Dave Surfs

Snowed in

2012-02-04T03:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we flew into Italy. Our day began at 5.30am and after a 1 hr delay we left Stanstead. Being diverted due to poor visibility in Pescara and one aborted landing attempt in Ciampino we finally landed at 1pm in Fiumicino, Rome. We picked up the rental car and set off for Pescara. 4hrs later we were stuck on the Atostrada somewhere in the Apennines between Rome and Pescara.

Right now no roads lead to Rome!

Second Wave

2012-02-01T05:10:00.000-08:00

On Saturday I did 8hrs of driving, Coventry to Devon for a Surf and then Devon to Essex to see family, it was worth it the waves were small but fun and clean.

I forgot to Get a Photo of Tom and I for the blog and I forgot to take a photo of the waves. Ah well you will have to imagine it from my narative. Devon is one of the most picturesque counties in England, the hills of the North roll down to the sea with sandy beaches punctuated by rocky outcrops that look somehow prehistoric amongst the soft rolling countryside behind it. Nestled in between the valleys are old English villages of stone walls and thatched roofs, cottages with cosy pubs and heartwarming ale, as well as friendly locals and great food.

The first Picture is 13th beach on the same day that Tom and I surfed Croyde, and the second picture was taken from Down End car park, Croyde.

Croyde, Coombesgate, Clean waves and Kooksurfer

2012-01-16T03:31:00.000-08:00

Having arrived in the UK just in time for a cold snap. Saturday morning I headed down to Devon, having not been there for many years I expected a quiet empty Croyde with a few die hard locals braving the cold water in search of a little winter stoke! I couldn't have been more wrong the B&B's were full and there was as much surf buzz in the air as I have ever met in the other Torquay in Victoria, wow! Swells coming tomorrow and people are coming with it.

I found a room in the Thatch, a beautiful old English thatch roofed pub that serves an awesome breaky with a good latte and has great food and ale for that post winter surf warmth.

Having arranged to meet Tom on Sunday from a board some wax and a leash I hired a wettie and headed off to the beach, to my surprise the water wasn't that cold but the wind most definitly was and after some fun little lefts I decided that was enough and headed back to the pub.

Back at the pub with a Cornish Ale and Burger with the lot I soon thawed. Chatting with Alex, a local surfer girl and business entrepeneur I discovered there was avaliable a very useful surfing aid in the form of a Tide calender that her and a freind put together, full of very cool pics and useful info as well as a cool peice of graphic design. So if you are heading down to Devon or live there make sure you buy one and in the mean time look up Kooksurfer on facebook.

Sunday after an awesome breakfast I headed into Braunton to look at Gulfstream surfboards, very beautiful boards, all custom made locally. Later that day as the tide dropped and the swell picked up I headed over to meet Tom at Coombesgate. We were greeted with head high clean waves and being sheltered the wind was fairly light, Tom kindly offered to let me try one his boards and so I decided to start with the simster, It was so busy all these crazy people wanting to get into the ocean in January! and me being one of them. Anyway we paddled out to fairly quiet bank and even though there were a few out the peaks were shifting so the crowd was reasonably spread out and I got a few nice lefts on the simster and a couple of rights on his Bing Dharma which was a really sweet board, lively and fun.

