Lekker weather - tick. Lekker waves - not so much a tick. Pretty much sums up the week that was. Although at least the sunsets and sunrises made up for what we lacked in surf. Africa just does those the best. For all our issues we still live a flipping good life down here at the bottom of the continent.

As usual, if you were prepared to suck up the hike in the petrol price and still travel west - there were definitely some options to get wet. 

If the petrol price doesn't scare you, then book a ticket and travel north of the equator. CarPark John and the gang did just that and scored some super fun waves in Maldives on board Sail Shantaram.

Johm , together with Greg, Barry, Dieter and Carl hooked some lekker waves, lekker weather and good laughs whilst sailing about the crystal clear waters of the Maldives. It musta been good cos John didn't moan once in 10 days! Plus he caught some good rides. A trip report of the guys charter coming soon. 

Ex-PE local Brad Beck still living the tough life surf-guiding in paradise. The perks of the job seem to be pretty good as evidenced by the shot above of him getting shacked off his pip. 

Luc Hosten has an interesting tale to tell his insurance company. About how a giant penguin head-butted his car window. You can kinda imagine the look on the agents face as they read that email! Luc was transporting one of the large fibreglass penguins from Sanccob in Cape Recife, when it decided to let gravity win and take out some glass in the process. Moral of the story? Buckle those birds in!

Pipe local Andre Clarke gave his boet (and local logger) Gregg a kiff birthday present. How rad to get a painting of yourself surfing done by your own bro. 

Props to Sean Coppin and Boardtalk for ditching the plastic cover and going for the brown paper eco-friendlier approach. So watch out for your mag in it's new undercover camo look.

To end off the weekly wrap - what's a week without a ride on a pink flamingo....? CarPark John and friend.

A few waves about during the week, and some on the weekend too. A short drive down the N2 and you could have hooked some cooking waves. Stayed in town? Waves, just not so cooking. But at least waves!

If, however, you had jumped on a plane with the PE boys - you could have been surfing this! Sheet glass, warm water peelers in the Maldives! CarPark John, Greg, Barry, Dieter and Erhart are busy surfing themselves stukkend on board Sail Shantaram.

CarPark John hasn't wiped the smile off his dial yet, and might be suffering from carpark withdrawal symptoms, but has found that the cockpit is also a good possie to watch the waves from - so upgraded to being Cockpit John!

The ou's are still doing the boardies and palm trees stint until the end of the week. Rumour has it that there's even some drone footage of John on a lekker set.

Thanks to Matt Repton from the Richmond Hill Brewing Company (makers of CarPark John Pale Ale) and the Beershack for sponsoring John's flights to paradise. One uber-stoked ballie - that's for sure. Full surf trip report and pic's once the boys get back.

Local JBay photographer Robbie Irlam puts in plenty of long hours on the beach shooting the guys out at Supers. You're able to buy full res copies of your cooking surf pics from Robbie, and he was stoked when surfer Adrian Beylevelt had him sign this lekker shot he had got enlarged.

From pictures to artwork. JBay is such a special wave that it lends itself to some special art as well. Local artist Stephen Bibb with a canvas he has just painted for a client in the US.

Art is good. Specially when you get some done on your new stick. Deno at the Boardroom is getting some freshies ready for summer. So get your orders in quick.

Props to our local PE NSRI, who assisted in the rescue of the lady surfski paddlers who got into difficulties out near the Bell Bouy on Saturday morning. You can read the full NSRI report here:
https://www.nsri.org.za/2018/10/2-surf-skiers-rescued/

Italo Ferreria won the Meo Ripcurl Pro in Portugal on the weekend, beating Jaon Duru in the finals. It means the world title race goes to the Billabong Pipe Masters in Hawaii. It's all for Medina to win, and for Julian to try pull a rabbit out the hat n steal it from him. Full comp report, wrap, results and shots here (as well as the world title permutations)
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/comp-news/italo-wins-rip-curl-portugal

The drizzly weather during the week saw plenty of rainbows about - this one seeming to end in the sand dune in front of Millers. Unfortunately no pot of gold found in the bush - just a hobo's overnight shelter.

