Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2015 i Tracks

Big wave surfers are really the ultimate global citizens. When salt-water adrenalin is your drug of choice you have to stay mobile if you want a consistent fix. In the course of a year the giant-slayers cross more time zones than a minister for foreign affairs and like stock-brokers who watch multiple markets around the world, the lives of these surfers are dictated by the rise and fall of oceans across the planet. Waves also mirror the basic premise of stocks – the bigger the risk the bigger the potential return. Jamie Mitchell (pictured at Mavericks) is like a poster boy for the geographic possibilities of big-wave surfing. In the last eighteen months he has featured in sessions at Cow Bombie, Jaws, Mavericks and Bellahara, France to name but a…

Cash rich and time poor? Or simply dreaming of that perfect surf trip? Or maybe you have a credit card and ain't afraid to use it? Well, these next four surf trips come with cocktails, infinity pools and world-class waves. They don't come cheap, and so they won't come often, but if you want to add a splash of luxury to your quest for barrels, they are hard to beat. THE RUM DIARIES, SOUP BOWLS, BARBADOS OPENING SPREAD Proximity to a world-class wave costs money. That's why a stay at the Round House at Bathsheba in Barbados costs a little more than a caravan in Scotts Head. You see the Round House is a 1800s built hotel that offers commanding views of the entire Atlantic coast and a one-minute walk…

Times have changed when it comes to surf travel. Dramatic advancements in swell forecasting in the last decade means that you no longer have to rely on your scheduled two weeks of annual vacation to get your barrel fix. Flexibility is king. If you want to score life altering waves it's about chasing them on the whim of a swell and the price of a last-minute airfare. In a stellar example of what's possible when you diligently watch the updates and jump on a plane when the planets align, Davey Cathels, Laura Enever, Asher Pacey and Alex Gray travelled to P-Pass in late January as soon as they saw the relevant swell maps turn that fabulous colour purple. Photographer, Simon 'Swilly' Williams, was flabbergasted by the trip. Speaking to Tracks…

Ombak Indah Losmen South Sumatra w www.freelinesurf.com.au e info@freelinesurf.com.au THE REGION Ombak Indah Losmen is located in the South Sumatra region, home to at least a dozen quality waves with the longest and most consistent wave, Ujung Bocor, situated directly in front. The area has a beautiful coastline backed by jungle covered mountains. The many points, bays and rivers combined with an abundance of swell provide waves in all conditions, with the best months from May to October. The area is still prime for further surf exploration and adventure seeking, and is often compared to Bali of 30 years ago. THE RESORT Apart from the amazing location directly in front of the surf, Ombak Indah Losmen features spacious tropical gardens, large dining, bar and lounge areas and large western style rooms…

Resort Latitude Zero Telo Islands, Sumatra, Indonesia  w resortlatitudezero.com e info@resortlatitudezero.com THE REGION The Telo Islands are a group of over 30 islands separated by fringe reef or narrow channels and positioned in North Sumatra between Mentawai and Nias and open to the famous Southern Indian Ocean swell window. The tight concentration of this Island group makes for an amazing playground for all types of marine activities, in particular surfing. Within 50 mins of a comfortable speedboat ride we have over 30 surfing breaks to choose that cater for all levels of confidence, including some truly world-class reef and sand bottom gems. THE RESORT Resort Latitude Zero was built to provide a high standard, tropical surfing experience. We have gone the extra yards to make sure you don’t have to worry…

The excitement hits at Taree. Four hours down, two to go. Fibro shacks cluster in groups like cattle in sheltered corners of the highway and I imagine what it would be like to lie so close to the road every night, a semi trailer scattered sleep. There is something almost sad about the lone houses that sprout from the fields on rotting stilts. The landscape doesn't change much from there until the turn off for Grassy. It's 12ks off the highway. The road snakes its way through avocado, macadamia and banana plantations. But it's the smell that brings it home, a richness in the air – and salt. Always salt. After six hours in the car we're sweaty-backed and itching to get wet. To reach the park you have to…

I caught him in my peripheral vision, the neon-vested parking Nazi punching in the details of my number plate as I slugged on a morning coffee at the regular watering hole. Instantly it was like one of those dramatic, slow-mo scenes from a movie. "Noooooooooo!" I screamed as I charged towards him and my double-parked car, already doing the maths in my head. "$250 bucks. That's a week of good living in Sri Lanka, where I've got a surf trip booked later in the year." It was too late, the council Gestapo had already made up his mind that he was going to put a dent in my Ceylonese savings. Words to the effect of "F#$&ing Scumbag!" might have been used as I watched a hired driver, plates of succulent…

The Volkswagen Transporter Kombi van has just about everything you need. A fridge, a stove, a seat that's also a bed, cupboards, a pop up roof and a reliable German engine which – all things going well – purrs away under your contented arse cheeks while you steer the big ol' captain's wheel and stare down the highway to freedom. It's been a favourite for surfers and hippies since the 60s and remains a counterculture icon. Equip it with a decent stereo, a well stashed stash, some like-minded amigos and a bunch of surfboards and you're set. Kombis are best experienced from the inside looking out, roaming wild and free across their motherland. Europe with its intoxicating mash of cultures and languages, week-long fiestas, epic waves, honey-skinned women and towering…