2012

2012-01-05T15:49:00.000-08:00

I'm in my office, reflecting on the year that was. It has been a quiet begining to what will be a very busy year, I will travel to the UK this week for four weeks, I will take one board and pick up an Oneil Mutant 4/5 when I get there. I also just read an article by Dane Reynolds about why he left the tour http://www.marinelayerproductions.com/news/article/753 and some of his comments gelled with the way I think, I think.
So it has been that for me surfing has definitely been the pursuit of happiness and in my random search for ultimate board for me, I have ended up with a quiver of rather odd and non mainstream boards. They are in order of big to small as follows a 7'2" hollow timber quad fish, a 6'5" hollow timber single fin based on MP's morning of the earth board, a 6'0" hollow timber single fin that started as a fish and ended up a rounded square and a 5'11" version of the MP with a quad. These are all boards that I have made, right now I have two favourites the 6'5" and the 5'11". Its the feeling these boards empart upon me as I am surfing that are the reason why I like them, they are in many ways effortless in the sense that you don't really need to do anything for them to feel amazing.
This year has also been a year where I have met some amazing and Inspiring people and made some good friends, Mick Sowry whose film Musica Surfica, http://www.greatsoutherncommunications.com.au/index.php?id=57 is a breathtaking and inspirational journey into uncharted water. Also that Mick in his mid 50's is still surfing 8ft plus is incredible. And Maurice Cole whose contribution to surfing for over 30 years and his radical and innovative board designs just speak for themselves, since anyone I know who has one loves it. Then there's Rohan my surf pal who quietly concieves, shapes and surfs his boards and I often think if it wasn't for Ro i'd never have made a board.
I hope that this year continues to be creatively fruitful, I'm sure it will. I have already started to plan the next few boards as well as a few other fun things, after all life should be fun.

Big Wednesday

2011-12-30T14:21:00.000-08:00

well it wasn't that big I suppose!

wednesday I headed down to bells and surfed a fun 3-4ft onshore swell, a bit bumpy but good fun.

Then Mick and I went to have breakfast snd coffee with Maurice at the Torquay Lader. After an hour or so of talk about surfboard design, Kiteboarding and a very good toasty and latte, Mick and I headed back to bells for a "look".

Out we went only this time the swell had Jacked and was in the 5-6ft range, hmmm probably around the biggest I've been out at bells and a bit intimidating with the wind and bump. After a tough paddle out I sat in the line up of 4 and waited thinking to myself this could have been a bad Idea. I was on my 6'5 single fin and it was definitely at the limits of what it was intended for.

Then Marching in on the horizon came the first bomb, "I am way to far inside" and as the tripple overhead wave rolled in, a quick look behind and then down, down, down and as I felt myself being dragged back by the leggie I surfaced to see the next one coming in!

The Swell was building and my guess was now solid 6ft maybe 7ft plus on the sets. Now it definitely was the biggest surf I had been out in and I was yet to catch a wave. but in the back of my mind, the only way in was to surf.

Focus! I had to get a wave to go in! As I paddled in and got booted into the wave by the early crumbling lip, I got to my feet, the wave was still rising, never has it seemed so long to get down the face as I watched the lip rising above my head, it was so bumpy and I just kept gaining speed. Now I was having fun this was Awesome!!!!! Coming round the bottom turn and onto the shoulder, carving a big backhand turn on the huge face and droping back down into the next section. I was flying at this point, I can't even begin to describe what a rush this was.

I surfed that wave all the way in, as I bailed and was spat up onto the beach and managed to grab my board and make a run for it before the next shorbreak came down on top of me.

That night I sat contemplating that wave, I remembered the feelings and I want those feeling again.

On reflection it seems that just as in life we have limits at which we often turn back so that we can feel comfortable again, yet the next time we face those limits we often pass them with ease, this it seems is part of the journey of learning. I am not in a hurry to get back out in such big swell but at least it now seems like a possible goal

Mornington

2011-12-18T23:46:00.000-08:00

The weekend was good, more than good. Ro, Wal, Al and I surfed St Andrews on Saturday, we arrived to empty lines rolling in from the south west ruffled by a little easterly wind swell 4ft and clean. As we looked out we could only assume that Christmas shopping had taken hold of the crowds and fate had gifted this empty bank for our enjoyment.

We spent the first hour surfing the right and then like magic the left walled up and with crystal clarity we had steep long hollow walls dancing with morning sunlight along which to run our fingers and play! We left happy and I had a wave that gave me a lifetime worth of stoke :-):-):-)

Sunday we surfed Woolamai.

South Africa, Thailand, Mornington

2011-11-20T20:53:00.001-08:00

I have felt scattered. Like I'm trying to do too much. What with family committements and work, being divorced and wanting to surf, share ideas, make Surfboards, skateboards and generally have fun. All of which seem somewhat indulgent activities, blah blah blah.

