SB_issue52_digital-ed

2022 

smorgasboarder 

#52 

SURF 

magazine 

Surf travel is back. 

We can explore once more.

CONTENTS 

#52 

2022 

24 

72 

34 

82 

10 comps + news 

14 controversy 

24 Out of the Ashes 

34 epic maldives Travel 

72 Wheels + waves 

82 Swiss bliss 

86 GEAR 

91 surfing with emus 

94 ART 

98 aloha barry 

smorgasboarders 

Editorial | Dave Swan 

dave@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0401 345 201 

Editorial | Geoff Crockett 

geoff@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0413 988 333 

Advertising | Simon Cross 

simon@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0413 698 630 

Social Medial | Phoebe Swan 

phoebe@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0459 705 404 

New Zealand | Jiff Morris 

jeff@smorgasboarder.co.nz 

0220 943 913 

South Australia | Jimmy Ellis 

james@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0410 175 552 

Design | Horse & Water Creative 

mark, kate, val, helen, taylah, sarah 

mark@horseandwater.com.au 

Accounts | Louise Gough 

louise@smorgasboarder.com.au 

2022 

SURF 

#52 


Surf travel is back. 

We can explore once more. 

magazine 

our cover 

Photo: Chris Grundy 

Supplied by: Island Hop Maldives 

get involved 

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interesting surf-related stuff you 

want to share? drop us a line on 

editorial@smorgasboarder.com.au 

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Smorgasboarder is published by Huge C Media PTY LTD ABN 30944673055. All information is correct at time of going to press. The publication cannot 

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photo: lime light creative studios 

see the wood

for the seas 

Eco-conscious. Sustainable. 

Hand-made. High performance. 

All Australian. Built to last. 

Boards. Kits. Fins. Blanks. Accessories. 

and BALSA BOARD BUILDING COURSES. 

www.balsasurfboardsriley.com.au

where: Ahtopol, Bulgaria 

photo: monodon 

...Needless to say, there is so much to see, do and learn 

in this great big world we live in. Life is short, our 

time on the earth is fleeting, so go out and grab 

every opportunity with both hands and surf a wave 

you always dreamt of surfing, in a place you always 

wanted to go, or perhaps never even thought of.

Are we on the precipice of once again being allowed to explore 

our world and the multitude of waves on offer? Our freedoms 

appear to have been restored. 

The last few years of lockdown after lockdown and travel 

restrictions have fostered a new found appreciation for where 

we live but it has also developed a yearning to discover distant 

shores. 

Now that the craziness of the last few years is hopefully behind 

us, we can start to venture far and wide to warmer, cherished 

climes like the wonderful waves on offer in the Maldives, which we 

explore in-depth in this edition, to snowboarding in Switzerland 

and even somewhere as far flung as where this photo was taken – 

Bulgaria. We bet you didn’t even know they had waves – we sure 

as hell didn’t. It looks super cool too – for a variety of reasons. 

Bulgaria is a small country situated in Southeastern Europe with 

diverse terrain – an interior full of mountain ranges and rivers 

and a 378 kilometre coastline along the Black Sea. It’s a cultural 

melting pot of Greek, Slavic, Ottoman, and Persian influences, 

and has a rich heritage of traditional dance, music, costumes, and 

crafts. Its capital city, Sofia, dates back to the 5th century B.C. 

You can see how excited we start to become when talking 

of travel, anyhow, the wave we see here is at a little fishing 

port called Ahtopol. The town is 20km away from border with 

Turkey. The wave only starts working after two to three days of 

good northeast to easterly wind with September and October 

considered the best months. November can get pretty good too 

but the water is a toasty 14 degrees Celsius and by December 

is down around 10 degrees. Reportedly the Black Sea doesn’t 

get waves for months on end but when they do come, they really 

come fast and powerful – you just have to watch for the rocks. 

This fast, fun, lefthand point break starts working at 3ft-5ft but can 

hold up to 10ft+. 

Needless to say, there is so much to see, do and learn in this great 

big world we live in. Life is short, our time on the earth is fleeting, 

so go out and grab every opportunity with both hands and surf a 

wave you always dreamt of surfing, in a place you always wanted 

to go, or perhaps never even thought of. 

The Smorgasboarders

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We received some hilarious entries to the Hueys Choice 

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Dm us on social media or shoot an email to 

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Winner 

Congratulations to Billie Baxter who best answered why 

surfboards are living works of art and won herself an 

awesome surfboard rack from the good folks at Ghost 

Racks. Billy’s respect for the art of crafting surfboards is 

such, that even after they’re long past their use-by-date, 

she recycles them into wonderful pieces of art to be 

enjoyed all over again. 

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news 

victorian 

surfboard show 

Lindsay Becker & The Ramada Phillip Island 

Vintage Surfboard Display 

words: darren marks 

It’s good to surround yourself with passionate people as often 

as possible, there’s an infectious energy that is good to be 

around. People that work humbly toward something they truly 

believe in quite often inspire likeminded souls to do the same. 

To look critically at the surf industry now, it’s hard to believe 

how far it has come and the trajectory it has taken. While there 

has been plenty of money made and lost along the way, the fuel 

that feeds the juggernaut always is and always will be passion. 

Lindsay Becker is a man both passionate and humble. As with 

most people of this ilk, he finds the limelight an uncomfortable 

place to stand. We can all relate to these quiet, modest types 

that are more than happy to illuminate the achievements of 

others while existing within the shadow that is cast. Sometimes 

though it’s appropriate to show appreciation for their passion 

Lindsay, originally from Mallacoota where he grew up surfing 

in the nooks and crannies of Australia’s South East, learned his 

trade as a builder and over time, moved permanently to Phillip 

Island. He’s carved out a secondary career that has seen him 

regarded as an incredible tattoo artist. 

Lindsay Becker is a man both 

passionate and humble. As with 

most people of this ilk, he finds 

the limelight an uncomfortable 

place to stand. 

A hobby for restoring surfboards hiccupped when he lost four 

boards in a fire when his San Remo house went up in flames. 

Understandably, other priorities took over until the opportunity 

arose to assemble a permanent display of vintage Victorian 

watercraft at the Ramada Resort on Phillip Island. His wife Bec, 

who is Assistant Manager at Ramada, must be also applauded 

for the sacrifices she made on the home front as Lindsay began 

filling their home with fiberglass and fins. 

Over 18 months Lindsay amassed an impressive 55 classic 

boards that document the evolution of the Victorian surfboard 

manufacturing industry. Luminaries such as Tom Tyrrell, Rod 

Stock, Terry Klemm, Russell Francis, Greg Brown, Maurice Cole, 

Wayne Lynch and the Oke family are all represented among a 

distinguished list of others. 

All of Lindsay’s boards were acquired by buying, restoring, 

selling, turning over and buying more until he completed the 

collection that is now on display. A lot of the dirty grunt work 

was taken on by Lindsay as a way of saving money in the 

restoration process, with the high end finishing outsourced to 

Adsy at Island surfboards. Time, money and effort invested in 

the project is calculated with a shrug of the shoulders and a 

“Buggered if I know”. 

It must be noted that this collection was not motivated by 

monetary gain or exploitation, but for a pure love and respect for 

the under-acknowledged surfboard manufacturing industry and 

the fun, innovation and passion they have provided in our lives. 

Saturday the 19th of March saw the great unveiling in the 

Ramada Conference Room with the adjacent lawn strewn with 

other private collections of wave riding wonders from up and 

down the coast. Lifelong shapers and fiber glassers walked 

quietly among the crowd, unpretentious 

in their contribution to our pleasure. 

These living, floating sculptures elicit 

visceral memories, it’s amazing watching 

the evolution of such a unique lifestyle 

captured so eloquently in resin, fiberglass 

and foam. 

Live music, market stalls and a show and 

shine under early Autumn skies provided 

the perfect opportunity to engage in 

conversation, libation and exaggeration 

well into the evening. We all walked down 

memory lane and indulged ourselves 

in long lost summers of sentimentality. 

But that’s the what happens when you 

surround yourself with passionate people, 

you feel happy to be alive. 

Lindsay Becker’s work on display on 

this page top left and bottom right.

news

ontroversy 

“Oh the price of surfboards are just so expensive.” 

I am amazed how many, of even my own friends, 

utter this statement. 

It is time to get some perspective. 

photo: oke surfboards 

decals: chris garrett 

words: dave swan 

So, surfboards are expensive ehh? Yeah, it is a decent chunk 

of money to outlay for a quality shortboard or longboard - 

$1000-$2000 thereabouts. But let’s compare it to a few other 

sports and other life essentials and consider the amount of 

time it takes to make a surfboard. 

On average, a hand-shaped surfboard takes the better part of 

a week or more in terms of actual labour hours. That allows 

for shaping, laminating, filler coat, sanding, glassing and 

polishing/finishing. Scheduling that work and allowing for 

the necessary drying/curing time means the whole process 

will take close to 3 weeks. Now consider how much you earn 

for a few weeks work? Then take into account the cost of 

materials.Also, remember to not just evaluate something on 

the time it takes to craft but rather the time it takes to acquire 

the skill to craft it in that time frame. A skilled tradesman could 

construct an outdoor deck in a couple of days but it would 

take me several months to complete the same because I do 

not possess the skill they do. A skill that has been honed over 

many, many years working with timber. 

Let’s then consider the longevity of surfboards. I am fortunate 

to have acquired quite a few through the years and thankfully, 

because I value well-crafted Australian/New Zealand made 

surfboards, they have lasted and lasted. As I look around my 

‘boardroom’ I take in the surfboards – 19 years, 6 years, 10 

years, 12 years, 8 years, 11 years, 3 years… and so it goes. 

