happy holidays

Merry Christmas peeps, hope the festive season is treating you well

views

Every so often the fact that we live in a beautiful place comes up and slaps you in the face

silhouette

artifact

Complete with film marks from where the roll stuck together after the camera drowned!

twangin'

I've long had a thing for fender's offset waist guitars, even with their well documented idiosyncrasies. Probably to do with idolising j mascis and the guy from teenage fanclub in my late teens. Pretty stoked to have a Jazzmaster and a jag sat in the "music room" now.

thems the breaks.........

Perhaps the most frustrating thing about the aforementioned broken ribs was watching lovely autumn swells on the webcam, knowing there was no way I could consider paddling out. I tried a couple of times after about a month but with varying success and pain levels and it wasn't really until past 6 weeks that I managed a proper little logging session.

In an effort to distract myself I searched out a cheap old canon waterproof camera, an a1 sureshot which took some lovely pictures on my first session back in before it sprung a leak and died. That's what you get for shooting with 30 year old cameras I guess!

ouch!

This rad looking little board is a prototype Gulfstream 4'10 asymmetric Seapea with a keel fin on the toe edge (longer rail) and a quad set up on the backhand side. It's pretty mental looking but its pretty much all Jools has been riding in junk surf over the last 6 months.

I've been meaning to borrow it for ages and had lined up a loan ahead of a sunday AM with a perfect 3 foot and clean forecast a couple of months ago. All great until I offered to show BGA and his visiting mate a little rainproof mountain bike route. To cut a long story short, I went over the bars into some rocks at pretty high speed and broke two ribs!

It's not an experience id recommend and (amazingly considering the stuff ive done) the first time ive ever broken a bone! Pain wise i think I got away lighter than some friends experience but the worst thing was being sidelined from any kind of fun stuff for a few weeks! Most frustrating of all the board went back to Jools unridden so you'll have to wait for a full ride report.

legend (local)

Bona fide local legend who never seems to feel the cold, always ready with a smile and someone who always brings some fun and aloha to the sessions we've shared.

spped, power, flow

It's taken a while but I've put enough time in on this Gulfstream Speed egg to write a few thoughts.

I really don't like riding modern 3 fin longboards but once the waves get head high, a single fin log gets to be a handful. Obviously ive got plenty of short funky sleds to ride in these conditions but when the saunton line up is clogged with performance longboards, it's hard to get a wave on a shortboard, even if the wave is hella fun once you get one! The idea was to create something with enough length and glide to get in early and compete with the crowd but still be able to surf it like a shorter board without the redundant extra length a prog log gives you. People often confuse eggs with beginners mini-mals or magic carpet style "short longboards" but a true egg draws it's lineage from Skip Frye and his San diego crew through to Donald Takayamaand and Bob Mitsven and is a refined performance shape that will cope with a big range of wave types and sizes

This one's 7'10 x 21 something by 2.6 ish. Untypically vague I know, sorry! Although you'll see this on the GS website listed as one of their eggplant models, in reality its a full custom shape Jools came up with after a long chat on a rainy Friday. Based on the Wild West Shooters Jools made Russ Pierre mixed with the Takayama Howard egg that I own and a healthy dose of shortboard performance design. It's a rounded pin widepoint forward egg with 2+1 fin set up. I'm currently running a 7"greenough 4a with futures sidebites in there which feels about right so far.

It's flat rockered with just a little nose kick and pretty thinned out since I'm only lightweight ( Jools has since made a couple of others for bigger chaps with more foam hidden inside) The rails are a tucked under down rail for most of its length becoming hard around the fins and underneath it's almost a conventional shortboard concave bottom contour. Final noteworthy point is a tail narrower than most off the rack eggs. The takayama howard model is almost an inch and a half wider for example! It's glassed fairly light too.

As usual Jools has totally nailed it with this one. It has good paddle speed and gets in early. Once you're on your feet, it begs a low bodied, fully rail engaged bottom turn rewarding with good projection and then you're off to the races. That flat rocker, concave bottom and down rail yields rapid trim speed in the high line. It's particularly fun to take a narrow stance in the middle and pretend you're Derek Hynd at J bay! Its a board that just feels fast and smooth.

Its length means that you cant just chuck it around like a shorter egg and it definitely likes a small amount of footwork or stance shifting to engage or break the rail line for trim and turns. That said, on a larger wave you can just plant your feet over the fins and go. Once you're outrunning the section and aiming to redirect, with back foot over the fin cluster, its really loose off the tail and wraps nicely back into the whitewater so you can set up again.