"You wanna check Sunset?" Tom turns to look at me squished into the back seat of the aeronautical looking rental car. I nod. It's my first day on the North Shore and I'm not going to say no to anything Tom Curren asks me. "Est-ce qu'on peut se garer ici?" The shared language bounces between the Californian and his French daughter Lee-Ann. They speak about 30% English 70% French to each other. We pull up and Tom parks the car near a hand-painted sign that reads, "No Surf Check Parking". Lucky the thing is the size of a smart car and it goes unnoticed. Nothing along the stretch looks particularly inviting and neither Tom nor Lee-Ann end up surfing the morning session. We park back up at the Roxy house…

Let me start this dream island duel by stating categorically I am no longer on the payroll of a surfing magazine. Nor do I hold any hope for a prolonged career in the surfing world as a freelance writer, post this article (print, web or otherwise). I've not (intentionally) grown a beard in five years and am now (basically) a 9 to 5 working surf rat that is going to tell it like it is. No pro stoke bullshit. No beachside baloney. This is a straight up question for the ages … is a surf trip to Namotu Island in Fiji better than your stock standard run across the coals in that much loved (and unfortunately well worn) island to our north – Bali? My first thought was that surely…

ACACIA BUNGALOWS BUKIT PENINSULA INDONESIA  w www.baliretreats.com.au e info@baliretreats.com.au THE REGION The thing about this area is you can have such varied experiences. Do yoga every day, drink coconut juice and eat raw food, check out some of the best luxury vantage points to watch the Bali sun set over the Indian ocean. Or just enjoy a fish BBQ with your toes in the sand on Bingin Beach at one of the local warungs Bintang in hand. Acacia Bungalows is a few minutes stroll to the Bingin surf break and a scooter ride to Uluwatu away for the madness of Kuta but close enough to explore the island. THE RESORT Acacia Bungalows is perfect for couples who want to enjoy the Bukit area of Bali with a few creature comforts. No…

Chaaya Island Dhonveli Maldives  w www.atolltravel.com e info@atolltravel.com THE REGION After being a closely guarded secret from the mid-70s to late 80s the Maldives has become one of the most renowned surfing destinations in the world. With perfect clear tropical waters, consistent swell providing chest high to well overhead peeling waves and the comforts of resort accommodation and modern charter boats the destination is suitable for all standards of surfers especially those travelling with partners and families. THE RESORT Awarded Maldives’ Leading Surf Resort 2012, 2013 & 2014, Chaaya Island Dhonveli offers the premium surfing experience with excellent food, service & facilities; an appropriate limit of 30 surfers and unlimited surf transfers operating from 6.00am to the regional surf breaks. Atoll Adventures has managed the surf tours from this island since…

Clem’s Place Lavongai Region, Papua New Guinea  w www.surftravel.com.au e enquiries@surftravel.com.au THE REGION Only a boat trip from Kavieng lays the island of New Hanover and Clem’s Place. Be totally absorbed in the rawness of the islands complete with rivers, waterfalls, mountains and an impenetrable rainforest. An abundance of rarely surfed reefs offer waves from barrelling rights to long workable lefts. The surf generally ranges between 3'-5' but can peak around 6' which can test your abilities. The New Hanover region is still full of discoveries waiting to happen. THE RESORT Clem's Place is situated on Tunnung Island. Clem’s is ideally located amongst some of the most pristine waters PNG has to offer. These waters are home to some of PNG’s best waves, diving and fishing. With a maximum of 10…

Kiwi doctor Dave Jenkins had no idea how dramatically his life – and many other lives – would change when he booked a surf charter to the Mentawai Islands in 1999. He just wanted to get shacked. But along with perfect barrels he found an impoverished local population dying in their scores by preventable diseases. "The scene haunted me for the rest of the trip, and followed me back to Singapore where I began questioning my life. Did it have meaning? Were my skills wasted chasing some corporate carrot? What if I could make a real difference to these people?" he recalls. Fifteen years later that question has been decisively answered. SurfAid, the non-profit charity founded by Jenkins, has been instrumental in improving the health and life expectancy of the…

The Chinese writer Lin Yutang once proposed that, "No one realises how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow." For Dean Bowen that familiar old pillow is the South Coast of NSW and in particular, the wave you see here. Whether or not a pillow is the most apt metaphor to describe this particular set-up is debatable, but one thing is for certain, there are definitely no feathers awaiting Dean on the bottom should he fall, just skin-hungry barnacles and a whole lot of hard rock. The wave is well known among the hard-charging surf community in the area but Dean has developed an obsession with it, and he's not alone. Fellow South Coaster and ex tour powerhouse Mick…