So whilst reflecting on how my surfing is slowly improving having started at fourty and feeling the subtle onslaught of age and noticing how sensitive I am to minor changes in diet, exercise and increased alcohol consumption. My mind keeps drifting to the sight of thousands of hectares of Thailand under water. From Bangkok to almost half way to Chiang Rai all I could see was the dull Ochre of water muddied by soil, with only the highland spared. It places things into pespective.

The mountains around Chiang Rai are beautiful. Truly a world of undiscovered treasures waiting to be explored. This is a part of Thailand that you wouldn't normally go out of your way to see but I am so glad I got to experience it.

Nelspruit in South Africa too was truly amazing, Nestled just west of South Africa's Kruger Park, with breathtaking gorges and wildlife everywhere, it is well worth a visit.

Now I'm jumping around bit, but these two places shared a connection in that they were both locations for media exposure to the new Ford Ranger, events at which I was presenting the Design story behind the vehicle.

Now This Truck is truly amazing and even though I am biased, being one of the designers responsible. Asside from its stunning looks, when you see this vehicle in action it is quite impressive. Because its one thing to be told during the development stages all about the cababilities of a vehicle but another thing entirely to see it perform in real life!

The only thing I really missed was being close to the ocean :-)

Three weeks of midweek swell!!!!! Arrrrgh

2011-10-06T21:59:00.000-07:00

Nice place to carve :-)

Yes that has been the dilema great swell during the week and onshore winds at the weekend. Thankfully there have been my projects. A quad fin hull bit of an experiment really, a single fin hull and a skateboard that I made from some left over Paulownia and Red Ceder with Hardware from Paris Trucks and Orangatang wheels I need to add the laser cut Alloy pads to stop the bolts pulling through. The Deck also has three layers of 4oz glass in the centre and then two 4oz top and two 4oz bottom, it rides so smoothly it is really awesome :-).

AND THEN...........there has been a silver thread magicaly woven into the past week in the form of a local discovery that has allowed me to gain a little bit of stoke when its two hours drive to the nearest break!
Bullen Bowl. well not really a bowl more of a quarter pipe snake run that is perfect for old school cruising and after a couple of runs I was feeling the buzz! entry into the little to bowl at the top and then carve your down to the head high bowl at the end, it was fun fun fun and just at the point when I really needed a surf!. So gratefull I am for such perfect coincidences.

Byron Bay

2011-08-10T22:33:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago Pete and I set out in my "newly converted to be camping ready" van and headed to Byron Bay to meet up with another friend Paul from Noosa.

After a very, so cold you had to sleep in a beeny night in the Oxley Ranges, we arrived in Byron Sunday afternoon.

Zooming out from The Pass the ocean looked like blue jelly sprinkeld with cracked pepper. It was so busy, but still we managed a few waves :-)

Monday morning and the promise of a new southerly ground swell, we headed down to Lennox and Boulders to check out the points, it was pumping! We ended up at flat rock rock a Barrelling 6-8 feet on the inside, and with only 3 guy's out and no one on our section we had the place to ourselves, Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!

Only to return Tuesday and see that the swell had Jacked! Paul and I watched Boulders for a while and in half an hour many tried but one guy made the drop, being so Southerly it was running like a frieght train and at Double overhead plus and one sweet session in the bag, I was just happy to watch.

We returned to Byron and had a nice mellow session on the longboards. Paul Surfed my latest Hollow board a 6'5" Retro Single based on MP's morning of the earth ride.

So as well as some amazing swell we also had some beautiful weather and Thanks to Pete some food to feed the Soul and fill the belly.

It was so tranquil and Byron also offers some great Organic food and Great Coffee. It really is a special place..........

Sunday At the Bowl part 2

2011-06-08T21:44:00.000-07:00

Sunday was magic, Cold Sunny and just about as beautiful as Bells Beach gets!

with a 4-6ft SW swell and a gusty offshore wind at 8am on the low tide the waves were pumping! Ro, Leeroy and I headed down for a few :-)

Sunday at the Bowl

2011-05-16T02:43:00.000-07:00

went to Bells on Sunday with Yohan and the French Army and had some nice waves.

lots of smiles all round :-)

Chicken and the Chube

2011-04-12T21:33:00.000-07:00

Well thats the photo! The "chube" was made by Yohan

The two boards, Rohan's 7'6" simmons and my 6'0" sinfle fin.