Sometimes you're just having one of those days. Like this lil dachshund captured doing a pretty impressive face plant at the beach at Supers. Always good wipeouts to watch there - whether in the surf or on the sand!

Folks - please dip into your wallets to donate a few bucks to help get Alfonso Peters, local PE longboarder and all-round lekker guy, to the World Longboard Champs in Taiwan soon. The team have to sponsor all their own costs, so anything you can lob Alfonso's way would be super appreciated. You can check the funding link here:
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/comp-news/get-a-millerslocal-to-world-champs

Breitling (the fancy-ass watch company) have released their new Surfer Squad ad feauturing Kelly and Steph - turns out it was filmed at Seals, Cape St Francis, recently - so take a watch and see for yourself.

Long-time Fence locals (as in the ballies), will always tell you how much better Fence was back in the day. It isn;t their selective memories causing that - it really was. Check how much the sand has accumulated during the years - this old pic is from 1924, and shows the sea being right up against Humewood Road. You can see more details on how the beach has built up over the years here:
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/why-fence-was-all-time.html

Still some good sunrises and sunsets to be had - altho the sunrises are getting quite a bit earlier these days! Clive Wright being the early bird who catches the worm.

Another mediocre week as far as waves went. One decent day and a few scratchy one's. Humewood had some good ones, although according to Car Park John it was actually kak and everyone else just didn't know what they were talking about.

Still lotsa whales about. They good at leaping up and making you go grab your camera - only to refuse to then jump out again. Until you pack the camera away. There were a couple who cruised past Bruces in St Francis - obviously had heard it was quite a good surf spot and thought they'd check it out.

It was African Penguin Awareness Day and there was a penguin release at Sanccob in Cape Recife. Quite a few of the lil fellows got to make a dash for freedom. 

Mullets vandalised the Surfers Memorial in JBay during the week. Ripping off all but the first name on the memorial board. Pity they didn't get caught in the act by one of the JBU boys and taught a lesson. 

Much as one mumbles about the lack of consistent waves in the bay, there is always something if you drive round the corner or up the road. And even if you do a bit of wildside tripping and come up short - there's always the sand dunes to go climbing up instead for some exercise.

JBay's Stephen van der Watt is one of the best board artists about, and is known for his instantly recognisable surfboard sprays, and awesome artwork. But he has a really wide repertoire and can do whatever you like on your board - like this piece below. Not sure anyone gonna be dropping in on this dude with a spray like that! 

​Once upon a time, local boardshaper Dennis Ellis from the Boardroom did actually have hair - as evidenced by this old pic of him ripping Nahoon back in the day. Front deck grip might be making a come-back given how expensive wax is getting these days....

The Boardroom got a bit of a spring clean last week - with all the boards lying about getting mounted up on the ceiling. There are some classic old sticks on display - so worth checking em out next time you pop in. 

Julian Wilson won the Quik Pro in France over the weekend. Taking our Ryan Callinan in the finals - Ryan had earlier beaten Jordy in the quarters. Jordy is lying 5th on the world ranking at the moment. You can check out the full comp wrap, results and shots here:
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/comp-news/julian-wins-quik-pro-france

Definitely looks like we're settling in to the summer weather patterns - not much surf and plenty of onshores. Best bet for waves is  after the wind switch. So keep sharp.

Not a helluva lot happening this week. Wind, lots of it. Waves. Not so many of those. Summer doldrums seem to be setting in. The lots of onshore and no waves conundrum. Still, there was the odd rideable one of you weren't too fussy.