The average age of my surfboards is easily 10+ years. Now if 

I go to the higher end of the price scale and value the board 

at $2000, that equates to $200 a year for 10 years of fun. And 

believe me, I regularly ride all my boards. 

Now, let’s say you or your kids play football. For a decent 

set of boots you’re up for $200 a season. Yes, you can buy 

cheaper but in the long run that will even up with trips to the 

physiotherapist and/or podiatrist as a result of wearing cheap 

boots – been there, done that. And that $200 for your boots 

is before you have bought any other gear, strapping, pads etc 

and well before you have paid your yearly sign-on fee that can 

range anywhere from $200 to $2000+ dollars depending on 

what code and level you play. 

On average a footy season is going to probably cost you 

close to a grand at least once you add up all the bits and 

pieces – equivalent to the cost of a quality shortboard. If you 

play 22-23 rounds and maybe finals, taking into consideration 

training, you will probably wear your boots 100- 120 times. If 

you only surf weekends and a run of holidays, you may rack 

up 100 surfs on your board in a year or two, and a quality 

surfboard will easily last you that long. And yes, you may snap 

or damage the board, or find out it is not what you were after, 

which sucks, but that also happens with football boots. Some 

even fall apart after half a season – even the expensive ones! 

And no, sports stores don’t allow you to go play in those 

boots for a couple of games just as a shaper won’t make 

you a board to surf a few times and return it. However, some 

shapers do have ride and trial days, or demos to test. And as 

always it pays to do your research as to what is right for you – 

surfboards and football boots the same. 

How about golf? There’s a popular sport. The most basic club 

set and bag will set you back at least $600-700 and if you 

play like me you might as well easily add $50-100 worth of 

golf balls each year. Now, all of this is before you have even 

paid green fees – that’s anywhere from at least $30-$60+ 

every time you play. So, you have easily cleared a grand in 

one year and that’s before you have forked out anywhere from 

$200-$2000 for that special wood. And if you wish to become 

a member of your local club you’re up for more cash again. 

Interestingly too, some days I will hit the ball superbly and 

others I play like Happy Gilmore. I know it is me, not the clubs. 

The same goes for surfboards. It is too easy to think a board 

is sh*t when in reality, some days you surf well and others you 

don’t. Some days you ride the wrong board for the conditions 

just like trying to use a putter to drive off a par 5. 

What else? If you like cycling (heaven forbid), a road bike 

is going to set you back close to $1000 and that is before 

you commit yourself to covering your body in spandex and 

shaving your legs. Hell, some people even spend as much on 

a bike as you would a small car. Mountain bikes are the same 

again and that’s before you pay for all the corrective surgery 

from the serious injuries many often inflict upon themselves. 

If you swim at your local pool, thanks to our government 

ineptitude and ridiculous insurance premiums, you’re up for 

around $6 for adults and $5 for kids. A yearly pass will set you 

back close to $900 and do you also want googles, fins, pull 

buoy? There’s a grand! 

Sports aside, think of the cost of other things nowadays. If 

you had a skilled tradesman come out to your house for the 

better part of a week or two, I think you would be amazed to 

escape with an invoice for under a couple of grand – and that 

is excluding materials! 

So Smorgasboarders, please respect and appreciate the 

innate skills our surfboard shapers possess and pay them 

what is only fitting for their craft 

and the enjoyment they ultimately 

bring to our lives through surfing. 

SB / #51 / 14

P: 03 9587 3553 

E: rory@okesurfboards.com 

OKESURFBOARDS.COM 

1/1-7 Canterbury Rd, Braeside, VIC

Snowboarding – shockingly I would consider it as good if 

not better than surfing. I absolutely, categorically love it. 

Unfortunately, given that I live in a perpetual summer town, 

we don’t see any snow and thus there is no snowboarding. 

I only get to indulge when I travel and thanks to that bloody 

coronavirus, none of us have being doing any of that for a few 

years. But soon, hopefully soon, I will once again get to glide 

down the face of a 100ft frozen wave. 

Thinking of snowboarding recently had me reminiscing about our 

family’s last visit to the snow before all the craziness began in 

2020. Those who read our keepsake 50th edition may recall my 

son got the chance to play football in Portugal in late 2019 with 

me his on-tour manager. At the end of his stint, the rest of the 

family joined us to embark on a 20-day trip through Europe. High 

on our agenda was hitting the slopes, the only trouble being 

there’s not often a great deal of snow on offer in mid-December. 

Good mate Craig Russell, who owns Helloworld Travel in 

Kawana, recommended we try Engelberg, a little mountain resort 

in Central Switzerland. 

photo: Jonathan Smit 

supplied by: Seventhwave Wetsuits

Across the ditch 

It’s around this time of year we at Smorgasboarder pine for an NZ work trip. The chance to 

indulge in an ice-cold, Norsca-fresh surf, followed by a few frosties around a beach campfire 

and even a few cheeky snowboard runs nearby is something that so appeals to us. Long live 

the Land of the Long White Cloud we say. These next few pages pay homage to our mates, 

those wonderful people from across the ditch who call this magic place home.

seventh heaven 


supplied by: Seventhwave Wetsuits 

Imagine a time before the internet, before mobile 

phones were smaller than a house brick, and before 

the first episode of The Simpsons landed on TV. 

Picture two mates living in Christchurch, one 

making back packs for a living and the other selling 

clothes for Allan G Mitchell on New Zealand’s 

South Island. A time when wetsuits were a new 

thing, when Allan G Mitchell was importing them 

from America to sell in the shops. It was also a time 

when these two blokes started to become known 

as the New Zealanders that could make even better 

wetsuits and deliver the goods to local shops in a 

timely fashion. 

Those blokes, Paul Zarifeh and Geoff White, 

launched the Canterbury Wetsuit Company in June 

1987 – a date that marked the beginnings on a 35 

year journey into the surf industry that continues to 

this day in the form of Seventhwave Wetsuits Ltd 

based in Ferrymead. 

The company’s journey is one of ups and downs, 

growing to have three shops at one stage, then 

shrinking as technology started to rule commerce, 

and the aftermaths of two earthquakes that forced 

people out of the water in the Christchurch area for 

almost a year. 

Geoff left along the way to do his own thing, but 

Paul, and his trusty team kept on going, evolving 

the business to be driven by online orders and 

known throughout the southern hemisphere for their 

extra warm, custom-fitted, wetsuits. 

Sadly, on November 23, 2017, Paul lost his battle 

with cancer, but not before he had the interest of a 

crazy, passionate local surfer to buy his business 

and continue his legacy. 

Sarah “Puff” Armstrong, owner and managing 

director of Seventhwave, said Paul’s passion for 

quality, New Zealand-made, surf gear was at the 

heart of everything the brand and the business 

stood for. 

Puff (whose nickname came from a bad haircut as 

a kid, in case you’re wondering) said the boutique 

business operated with eight Wetsuits Specialists 

including herself and her daughter Janee who run 

the shop and the admin side of things. 

In the cutting room, the experience runs deep, with 

head fitter Janet having started with Paul 35 years 

ago, and a couple of the other ladies who started 

there as crazy 16-year-olds more than a few moons 

ago and are still there. Together, Puff said between 

the team, Seventhwave had accumulated some 

120 years worth of skills and knowledge in wetsuit 

creation, a rare commodity on a global level. This 

has, and still is, being driven by a strong female led 

skill set. 

Puff, who’s surfing pedegree includes competing 

and being on the core organising team for the 

Canterbury Women’s Champs, one of the biggest 

women’s only surfing competitions, celebrating 

its 20th year in 2022. Until she took ownership 

of the business, Puff said she had never worn a 

Seventhwave Wetsuit. 

“I’ve never had a wetsuit fit me because because 

there wasn’t a lot designed for the smaller ladies. I 

wore a 4/3 all summer in the past and was still cold 

– then I wore a Seventhwave summer 1.5 suit that 

actually fitted me and I was never cold,” she said. 

Bored at work, Puff said she was looking for a 

business that would tie her lifestyle and deep 

passion for surfing together. When she heard Paul 

was looking to sell, it seemed a serendipitous 

moment. 

Learning the ropes and setting up the business for 

today’s e-commerce world has not been without it’s 

challenges. 



supplied by: Seventhwave Wetsuits 

Paul Zarifeh 

“The first three to four years, I didn’t take a wage 

and worked for love and wetsuits,” Puff said. 

“I’m the tester and the product developer – 

somebody’s got to test them. I’m ‘that’ boss that 

gets banned from her own factory, which is perfect 

when the surf’s up.” 

Puff went on to say the feedback from her wetsuit 

ambassadors around NZ is irreplaceable for the 

ongoing development. 

When it comes to the wetsuits themselves Puff 

said since owning the business she had sourced 

a wide range of neoprenes to trial from all over the 

world, but had found nothing worked quite as well 

as the Japanese Yamamoto neoprene Seventhwave 

wetsuits are known for. 

The Yamamoto neoprene is a product made from 

limestone, not petroleum-based, and is known for 

its exceptional thermal insulation, light-weight and 

unique high density cells that repel water keeping 

the suits dry and the weight stable in and out of the 

water. 

Seventhwave Wetsuits, in its current incarnation, is 

a boutique, custom-fit wetsuit business that sells 

a range of other neoprene products too, direct to 

customers all over the world via the internet and to 

plenty of locals from their shop at Ferrymead. 

Puff said the team was passionate about using 

quality New Zealand made products wherever 

possible, and about keeping their environmental 

footprint low – recycling neoprene off-cuts into 

stubby coolers and the like and sending other bits 

out to local schools for their art classes. 