Compared with the "classic" Californian eggs like the Takayama Howard, it pumps for speed more easily. Those Ca eggs tend to have a roll entry into panel vee on the bottom which keeps them smooth but tends to feel like their pushing water in slack waves and does nothing to help you race a beachbreak section like we have to do frequently.

Devon Howard has been consistently  preaching that a 2 +1 egg is the perfect one board quiver and I'm increasingly inclined to agree. You can catch and trim small waves and even cheater 5 but still have the ability to duckdive out back on a bigger day. On those bigger sets it will get you in early, cope with your speed through the bottom turn and hold a good line through a section or let you draw big arcs on a softer face. The natural length and glide takes you through flat spots and its short enough to redirect then pump to make the most of onshore conditions. Finally, going with a multi fin set up compliments that natural speed on sub par waves and gives hold in steeper conditions. Single fin eggs work too but single fins generally expect more speed from the wave itself and can lose speed through a turn ( flex in the fin combats this but still...)

The WSL judge contests looking for Speed, Power, Flow. A good egg is the very definition!

sainte foy

Winter pictures because its taken ages to finish off this roll of film!

View from Sainte Foy 35mm Expired Kodak x  Lomo Konstructor

hey kook!

I had a couple of evenings home alone the other week so i indulged myself with a couple of glasses of a nice red and rewatching some old surf dvds. Notably two of my perennial faves, Thomas Campbells "Seedling" and Michael Halsbands "Surf Movie Reels 1-14". Both feature pretty heavy doses of Joel Tudor in the peak of his "ride everything" influence.

I came to a few conclusions as the bottle slowly drained. One, Tudor is a ridiculously talented surfer on pretty much anything you put under his feet. He is the master of making the difficult look easy and he is SO smooth. He's a pretty impressive skater too!

Two, lots of Tudor's single fin eggs actually have the wide point slightly back of centre instead of forward which is the more widely seen case with eggs. Tudor is quoted as saying he prefers the widepoint back for turning and doesn't like it forward unless he's getting barrelled!

Three, I haven't owned or ridden a single fin egg for ages!

Luckily, a couple of friends do have Tudor eggs and Thos very sportingly agreed to lend me his 6'6 Kookbox Archie's left (in the pics) in exchange for a few days on my Mandala.

Ideally i'd have had Saunton at head high doing its best pointbreak impression as a test track since I suspect that the board would truly light up under those conditions. That's what Thos says anyway. As it was I had to make do with a pretty mushy, onshore, chest high P-land and a clean but a bit too small dawn patrol at saunton.

I did get a good feel for how fun a board it is though! There's lots of foam in there at 21.65 wide and 2.75 thick, a little bit of nose rocker but otherwise flat as.  Widepoint I think just back of centre, flexy kookbox 8 inch fin. Small roll in the nose but quickly into a single concave that moves to a fairly deep double in the back third. Rails are soft for the first foot but then tucked under becoming a hard edge just in front of the fin. In short, it's definitely designed to turn and feel lively rather than cruisy.

It's got far less Hull influence than I expected from what I thought I knew of this model. As a result it's way less quirky to ride than a v bowls, which is ostensibly a wide point back egg too. It went backside well and in both directions had that snappy, pivoty turn that you would expect from a single fin.

I really like a flex fin in a single and you could definitely feel a nice spring from the fin as you exited a deep railed bottom turn.

What really impressed was its glide over the flat spots despite its shortish length. I think the lack of rocker and the plentiful concave in the bottom keeps it high and planing where others bog. In short its a cool little board, really easy to surf like eggs generally are, with a wide range of suitability for waves and the ability to be pushed if you want to.

Thos calls it his "guilty pleasure" and I can see why. 

Hopefully I'll manage to wangle BGA's Tudor Karma off him soon to compare.

#winteriscoming

It's starting to feel like we are on the cusp of seasons. There's definitely a hint of autumn creeping slowly in. Lets hope she brings some well groomed swell and ushers in a cold winter off offshores and deep powder to play in.

vespa

Vespa scooters in Italy may be Cliché, but its cliché for a reason. There are genuinely loads of them weaving around with questionable traffic awareness.

They are also a design classic. I don't understand why you would buy anything else if you were shopping for a moped since no other company seems to have nailed it with the simple elegant lines and certain "je ne sais quoi" style that makes the vespa stand out.

Funny how some things just seem "right". The original mini is an other example or the foil on a good displacement hull surfboard........

marina

Lakeside

vagabonding

I'm just back from a couple of weeks in Italy at Lake Garda. Its a lovely place despite the lack of waves! Awesome mountain biking though.