The lighties had the Sea Harvest SA Junior Champs at Point in JBay - and Nelson Mandela Surfriders got a 4th spot, with Kai Woolfe winning the Girls u/18 and Angelo Faulkner getting 2nd in the Boys u18 and Zia Hendriks 3rd in Girls u12. 

Staying on the topic of comps - don't forget to get your entries in for the Something Good Surf Classic - everyone welcome, heaps of good prizes and just a lekker day for the whole family on the beach. Entry form available online here:
https://sites.google.com/view/somethinggoodsurfclassic/home

The SA Photographic Society was in town for the week for the annual Congress. One of their shoots was a surf shoot arranged for Thursday arvo - but unfortunately the east was pomping and their wasn't much swell - so there were about 20 expectant photags lined up on the beach...and only one surfer out in the water. Nothing like a bit of pressure to perform!

Super stoked with my new ecoboard  - a collab between Dennis Ellis and Brendan Basset. Recycled blank, eco-friendly resin and jute cloth for the deck, with some carbon rails for good measure.And some epic board art by Robyn van der Merwe. No just need some waves....

Eco-boards are a really interesting subject - as although they're certainly better than normally produced boards, they aren't quite perfect yet, as the end-of-life conundrum hasn't been solved - as they aren;t actually recyclable unless you split the board back out into it's component parts. Read about the Yin & Yang of Eco-boards here.
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/blog/the-yin-yang-of-eco-boards

Cool new product in stock at Surf Centre - called the Rinse Kit. Basically a portable shower you can pop in your boot and gets you all nice n sparkly after your surf. Much better than having to use the 2L coke bottle of water poured over your head mission.

Much as we mumble about there not being waves, there always is something to ride if you just make the effort to look about a bit - whether it's the edges of the bay, or round the corner, seek and ye shall find.

Local logger and Millers Local Alfonso Pieters is still looking for funds towards his trip over to Taiwan for the World Longboard Champs. If you're able to help out with a few bucks that would be awesome, as the guys have to cover all their own costs - which are pretty substantial. 

You can read about Alfonso's inspirational story here, and it also has deets for donations.
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/comp-news/get-a-millerslocal-to-world-champs

If life gives you a lemon - make lemonade. And no-one does this better than smiley Millers Local Star Campbell-Douglas. When the ou's stole the VW logo from the front of her Caddy, she has the guys who do the beadwork in from of the Walmer Builders Warehouse make her a flower to fit the gap. 

If you're keen to check out the next penguins release, it will take place on Saturday October 13 at the SANCCOB centre at Cape Recife.

Not too much to get excited about this week - as still plenty of easterlies in the mix. There are a few offshore days where you might get a few bowls with the east swell - but nothing to get too frothed up about.

Everyone loves a surf shop. Nothing beats the smell of fresh sticks and suits, and bubblegum wax. And even better if it has stuff in it you won’t find elsewhere. And that’s what makes Relic, the new kid on the block, unique.

​Think of it like a curated surf boutique. Threads you won’t find elsewhere, one of a kind custom painted long board fins, super cool suits, lekker local leggies, Brazilian wax, natural sunscreens, kiff logs and hybrids.  Just different stuff, not same old same old.

​What’s cool is that they’re aiming to focus on trying to keep stock as #localislekker as possible, so keep an eye out for fresh local talent. Even all the brand-named stuff they stock isn’t what you’ll find anywhere else, and has been specially selected by the Relic crew.

​So, if you’re looking to stand out from the crowd, definitely pop in to Relic - Authentic Ocean Store, situated in the Old Valley Trucks building in Lower Valley Road. The crew are always ready to chat and share a coffee or beer! There’s also Plenty of secure parking out front. And right near Richmond Hill Brewery if you feel like grabbing a Car Park John Ale after your shopping!

As much as the previous week delivered, this past week didn't. Neptune had blown it's bolt and was taking a rest. The wind however never seems to feel the need to take  a break! 