The suits are built to last, which Puff jokes is a bit of 

an issue for a business built on word of mouth and 

repeat custom, as the repeat customers generally 

only need a new suit every three to four years if 

they’re avid weekly surfers, or six to eight years if 

they’re not so regular surfers. 

Living where the water gets down to 8 degrees in 

winter and the windchill factor can turn you blue 

in a flash, Puff said the thermal qualities of the 

Seventhwave wetsuits meant about 50 percent 

of the suits in any line up in New Zealand’s South 

Island carried the Seventhwave label. 

“Our suits are the warmest, thinnest, lightest, best 

fitting suits you can get,” Puff said. 

Fully suited for a Winter’s Day, Puff said she can 

comfortably last a three hour session in the water. 

And while she said she’s a shortboarder at heart, 

these days the longboard gets the most work. 

The factory does repairs too, and Puff said she’s 

always talking to people in the line-up, checking 

out how they’re suits are performing, and reminding 

them that their services are there if something 

needs a bit of fixing up. 

As we sign off from our chat, Puff heads back 

to the office where she suspects there may be 

an espresso martini waiting for her - a Thursday 

afternoon tradition it seems among the hardworking 

and fun loving crew at Seventhwave Wetsuits. 

One thing’s for sure, if the last 35 years are anything 

to go by, the next 35 years are bound to be a lot of 

fun! 

For more information visit seventhwave.co.nz, 

facebook.com/seventhwavewetsuits, phone 

+64 3 384 7878 or email info@seventhwave.co.nz 

19 / #52 / SB


“YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN HERE … LAST WEEK”! 

SUCH AN ANNOYING 

SENTENCE TO HEAR.. IS IT 

HABIT, OR HUMAN NATURE? 

WE ALL DO IT! REMINDS ME 

OF THE BANJO PATERSON 

POEM MUM USED TO PLAY 

ON THE OLD PIONEER 

STEREO WHEN I WAS A KID 

GROWING UP IN THE BLUE 

MOUNTAINS … 

“OH, THE NEW-CHUM WENT 

TO THE BACK BLOCK RUN, 

BUT HE SHOULD HAVE GONE 

THERE LAST WEEK. 

HE WENT FOR A DRIVE, AND 

HE MADE A START, WHICH 

SHOULD HAVE BEEN MADE 

LAST WEEK”. 

The forecast was so small … the swell, literally 

measured in centimetres, but it was a birthday 

weekend. It can be a fickle beast, anticipating 

South Island New Zealand weather? Modern 

day surf weekends are more a matter of; finish 

work at the shop as early as possible, load-up 

the NZSHRED wagon, run through the “DSN” 

List (Dead Set Necessities), grab some extra 

Cold Water Sexwax and just get things on the 

road. 

Despite the suggested swell size, we were 

heading to the deep south, where anything 

can happen. If there is one thing (and there’s 

many) that the diabolical nature of the last 

two years has taught us, it’s to ‘seize the day’. 

Horace thought enough to first say it 2000 years 

ago, then Robin reminded us again, as that 

meaningful mentor. Now, more than ever, it’s a 

‘tool for survival’ … a head-clearer of the most 

refreshing type. 

As we got to the batch, the weather could only 

be described as “inclement”. Kev and Mush 

arrived from the edge of Fiordland, with their 

van full of SUP’s … “How are ya mate?, 

So, what’s it doin?”. We cracked a beer with 

that typical anticipation that midway through a 

can, someone would start searching for their 

wettie and booties and we’d be out there in no 

time. If there was even 10cms of swell, well, it 

had already been, gone, and looked unlikely 

to return - replaced by a tangled mess of 

windchop. Time to batten down the hatches for 

the night, cheers a mate and tell some stories. 

Of course, “You should have been here last 

week!”, as someone read the comments in the 

Guest Book. But we were there now, and it was 

what we all needed. A group of friends, gathered 

together BY, the anticipation of some waves and 

solid water time, but FOR, the opportunity of 

comradery that is nurtured and developed, no 

matter what your age, where you work or how 

you perform in the water. 

The next day was something special, 

notwithstanding the irony of what turned out to 

be a fairly accurate surf forecast. As we awoke 

to the familiar sound of the verandah shuffle - 

the earliest riser struggling to pour themselves 

into their new Vissla Seven Seas Chest Zip 

4/3mm wettie. Realising the minute scale of the 

swells meandering their way into the bay we 


the 

thinnest 

warmest 

lightest 

best fitting 

wetsuits 

seventhwave.co.nz 

gathered our variety of floatation – including a 10’6” Adventure 60/40 

SUP - and immersed ourselves. Beautiful, consistent, but miniature! 

As I surveyed the crew in the water, I realised how much of a product 

service we provide at NZSHRED, to our local surf community - there 

were Ripcurl Dawn Patrol wettie and booties, Ocean & Earth leashes 

and of course our highest seller for this summer, the Torq TET’s and 

Mod Funboards. Anything in the 7’ to early 8’ is so useful for all levels, 

on these cruisy right-hand sliders. 

That session didn’t amount to much … for most of us … dragging 

the spell, till the welcome smell of freshly roasted beans, outweighed 

the suggestion of “a lil’sumpthin out the back”. It’s a lovely little surf 

community, where you can casually walk up from the flat sandy beach, 

along the recently mown verges, which are refreshingly sympathetic to 

feet that struggle with the 14 (and a bit) degree water temps. 

De-rubbered and re-robed, I was onto my second caffeine ‘come alive’ 

before I remembered Webbo was still out. Like I said, it’s a relaxed 

community, and common to pass someone else doing the same as you 

… walking down the street, coffee mug in hand, seeing if the swell had 

changed at all. As soon as I perched myself on the railing overlooking 

the casual break, there on his 7’6” Santa-delivered stick, the Birthday 

Boy cruised past with shallow, elongated ‘down the face’ drops that 

were linked to nicely rounded bottom turns, as accurate as if they’d 

been drawn by his 6th Form maths protractor. As is generally the case 

at this break, the termination of your wave is a fine line between the 

distance back to the line-up, and running your steed aground from 

exhaustion … and I definitely replaced a few fins for customers running 

that gauntlet. As he pulled one last bottom turn and casually ambled 

back to sneak one more, he looked up and gave me a hand gesture like 

he’d just got a points victory over his idle, Occy. 

And why wouldn’t he - after all, it was his Birthday. With a casual “Yooo” 

he yelled out, “You should have been here … A Bit Longer”. At least it 

wasn’t “Last Week” … Hmmm, perhaps I’ll get back in my wettie. 

NZ BOARD 

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sadhanasurfboards.co.nz 


X 

E 


O 

L 

R 

E 

W 

H 

A 

N 

G 

A M 

P 

A 

T A 

PEDal AND PADDLE 

“Explore Whangamata and the spectacular Coromandel region 

with courtesy vehicle pick ups and drop offs. 

“Extensive SUP hire range, surf or explore flat water. 

“Visit the now natural wonder of Whenuakura Island and its 

spectacular bush fringed lagoon. 

“Have a day off the water but wish to explore the region? We 

have a wide range of E-Bikes available, or walk our bush and 

coast tracks.” 

www.pedalandpaddle.co.nz 

N 

E 

W 

Z 

E 

A 

L 

A 

D 

N 

Maranui Surf Life Saving Cafe 

“Pop out to Lyall Bay to visit the iconic Maranui Cafe. Here you 

can forget about the time and tuck into something scrumptious 

while gazing out over the beach, which is often filled with surfers 

attempting to master the waves. Brimming with personality, 

Maranui has a feel for colour and embraces all things eclectic 

when it comes to design. Sitting above the Maranui Surf Life 

Saving Club with a great coffee in hand and staring into the 

glistening blue distance, you’re sure to feel the holiday vibes.” 

+6 4387 4539 cafe@maranui.co.nz 

Before 

AFTER 

MOANA SUP 

In addition to Moana’s very cool surf 

shop that we told you about last 

issue, Toby and Bridget also have a 

SUP School, board and kayak hire 

opposite the shop on Tahunanui 

Beach, Nelson’s favourite beach 

destination. 

It’s important to learn paddle board 

skills from a professional (see before 

and after photos) and Moana is the 

only Surfing N.Z accredited SUP 

school on the South Island of N.Z. 

Moana hosts a Wahine paddle 

morning on Fridays and they also 

have a floating SUP yoga studio, 

both of which can keep you out on 

the water right through Winter. 

So for some truly spectacular paddle 

destinations, sitting down or standing 

up, pop in to visit Moana either in the 

shop or on the beach. 

“Best little surf shop 

in town (and beyond)” 

LOCAL & INDEPENDENT 

Shop 6, 623 Rocks Road, Moana, Nelson 

visit 

moanasup.co.nz 

visit 



Real Surf 

“Real Surf is a locally owned and operated Core Surf Store 

specialising in surfboards, wetsuits, hardware and rentals. Come 

check out our new store just down the road at 5/56 Kingsford 

Smith St, Lyall Bay, Wellington. 

“We’re open 7 days a week with a friendly and experienced team 

ready to help out with your next purchase! 

Alternatively check out our website for the latest products and 

sale deals at www.realsurf.co.nz or find us on social media.” 

+64 4 387 8798 

www.realsurf.co.nz 

team@realsurf.co.nz 

Coastal Sports Kaikoura 

“We’re a small shop living the dream in Kaikoura NZ, 

with adventures from the surf to mountains at our 

doorstep. Since 2003, owner operated, hardware 

focused, passion run business. Coldwater surf 

specialist, adventure gear, and all the fun stuff. Shop 

smarter, surf more, and consume less.” 