STYLISH AND POWERFUL ARE TWO WAYS TO DESCRIBE RICARDO CHRISTIE’S SURFING. HE’S THE FIRST SURFER FROM NEW ZEALAND TO QUALIFY FOR THE WORLD TOUR SINCE MAZ QUINN IN 2001 AND AFTER HIS PERFORMANCE AT SUNSET ON THE FINAL DAY OF THE VANS WORLD CUP OF SURFING, HE LOOKS EVERY BIT CAPABLE OF LIGHTING UP THE WORLD STAGE. AFTER A PROMISING JUNIOR CAREER RICARDO FOUND HIMSELF WITHOUT A SPONSOR AND TOOK TIME OUT FROM COMPETITION. THE BREAK PAID OFF AND AFTER A SUCCESSFUL CROWD FUNDING CAMPAIGN TO MAKE SURE HE COULD COMPETE FOR VALUABLE QS POINTS HE ACHIEVED HIS DREAM OF QUALIFYING FOR THE BIG LEAGUES AT THE END OF LAST YEAR. RICARDO CAUGHT UP WITH TRACKS TO DISCUSS QUALIFYING, CROWD FUNDING AND WHY WE CAN EXPECT TO SEE MORE KIWIS…

Ivan meant well. But he was having a shocker tonight. He'd come home pissed from Surfer Bar, the cheesy fuck factory on the North Shore of Oahu, and at 3am I'd woken to the sound of water hitting linoleum. "Ivan. Ivan!" I'd yelled flicking the light on and off. "Dude, you're pissin!" It was no use. He was out of it. A whiskey trance. I'd known the feeling. I'd pissed myself once before in South Africa during an acid psychosis. But at least I'd done it outside (more by chance than anything if I'm to be truly honest). I hadn't known Ivan long. We'd met on our first day at the House of Foo after I'd taken an interest in his Pipe quiver. They were good boards. The kind of…

There was a time, not so long ago, when G-land reigned supreme on Indonesia’s burgeoning list of first-class surfing destinations. Once referred to by Jerry Lopez as a ‘surfing monastery’, it was one of the earliest wilderness areas on the archipelago to be braved by drifting watermen. As Indonesia has opened up, the kids are flocking elsewhere – to Deserts, Scars and onto boats to peruse the myriad of flawless set-ups found in the Mentawai Islands – and G-land has, to some extent, fallen off the radar. Since its discovery in 1972, G-land has sustained its reputation as a tough and untameable landscape. The original journey, undertaken by American surfers Bob Laverty and Bill Boyum, set the tone for the G-land legend. Bob Laverty had spied the reeling waves during…

It was always going to be a big gamble. A two-week, Indonesian sojourn right on the cusp of the wet season. However, it had been an exceptional year for waves and hopes were high that the run of swell would continue right through the monsoonal months. An eclectic crew was assembled and with the aid of travel company, World Surfaris, we plotted a course that would guarantee us waves while taking us via some of Indonesia's most dramatic over-land scenery and one of its most sacred sites. Charismatic Lennox Head surfer, James Wood, was recruited to keep things entertaining; intrepid charger, Andy Scwartz, leant his surf guide sensibilities to the team while top-ranked women's surfer, Dimity Stoyle delivered a certain feminine panache to our adventure. We initially set up camp…

FUNKY FISH RESORT Malolo, Mamanuca Islands, Nadi.  w www.funkyfishresort.com e resort@funkyfishresort.com THE REGION Situated on the majestic Fiji island of Malolo in the heart of the Mamanuca group just 15 kms from Fiji international airport. From Anchorage Resort, Vuda it is just a short 45mins boat ride to the resort. The resort is central to the renowned surf breaks, Cloud Break, Wilkes, Namotu Left, Swimming Pools, Restaurants and also Cloud 9, Fiji’s only 2-deck floating boat that offers refreshments and food with chilled beer for surfers taking a break. THE RESORT An intimate small and friendly island resort with something for everyone! The resort offers dramatic sunsets, is close to Fiji's great surf breaks, and delivers a very special experience - swimming and snorkelling in crystal clear waters on the surrounding…

Aloita Surf Resort & Spa The Mentawai Islands, Indonesia  w www.theperfectwave.com.au e info@theperfectwave.com.au THE REGION Aloita Surf Resort & Spa is nestled in a protected corner of a small island called Simakakang, located at the northern part of Siberut, which is the central island in the Mentawai. What this means to you is that you have access to roughly 70% of the regions surf breaks with 5 world class waves within 10 minutes speedboat ride and a perfect fun left hander called Ombak Tikus right out the front. THE RESORT At Aloita Surf Resort and Spa, you have a choice of 3 levels of accommodation. With seven spacious double / twin / triple bungalows, so you can enjoy a romantic getaway with your partner or share with a friend or two.…

It's the holy grail of the hardcore surf traveller. To discover and surf your own slice of perfection, have it named after you a la Lance's Right (and Left) and be added to the rich archives of surf folklore. This beautiful little beast, located somewhere on the Equator, peeled away under the noses of surfers and boat captains scoping out this area for years. That was before sometime in the early 00s when a curious fellow by the name of Glen, who was captaining the Mangalui Ndulu at the time, one of the first charter boats to work the area, spotted some whitewater, acted on an instinctual hunch and decided to have a look inside the bay. "We drove past this wave for 10 years and had no idea," explains…