Now they just need some wax a leash and a bit of clean swell and we're away :-)

Building Swell

2011-04-10T17:02:00.000-07:00

Had a Great weekend :-)

Saturday Ro, Jem, Mitch and I surfed Woolamai at Philip Island a nice 2-3ft beach break.

Then on Sunday I Surfed Bells and it was magic!

Gift of the Ether

2011-03-27T02:06:00.000-07:00

Out of the Ether they come, Rising from the deep. Carry me to the space where I may glide upon the ocean, to rise and love this moment, this gift so brief, so sweet, this metaphor for life.

Dave and I surfed bells, on a day when all roads led to stay in Melbourne. But sometimes a part of you whispers and you listen. They are times when I am glad I do. In a Decade where we have seen fire rage across the land, rain fall in biblical proportions earthquakes and tsunami's, as our brothers and sisters die in the thousands it is sometimes hard to understand this world yet it is so important to appreciate this blink of life.

The Weekend

2011-03-15T01:10:00.000-07:00

well the swell didn't live up to expectaion on Saturday, but it didn't matter the day was so beautiful and we had some fun chest high waves so all was well.

Ro, Benny and I surfed williamsons which is on the way to Wonthaggi, about 20 minutes past Philip Island, as you can see from the pics it was a beautiful day.

Sunday we got some adrenaline pumping after a bit of where do we go? and a phone call from the Island warning of 6ft plus closeouts and a predicted building swell we headed west and surfed some pretty sweet head high sets at Bells Beach. Another beautiful morning, with purple hues at sunrise and beams of light, igniting the fringes of the clouds, God I Love the morning!

There was a big crowd out but pretty friendly.

Monday was the dawn of a new board :-)

Saturday at Maresias

2011-02-22T09:57:00.000-08:00

Here is where Brazil becomes a vision of paradise that is epitomised by beautiful beaches and warm ocean, fresh coconut water and tanned bikini clad beauties.

This coupled with 3 feet of perfect swell and indeed it would be heaven but alas it was more like 1 foot. Still it was a beautiful day and as we trundled down the cobbled main street it was easy to see why Maresias was a Soul Surfers destination of the 70's.

Maressias used to be accessible only by a service road for the petroleum pipes that carry crude oil to the refineries. Now it is a beautiful beach community where the mountains finish at the sea and water is a tepid 26C in summer.

After a few knee high short but fun rides on friends, friends longboard, a swim and a siesta we had the most delicious fish meal and a few beers to wash it down.

All in all it was a pretty perfect day and if you ever get a chance please don't miss out :-)

Sao Paulo

2011-02-15T04:34:00.000-08:00

Day three in Sao Paulo, what I wouldn't give for a good wave and a strong Latte, :-) The surf is not far away but with the traffic here it can be anywhere up to two hours to the closest surf beach which is Santos, I'm going to try and get there at least once but I have a busy schedule and right now I am feeling pretty jet lagged.

On Sunday I caught up with my friend Pedro, a Designer with GM here in Brazil and met his family it was a pretty awesome day, its really nice to meet and spend time with locals as you get a little insight into a world that you don't get as a tourist.

well since I wrote the above, I found a place near the hotel that makes a great Latte

I think that was the most enjoyable coffee I've had in a while

Diversity is truly amazing.

Friday at Bells beach

2011-02-05T15:59:00.000-08:00

Friday after work I headed down to Bells with a couple of friends, Johan and Arnou, and arranged to meet Rohan and Leroy there. we arrived to find Rohan had lost a fin and finished early but headed out to catch a few waves with leroy. The waves were breaking nicely in the bowl at a clean 3-4ft. My first wave was pretty sweet, a wide wave a bit overhead which broke perfectly down the line. I'm really enjoying riding the wooden fish, it is so fast and fun to ride and perfect for Bells at that size. We all had a really good surf and there were plenty of waves, it was my first session at bells where I made every wave all the way down the line so I was pretty stoked.