+6 3319 5028 

www.coastalsports.co.nz 

SUPCENTRE 

“Our epic summer may be drawing 

to a close but with the recent ease in 

covid restrictions, we can finally turn 

our gaze back to overseas travel. 

Open borders and larger gatherings 

call for finally taking that highly 

anticipated surf mission you’ve been 

waiting for. 

“The Supcentre is well stocked with 

Stand Up Paddle Boards, Paddles 

and the latest accessories. We 

have all the equipment needed for 

your next adventure sorted. Our 

great range of stock also includes 

surfboards ( short and long), leashes, 

and board bags. 

“Next time you drop into the 

Supcentre, our friendly staff and a 

quick peek inside our legendary fin 

box is sure to get you all hyped for 

your next adventure.” 

visit 

www.supcentre.co.nz 


OUT 

OF THE 

SHES 

COLIN ASHFORD 

When Smorgasboarder set out to find 

people’s cool surf cars for this edition, 

little did we know the sorts of great 

stories we’d uncover. 

While Colin “Biggsy” Ashford’s 1937 

Vauxhall is undoubtedly a cool beast, 

the story behind its 76-year-old owner 

is something out of an adventure novel. 

Surfing, shaping, skiing, hang-gliding, 

bushfires, beating cancer… it’s got it all. 

When it comes to surfing, the adventure 

began 66 years ago when 10 yearold 

Colin first took to the water on a 

borrowed board and was instantly 

hooked. 

He grew up at Stanwell Park, a coastal 

community south of Sydney and north 

of Wollongong, in a time when kids found 

their own way, to school or the beach, by 

foot, bus, train, hitchhiking or bike. 

WORDS: GEOFF CROCKETT 


PHOTO: SUPPLIED BY COL ASHFORD. 

COL SURFING HIS FIRST COLLINS SURFBOARD AT SANDON POINT. 


PHOTO: SUPPLIED BY COL ASHFORD. 

For Colin, kicking off riding 

waves in the late 1950s meant 

jumping onto a “16ft plywood 

toothpick with a D-handle on 

the back.” 

“I’ve always lived in the country, so it’s always been 

a bit of a mission to get to places,” Colin said. 

“Where I lived initially was right on the top of the hill 

at the southern end of the beach – it was about a 

300m walk to the beach. Then we moved from there 

up to the highway and it was about 1km – you’d 

ride the bike with the board under your arm. 

“Back then, we were the only locals, it was like a 

holiday destination – people would come to town 

on a Friday night go back on Sunday and leave their 

boards at the surf club – which was really good for 

those guys who didn’t have a board.” 

For Colin, kicking off riding waves in the late 1950s 

meant jumping onto a “16ft plywood toothpick with 

a D-handle on the back.” 

“They weighed a tonne and leaked like a sieve. 

You’d catch three waves and have to go back to 

the beach and let them dry out. There’d be a lot of 

blokes around who can relate to that.” 

Colin’s move into shaping and building boards 

came when he was about 15 years old and took 

on a job as a carpenter/joiner. The first factory he 

describes as being a “converted chookpen” in 

Stanwell Park. 

As the board trends moved away from balsa and 

into foam, Colin would strip down the discarded 

boards, re-use the old balsa and re-glass the 

boards to create more modern designs for his 

mates at no cost, other than materials, that would 

be sourced from the likes of local surf industry 

names, Brian Jackson, Ron Cansdell or Graham 

King. 

In 1966, Colin, together with a school mate, Bill 

Trestrail, decided the time was right to launch their 

own board business and Bill Collins Surfboards 

kicked off in an old service station site right next to 

the hang-gliding launch area at Stanwell Park. 

It was to be short-lived. That location only lasted 

a couple of months before the service station was 

reclaimed and demolished as part of road widening 

plans (plans that have still never happened). 

With the first factory gone and the business closed, 

Colin finished his apprenticeship and headed 

back to the ocean, completing the life saving 

qualifications he required to become the council’s 

full time lifesaver, then called Beach Inspector, at 

Scarborough Beach. Meanwhile, business partner 

Bill hit the road to drive trucks. 

As a young surf addict, Colin remembers his 

lifesaving days as one of his best – arriving at the 

beach early, surfing until the flags went up at 9am, 

patrolling all day, then surfing in the evenings after 

the flags went down whenever the conditions were 

right. 

SANDON POINT 

He tells a gnarly story of one of only two shark 

attacks he’d heard of during that time, when he was 

called to shut down his beach and head to the next 

beach at Coledale in February 1966 after a surfer 

had been attacked and had his leg chewed. 

Colin said the shark had been dragged ashore, 

with the boy’s leg still in its mouth, and killed with a 

surfboard fin to its head. A later autopsy found the 

shark’s stomach was empty and it appeared the 

shark, a Great White, had been caught on a shark 

line and unable to escape to hunt when this poor 

kid’s leg just happened to appear before it in the 

wrong place, at the wrong time. The surfer, a then 

13-year-old Ray Short, survived the attack with a 

very battle-scarred leg. 




Around the same time it could be said surfing saved 

Colin from the Vietnam War. 

He was called up for National Service on 

February 2, 1966, however he lasted only one day 

after it was deemed the “board lumps” on his feet 

were too big to fit into an army boot and he wouldn’t 

make it through training. He was medically discharged 

and Colin still considers that one of the luckiest days 

in his life. 

Colin sums up the next stages of his life pretty 

succinctly in a blog/bio he uploaded online back in 

2011 as part of a South Coast (NSW) surf research 

project. 

“I got married, moved to Thirroul, started a factory in 

a big shed at the bottom of Kennedy’s Hill, between 

Austinmere and Thirroul. The neighbours complained 

so I rented a workshop at 30 Flinders Street, 

Wollongong in 1967 and started Collins Surboards 

there. 

“Gave up the factory in 1974 and made boards under 

the house and went back to building houses and 

working in coal mines. 

“Then got a job on the professional ski patrol in 

Perisher Valley in 1975, then became a ski instructor 

in `76-77 and continued making boards and ski 

boats under the house under the brand name of 

Sybernaught and Seaglass. Many of these boards 

were sold through Southern Man Surf Shop at 

Ulladulla founded and owned by David Matthew. 

“A few years later I moved to Lake Conjola (1991) 

where I bought a 1 acre block. The first thing I did was 

to plant 10 Paulownia Trees.” 

Those Paulownia trees Colin planted when he first 

arrived at Lake Conjola grew at a great rate. While 

they’d been planted for shade, Colin said as they got 

larger, they became more dangerous with large limbs 

dropping off during the big westerly winds that hit the 

South Coast. 

Scared of the implications of the disintegrating 

trees, he had them cut down and the wood chopped 

into useable pieces with a view to working with it 

somehow in the future. 

When a mate bought a milling machine, the wood 

was milled and Colin hatched a plan to start building 

hollow wooden surfboards from the light-weight 

Paulownia – much like he’d started out all those years 

ago with balsa boards. 

The boards became a work of love, and of art, and he 

said while he’d offered them to people to ride, and he 

was sure they’d cut through the waves as they were 

designed to do – so far, none of his mates had been 

willing to take the wax to them, worried they’d wreck 

the final finish. 

It’s on that same block of land at Lake Conjola, where 

Colin lives to this day, that he has fought some of his 

biggest battles and had his biggest revelations. 

In a blog post in 2002 Colin frankly discloses the 

health battles he faced in his mid-50s. 


While now, at 76, he no longer surfs, he 

says it’s more to do with his body not being 

able to cope with it after nearly 60 years 

of hard work and manual labour, than any 

single disease or health challenge. 

“It’s now 2002. I have just spent the last four years 

fighting for my life after being diagnosed with 

leukaemia and prostate cancer. This story I am 

happy to tell anyone that I might be able to help 

understand and inspire,” he wrote. “After enduring 

chemotherapy and radiation I am still here. I beat 

leukaemia, but maybe not the prostate cancer. My 

PSA levels are now 36 and still rising, this is more 

than 10 times the norm.” 

Colin, then 56-years-old, went on to say he’d 

started surfing again, but had to stop briefly as viral 

pneumonia put him back in hospital for a while. 

He quit working with fiberglass and paint when he 

got out and hit the surf again, slowly regaining his 

balance and control. 

While now, at 76, he no longer surfs, he says it’s 

more to do with his body not being able to cope 

with it after nearly 60 years of hard work and 

manual labour, than any single disease or health 

challenge. 

Those pesky diseases are still hanging around 

though. Colin said he wound up in hospital in 

October 2019 and tests revealed the leukemia had 

returned. 



“On the 3rd of December 2019 I started chemo 

again, just when I was sure that things could not 

possibly get worse the New Year’s Eve bushfires 

hit Conjola park destroying 98 homes all around me 

with the loss of three lives - one of them my friend 

and surfing mate Laurie Andrew where we had 

milled the timber a couple of years earlier to make 

my first hollow wood surfboard,” Colin said. 

“My house somehow survived but my shed, and all 

of the last 10 foam boards I had made for myself 

and one of the three hollow wooden boards - all of 

my tools, my machinery, and my boat, that were not 

insured, went up in smoke. 

“For the last two years, I have been working 7-daysa-week 

rebuilding the shed bigger and better than 

before. 

“I’ve milled a huge pile of timber that got cut down 

from all over the local area after the fires and I am 

well into making my next 8ft 6in Indo gun from the 

timber salvaged from the ashes of the fire. 

“After eight months of chemo, my blood counts are 

good again my prostate cancer is still there and my 

PSA has taken more than 20 years to reach 98, so 

I should make it for a few more years yet. I plan to 

continue making wooden surfboards for as long as I 

am able to - all for the love of surfing. 