Still plenty of great imagery around from the big swell, with JBay's Deon Lategan capturing some amazing shots, which got featured on both Surfline and Magic Seaweed. Lekker!

Also had a few more shots from PE drop in - so check out the surf at Millers the previous Sunday in Neil Rowtee's gallery here:
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/latest-shots/millers-23-sept-18

The Billabong Junior Series presented by Bos went down at Seals over the weekend. Zoe Steyn and Matt Elkington took the titles. 

There's a new surf shop on town, so go check it out - in Lower Valley Road next to the Baakens River. Relic is run by local logger Ryan Anderson, and features curated surf wear that you won't find anywhere else in PE - plus some local labels. 

Also available at Relic is Fu surf wax - the famous super-sticky-stay-stuck-to-your-board Brazilian surf wax. It smells flipping epic - so if it works half as good as it smells it's a winner. Got a block to try out so will report back soon. 

Local logger (and also a regular Millers local) Alfonso Peters has been selected for the Longboard World Champs in Taiwan in November. He needs to raise funds to pay his own way over there, so please extend some Friendly City vibes his way and donate a bit of cash - even R50 helps. You can find the funding details here:
http://www.millerslocal.co.za/comp-news/get-a-millerslocal-to-world-champs

PE is a really tight lil surfing community, with pretty much everyone knowing everyone. It's always been like that. And back in the day even more so, as there were less guys surfing so you literally did know everyone!

This classic shot was taken at Pipe in 1985  - for the first longboard comp held there. Tony le Roux, now living in Aus, has the original photo and has had it scanned into a high res digital copy for anyone would like to get a copy of it so that they can to print it. Shoot Tony an email on ​tleroux@optusnet.com.au

The Something Good Surf Classic has become the Eastern Cape's biggest surfing competition, featuring the biggest number of sporting codes - long board, short board, body board, SUP and skateboard divisions. It is the only surfing event in the Eastern Cape that offers all of the different disciplines of surfing and is open to the novices and the pro’s.

Date: Saturday, 27 October 2018
Time: 7am
Venue: Pipe Beach, Marine Drive, Summerstrand

Entry forms available at Surf Centre in Humewood as well as Something Good Roadhouse.

There will be a prize giving and after party at Something Good Roadhouse after the competition. 

For more information contact Dianne on 0652686140 or e-mail marketing@somethinggoodpe.co.za

Speaking of comps - shot to Slummies local and lensman Bruce Viaene, who competed for the SA team in the World Waveski Champs help in Portugal - and scooped a 3rd spot in the Senior Mens division and a 9th spot in the Open Men's. Well done!

On the few windlass days we had during the week there were some teeny weeny waves to be had. Lekker just to float about when the weather is so nice. One session was rather entertaining. Had a huge whale surface nearby the line-up. Next thing the lifeguard is sprinting down the beach waving his flag and blowing hard on his whistle. We all looked at each other rather confusedly as wondered what all the fuss was about. He must have thought it was a shark as it swum past Hobie en route to us and was coming to warn us. Not too sure how whales resemble sharks, but we appreciated the effort nonetheless.

The charts don't look too flash for the week ahead, so plan to get your glide on by hopping on your skateboard - or the shopping trolley! Always get a few strange looks when I run down aisle and then jump to stand on the back of the wheel covers as it cruises down past the spaghetti and noodles..... 

As surfers we should all have some degree of environmental sustainability hard-wired into us. It’s impossible to play in the ocean as we do and not feel a sense of responsibility towards its care and protection.

Our eco-mindedness does however raise a few conundrums, as much of what we use to surf isn’t exactly earth or ocean friendly. Consider your wetsuits, boards and surf accessories. Do they tick any green boxes?

Many surfers are innovators, and frustrated by the dichotomy of this they take their environmental awareness a step further. Like Boland surfer Brendan Basset.

