Cue carnage. Sand is thrown in eyes, words that pre-teenage children should not even know let alone utter are thrown into the balmy air, and Dad is ever more embarrassed as the trudge to the car park continues. Once there, Elliot ups the ante by being thoroughly rude, and yet Dad empathises with his discontent, making telling him off less than straightforward. Finally we return home, one boy still stoked, the other swearing that he will not surf until he is 23 (quite why he picked this age is a mystery). Which all goes to show that you pay your dues in surfing - perhaps especially when you're tiny. And, indeed, that it's a lot easier when you've got another parent to help you out.
Photo of Sennen surf in rather better shape than it was today courtesy of Stuart100 on www.flickr.com
I came across this song by California band The Mother Hips the other day. The band's new album, Kiss the Crystal Flake, is out on 3 April and on this evidence has got to be worth checking out. Not least, too, because these guys all surf...
With the ASP WCT 2007 under way, here's Cassandra Murnieks with some thoughts from Bobby Martinez.
BOBBY Martinez’s surfing career was nearly over before it
even started. The Californian, now going into his second year on the World Championship Tour, endured such a tough time on the World Qualifying Series that it left him wondering if the WCT was worth the trouble. “We would spend 24 hours on a plane and then turn up to an
event where the waves were lousy,” says Martinez of the WQS, the under-series of events by which a chosen few surfers reach their Holy Grail, the WCT. "We surfed second-rate waves, and I wanted to surf the
best waves in the world. I was about to quit and go and work with my Dad in construction, but
thankfully things turned around." The 24-year-old spent four years on the gruelling WQS tour,
and was forced to sit out a year with a broken shoulder. Fortunately for the surfing world, Martinez persevered, and his dreams finally
came true when he qualified for the 2006 tour. Martinez
couldn’t have asked for a better debut with wins at Teahupoo and
Mundaka, and a season's end fifth place in the ratings. He was also rewarded with "Rookie
of the Year" honours at the recent ASP dinner.
Continue reading "Martinez on that debut - and Slater's prospects for a ninth title" »
It so happened, a few days ago, that I walked through the doors of Camborne and Redruth Amateur Boxing Club under the aegis of Huck Magazine. I've trained at the club a couple of times since moving to Cornwall, but on the Friday night in question I wasn't there to box (not least, owing to the travails with my left wrist) but, instead, to observe as a number of surfers who are boxers, or boxers who are surfers, went about their work. This would be for a forthcoming feature in Huck. A couple of days before the shoot, a pair of rather stylish Tag Heuer shades arrived in the post, these from the company's new Sport Vision brand and designed by Ross Lovegrove, the man behind the Audi TT. They were in the car for the jaunt to Camborne, and were still there the next morning, when the photographer and I wandered over to Sennen Cove to get some more shorts of Sam Smart, one of the surfer-boxers in question. Lest you're doing some wondering of your own (as in: what on earth is the connection?), let me add that the photographer, Jonathan Phillips, is a concert pianist by trade, a man who, I think he would agree, is more at home amid the dense textures of Rachmaninov than the sweat and savagery of a boxing gym. Jonathan is branching out into photography as a profession, and Vince Medeiros, the editor of Huck, agreed to give him a shot at the surfing/boxing shoot. How, though, would Jonathan fare in a world that was alien to him? And where did the Tag Heuer shades come in? And, perhaps more pressing to readers of this blog, what is the connection between boxing and surfing?
Continue reading "A Tale of Tag Heuer Shades - and how Surfing, Boxing and Classical Music Go Together" »
Check out www.billabong.com for Al Mackinnon's shots of Greg Long at Dungeons in South Africa. Undoubtedly a contender for the XXL Biggest Wave category. There are just a few days left before the competition deadline. The sight of a beast of a wave like this might be highly disturbing for 99.9% of the population, but it's not just surfer Greg Long who knows his stuff. Mackinnon went through hell and high water to get this and other excellent shots, and like all the best surf snappers, can surf as well as he can shoot (he was reputedly in the line-up at Thurso East only recently, with just a handful of surfers - including local chargers Chris Noble and Bainers - on a massive day). This shot of Long at Dungeons is mean, moody, menacing, and, to me at least, highly disturbing.