For Colin, who scored his nickname “Biggsy” as 

a fit young apprentice weighing in at over 100kg 

many years ago, there has been a ton of adventure 

in his life so far. 

He took to the skies, hang gliding under the tutelage 

of Steve Cohen, often credited as being one of the 

founders of the sport in New South Wales. 

And he joined some mates to learn rudimentary 

Japanese before heading the land to the Cherry 

Blossom on numerous occasions hunting for fresh 

powder snow in out of the way locations. 

As were chatting he broke off briefly to cough 

deeply, explaining soon after that particular affliction 

was the result of damage done to his throat as a 

younger man drinking too much port and other grog 

and causing himself permanent damage when he 

threw it up again later. 

“I want another innings. I want another go. To make 

good everything I did wrong and live long enough to 

implore other people to do whatever it is they would 

want to do. Just get up and have a go.” 


BYRON BAY INDUSTRIAL ESTATE 

MILLIONS of pieces of clothing are produced everyday. 

If you take sustainability seriously be responsible. Get Vintage

ALD 


IVES 

words : geoff crockett 

photo : Niyama Private Island 

courtesy : Stoked Surf Adventures 


UXUR 

If you were to fly north, 

north-west for 7242km from 

the centre of Australia, you’d 

land in Male, the capital of 

the Republic of the Maldives. 

Male 

Australia 

It’s a nation made up of 1192 islands in the Indian Ocean 

stretching 871km from tip to toe - that’s a little bit less 

than the drive from Brisbane to Mackay, and about 

exactly the same as the drive from Melbourne to Sydney. 

Geographically, it’s just around the corner from Sri Lanka, 

off the bottom tip of India. 

The predominant religion is Muslim and as this edition 

of Smorgasboarder goes to print the locals will have 

celebrated the end of Ramadan for 2022 (approximately 

April 2 to May 1). 

For Muslims, Ramadan is the month where healthy adults 

fast from dawn to dusk. It’s also a good month for surfers 

booking travel to the region and looking for a few less 

locals on the waves. 

The Maldives is divided into a double chain of 26 atolls, 

and then again into regions, the northern atolls, central 

atolls and southern atolls. 

Only 200 of its islands are inhabited, and its unique 

ecology has created a paradise of islands, reefs and deep 

channels. 

It’s at the breaks in the islands, where the deep water 

meets the reefs, that some of the best waves in the world 

are to be found and explored. 

Once kept secret by locals, the waves of the Maldives are 

now in hot demand from across the world. 

While for Aussie surfers, the COVID travel restrictions 

of the past two years have made it all but impossible to 

leave our country and explore – our surfing mates from 

Europe, the United States, Brazil and Russia have now 

found the Maldives thanks to the Maldivian government’s 

smart handling of COVID travel rules which meant it has 

been open for business for all but three months. 

Thankfully, as we head towards the back end of 2022, 

restrictions are easing here in Australia, passports are 

being dusted off, and the Maldives are jumping out as 

one of the great surf travel destinations of our region, just 

waiting for surfers from Australia and New Zealand to 

come and have some fun. 

For this edition we’ve caught up with some of the big 

names of Maldives travel and asked them to share their 

thoughts on surfing the region and booking tours in 2022 

and beyond. 

In the following pages we’ll hear from Ian Lyon at Atoll 

Adventures, Chris Buykx from Perfect Wave, Steve 

Adams from World Surfaris, Shaun Levings from Island 

Hop Maldives, Chris Stevens from Stoked Surf about 

what their businesses have to offer, and why now’s a 

great time to pack the boards and head to the islands. 


Y 

Maldives

Atoll 

Travel 

photos: dara ahmed 

photography 

When it comes to having 

an intimate knowledge of 

surfing the Maldives there’s 

only a select few who can 

trace their experiences back 

to before it became a tourist 

destination. 


Cinnamon Dhonveli, the resort at the holy grail of surfing, Pasta Point 

Atoll Travel’s Ian Lyon fits into that group, having 

been lucky enough to have become mates with 

the godfather of Maldives surfing Tony “Honky” 

Hussein Hinde in the years after 1973 when Hinde 

was shipwrecked, along with another Aussie surfer 

Mark Scanlon, on one of the nation’s atolls. 

Tony opted to stick around and explore the region 

and found so many great waves to surf he chose 

to never leave. He became a Maldivian resident, 

converted to Islam and married the love of his life, 

Zulfa, in 1983. 

The Honky’s surf break was named by Tony, along 

with a host of other popular breaks in the region 

such as Sultan’s, in respect to the history of the 

islands, Chickens, because of a chicken farm on 

the nearest island, and Colas, because of the Coca- 

Cola factory on another nearby island. 

Ian got the naming rights on Jailbreak – based on 

the prison island that in those days was on the point 

of Himmafushi island where Tony lived. 

“In the southern atolls, Tony named pretty much 

all those breaks,” Ian said. “I’ve still got his original 

treasure map in the filing cabinet down here.” 

Ian said in those early days, the only way Tony 

could get around the atolls was to hitch a ride on a 

fishing boat or a supply boat. Nothing like the surf 

charter boats on offer these days. 

He remembers a time in the early 80s when there 

were only about 10 surfers in on Tony’s secret 

waves in the Maldives and years of no crowds. It 

was also a time when most people believed there 

“were no waves in the Maldives” - a rumour Tony 

and his friends had been keenly propagating to 

keep the location a secret for themselves. 


Ahmed Umar 

Dhoni team. 

Dara Ahmed, Tour’s Operations 

Manager, through the ages. 

Ian said in those early days, the 

only way Tony could get around 

the atolls was to hitch a ride on 

a fishing boat or a supply boat. 

Nothing like the surf charter boats 

on offer these days. 

Tony “Honky” Hussein 

Hinde in the 70s 

When it became clear that the secret was out and 

tourism started to increase in the Maldives, Tony 

created Atoll Adventures (1989) and asked Ian to 

manage the bookings. Atoll Travel, based out of 

Victoria, was born at the hands of Ian and his wife 

Lynne soon after. 

In 1991 Tony chose a little resort on Kanuoiy Huraa 

island in North Male Atoll to set up a land-based surf 

tour. While it was a little run down and needed some 

work, it had the big positive of having the best access 

to the consistent break of Pasta Point, a wave Tony 

continued to ride until 27 May 2008 when he sadly 

died surfing there, reportedly from a heart attack. 

And yep, in case you’re wondering, Pasta Point’s 

quirky name was related back to its island - the 

kitchen hands on the resort used to throw the unused 

pasta from the restaurant out onto the rocks at the 

surf point. 

Now, in 2022, with the tour’s 30th birthday behind 

them, the Atoll team are gearing up to help Aussie 

and Kiwi surfers back into the Maldivian waters once 

again. 

Ian said despite the challenges of COVID-19 around 

the world, the Maldivian government had done a 

very good job of protecting its tourism industry by 

targeting travellers from parts of the world where 

travel restrictions were a little easier to navigate than 

in Australia. 

He said the nature of the small, individual islands, 

made it easier to isolate travellers from crowds and 

keep each resort, or island, COVID-free. 

At Cinnamon Dhonveli (Pasta Point) resort, where Atoll 

Travel holds the exclusive surf tour booking rights, 

Ian said the rooms had ticked over with surfers from 

Brazil, Israel, Russia, the United States and Europe 

who were able to land in Male with negative tests and 

transport directly to the resort and take advantage of 

being one of an exclusive number of surfers on the 

island with access to the famous Pasta Point surf 

break. 

The maximum surfers booked with access to the 

Pasta Point wave at any time is 33. 

“The season was ok for 2021, pretty good at Pasta 

Point – we were selling beds there well to other parts 

of the world,” Ian said. 

“The phone hardly rang here (in Atoll Travel HQ in 

Victoria) for about two years though. 

“Now, it’s turned around, particularly among the 

people who are annual visitors to Cinnamon. Forward 

bookings are looking pretty good,” he said. 

The race will now be on for Kiwi and Aussie surfers to 

secure the bookings and dates they’d prefer for 2022, 

2023 and beyond against a little extra competition 

from the surfers from further afield who have now 

discovered the joys of surfing the Maldives thanks to 

COVID’s travel rules. 


Left -hand wave machine, Pasta Point. 

Sultans, the majestic wave. 

Flexible arrival and 

departure dates mean 

the length of stay can 

be adjusted to suit and 

fishing and snorkelling 

are available for the 

non-surfers too. 

Water Bungalows & Pasta Point 


As for when to find the 

best waves, Ian said it 

was really in the lap of 

the gods, although it was 

generally accepted that 

the bigger surf season was 

March to October. 

Horizon 2 explores the truly isolated southern atolls 

Pasta Point 

One thing’s for sure, those who do secure a spot at 

Cinnamon Dhonveli, will be landing in style and with 

guaranteed access to some great surf breaks. 

The four-star resort is the closest resort to Sultans 

(R), Honky’s (L) and Jailbreak (R) – all of which are 

within 10 minutes by boat. 

The tour’s operations manager Dara Ahmed, who 

has more than 25 years’ experience, is in charge of 

a well-practiced team who work with walkie talkies 

and boats to ensure surfers staying at the island 

have quick access to the best breaks on any given 

day. 

The first boat to Sultan’s leaves at 5.30am for those 

keen to be the first on the wave each day. 

Being based on land, a stay at Cinnamon Dhonveli 

is perfect for surfers on their own, or with partners 

and children. 

Flexible arrival and departure dates mean the length 

of stay can be adjusted to suit and fishing and 

snorkelling are available for the non-surfers too. 

As for when to find the best waves, Ian said it was 

really in the lap of the gods, although it was generally 

accepted that the bigger surf season was March to 

October. 

