Good Luck Diana Nyad.

Last time she attempted to swim from Cuba,30 years ago, she had to pull up after 40 odd hours after an eight foot swell kicked in that kept smashing her into the shark cage she was swimming in!                                                                                             Diana Nyad is already a complete legend in my book. She holds many records in open ocean swimming, my favourite being her two day non stop swim from the Bahamas back to Florida, still she was 30 back then in 1979. Things are a little different these days at the ripe old age of 61 she aims to swim from Cuba to Florida, the convential way has been done before but that's not good enough for Diana. She doesn't want to swim in a shark cage in the most shark infested waters on earth. So for three days without stopping apart from to tred water every ninety minutes to take on food through a pipe, she's gunna get her head down and motor.

 She likes to swim places like Lake Ontario and the Bay of Naples so I can't see her visiting the North Atlantic in January anytime soon, but I'd like to wish her all the best in her attempt.

She has spent over a year just trying to get permission for the swim as there are still no official relations between Cuba and the US....her swim began last night (Sunday)...Suerte!

Barrel riding in Fiji.

Morning glass at Bells Beach Australia.

Shaping shack down.

Tragedy occurred today in the mecca of Goldsithney as history was removed by a mini digger and two fat lads with sledgehammers. The shaping shack battled hard but after a few hours all that was left was the poultry graffiti embossed on the wall from the dregs of a spray can. Badger surfboards was the first I believe to use the slightly less than state of the art facilities, The Badger went on to produce a consistent quality of sub 7ft single fins. The Badger currently resides in Colorado , USA where he is a back country snowboarder and good bloke. He recently took time out from deep powder to get warm in Nicaragua using I believe the last board shaped in the Goldsithney factory.

 Dave "Chav" Devey pened and planed "Asbo" boards here whilst relationships collapsed and blossomed. Chav currently on honeymoon, surfing NZ, still whacks out an Asbo quad shaped at the shack on fatter days on the points and beaches of Casablanca, Morrocco where he resides.

 Boardum surfboards shaped by yours truly has had its ups and downs, it must be said. Having first decided the brand was plain cursed after traipsing with twinnies around the corners of the earth where Huey (God of the Waves) was clearly not smiling on me, I have persevered and await a new shack with a few more mod cons (such as a door that shuts) where I look forward to making some keel fin fishes and my dream of dreams a Bonzer.

 Michelle Hawes deserves a mention for shaping the worse mini mal I have ever seen, with decorations such as laminated leaves and post cards, one can only imagine what has become of the board. From what I gather Michelle has married a pig farmer in NZ where they are both perfectly content....well done you too.

 The end of an era. Good times my friends.

Congratulations Jordy Smith.

Jordy won the J -bay event beating Mick Fanning in the final.

My new passion

I was getting worried I was going to sit around and talk about back in the day see....that's what drove me to it.

Still out of the water, over two months gone and by last week I was feeling pretty terrible. I decided to make a huge U turn in thought. ....I can't swim or put any real pressure on my shoulder at all......I was desperate......really desperate....I'm sorry......I took my step kids bodyboards and headed for the shore dump.........It was good to see the boys down the car park, but none of them would park near me anymore, most ignored me and talked about me behind my back, some pulled up and shouted abuse at me through the car windows....One of my "better" surfing mates, simply whispered "why?" as he slithered past, I sensed he was welling up due to his trembly voice. Upset I hit the waves and creased both boards in a couple of waves....I could hear them sniggering as I did the penguin waddle in my fins through the shallows................never again I swore.

I knew I had to keep getting in though.  When I spotted my new stick I knew things had changed, no one abuses a bellyboard....I started off in the sun in the small waves of Porthcurnow, instantly the chicks came flocking and that pure uncluttered joy of slidding down a face returned....pure and simple.

This is Porthcurnow through the lense of Greg Martin, the Wavelength Editor whose Bellyboard I have pinched...nice one. His wife Daisy in the previous shot seemed rather friendly too.

 Since then I've been every day in all sorts of rubbish having a complete blast. I go out back, take sets and use fins now.....Then I found out about The World Belly Board champs in Chapel Porth in September...so I need a costume and to practice....dare to dream my friends.

The World Belly Boarding Championships 2010 from Sideways Cornwall on Vimeo.

New Zealand with Chav

Chav's on honeymoon in New Zealand and here's what he has to say(also his pictures).....

New Zealand. It's not a name that I hear that often when I hear Brits talking about what surf trips they are next going on. Perhaps it's because of the 22 hours you have to spend jammed into an economy class seat or the fact that it isn't really a place you can go just for a week, and until this trip is over, I couldn't even tell you whether it was the right decision to go in winter. But as a teacher, the only time of year where there is enough time to make the flight worth it is our summer, or in the dead of winter as New Zealand goes! As with any country, the weather can make or break a holiday, and I am sorry to say that so far the weather has not been kind. Though 10 days of howling onshores and driving rain are certainly enough to whip up a meaty swell off the west coast.

When it comes to surfing, New Zealand should be on everybody's list of surf trips. With the West coast getting regular large swells throughout the year from the southern ocean, the only time you can't surf this coast is from September to November, where the roaring 40's provide constant onshores. Convenient then that there is an East coast that's also gets waves from lows out in the pacific. Seriously, everybody has heard of Raglan, and Shipwreck Bay (of Endless Summer fame) as quality surf spots in New Zealand providing point breaks with rides of over 500 meters on a good day, but the NZ surf guide has more breaks than Evil Kenevil. 450 to be exact. That's not including the spots that you can just stumble across, or work less frequently. There are endless options, for every type of condition making the chances of no surf anywhere on the islands distinctly unlikely. 

With reeling points, beachies, river mouths and reefs, there really is something for everyone. As varied as the breaks are, you can also say the same for temperatures both in and out the water. Fortunately winter waters on the north island are still fine for a good 4/3, but that south island is all about 5 mil plus with booties gloves and hoods. I haven't had any ice-cream head so far, but I can imagine it's coming. New Zealand has it all. Endless surf breaks, amazing scenery, friendly locals, and tonnes of outdoor activities for if it's flat. Rafting, snowboarding, skydiving, and more bungie than a hippies transit.

The only complaint being that none of this comes for free and New Zealand is a country of poor wages and expensive attractions. How about 2 quid for a pepper, or 3 for a cucumber or 45 quid for 45 minutes in a cave with some glow worms in it? It's a good job surfing is free, and with so many options, who needs all that crap anyway.. Surfers can live off good local beer and red meat (cheaper than a pepper with all these sheep and cows around!) How does 22 hours in economy grab you now?

Thanks Chav, love to Jenny and enjoy your honeymoon but do send us some more pictures.