I think Johan caught the biggest wave, a wide set wave around 4ft+, I was paddling out as he was taking off and I thought that is going to be awesome!!!!!

As we finished our session and walked up the beach lightning started to flicker overhead and by the time we walked up the stairs the rain had become a torrent, quickly followed by hail and gale force winds, we could hear the guy's still in the water cheering!

Love Bells beach :-)

Fish for breakfast

2011-01-26T00:29:00.000-08:00

Today, Australia day, was the first opportunity to surf Bells with the wooden fish since its completion two months ago, and even though I had some great waves in New South Wales over Christmas, I wish I had taken more photo's while I was away, some of the coast up there is absolutely breathtaking. It was an exciting prospect to surf the break the board was designed for. So Craig and I headed down in the ambrosial hrs before dawn to find a slightly wobbly but very surfable 2-3ft.

The fish was pretty sweet all round, easy to paddle fast down the line with nice acceleration off the bottom turn. Stoked!!!

So what now? well it seems everywhere the board goes it generates a lot of interest :-) so it would be only right to continue the journey and like all things that have humble origins into the ether with curiosity we go.

Surf, Live, Love.

Absent Mind present Heart

2010-11-03T17:31:00.000-07:00

I've been absent for a while, mostly for good reasons, holidaying in Nelson bay which was amazing, building a new board and of course surfing. Still it looks like summer is here judging by the the number of people in the water, but the warmth is certainly appreciated and my first surf without booties was lots of fun at bells with a 2ft swell on low tide, :-)

So now all I have to do is finish the 7'2" quad fish in time for the Christmass visit to see the kids in Noosa and hopefully have a bit of a surf along the way.

Surfing Bells, Finless

2010-09-27T02:08:00.001-07:00

Well, today was a mixed day great and a bit embarrasing! Rohan and I had an RDO and went down to surf Bells beach. By the time we arrived at about 8am the swell had built to around 3ft. Whilst we sat there we were joined by one of the pioneers of finless surfing Derek Hynd, have a look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3du0vEJM5yY . So after a really nice midsize wave I got my first set wave that I rode top to bottom all the way through, Stoked, only to be paddling back and see Derek Hynd spinning effortlessly double stoked. OK so now I could have walked out at that point and it would have been enough.

But!!!!!

I discovered that the Kook in me is still there and even though I go out of my way to be well mannered and follow the rules I still make mistakes. Unlike old friends you can't just drop in and say hi to the guy on the inside particularly those of a cranky disposition, not that you would know until you test it! Even when they are way down the line and you think that they won't possibly make it through that section, think again because you never know who that guy is!!!!

What did I learn from this lesson well a few things but most importantly that it is so important to look and look again. Its not good practice to upset people with poor etiquette, not that my faux pas was deliberate and that on a wave that is a decent size the thought of a 65-100kg surfer+ surfboard that is moving at 30 kmh on an impact trajectory with you is not something you particularly want.

Surf, Love, Dance, Sing, Smile :-)

The weekend

2010-09-26T03:04:00.000-07:00

The weekend was magic! Saturday Tom, Rohan, Leroy and I headed down to bells and for me it was, thanks partly to Rohan a great Surf, I was struggling a bit to get on a wave mostly due to the swell around the 4ft mark quite fast but testy with an incoming tide, you really had to be in the perfect spot to take off and my 6'8" was just not getting there for me so Ro and I swapped boards, he has a 6'10" Mccoy and voila!

I got a wave. then another but as I took the bottom turn and started to trim I could see the lip curling over about a 2ft above my head, all I could think was how cool it looked as it was curling over, so I pulled in and tried to make it as far down the line as I could before the lip engulfed me. I didn't get far but IT WAS AWESOME!!!!!

My surfing life now has a new goal. I want to get completely barrelled at least!.........

