If this picture makes you think - then that’s a good thing! This picture of the 1974 Cronulla surf champ Col Eagle and Cronulla Stalwart Greg Hourigan was taken last week after Houro found an old G&S board shaped by Col on ebay and went to Victoria and picked it up.
Col now lives at Cabarita, with the rest of 1970s Cronulla, and is pictured here with one of his boards; a Denny Childs Southern Comfort and a Bill York shaped Twinnie-all gold items from Cronulla's glory days .
If you like this type of thing, do we have an event for you! Next February 7 marks 100 years since the Duke surfed at the Alley (God love him) and the Cronulla surf community is running several events to celebrate. Go to “surfretrospect.com.au” for more information and don’t be alarmed, the site has just gone live and is a work in progress.
Back to the Alley today and the best bank on the beach is still hanging in there, even though it’s a complete circus and they had to call in Steve Cope to try and eradicate all the pests!
The swell did pick up from yesterday’s 1-2 footers and was nudging the 4/5ft size at Wanda where Cords told me he got a hammering on the shoredump. He also thought it was good that everyone was surfing at the Alley and NO ONE was surfing at Wanda where it was twice as big and pretty good .(between closeouts)
The Swellnet report shows an average swell pattern over the next week with these onshores continuing into Friday where it may turn Nor West. The waves are only in the 2 ft range so be prepared for that.
If you were in Hawaii last week like Connor you would have been prepared as the first contest in the Triple Crown got underway in 15-18 ft Haleiwa….he came last in his heat but I am not bagging his effort!
An incredible come-from-behind victory by Maui's Dusty Payne (HAW) at the REEF Hawaiian Pro may well be the moment that realigns his life. After a torrid couple of years that saw him drop off the ASP World Championship Tour and sustain some debilitating injuries, he returned to competition here at Haleiwa with a new attitude and a renewed appreciation for the surfing life.
Payne was the only surfer in the four-man final to have surfed all the way through from Round 1 - a total of seven heats over four intense days, that encompassed everything from 6-foot to 20-foot surf. The result today more than proves his world-class ability. His challengers Julian Wilson (AUS), Jeremy Flores (FRA), and Adam Melling (AUS) were all seeded into later rounds in the event as established WCT competitors.
Payne, 26, won $40,000 today and leaps from relative obscurity at No. 97 on the ASP Qualifying Series ratings to No. 24, and within shot at requalification for the 2015 WCT. He also takes an early lead on the Vans Triple Crown ratings - "a Hawaiian world title," as he puts it; and takes pole position in the Hawaiian Airlines "Best In Class" award for the highest heat score of the Vans Triple Crown series…….Next stop Sunset!
Leading action sports retailer Surf Dive ‘n Ski is backing the future of Australian surfing by becoming the naming rights sponsor of the Australian Junior Surfing Titles.
The three-year partnership with Surfing Australia starts with the upcoming titles at Yallingup in the wave-rich south-western corner of Western Australia from November 30-December 7.
Regarded as the pinnacle of junior surfing in Australia, six states will be represented in the battle for the prestigious national titles in Under 14, Under 16 and Under 18, while school surfing will also make up a significant part of the event with competitors also chasing the Australian School Surfing Association Titles.
Paris Whittaker and Jay Brown will represent the Shire so good luck to them!
In Taiwan (Sunday) Competitors revelled in perfect, offshore 4-6ft conditions for the finals day of The Taiwan Open Of Surfing Hosted by Taitung County Government. Big scores were posted across all divisions for no-holds-barred surfing which impressed the judges and spectators alike, crowning Jordan Lawler (AUS) champion in the men's ASP 1-star Qualifying Series division, Taylor Jensen (USA) champion in the men's ASP Longboard Qualifying Series division and Chelsea Williams (AUS) champion in the women's ASP division.
I didn’t know they got solid sized waves that often so it was a pretty good event - must learn to speak Chinese when the dropping in starts!
Closer to home, 11 northern NSW boardriders clubs went toe-to-toe today as part of the Original Source Australian Boardriders Battle, which saw Le-Ba Boardriders (Lennox/Ballina) reign supreme in punchy one-to-two foot waves at Pippi Beach, Yamba.
In a battle that went all the way down to the wire, Le-Ba, Coffs Harbour and Byron Bay all found themselves within striking distance of victory until the dying minutes of the final heat of the day. However, due to Le-Ba and Byron Bay Boardriders getting the better of the exchange, both teams were able to squeak ahead of Coffs by less than 200 points. Next stop NSW.
If you need something to read, The book “No Waves In Mogadishu” (Greg Blaze) includes adventures in some of the more remote surf breaks of Indonesia, South Africa, and the islands of the Pacific, along with stories of this local author’s exploits as a humanitarian engineer in war-torn Somalia, and his close encounters with the local warlords and their jihadist militias, suicide bombers and Somali pirates.
Go to www.nowavesinmogadishu.com for more info.
Finally, speaking of the Hawaiian season, the last stop on the 2014 Samsung Galaxy ASP Women's World Championship Tour the Target Maui Pro presented by Schick Hydro Silk, gets underway next week. The event will be held from November 22 through December 6, 2014 at the world-class pointbreak of Honolua Bay and will see a culmination to this season’s thrilling ASP World Title race.
“Maui as the season-ender to the elite women’s schedule is a great way finish an unbelievable year,” Jessi Miley-Dyer, ASP Womens’ Commissioner, said. “Honolua Bay is truly a world-class wave and the Target Maui Pro is the perfect place to conclude the most exciting title race in the history of women’s surfing.”
Let's get behind “our “Sally Fitzgibbons – it's time to see another NSW World Champ!