Brendan is passionate about surfing and passionate about the environment. For the last few years he has been doing extensive R&D into more enviro-friendly alternatives to the traditional polyurethane / polyester resin construction of surfboards. His journey towards the goal of improving the sustainability of surfboards has been an interesting one, and the outcome has certainly been slightly different from what he expected at the outset.

Brendan, what got you started on the whole sustainability path? Was it through surfing?

I completed an undergraduate degree in Material Science and Engineering, which basically taught me a great deal about all materials. Having been a surfer all my life, I started understanding that the materials used in the surf industry were in no way sustainable and as a consequence were negatively impacting the environment. This inspired me to start investigating what the sustainable alternatives were.

Not many people manage to do their PhD on surfboards! Being able to combine a passion for surfing, sustainability and studying is a really cool achievement! Tell us a bit about that.

I wanted to create a research project that investigated sustainable materials for the marine craft industry, and in doing so create an awareness of eco-friendly alternatives to current practice. The CSIR in Port Elizabeth provided me with the perfect opportunity, allowing me to conduct research on using natural fabrics (hemp/flax) in place of glass fabrics.  

You’ve been experimenting with flax and hemp as some of the materials you’re using. How do they compare to traditionally used materials? (Brendan started a company which offers surfboard lamination in sustainable resins and fibre.)

The understanding of comparing two materials is quite complex. The typically question I am asked is: “Is it stronger?”. In the case of a surfboard, there are many types of strong: tensile, shear, compression, flexure, impact, adhesive etc. What I can breakdown from my research is: Natural fabrics are as “strong” as traditional glass with added impact strength. There is a slight increase in weight however, but this increase durability. To really answer the question fully, the comparison test has to be conducted over a wide range of surfboard sizes and shapes. Only then will we arrive at a definitive answer. 

Given you’ve using hemp cloth for glassing, how many guys have asked you if they can smoke their new stick!?

Yes, too many times to count! You could equate it to asking a psychiatrist: “How does that make you feel?” It is a pity that most guys just see the humorous side of hemp, instead of understanding it’s viability as a sustainable alternative to it’s more toxic cloth equivalents. 

Any other bio-friendly materials you’ve looked at or are in the pipeline?

Bio-friendly is a complicated term. Sustainability actually doesn’t necessarily equal bio-friendly. This is a vitally important construct to understand. Take Bio-resins for instance. They have a 30% bio-matter component, but this doesn’t mean it doesn’t harm the environment. Sustainability, bio-degradability and recyclability are very important terms to understand in the growth of improving the surf industry. 

Why is the concept of sustainability so important for the surfing industry?
​
The concept of sustainability is as very important to the surf industry in general,  as is recyclability and biodegradability. 

Sustainability is “off-setting” 100% virgin materials, reducing energy input during manufacture and sourcing materials that won’t be depleted. I actually regard recyclability as the most important characteristic, since a “sustainable” board can do just as much harm to the environment as traditional materials if not disposed of properly. If you’re going to just toss your broken “sustainable” board into the garbage, it’s pretty much the same as tossing your “normal” board away. The outcome of their full life-cycle is the same – they just both end up in landfill.

This is where bio-degradation comes in. Almost all surfboards will not bio-degrade (or at least not for a very very long time), even when using bio-based materials. Even a sustainable board will not bio-degrade any faster than our current boards. 

This brings us to recyclability. We need to create awareness as to the ways in which we can recycle surfboards. The process to break down a bio-board into its component parts so that these can effectively be recycled is just too timeous, costly and difficult. It doesn’t make economic sense to do it, so right now no-one offers that. Thus the irony is that even though an eco-board might be made from recyclable materials, these hold little monetary value when recycled, and so they aren’t actually recycled. Thus the recyclability of an eco-board is more theoretical than practical at this stage. 

How does an eco-friendly board feel, ride and perform compared to a “normal” board?