At Cinnamon they run surf tours all year round – 

even if the waves are a little smaller outside of the 

season, there’s still the pool, the Makana Restaurant, 

the waterside Raiyvilaa Bar or the Raalhu Bar 

overlooking the break at Pasta Point to be enjoyed 

until the weather gods smile. 

And, just in case you’re thinking its just us who have 

fallen in love with the idea of a trip here, the Atoll 

Adventures Surf Tours have had plenty of attention 

from their peers in the travel world, notching up wins 

for Best Surf Resort in South Asia in 2016, 2017 & 

2018; Best Surf Resort 2019 in the Maldives Travel 

Awards; and Best Maldives Surf Resort 2020 in the 

South Asian Travel Awards. 

Best of all Atoll deliver peace of mind in these 

uncertain times providing credits or refunds for 

COVID caused cancellations. 

4 Bridge Street, Foster, VIC 

(03) 5682 1088 or toll free 

(Australia) 1800 622 310 

atolltravel.com 


Outer Atolls - Group or Individual Bookings 

Central Atolls - Group Charters 

43 / #52 / SB 

Pasta Point @ Cinnamon Dhonveli 

Pic: Dara Ahmed Photography

Perfect 

Wave 

photos: supplied by 

Perfect Wave Travel 



Kandooma Rights breaking just out front the Holiday Inn Resort

As a global specialist travel agency, 

surf resort operator and surf charter 

operator, Perfect Wave Travel have 

catered for hundreds of thousands 

of travellers, including a few of the 

world’s top surfers. 

Jackson Dorian, the son of former pro surfer Shane Dorian 


If you’re looking for a surf trip to just about 

anywhere in the world, a visit to the website of 

www.perfectwavetravel.com should be high on the 

research list. 

Hit Surf Trips: All Surf Trips and 49 destinations are 

listed across Indonesia, Maldives, Asia, Pacific, The 

Americas, Africa and Europe. 

As a global specialist travel agency, surf resort 

operator and surf charter operator, Perfect Wave 

Travel have catered for hundreds of thousands of 

travellers, including a few of the world’s top surfers. 

In the Maldives, Perfect Travel Group GM Chris 

Buykx said the group’s luxury charter boat of choice, 

Carpe Vita, was also a favourite with surfing’s elite, 

having played host to Barton Lynch, Shane Dorian, 

Taylor Knox and Layne Beachley. 

Asked for his thoughts on the Maldives and 2022, 

Chris said the region was hot with surfers. 

“Maldives is our top destination world-wide,” he 

said. 

“It was our biggest destination pre pandemic – 

however Maldives has remained open when Indo 

and the Pacific closed – so Maldives is the top of the 

list for every surfer in 2022. 

“Only the better resorts and boat charters are fully 

open. 

“Availability can be tight – if you see something you 

like and it’s available just book it. It’s not going to get 

any cheaper.” 

For Chris, who, no surprise, is a keen surfer himself, 

his favourite waves in the world are found in the 

Pacific, with the Maldives not far behind. 


The break has two designated 

take-off spots, one for easy 

cruising and a more critical one 

for clocking time in the tube. 



Pro Surfer, Dash Pinegar surfing at Kandooma.


“I love the adventure and uncrowded waves of 

PNG,” he said. 

“Favourite breaks are many, but I am excited about 

returning to Maldives’ Southern Atolls this year to 

surf Love Charms! Solid outer reef barrels more like 

Fiji than Maldives!” 

As a travel agency, Perfect Wave Travel books 

people onto both boats and resorts and Chris said 

often the recommendation came down to who was 

travelling and whether surfing was the sole focus. 

The group’s favourite resort, Holiday Inn Resort 

Kandooma, offers an exclusive wave out front, and 

Chris said it was also perfect for families and nonsurfing 

partners. 

In terms of value, and time on the waves, he said the 

boats won out. 

“Boats are great value. Your accommodation, 

transport and meals are all included,” Chris said. 

“All our surfers agree that you always surf more 

when you’re on a boat charter compared to a landbased 

resort.” 

When we put Chris on the spot about the ultimate 

luxury surf trip, he suggests you’d struggle to go 

past a charter on the boat Sea Rex. 

A click on the weblink and it’s not too hard to see why. 

The 130ft, luxury super yacht can accommodate up 

to 16 people with two luxury suites, six luxury cabins 

and packages offering breakfast, lunch, dinner, visits 


to deserted islands, snorkelling, and even a sundeck 

with a large outdoor spa. See for yourself at www. 

perfectwavetravel.com/surf-trips/maldives/sea-rex/ 

Chris said surf travel had changed over recent times, 

and Perfect Wave Travel, which celebrates its 15th 

birthday this year, had evolved with it to continue to 

offer surfers the best trips available. 

“Surf travel has changed over the last couple of 

years and surfers must adapt,” he said. 

“There are fewer options. Much of the Pacific is yet 

to open to travel, so surfers must look to what is 

available. 

“Flights are also fewer and more expensive – so surf 

travel is for those that really know what they want 

and are prepared to invest time and money to make 

it happen. 

“A good agent is required to advise and navigate the 

new normal of surf travel.” 

When it comes to size and experience, Perfect Wave 

Travel would fall into that category. 

“Perfect Wave Travel has grown and evolved 

continuously so we are the biggest specialist surf 

travel network in the world now,” Chris said. 

“The last few years have been tough, but we 

remained open, with surfers still able to travel to the 

Maldives. 

“The best thing is we have kept our team together, 

from the Maldivian Surf Guides and operations team 

through to our surf travel gurus here in Australia, Indo 

and in Europe. 

“The experience behind our trips is unmatched – we 

really have the best working with us to deliver trips of 

a lifetime to surfers.” 

“Perfect Wave Travel has grown and 

evolved continuously so we are the 

biggest specialist surf travel network 

in the world now,” - Chris said. 


32 Orlando Rd, Cromer, NSW 

1300 009 283 

info@perfectwavetravel.com 

info@perfecttravelgroup.com 

perfectwavetravel.com 


KANDOOMA ISLAND 

Blessed with white sands, azure skies, lush tropical greenery and clear turquoise waters. 

To complement this, Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma has created services intended to 

satisfy, engage, entertain, inform, educate and luxuriate. With limited numbers at the 

resort, we can now guarantee that all surfers on Kandooma Island will be able to enjoy 

one of the best right handers in the Maldives uncrowded every day. We believe that there 

is no closer accommodation to take off zone in the world. You barely have to walk 30 

meters from your villa to the paddle out point, and you literally lie in bed and watch the 

hollow and highly rippable waves peel down the point. 

Bespoke Design 

We’ll plan your surf trip around your specific 

interests, tastes and preferences, providing 

helpful tips and honest advice based on firsthand 

knowledge of the destination. 

Authentic Experiences 

Our expert surf guides and brilliant travel 

concierges are hand-picked to provide 

a genuine experience, bringing your 

destination to life with care and passion. 

Responsible Travel 

Our surf experiences are designed with 

responsible travel principles that prioritise 

surf and travel experiences that are both 

good for you and good for the planet. 



CALL 1300 009 283 | perfectwavetravel.com.au

World 

Surfaris 


photos: supplied by World Surfaris 

When Queensland-based 

World Surfaris’ General 

Manager Steve Adam finally 

got back to the Maldives 

on February 18 this year, 

he landed in a country 

that had just recorded its 

highest number of tourist 

arrivals since the pandemic 

began in 2020. 


On the resort side 

of things, a stay at 

Hudhuranfushi Surf 

Resort, home to the famed 

left hand break Lohis, 

will set you back between 

$400-$449 a night. 

Hudhuranfushi Surf Resort by Ryan Thoribb 

When Queensland-based World Surfaris’ General 

Manager Steve Adam finally got back to the Maldives 

on February 18 this year, he landed in a country 

that had just recorded its highest number of tourist 

arrivals since the pandemic began in 2020. 

With not a lot of places around the world for COVIDweary 

travellers to go, the Maldives had hit the top 

five as a tropical destination for the leisure markets 

of Europe, America and South America and beyond. 

At Hudhuranfushi Surf Resort in the Male Atolls, 

popular with World Surfaris’ surfing groups, surf 

passes were sold out in 2021 over peak periods – 

with demand remaining high into 2022 to be one of 

the 45 lucky surfers allowed on the resort’s popular 

Lohi’s break at any point in time. 

“April is chockers,” Steve said. “We’ve got pretty 

much this whole month booked out – most of the 

charter boats, through to June are kind of back-toback,” 

he said. 

The current bookings are travellers from places other 

than Australia and New Zealand. 

Steve said at the start of April, the Australian market 

was still a little reluctant to book, with clients pushing 

trips back and rescheduling to 2023 in the wake of 

the Omnicron COVID strain’s impact at the start of 

2022. 

However, with changes in the wind around 

vaccination rules and testing, he expected business 

could pick up quickly from here once confidence 

returned. 

“It is progressing toward, what I think will be a better 

end to the year. It’s kind of moving now, and then 

in three to four months, I think we’ll be jumping on 

planes again.” 

For World Surfaris, having the Maldives still active for 

international tourism, has provided some relief while 

other markets such as PNG, Somoa and Indonesia 

were off limits. 

Steve said the majority of World Surfari’s business 

each year came out of Australia, and it was really 

good to have the phone ringing again with people 

wanting to talk about travel, or the cost of a Tiger 

on the charter boat (about $7.50 AUS in case you’re 

wondering), rather than cancelling or postponing 

trips. 

He said after so long couped up he expected there 

would be a big rush from surf travellers all over the 

world to get back out on the waves, and suggested 

it was wise for those seeking adventure to look into 

the credentials of the company’s they booked with 

to ensure they met international standards of service 

and support. 