It was an overcast day about a year ago. I arrived in Porthleven to meet Dan "Mole" Joel, a Porthleven local and one of the UK's foremost big wave surfers. We wandered along the ancient cob and stood beneath the 70-ft clock tower, itself a tribute to literary endeavour built by Wlliam Bickford-Smith of Trevarno in 1883. From there we could see lumpy waves breaking over the Porthleven reef and a solitary surfer enjoying himself on what, to me, looked to be solid 4ft surf. Mole, though, wasn't convinced. "If you were adopting the Hawaiian measuring system you'd call that flat," he said in a calm, unostentatious manner. "Really?" I said. "Yeah, definitely," came the reply. "If you measure the wave from the back there's not a lot out there." This sort of statement from a certain kind of surfer can come across as disingenuous, but that's not the case with Mole and besides, it's all relative. This is a man who lives for big waves and whose sense of their size has been honed by his experiences in giant surf. For those interested in just what goes on in the mind of a surfer as he's about to surf 20ft waves, a trip to Birmingham tomorrow afternoon would be well worthwhile. This may not be Mole's natural habitat - in fact, it's about as far from the sea as you can get - but the National Exhibition Centre is hosting The Ordnance Survey Outdoors Show and with it, a Watersports Theatre. Mole will be talking about his experiences with Paul Jeffrey, the National Director of the English Surfing Federation.
Continue reading "Dan "Mole" Joel: from big waves to Birmingham (and back again)" »
Well, at least one of them, and me too, despite yet another break. As a friend recently said: "The thing about skating is that it's always 6ft and offshore." He's right. Concrete is immutable. It's always there, and you can carve it as hard as you like, even at my age. But, at 40, a slam hurts - bad. It tends to result in a broken bone. Fair enough (ugghhh). But while I recover, my elder son (11) isn't even bothering to learn how to ollie properly first - he's straight on to heel flips. The youth of today. I despair.
At last, some footage reaches me of a man who was and is beyond masculinity. He is not just The Man, he is MAN. But lest female readers be put off, let me urge you to watch and revere. For this is footage of a true pioneer.
I hear that already that already, barely a couple of hours after a photocall on Porthtowan beach this morning, the No More Butts on the Beach campaign is taking off. Surfers Against Sewage campaigns director Richard Hardy tells me that there has been oodles of support from the press and local authorities, after SAS and The Blue Bar joined forces to highlight the odiousness - and destructiveness - of cigarette litter on our beaches. I also hear that SAS has teamed up with Rip Curl to introduce a free, interactive and innovative education resource for Key Stage 3 Science, English and Citizenship. The resource - available to all teachers at www.sas.org.uk - is called Operation Beach Clean a
nd will be launched at the Education Show at the National Exhibition Centre on 22, 23 and 24 March. Two ecogroms - 'Sandy Bottom' and 'Crystal Clear' - are based on St Ives hotshot Jayce Robinson and 13-year-old Spanish kitesurfing wonder Gisela Pulido, whose cartoon forms come alive to illustrate the evils of pollution and what to do about it. They're guided by SAS campaigns officer Andy Cummins, pictured here this morning with Tara Roberts from The Blue Bar.
There needs to be more of this kind of enterprise from the surfing community - and we can all do our bit. Today, at the same time as the Porthtowan photocall, I looked out on gorgeous 2-3ft longboard surf around the corner from my local break (which I couldn't surf because of my broken wrist - woe is me). I was taking in the mesmerising view and thinking that in a few weeks I'll be able to surf this wave (something of a secret spot but right on my doorstep), when I saw a couple of crisp packets drifting in the gentle breeze. Some morons had slung them there on the cliffs rather than take them home. Now, those crisp packets were pretty rank, but I picked them up and took them to my bin. This isn't a big deal, it's just something we can all do to combat the idiots who have no respect for their environment.