Feel, ride and performance is somewhat down to the individuals abilities, the type of surfboard, and waves they are riding. I am an above-average surfer that has been riding slightly heavier sustainable boards for 2-3 years now with no complaints. A well-known South African pro-freesurfer has ridden a couple of boards of mine with very positive feedback – he’s actually enjoyed the increased weight on a point break style wave compared to the top of the range traditional board.

A log rider who wants a lot of weight would then be very interested in trying out boards made with natural fibres such as hemp, due to the slightly increased weight. Feel, ride and performance is very subjective and fortunately for traditional boards we have almost a century of testing. Sustainable boards are just coming into the picture and the full attributes of their feel, ride and performance have yet to be fully documented.
 
Harder to snap or easier to snap? Literally and figuratively.

My research has proven that the amount of force to snap a board in half is essentially the same for both an eco-board and a normal board. However, my testing was done on a machine that provides an understanding of mechanical properties in a controlled environment. The ocean is anything but a controlled environment! 

The performance of a board to do a “snap” manoeuvre is more dependent on the size and shape of the wave ridden. Smaller performance waves require a bit more agility compared to big hollow waves. Therefore, the ability to design different lay-ups with different fabrics is an advantage in achieving the right balance for each surfer riding a range of waves. 

There has been a move in the surf industry in recent years towards “green” products – but are these more marketing hoopla than green?

“Green marketing” is definitely a thing. The ability to sell products at a higher price because the producer says they are greener is abundantly clear in all industries. For a manufacturer to say its “green or eco” has the effect on consumers to feel better about their purchase. This unfortunately leads to many misunderstandings as to what is essentially good or bad about the effect of the product on the environment.

Why is the concept of sustainability so important for the surfing industry?

Sustainability in the surf industry is two-fold. The industry has to step up and actually make a difference, as we now know that the majority of surf industry products are not good for the environment and we need to assume responsibility for this. However, the problem comes in with the ‘green marketing’ side of things. Many of the current “green” surf industry products that proclaim their sustainability or environmentally friendly characteristics don’t really live up to these claims when you examine the full life cycle of the product.

Are eco-boards that much better? Where do they tick the green box, and where do they fail to do so.

To be honest, no; they aren’t any better for the environment than normal boards at this stage. And that’s because you have to consider the entire life cycle of the board. Production is one thing, but it’s the end of the life cycle where it basically has the same outcome. Two examples of this are the bio-resin and eco-blanks. Bio-resin is basically normal resin with the use of plant matter as part of the resin. Despite the inclusion of plant matter, it doesn’t make the board better for the environment post-use or easier make it any easier to recycle. Eco-blanks are classified as having part recycled matter added to the normal blank. Again, despite being better from a manufacturing perspective in that one is using recycled materials, it also doesn’t make the product any different as it still ends up in landfill.

So does that mean I should just stick to my regular stick?

Yes and no. I’m not saying that sustainability doesn’t count for anything. It’s great that we are looking at more environmentally friendly ways to make things. What I am saying is that even the most sustainable board you find today doesn’t end up helping the environment much unless you find a way to recycle that board post-use. In actual fact, you would be better off recycling a normal board than buying a sustainable board and not recycling it. It really all comes down to understanding that it’s the end point of the life-cycle that’s the most important. We have to stop things ending up in landfill.

Do you see a way that we’ll solve the recycling conundrum that seems to be the thorn in the side of eco-boards?

Recycling surfboards is not only difficult, but the materials that come from the recycled board are of little value and thus not profitable. This is why we don’t see many people doing this when ultimately it is the most essential contribution to the environment that we could actually make. 

Eco-boards only represent a small fraction of the market at present, do you see this changing?

With an eco-blank and bio-resins costing up to three times that of a normal product, I don’t see the popularity of eco-boards changing that much. Most surfers are cost conscious! To reiterate, buying an eco-board at a greater expense without recycling it is kind of missing the point. It’s the full life-cycle of an item that makes the difference in the outcome. 