It was the first trip away with my new Millican backpack and I thought i'd post a few thoughts. If you haven't come across them before, Millican are a little company based in the Lake District. They make a selection of day bags and travel stuff using sustainable, low waste methods and with a focus on tough practical design for global travelling, on or off the beaten path.

My pack is their "Smith the rollpack 25l" and like most of their products is well thought out and fantastic in use. Its made from a kind of waxed canvas,  like a super heavy duty barbour wax jacket material. Its a good size with two bottle holders and a front pocket, a main compartment and a hidden small laptop/ tablet sleeve in the backpiece. Both main and interior pockets have various small organiser pockets for phones, note pads, pens etc. The main straps are really comfortable and it has easily removed, low profile sternum and waist straps. There are lots of neat little touches like the fold out reflector panel and bike light clip and hidden straps for carrying walking poles or a camera tripod.

In short it's just everything you want in a day bag and nothing you don't. Plus it looks pretty styley too in my opinion!

5 summer stories

I did a little blog for Gulfstream again, five boards to ride this summer.............

https://www.gulfstreamsurfboards.co.uk/2017/07/07/5-boards-ride-summer/

gone surfing

VW and V Bowls in spring sunshine. There's a lot of internet hype around the V bowls shape and from my limited experience, its well justified. It's an idiosyncratic ride and certainly not an everyday board. It's quite sensitive to foot position and it needs some kind of lined up face to work but it has a really fun trim and fade swoop thing going on. I'd definitely be tempted!

bluebelles

summer days

Post low tide nasal navigation at the Gate. Jools really nailed it with this shape, perfect blend of shapes for noseriding and turning. Especially in faster waves.

There's a couple of Stock Slimpigs on their way through the Gulfstream shop at the moment.

stealth mode

Maiden surf of the egg and first beach trip in the new truck. Livin' the dream?!

Putsawatu

Looking empty for probably the last time until autumn

sunny side up

Gulfstream's production skills just go from strength to strength and this little beauty is no exception!

7'10 of speed egg goodness. Flat, foiled, pulled in tail and nice performance rails. Your girlfriends mini-mal this aint!! 

I'm yet to get an A plus day in on it yet but early signs are really fun. There's a fair amount of rail line in there so it likes a bigger face to draw on. Its surprisingly loose off the tail for its length and trims super fast if you step up to the middle.

Roll on some nice head high lined up saunton summer swells!

daybreaker

One thing I love about this time of year is seeing so many beautiful sunrises and sunsets, I'm lucky to get a spectacular view from just outside the house on many occasions. #lovewhereyoulive

finally

Not only is the flat spell over but I have a new film developed and scanned to start posting again!

I'm typing fresh out of the water at S-town having lucked into some small little offshore zippers with just Damo (on his posh new teamrider Karma Surfboards Log) keeping me company. The waters still got a little nip to it but the sun shone, the cave turned on and I got reacquainted with the front foot of my Gulfstream Slimpig. It kinda felt like the first little surf of summer today and it was cool to get some nice logging in without feeling as rusty as I sometimes do at this time of year on longer equipment.

Hopefully looking at a couple more days of bigger waves too......... Yew! As my Californian Friends would say!


Pic obviously not from today. V bowls loaned by Bill, more details to come!

Fin-nial

I wrote a little blog for Gulfstream about fins for logs..........

https://www.gulfstreamsurfboards.co.uk/2017/04/12/fins-c-p/

Pic is GS's not mine!

Fourth Gear

Sometimes the simplest things are the most fun...............

I don't often remember that i've got a mat stashed in the van but every time I surf it, I wonder why I don't use it more often!

by dawns early light

7'10 of Gulfstream speed egg goodness. Template is a mix of Russ Pierre's wild west shooter with a bit of Devon Howards takayama model mixed in. Ride report to follow............

a ghostly presence

Low light, bulb shutter and a shaky hand. I kinda like it though! GS keel fish at P-Land, early winter 16. Over the next year i'm going to be helping the boys at Gulfstream with their online content. Really looking forward to getting my teeth into some writing again.

oldschool

I spent a lot of the pre and post Christmas period driving our old VW around after the cambelt blew in my T4 (boo!) Never fails to put a smile on my face even if it doesn't have heating and has questionable brakes for muddy roads.

in an instant

The perfect small wave quiver?

I reckon a Single fin log and a small Mini simmons (9'4 and 5'2 respectively in this case) covers everything up to head high. Logging when its smaller and cleaner, mini sim for junk or dumpy wave fun and section racing on head high lined up days. Handcrafted by North Devons finest- Gulfstream surfboards

run to the hills......