Sunday, What an a amazing morning, after checking the report for a 3-5ft swell Sam and I headed down to Urquharts Bluff, shoulder high on the sets and a perfect day. I now have the worst case of wetsuit tan and my shoulders are currently in a state of rebellion but I feel amazing as I have had had some great rides on my 9'3" Noserider

I can't believe I will head down tomorrow!......

Wednesday Meditaion

2010-09-21T18:46:00.000-07:00

I have heard so many surfers relate the ecstasy of a perfect ride to Nirvana and that being in the Ocean always feels like a purification of the mind body and soul. Being a meditator, designer and surfer and generally dreamy sort of individual these things are close to my heart and I always see the boundries blur as one feeds the other.

Recently on aBlog I have really enjoyed reading http://surfingnorthdevon.blogspot.com/ there was a post that considered The golden Mean, also known as the Divine proportion, a ratio derived from a certain mathematical principal. left me to consider that there are only a few patterns that define the whole of the Universe and that we live in a space where Microcosm = Macrocosm and that all of these Geometries can be described by formulae. It is also interesting that the profile of a wave as energy is released through motion, reflects the Fibonacci spiral. It would seem that we have a Single creative force at work within the Universe

From the Tao,

Like water penetrating rock the Tao seeps in, Therefore the wise act by doing nothing.

From the Dhamapada

The path of the Bhudda is the the path of enlightenment, this is through the study of self, to study the self is to forget oneself and to forget ones self is to surrender ones body mind and spirit to the omnipresent superconscious reality that pervades the entire creation.

It is truly a beutiful thing to be at one with a wave. First there is anticipation, timing, positioning and the belief, "I will catch this wave!" and then after taking off our effort recoils and a relationship is born a short but beautiful journey, a oneness, a Nirvana.

And ;-)

It is a wonderful experience to see your children laugh, hear their voices and to watch them create, dance and just be!

2010-09-18T16:43:00.000-07:00

In the Absence of surf or more specifically north wind since there has been plenty of swell, its time to face oneself and all the things that have been ignored like the lawns, and if the home is a metaphor for the self then a haircut would also be a good idea, along with purging the mind of a few cobwebs.

So that was yesterday and after taking care of some of the things that needed doing I caught up with my Surf buddy Pete. After variety of Tapas accompanied by a very Chocolatey Scotch Ale, from the Red Hill Brewery on the Mornington Peninsula. we sat and watched Zathura and I wondered what it would be like if you were actually playing a game and all of a sudden your lounge was bombarded by meteors! It certainly would not be boring. Which brings me back to now.

If you Happen to live in Melbourne and are wondering what to do when the wind blows south and you still feel you need a surf fix, then I would highly recomend going to Rhomus Surf at 85 Brunswick st, Fitzroy.

http://rhombussurfshop.com.au/pages/

Cathedral Rock

2010-09-12T02:35:00.000-07:00

It was a stunning morning at Cathedral Rock, Nr Lorne, Vic today, with super clean waves and clear blue skies.

The swell was around 4-6ft, it packed quite a punch and I managed to end up on the rocks a couple of times fortunately without injury, its interesting to experience how much more power is in a 3ft wave versus 4ft and then again from 4ft to 6ft , on the way back we had a discussion about how much this factor increases since it is definitely not linear!

So after some research and some basic assumptions, it goes something like this:

Today at 4-6 ft which peak to trough is around 2-4 metres

significant period 15 sec

Assuming an average depth of 3 metres and an efficiency of 40%

we get a wave that is moving at around 5.4 m/s (20 km/h)

If these factors remain constant then this gives a net power of

2.7 KW or 2700 N/m/s at 1 metre

10.8 KW or 10800 N/m/s at 2 metres

43.4 KW or 43400 N/m/s at 4 metres

In reality we would also get depth variation with wave size and therefore an increase in velocity as the wave increases in size.

But in everyday terms this is a compressive force of approximately 4.5 tonnes at 4 metres which is pretty incredible but what is more incredible is that the force increase is so rapid, more than 4 times the power of a wave at 2 metres and 16 times more powerful than a wave at 1 metre.