You’ve personally evolved your philosophy around eco-boards as you’ve begun producing them, and now question whether they will make indeed make a difference overall? 

My initial objective to produce surfboards using sustainable materials was more to gauge the market, to understand the validity and viability of doing it, so but also to use it as a platform to inform the surf industry of the effect of their products on the environment.

Unfortunately once I really started to understand and appreciate the very limited impact on the overall life cycle that the eco-materials and eco-manufacturing aspect was having, I just had to step back from a moral perspective. 

The materials are one thing, but the waste of production is a complete different story. Every stroke of sand paper that touches the foam or resin is creating micro-plastics that will end up in a landfill or ocean if it is not recycled. It would be disingenuous to try claim that eco-boards were as green as they claimed to be.

You’re still passionate about making an impact on the environment, so where to from here?

I’ve evolved my philosophy through this whole journey, and am now looking to try create a bigger-picture impact by focussing on the composite industry as a whole. My research up till now has focused on how natural fibres will benefit composite products. I would like to continue expanding on this so that we can find a ways in which the production of these natural fibre-based composite materials can minimise their impact on the environment throughout their entire life cycle. Meaning we get the last part of the lifecycle right – the recycling. And then of course looking to see if we can then incorporate these materials in the surfboard industry! Recycle materials that actually are practically recyclable. 

​

Yoh. Now THAT was a decent swell!! The surf this weekend was certifiably off it's pip. Big fat-ass 18 second groundswell, that actually arrived instead of doing a mysto on us. Saturday was big but a little dis-organised, although improved later in the day, and Sunday was just really clean lines, despite dropping off quite a bit in size.

Hopefully everyone got wet - cos shew, if you didn't, you gonna be suffering from seri-aas "I missed it" blues. 

On Saturday Millers was one of the few spots working, as the other spots were either maxing out, entailed a hell paddle or had a hell rip. Take your pick. Plenty of runners all the way down to Hobie Beach. 

Crowds were thick. Which meant a few "shared" waves. You know it's a hectic day when even the palm tree drops in on you....

But when you did finally manage to hook one unmolested it was worth the wait.

Out west was mostly too big. JBay was heavy and only the brave paddled out. Seals was outta control, although the kiteboarders had a go, and the famous secret-not-so-secret spot nearby was going off. Even a novelty wave up the point lit up. The ghost of 69's came back just to remind us not to build harbours on good surf spots.... 

If you kept heading west Keurbooms was doing it's Puerto Escondido impersonation. 

The Cobbles Classic, the retro single fin logging comp, was held this weekend - in some hectically challenging conditions. Full respect to anyone paddling out in that on a huge log with no leash. Crystal Hulett and Dean Simpson took the honours - full wrap and shots to follow later. 

Last week was all about the weekends swell, but guess we better add a coupla pic's of what else went down during the week!

 Congrats to Ryan Anderson on the opening of his new surf store down in Baakens Valley, called Relic. It's an Authentic Ocean Store, so pop in and check out the cool stuff in stock.  Also lotsa #localislekker goods so please check em out and support local. Cos made in SA rocks. And made in the Eastern Cape rocks even more.
(​Shop 2 Old Valley Trucks Building, Lower Valley Road)

Then just the usual pretty things we see along the beach every week - rainbows, sunsets, sunrises etc. 

​Let's hope winter decides to hang around a bit longer and throw some more swells like that at us. Cos let's be honest. Purple People Eaters are beautiful things!!

Ok, so who has pissed off the wave gods? Cos it's been dead flat all week. And besides the south swell we had last weekend it was dead flat the week before that as well. Maybe a board sacrifice is needed to appease Neptune and let him spin some swell our way again?

You know it's flat when the Great Lakes have better surf than PE. Just saying....
​So if you claimed the bay was as flat as a lake you'd actually be lying, cos the lake had bigger waves than we did!