I'll be mentioning Operation Beach Clean to my kids' local schools and reckon that if any parents reading this do likewise, that'd be a good thing too. Aloha.
I'm impressed by an initiative from the heart of the Badlands (OK, I know, it's not really 'The Badlands' but it's a good tag and I'm sticking with it). For those who don't know, the Badlands is - loosely - the area of North Cornwall that has St Agnes as its epicentre. Aggie is the home of Surfers Against Sewage, Finisterre, Chops Lascelles and Beachbeat and any numbers of surfers who rip. Just down the road, as much a part of the Badlands (myth and reality) is Porthtowan, and there, on the beach, is The Blue Bar. Tomorrow is National No Smoking Day, and in recognition of just how much damage cigarettes do to our beaches and ourselves The Blue Bar is implementing a no smoking policy ahead of regulations coming into force on 1 July in the UK banning smoking inside public premises. However, smokers being as they are (and I should know, being prone to the occasional alcohol-fuelled cigarette) they will just go outside and litter the environment with their foul butts. Yes, I know it's hypocritical of me to condemn them quite so heavily having admitted that I sometimes smoke, but in all honesty (a) I never throw fag-ends anywhere other than a bin and (b) I hate myself for smoking anyway and am glad a ban is coming into force. In fact, smoking per se should be made illegal but that's another story. Back to The Blue Bar: over there, they're providing static butt bins for smokers to use so that - hopefully - the beach isn't defiled. This is a good thing because as SAS point out:
1. Cigarette butts are the most littered item in the world;
2. They are found on beaches just about everywhere in Britain;
3. They're non biodegradeable; and
4. Just one of the damn things can take up to 15 years to break down and pollutes three litres of seawater.
SAS has called on local authorities to implement a 'No Butts on the Beach' policy and campaigner Andy Cummins - pictured here - applauds to The Blue Bar's initiative. So do I. Just hope I can quit having the odd smoke myself.
I've written before about wandering into Penzance and happening upon excellent surf photography. Today, eager to while away an hour or so for no particular reason, it happened again. I found myself in Archie Brown's Cafe on Bread Street. Those who suspect that I am a carnivore would be right, but the odd attempt to eat healthily is no bad thing and besides being a vegetarian establishment, the cafe is a pleasing, laid-back place, just right for an hour of idleness. Once inside the atmosphere was enhanced yet further by a selection of beguiling framed surf photographs by Penzance-based Greg Martin, whose work regularly appears in Wavelength and Pit Pilot and is now being exhibited in the cafe. Even better, the man himself was there and able to spare a few minutes. It turned out that there was much to admire not merely in Martin's photography but his commitment to one of the more perilous ways of making a living.
Continue reading "Wave Selection (1)" »
I confess that I've been wondering whether skateboarding is a reasonable pastime for a man of my years. I used to skate bowls and ramps as a 20-something but walked away from skating after the fifth dislocation of my right shoulder thanks to a slam. But I couldn't help coming back to it, even if at a more genteel pace than all those years ago. But now my left wrist is kaput and I'm thinking: time to hang up the board (again). But then Stef Harkon, a surfer and west Penwith lifeguard who was also one of the first Brits to skate as a pro, lent me Chlorine. Here's an excerpt. I just don't know if it's possible to give up just yet...
Right at the end of my quest to write a book about UK and Irish surfing, my thoughts turned - again - to Robyn Davies. The Porthleven-based woman rips. I'd been trying to catch up with her for 18 months. Did I meet her? Well, I may have done. What did she say? You'll have to buy the book to find out (assuming that I did, actually, finally meet her - I'm guilty of the odd tease). Meanwhile, I hear from Paula the Surf Mom that it's Blog Against Sexism Day. I suspect that Paula, like me, has some doubts about the blogosphere, but I reckon we agree on one thing: sexism is old school. And unlike its skating equivalent, it ain't got much to offer by way of redemption... In fact, nothing. Here's Robyn.