Two reasons for this post, firstly Blair Habernicht just posted a rad little article on surfline about the paralells between Snowboarding and surfing, check it out here

Second, Celtek's Iron Maiden Mitts are my new fave snow thing, super warm too!

coffee eh?

Cool little coffee van tucked away in a bank holiday Cornish campsite

b-logging

I've just started helping Jools out at Gulfstream with some of their online content. First up is a little blog about their longboard models, how they surf, where they come from etc. Pretty pleased how it came out!

Check it out here

The picture is an oldie, Dawnpatrol with Swedish Thom and Mr Vowles back when he surfed!! 35mm film x holga

GS got you covered

Gulfstream covering the perfect small wave quiver in style. 9'4 Slimpig model and 5'2 Seapea. December liquid lunch at P-Land. Chest high and reeling with one other out. Ended up a little quick and dumpy for the log but was super fun racing the sections on the seapea!

church of the open sky

Dawnpatrol via iPhone. Love the fact that i've always got a camera in my pocket in case there's a moment worth recording.

Slightly showing my age here but i've just finished reading Johnny Marr's (from the smiths) autobiography. I've always enjoyed his guitar playing. Its subtle yet incredibly accomplished. Whilst the impact of The Smiths was immense and is well known, Marr's contribution to music since then has been huge but has often been under the radar. From The pretenders to TheThe to Electronic to more latterly Modest Mouse and the Cribs, the number of hit records he has played/ written or produced is staggering. His recent solo stuff is pretty cool too!

Definitely recommended reading

hello buoys

I think this might be one of my favorite photos i've taken in the last few years. Early morning les dunes on a flat summers morning. cross processed Fuji velvia through a Diana f+

surf car no.2

Absolutely Baltic dawn patrol polaroid of Toms Volvo. Really fun session with plenty of the local logging crew out as I recall. Rad car too!

composition

No idea who these guys are but I just liked the composition of the view I had whilst changing at P-Land, most probably in September I think.

surf car number 1

Really enjoying the polaroid experience at the moment. This is Em and Andy's surf car at saunton between sessions

middles

End of a beach day with Mr Y and family at middle beach (OR toilets as its sometimes known) Waves didn't really co-operate but perfect BBQ weather.

Wistful thinking of summers past today............... Holga x 35mm kodak

a craftsmans hands

via Instagram The man, the myth, the legend......... Jools Matthews of @gulfstreamsurfboards who are probably making the nicest surfboards in the uk at the moment! diana and crossprocessed #film pic that's a couple years old now

#filmisnotdead #filmphotography #ishootfilm #toycamera #shaper #nofilter #handmade #craftsmen #lomography #portrait #120 #dianafplus #surfboard #shaper #madeinbritain

slimpig

Throwback to a fun French summer session. Nothing beats an early morning stroll to the beach in boardshorts with a small pack (poler stuff if you're interested) containing wax and a neoprene jacket and a towel that's all you need. I remember this session guiding the Gulfstream slimpig into a couple of clean waist high waves then coming back later in the day for some high tide shorebreak fun on the surfmat.

35mm sprockets courtesy of holga

Pre-surf stokage

via Instagram

BGA and @if6was9surfboards pre-surf stoke at the gate. About 20 mins in @if6was9surfboards found a coverup from somewhere to hoots from the peanut gallery. #impressed. Lomo LCa x Fuji film

 #film #nofilter #outsideisfree #outside #ishootfilm #filmisnotdead #analog #lomography #lca #surf #surfcheck #surfer #logging #35mm #35mmfilmphotography #sprockets #coldwatersurf #chasingwaves

January 05, 2017 at 11:02AM

via Instagram Flat again today so here's a holga picture of a French fisherman post dawn patrol at #lasauzaie I always find it interesting how you rarely see anyone surfing the kind of boards I enjoy along this stretch of coast. It's mostly white thrusters, progressive longboards and SUP's. The surf shops are the same. It's like "sprout" never happened. :-) My Slimpig and the superchunk drew a fair bit of interest in the water. #film #ishootfilm #lomography #sprockets #35mm #holga #analog #analogphotography #surfcheck #fish #twinnie #vendee #surfer #nofilter #outsideisfree

January 02, 2017 at 04:33PM

via Instagram Pretty splendid dog walking weather. #sunset #nofilter #doodle #dogsofinstagram #labradoodle #beach #coastal #coastalliving #outsideisfree