If all else fails - just get some waves painted onto your new stick - then at least in theory there's always be swell. Awesome art by Steve Bibb on a Mikey Meyer sled.

Maybe it's all these new boards that are responsible for the no-wave-curse? Cos how often do you get a new stick and you're just frothing to ride it...and it's flat. How's this kiff carbon beauty from Deno. Just as well it didn't get stolen - like all his other stuff did this week.

First the skebanga's stole a whole stack of fins from the shop. Then they came back and stole some surfboards, and Deno's bike. Luckily Deno and Merv went into full on Rambo-mode (complete with paintball gun and axe...) and went missioning round the bushes in the area. After some detective work they managed to locate the missing boards. Fins and bike still awol. So keep an eye out of anyone offers you a good deal on Scarfini or Reef fins.

No surf, no problem. The hippo's up in Sodwana just happy to get wet regardless of the conditions.

The flat spell was perfect to inspire some creativitiy. With the guys participating in this years Jam Jar Rally coming up with some classic designs. It kicked off at Something Good on the beachfront on Friday morning, and then made it's way round the East Cape for the weekend livening up random lil towns n dorpies. 

This poor lil guy was found on the beach on the wildside during a Sanccob beach clean this weekend. The Bayworld peeps came along to get him, so he'll be fixed up and then returned back to the sea once he's recovered. 

If there's nothing in the surf to keep you entertained just look down at your feet - you'll be amazed how many interesting things you'll find along the beach if you just take the time to look. 

No surf, no problem. Go surf shopping instead. Good discounts at Surf Centre on guys and girls clothing. Go grab whilst stocks last.

A late arrival from last weekends sessions from Rod Green snapped at Avo's. Good to see a few waves starting to happen again there.

Nothing much on the charts for the week ahead. So fill your tank and head west if you're wanting to get wet.

A quiet week that morphed into a frantic weekend - with lots of swell, but not that many spots holding it well. There was a purple-people-eater blob that was sitting just south of us spewing up short period southerly swell. Which meant lotsa lumps, weird angles (other than for those magical places), plenty of rip, and a bit more frustration than reward.Yip - there were nugs - you just had to work hard for 'em.

But weird n wonky is how we like our surf, a whole bunch more interesting than the could-I-rather-watch-paint-dry Surf Ranch event. Looks great fun to surf, but shew - to watch an event there? Hmm, pretty damn boring if you ask me.

Of course the not-so-secret-secret-spot was firing. Always cool when it's good enough to keep producing right through the high tide. The rock jump gave rise to plenty of off-the-wave entertainment, as it does when the lines just keep streaming in with no respite.

The wild side lived up to it's name, and it musta been not-so-fun to be out at sea in that lot. 

Although earlier in the week the total lack of swell meant it was wild side hunting or your wettie stayed dry.

Sometimes there was even gold at the end of the rainbow.

You didn't even always have to go all the way round the corner to find something....

Let's be honest - all surfers love shots of themselves surfing. So here's your opportunity. Make a note in the diaries (and then pray for some co-operative PE weather). On the 4th Oct the members of the  Photographic Society of South Africa will be at Pipe from about 16h00 onwards. 

That means plenty of flipping good photags who will be aiming their lenses out to sea and snapping away. The surfers who feature in the 2 best shots of the sessions will win an enlargement of their photo. Plus of course a collection of the best shots from the day will be up in a ML photo gallery.

JBay local Dylan Lightfoot got a 3rd possie in the ​Anfaplace Pro in Morocco. He's now edged his way into the top 100 on the QS. Lekker!

After the decent swell on the weekend, things are looking very mediocre for the weekend. So a good time to catch up on all the stuff you don't get round to doing when the surf is cooking. Which means PE surfers must mostly always have their stuff done!

Still the beautiful late winter sunrises and sunsets persist (cos spring, despite being here in theory, hasn't quite yet manifested itself). So there's always something to be thankful for even if we don;t get waves!