World Surfaris, which this year celebrates 25 years 

of providing surf adventures to its clients, promises 

a high level of service and support, backed by its 

membership of the Australian Federation of Travel 

Agents and its participation in the AFTA Travel 

Accreditation Scheme (ATAS). 

Another element Steve suggested all travellers 

should look into was their travel insurance, noting 

that a lot of the providers of comprehensive policies 

had now reworded their policies to provide medical 

coverage for COVID-related medical issues that 

happen while on tour. 



Photo by Richard Kotch

Pic by Rhys Bates 

When it comes to cancellations and refunds, he said 

as COVID was now a known thing, travellers were 

required to take it into consideration when booking 

their holidays and should work closely with their 

agents to understand any cancellation or holiday 

credit rules that might apply to a particular tour 

should COVID rules change in the countries being 

visited along the way. 

While the situation remains fluid, Steve said there 

was a move back to a more normal set of travel 

circumstances and now really was the time to start 

thinking about booking some waves in 2022 and 

2023. 

He said one of the great things about surfing the 

Maldives in particular was the range of breaks 

available across the atolls and the ability to move 

around to avoid the crowds. 

“There’s still some really quiet corners of the 

Maldives – especially with the boats,” he said. 

The southern atolls, and the southern breaks of Tiger 

Stripes, Love Charms, Five Islands, Blue Bowls, 

Castaway and Beacons get a mention. 

“If there’s even a small whiff of surf, you’re on. You’re 

never short of swell and you’ve got no surf resorts.” 

A quick look at the World Surfaris Maldives tab on 

their website reveals a wealth of opportunities for the 

keen surfer to explore. 

On the resort side of things, a stay at Hudhuranfushi 

Surf Resort, home to the famed left hand break 

Lohis, will set you back between $400-$449 a night. 

Niyama Resort Maldives in the Central Atolls starts 

from $550 a night and is described as a luxury 

experience with two small islands and surf breaking 

at the door at Vodi surf point. 

Ayada Resort on the Outer Atolls offers a land-based 

location with daily surf transfers to Tiger Stripes, 

Love Charms, Two Ways, Five Islands and Antiques. 

For the more hardcore surfer, happy to spend their 

nights on the ocean and their days riding waves, 

World Surfaris work with four charter boats, Maavahi 

(Outer Atolls), MV Adora (Male Atolls), Atoll Jade 

(Central or Northern Atolls) and Fascination Maldives 

(Central Atolls). 

Each of the boats offer trips ranging from seven to 

10 days with a vast array of package deals on offer 

depending on the timing of your travel and the size of 

the particular boat you choose. 

Given the focus on surfing tours, it’s no surprise 

the World Surfaris team includes a bunch of great 

local surfers in the Maldives who are on hand to 

offer advice, direct the boats and help to find the 

best swell. We’d need another edition to share their 

stories, but you can check them out for yourselves at 

worldsurfaris.com/we-are-a-great-team. 

L1, 100 Brisbane Road, 

Mooloolaba, QLD 

1800 611 163 (Australia only) 

or +617 5444 4011 

worldsurfaris.com 



sland 

op 

photos: chris grundy 


Grabbing a bunch of friends, 

booking a luxurious charter 

boat and hunting down the best 

waves you can find day after day 

for at least a week at a time is 

the type of Maldives experience 

you can have with Island Hop. 


A surf charter concept that is primarily 

targeted at family, friend and business groups 

of between 6-10 people who are keen to see 

the Maldives, surf lots, and enjoy great food 

and service along the way. 

It’s no surprise that when the opportunity came for 

Shaun to work with the owners of the charter boat 

Handhu and organise surf trips for small groups 

looking for something a little different, he jumped at it. 

Shaun is a veteran of surfing tourism, having started 

World Surfaris back in 1997, before selling it in 2016 

to John Finlay and the current crew. He was lured 

back however when the owners of the boat got in 

touch in late 2019. Shaun was keen to see what they 

could do together. 

The result is Island Hop Maldives, a surf charter 

concept that is primarily targeted at family, friend and 

business groups of between 6-10 people who are 

keen to see the Maldives, surf lots, and enjoy great 

food and service along the way. 

Home, for those who book with Island Hop Maldives, 

is the 90ft charter boat Handhu, which will have 

just had a new engine installed as this edition of 

Smorgasboarder goes to print. 

Shaun said the owners had opted to take advantage 

of the quieter times created by COVID to invest in 

their business for the better times ahead. 

Handhu had an extensive makeover in 2019 to 

update the interiors and layout and now includes six 

guest cabins on the lower deck, all airconditioned 

with an ensuite. 

The mid-deck features a large saloon/lounge/dining 

area with bar, with room for fishing off the back (The 

Aft deck) and dining out the front. There’s also plenty 

of storage for the surfboards. 

Climb the stairs from the mid-deck to the top 

sundeck and there’s ample room to relax in a sun 

lounge and enjoy the surrounds, to host a function, 

or even do a bit of yoga. 

There’s also a speedboat to race surfers out to the 

waves, a range of basic snorkelling and fishing gear 

for anyone keen to make the most of their ocean 

experience in ways other than surfing (hard to 

believe, we know!). 

Byron Bay surfers Josie Prendergast and Oscar 

Langburne and a few of their friends were among the 

first to try out the revamped tour in late 2019, and 

Shaun said interest had been high. 

“The boat was nearly full for 2020, then COVID hit 

and closed everyone down,” Shaun said. 

“We’ve been in a holding pattern - the boat’s been 

working and it’s done a few dive trips. Now that 

Australia’s quarantine-free and people can commit to 

annual leave with their employers it should get better. 

“Hopefully it’ll gain a fair bit of momentum this year – 

leading into a big 2023.” 

While the boat itself is one thing that contributes to a 

great trip, Shaun said it was the quality of the people 

they had assembled to work with travellers that made 

the real difference. 

One of the contributing factors for Shaun becoming 

involved with the boat’s Maldivian owners, Radiant 

Heat Travels, was their decision to employ a retired 

army general and head of coast guard General Zuhair 

as their head of operations in the Maldives. 

“I went over there and met him – he’s the guy you 

need on the ground to make sure everything’s 

running smoothly,” Shaun said. 

Another big plus for travellers is the experience of the 

tour’s chef Gopal – and Indian trained master who is 

renowned for his ability to find rare produce even on 

remote islands. 

“Chef Gopal has been working on the boat for the 

last decade or more,” Shaun said. 

“I’ve never tasted better food on a boat. 

“He finds the best local produce. Because they’re 

such an isolated nation and it’s all sand islands – 

they can’t grow a lot of stuff there – But Gopal, he’ll 

put some coriander in, or come up with all these little 

special things – he’s got his culinary connections. 

“If you catch a fish, he’ll be down on the stern gutting 

it promptly – you’ll have fresh sashimi within an hour.” 

On the surfing front Shaun said they had assembled 

a strong team of local guides, including Hussain 

“Iboo” Areef, a local surfer who’s won numerous 

domestic surf championships over the years and 

had developed an intimate knowledge of the nation’s 

best breaks and when they’ll be working. 

It’s on the surfing front that Shaun paints a vivid 

picture of the fun to be had. 

“We’ll anchor in the main channel, in very deep 

water,” he said. 

“During the days we drop anchor in the middle of the 

channel with a grandstand view of the break. We 

use a tinny to ferry the surfers to the break and when 

they’re finished surfing, they wave their boards in the 

air and we jump in the tinny and go and pick them up 

and bring them back to the main boat. At nights, we 

retire to a tranquil lagoon behind an island. 


“The Maldives is a lot more 

forgiving than Indo as it’s a deep 

water take off. You get on the 

wave, and you look down the 

line – Happy Days! 200m of fun 

ahead of you. 

“The Maldives is a lot more forgiving than Indo as 

it’s a deep water take off. You get on the wave, and 

you look down the line – Happy Days! 200m of fun 

ahead of you. 

“In my 26 years surfing the Maldives I’ve never been 

hurt. It’s super consistent, super user-friendly. When 

it’s six to eight feet, if you’re a good surfer, you’ll get 

heaps of waves. I’ve had the best waves in my life 

over there on the bigger days.” 

For Shaun, one of the best things about operating 

Island Hop the way they do is that the pressure’s not 

there to book hundreds of people each year. 

There’s flexibility in organising departure times, 

lengths of trips and size of the group. The boat and 

its crew are part of the package, and the rest of the 

details can be worked out and scheduled within 

Island Hop’s current aim of having 10-12 tours 

booked each year. 

As an indication only, an 8-night Male’ Atolls Charter 

for eight nights sole use of Handhu with a party of 

10 people would cost $17,735 US dollars or about 

$1738 US dollars per person (approx. $2330 AUD per 

person). Prices include three meals a day, snacks, 

high quality drinking water, an expert surf guide and 

airport meet and greet. 

The options are almost endless, so the best bet is 

to talk to Shaun at the start and work out your plans 

from there. 

+61 408 691 025 

info@islandhopmaldives.com 

islandhopmaldives.com 


“Love everything about it. Had the best 

time with the best people. Food and staff 

are epic. I miss everyone already. Can’t 

wait to go back! One of my favourite and 

most memorable trips ever.” 

— Josie Prengergast 

BESPOKE GROUP CHARTERS 

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Stoked Surf 

photos: supplied by Stoked Surf Adventures 

When we called Stoked Surf Adventure’s Chris 

Stevens to chat about the mighty Maldives – he’d 

just hopped back in the car after a surf on his home 

break at Byron Bay. 

Chris, who spent 10 years on the road chasing waves 

and adventure, founded Stoked Surf Adventures as 

a way of sharing what he found out along the way. 