The fields were beautiful :-).

Kilcunda

2010-09-03T22:03:00.000-07:00

A Grey Morning with the possibility of high winds and heavy rain, turned out to be a great surf at Kilcunda, a small town 10 minutes south of Philip Island.

Tom, Roh and I had a 3-4ft right hand bank to ourselves for most of our session with light rain and an offshore wind, we were pretty stoked.

Magic!

Saturday At Cathederal Rock

2010-08-22T16:53:00.000-07:00

Roh, Tom and myself arrived at Bells Saturday Morning to see a solid 6ft set roll in, with no one at Centre side we decided that it would be worth the trip to Cathederal Rock. When we arrived there, it was about 4ft with some good waves peeling wide and no-one taking them, as most were sitting inside and further out. So out we went my Surf was some what interesting with a few bungled take offs that once again brought me down to earth, but I did manage a few metres at speed, which left me only wanting more!

Pic-Rohan taking it easy.

Tuesday at Point Impossible

2010-08-17T05:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I looked at the surf forecast for today and thought if I start work at 5.45am I can leave at 2.15pm and be in Torquay by 4pm which would give me about 2hrs of surfing and I would be back in Melbourne between 8 and 10pm depending on whether or not I ate there.

So after making the decision and setting my alarm, I got to bed early. I was still undecided as to where to surf this morning since today was a beautiful winters day with 4ft+ and offshore wind all day and with high tide around 4.30 reducing the choices of breaks that were working well, I was certain that it would be busy.

When a friend suggested Point Impossible, a reef that I haven't surfed for about 8 months I was not sure I wanted to go there since I had always struggled to get waves on my old mini-mal but I decided to try again since I have improved a bit since then, not to mention it is an amazing place being a marine wildlife reserve.

As I paddled out the sky was dancing with the ocean in a way that turned one to the other and back again, a kind of metamorphosis that only happens in certain light and times of day. A dance that was interrupted only by the breaking of waves, rising monolithic walls, translucent in the evening sunlight. I was so glad I made the trip.

Still smiling :-)

Woolamai

2010-08-13T21:59:00.000-07:00

I just got back from Woolamai, Philip Island. Today was cold, the water a chilly 11.5C and a strong offshore wind.

Yet we managed to have a lot of fun on the Bank Roh and I surfed, 2-3ft sets coming through with the odd one or two peeling nicely into the beach.

The Weekend

2010-08-09T03:45:00.000-07:00

It was a Beautiful weekend with sunshine and offshore winds. Saturday Rohan and I surfed at Guvo's Near Angelsea and then on Sunday Rohan, Tom, Leroy and I Surfed Bells, it was about 3ft and slightly cross shore but we got some great waves.

Ford Design Art Show

2010-08-03T17:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Ford Design Australia kicked off its annual Junior Diabetes Research Foundation Fund raising Art Auction.

The Exhibition featured an interesting variety of media including 3D collages, Framed Origame, Original photo's, Pottery, Digital Art, Textile Design, prints on Canvas and Original were just some of the pieces for sale.

This event offers the Designers a great opporunity to express their talents and skills outside of the studio environment and provides a forum for creativity that otherwise would not exsist.

Enjoy

Dave

Saturday evening

2010-07-28T04:41:00.000-07:00

Urquharts Bluff was a very tranquil and meditative late Saturday Afternoon, Pink sky on mercury, I felt so fortunate to be out there that evening just a few other guy's and very chilled vibe.

It was a good weekend allround on Sunday Rohan and I headed down for a surf at Steps near Torquay and had the break to ourselves, mostly because there was a lot of choice that morning and right now only the diehards are in the water, but head high and offshore, it was pretty perfect.

The Journey home

2010-07-09T02:46:00.000-07:00

Today I'm back in Crescent Head and have had a great Surf today. I started out at Angourie this morning in 1.5 to 2 times head height storm swell and finished up with a very relaxing session at Crescent at waist to shoulder height.