As I was approaching the end of Wrecking Machine, I broke my nose while sparring at Walcot ABC. This happened about 10 days before the fight that I'd be having which - I had a feeling, as writers often do - would be the climax to the book. Come the night of that fight, I was up for it, but knew that the slightest of jabs would push the nose off centre again. In the third round, it wasn't a jab but a heavy old straight right, and off the nose went. Still, I had the fight, and got the book done. This time round, it's the left wrist. Like a skulking Raskolnikov of the skate scene, I couldn't resist flinging my board down the hill where I live last w/e. A few power slides (old skool) to the pub and all was looking good. In the pub, it was even better. Then I went home, and skated the hill again. Bad move. So since last Saturday, I've been writing, finishing Surf Nation with a broken bone in that wrist. I couldn't get it checked out because if they said "Yep, that's a break" they'd put it in plaster and then how would I write? My editor - long-suffering enough - would lose patience. So I racked up the painkiller count and typed away. And - there is a God - finished the book. So, whatever the damn thing is like at the end of the day, I reckon I have a claim on Extreme Writing as a way of life. Bring on the Tequila (and some more painkillers).
Mick Fanning (AUS) announced his intentions for the 2007 Foster’s ASP World
Tour yesterday, winning the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast presented by Samsung
at his home break of Snapper Rocks for the second time in three years. His win was watched by a crowd of 10,000 exuberant spectators who enjoyed watching Fanning rip in the excellent 5-6ft waves as well as slot into to a few perfect barrels. But the man who has finished third in the ASP Tour for the past two seasons nearly didn't make it to the final. His quarterfinal clash with Foster’s ASP Rookie Josh Kerr (AUS)
left Fanning needing a near-perfect heat score to advance. Fanning
found it and beat Kerr 19.53 to 19.10 in easily one of the highest
scoring heats in ASP history. After that, it wasn't quite plain sailing but Fanning put in commanding performances to beat yet another Australian - Bede Durbidge - in the final. En route top seeds Joel Parkinson - one of the "Coolangatta Kids" - and eight-time champion Kelly Slater were left licking their wounds. As Fanning put it: “I’m so pumped. What better way to start the year
than in perfect Snapper and surfing with a mate. Just to win at home,
it’s awesome." The rest of the Tour will be hoping their own form is as good at the next event, the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach starting on 3 April. 
I've just finished Surf Nation (at long last) and in all my travels around the UK and Ireland I only encountered one person who had used a foilboard on these shores. That man was Duncan Scott. Foilboards look fun but lethal so maybe their absence is a good thing. Or are they the future?
A lot of online poker players do not content themselves with a mere one game at a time but two or three on the go at once. I know this because, for my many sins, I play a lot of poker. However, one thing that will always hold me back from ever making any money out of the game is the fact that when I play online, I spend all my time between hands checking out surf and skate footage. It's a great way to relax, but it's not the way forward as a Hold 'em wannabe pro. But as my chip count dwindles (and the book is nearing its end), does it matter? As I used to say to the bloke who used to tell me off when I skated his car park: live and let shred.
 Alex Wade is a freelance writer who lives and surfs in the far west of Cornwall. Alex's blog will bring
you up-to-date news of our surf scene, what's on and where to surf, as well
as the best of contemporary surfing writing from around Britain. The aim is
to get you stoked and into the water as often as possible, because, as the
old saying goes: "Surfing is life. The rest is details."
About Surf Nation
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The British Surfing Association (BSA) needs an energetic and enthusiastic Liaison Officer to lead its Surf School Approval programme and to support the Surf Schools within the scheme. The successful candidate will have experience of BSA Surf Coaching at the highest level and an understanding of workplace Health & Safety Risk Assessment Procedures. If you think you fit the bill, you could find yourself working on the beach between April and September this year, for £15,600 p.a (pro rata). Sounds good. If you fancy it, send an email to the BSA's National Director, Karen Walton, who's at karen@britsurf.co.uk. 
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