Noosa

2010-07-05T17:05:00.000-07:00

I've been in Noosa for a week and have been fishing, climbing rocks, building sand castles and generally having a great time with the kids. Today is my last day here and I'll have to head back to Melbourne tomorrow :-(.

Since I've been here there hasn't really been much swell, some knee high peelers off the points for SUP's or Longboards and the odd quick ride on the beaches if you're keen. But there have been some amazing sunsets, rainbows and the water is warm.

Day 4 Crescent Head

2010-06-28T00:20:00.000-07:00

What a Beautiful place! I arrived here on sunday evening just in time to catch a few waves and surfed well into dark, the moon was almost full, the milky way resplendent across the sky and the water was like polished obsidian as my board slid silently across the surface.

Today was just perfect 2ft and offshore at Crescent this morning and a little bigger at Point Plomer this afternoon.

There is a magic about this place as if it has forgotten to move into the race which is modern life. May it never change.

Road Trip day 2

2010-06-26T01:13:00.000-07:00

I Arrived in Sydney yesterday after a very relaxed 9hr drive. The forecast for Saturday was looking good with 3 to 4 feet predicted and offshore winds all day. So I headed down to Manly to surf Freshwater Beach, the reality was slightly less spectacular than predicted with 1 to 2 feet of actual swell but it was lots of fun nonetheless.

One thing I did regret was only bringing an unsealed 3/2 summer wetsuit even though the water is still 19C. Oh well one cold day of surf and from here I'm heading north and it will only get warmer.

Saturday At Bells Beach

2010-06-20T17:47:00.000-07:00

Tom Roh and myself set out early Saturday for the first decent weekend swell in a while. As we arrived a set was just rolling in and the imfamous bells bowl seemed the pick as Rincon wasn't quite making it through. So we suited up and got out, the swell was hovering around the 4ft mark with the odd bigger one now and then. This was definately the last surf without booties though I did manage 3hrs. But that stinging pain surging through the feet every time you hit the board was enough to make me head straght to Torquay and buy a pair.

The Pics were taken by Tom.

2010-06-06T18:50:00.000-07:00

well No surfing this weekend, still it does feel good to have cut the grass and given the environment something of a rest however small by not using the 16L of fuel it usually takes to get to Torquay from Melbourne. Being a Car Designer I feel constantly at odds with my own conscience, after all the drive to be a designer comes from an inherent desire to improve quality of life.

I love the Hydrodynamica blog and when I saw the Ammonite sink image on http://waveslide.blogspot.com/ it reminded me of a car I designed for a competition a few years ago. It was intended to be driven in Paris and be harmonious within its environment, reflecting the Baroque. It seems that Divine inspiration, then expression through Nature is so visually poetic that we can only mimic its perfection.

Morphe 1

2010-06-02T16:07:00.000-07:00

Wednesday turned out to be a perfect day to test Morphe 1 two to three foot sets rolling in breaking consistently on the left side bank at Guvvo's near Angelsea, Victoria.

First wave was a perfect right hander at shoulder hieght, my new board performed perfectly, fast and loose. I was stoked. second wave was the same, third wave I got to feel just how tight it could turn and this time I felt like the board was riding me, its going to take time getting used to.

As the tide came in it started to get a bit full so I went in and switched over to a 7'4" fun board caught a couple of waves, coming back for a third I miss timed a roll and as the guy on the wave cut back I got a 3cm fin cut right through the side of my left index finger to the bone, ouch! so no surf for a week or so never mind time to plan the next board.

Can't wait to get get out on Morphe 1 again.

2010-05-31T17:13:00.000-07:00

Apres Surf Breakfast.

Saturday was one of those days when the Ocean melts into the sky and its hard to see the separation, Liquid gold dancing on silver, I love those days its so easy to merge into the tranquility.

A New Beginning

2010-05-27T18:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a day of contrast. I finally finished my first surfboard, which I can't wait to try its a 6'4" x 21" x 2"5/8 EPS core with Paulounia Rails and bottom and Tasmanian Blackwood veneer deck, Single concave to double concave V bottom, with glassed in Paulounia fins.