He aims to connect other surfers with the world’s 

awesome waves. It also doesn’t hurt that he set the 

business so that the only way a tour makes it on to 

their site is if he, or one of his team, has checked it 

out personally and given it the tick of approval. 

Stoked book trips to a range of international surfing 

destinations, from Bali, to South Africa, Sri Lanka, 

the Mentawais and the Maldives, aggregating a 

range of trips, covering a range of price ranges, for 

customers all over the world. 

Chris said for Australian and New Zealand travellers 

for the past two years, surfing outside of their home 

breaks was all but impossible – but with the easing 

COVID restrictions and great deals coming online 

from airlines keen to get people out and about again, 

the Maldives was looking good for the rest of 2022. 

“I saw a flight from the Maldives to the Gold Coast 

direct for $250 US, and Air Asia has potential via 

Kuala Lumpur when their routes start returning,” he 

said. 

Chris said the Maldives had continued to grow its 

tourism despite COVID and some venues, such as 

Pasta Point, had super limited dates remaining for 

2022. 

He said as travellers rushed to get out there the 

demand would be high – and as much as we’d all 

been trained to book last minute, those who booked 

further in advance were most likely to get the dates 

and the trips they wanted. 

While the Maldives has developed a bit of a reputation 

as an expensive travel location, Chris said adventure 

Chris said adventure could 

still be found at a lower cost, it 

just took some planning, and a 

willingness to travel outside of 

the peak seasons. 

could still be found at a lower cost, it just took some 

planning, and a willingness to travel outside of the 

peak seasons. 

One thing he recommends people keen to surf the 

Maldives don’t go skimping on is travel insurance 

– simply because most of the waves finish on fairly 

shallow reefs and the risk is there of having a few 

bumps and scratches that may need medical help. 

He said most of the comprehensive policies would 

cover COVID-related medical issues that occurred 

while travelling, however now that COVID was a 

known thing, travellers needed to check on their 

cancellation policies when booking any trips in terms 

Adventures 

Vodi Surf Point

“The Maldives aren’t as 

expensive as you may think 

and there’s a range of resorts 

and local island options for 

all budgets.” 

of when, or if, refunds would be offered should rules 

change or borders be shut. He said airlines, resorts, 

and different countries all had different rules in place, 

so it made sense to take the time to research well and 

stay up to date when planning a trip at the moment. 

While Stoked does book non-Australians into Pasta 

Point via Atoll Adventures as part of a deal with the 

team there, it also books trips to private islands, on 

to charters, and to other resorts. 

For Chris, the stand-out at the luxury end of the scale 

is Niyama Private Islands Maldives Surf Resort with 

its private left-hand break Vodi. 

“The seaplane journey to Niyama, it’s just next level,” 

he said. “The resort itself is stunning.” 

He said another thing to remember when travelling 

to the Maldives is that it is an Islamic country, where 

the towns and villages are “dry” and the dress code 

is in line with religious rules. These rules don’t apply 

in the resorts, but if you’re looking to stay on a locals 

island, it’s something you need to keep in mind. 

On the wave side of things, Chris said the better 

surfer you are, the more waves you’ll catch and the 

more fun you’ll have. 

“Most of the Maldives surf breaks are shallow 

reefs, so its best suited for intermediate surfers and 

upwards. If you’re looking to learn to surf I would 

certainly suggest checking out destinations like Sri 

Lanka instead, which offer a better variety of waves 

for learners.” 

Searching the Stoked Surf Adventures website for 

trips to the Maldives and the range on offer is large. 

At the top end, a five night stay for two adults in a 

Beach Villa with daily breakfast and airport transfers 

to and from the Four Seasons Kuda Huraa – Maldives 

Surf will set you back about $4200 AUD per person. 

The resort package can include surf transfers to the 

surrounding breaks of Cokes, Chickens, Sultans, 

Honkys and Jailbreaks. 

The site also lists half a dozen surf charter boats 

with 7-night tour prices ranging from about $3400 

AUD per person to $2300 AUD per person. Each 

boat tackles a range of breaks, some with flexible 

departure dates and the option of a private charter if 

you have a crew of mates in tow. 

At the budget end of the scale, a stay in a local 

guesthouse on Thulusdhoo with daily surf transfers 

to Cokes, Chickens and other North Male surf spots 

works out around AU$700 per person, based on two 

sharing - including surf transfers, half board meal 

plan and day trip of your choice. 

WhatsApp: +44 7401 827 447 

hello@stokedsurfadventures 

www.stokedsurfadventures.com 


DREAMING 

OF YOUR 

NEXT SURF 

TRIP? 

Nature’s Playground, Niyama Private Islands 

Vodi Surf Point at Niyama 

www.stokedsurfadventures.com 

Mail: hello@stokedsurfadventures.com 

WhatsApp: +44 7401 827 447 

@stokedsurfadventures 


arly in the morning we’ll b 

Some honeys will 

e coming along, We’re 

loading up our wo 


e startin’ out 

ody With our boards inside 

Photo. Ric Chan 

1976 Chris Fullston’s Ford Falcon station wagon parked 

behind the line-up at Left Handers surf break WA 


It’s one thing to have a great surfboard, the 

coolest of wetsuits, fitness and a keen eye 

for the waves, but without some form of 

transport to get you to the breaks you most 

desire, surfing is just a dream. 

In Australia, surfing culture is strong, 

and in the 60s and 70s in particular it hit 

the mainstream to the point where car 

manufacturers were making cars with surfers 

in mind. 

When Surfing Australia celebrated its 50th 

anniversary in 2013 Australia Post released 

a set of 60c stamps (imagine that!) featuring 

four iconic images, including a Holden 

Sandman panel van pulled up at the water’s 

edge with a board strapped to the roof. 

At the Australian National Surfing Museum 

in Torquay the relationship between Waves 

and Wheels has been immortalised in an 

exhibition of the same name that celebrates a 

time when finding the right wagon to get you 

to the beach was almost as important as the surf at 

the end. 

The museum’s curator, Craig Baird, said when the 

idea for the Waves and Wheels Exhibition was put 

out to the broader surfing community they’d had 

a great response from photographers from around 

Australia keen to showcase photos that captured a 

lost era. 

“Adrian Lockart (TAS), Ric Chan and Jim King 

(WA), Mal Sutherland, John Standing (QLD), Peter 

Kitchingham, Terry Mervin (NSW) Alan Clissold, 

Peter Ginnane, Dick Hoole (VIC) all supplied us with 

some epic vintage pics of surfers and their cars,” 

Craig said. 

“As part of the display we have the door of the 

Seaview Road Boardriders (SA) hearse, with video 

footage of Kym Thompson talking about seeing the 

hearse for the first time and wanting to be a part of 

the club. 

“We also have a tyre off the first vehicle (a WW2 

Willys Jeep) to drive into Bells Beach and Bells 

pioneer Terry Wall talking about the early days at 

Bells. 

“We built a panel van into the display to give people 

a sense of road tripping down the Great Ocean 

Road in an old Holden Panel Van with Jack and 

Belle the Border Collie. 

“Skateboards, roof racks, model cars, quotes from 

the Roadies book, vintage advertising, LP’s and a 

Great Ocean Road game for kids to play, rounds 

out this celebration of Waves and Wheels.” 

The description of the exhibition captures some of 

the essence of the times. 

“In the late 50s and early 60s surfing became part 

of a youth movement that swept the world,” it says. 

“Shorter, lighter surfboards fed a surfing boom as 

music, fashion and language became centered 

around the beach. 

“Surf adventure became a central part of the surfing 

experience as surfers and their friends started 

exploring the Australian coast in wagons, vans and 

other trusty surf-mobiles in search of fun times and 

perfect waves. 

“On the back of celebrated surfing antics the 

car companies started to release surfing specific 

models and often featured surfing in their 

mainstream advertising. 

“Sandman, Sundowner and Drifter panel vans 

were soon hitting the road, available in hyper 

colours featuring over the top graphics and 

advertising that made real surfers cringe. 

“For many, van life was reality, with surfers 

greeted by a wide-open road, and very few 

rules. 

“For flat days surfers invented skateboards 

(miniature wheeled surfboards) to maintain 

their stoke, invading footpaths, roadways 

and carparks to go sidewalk surfing (as the 

American’s called it). Originally inspired by 

surfing, skateboard moves would find their 

way back to the beach, with modern surfers 

adapting skateboard moves into their surfing 

repertoire. 

“Through the Waves and Wheels exhibition 

the Australian National Surfing Museum 

in Torquay is celebrating the relationship 

between surfers and their cars in the 60s and 

70s.” 

For those lucky enough to be near Torquay, the 

Surfing Museum can be found at 77 Beach Rd and 

is open 9am to 5pm seven days a week, every day 

of the year except Christmas Day. 

While the museum’s exhibition celebrates a time 

that was – surf culture and surf mobiles are still very 

much a “thing” in 2022. 

Among the exhibits at the Australian National 

Museum are several photos from photographer Ric 

Chen, a Kiwi who came to Australia to chase surf 

photos, starting on the East Coast, then moving 

to Western Australia where he stayed until the 

early 80s before moving back home. Ric’s 

story in itself could fill a magazine – check out 

surfingdownsouth.com.au for more about 

his time in Australia, then Bali where he 

managed Cheaters Nightclub in Kuta for 

many years. 

Ric’s photos, sent to the surf 

museum, with his permission, by good 

mate Jim King, captured the essence 

of surfers piling into whatever 

vehicles they could find to head out 

and chase waves.

Photo. Ric Chan 

1968 Ric Chan’s gold kombi parked outside Wilderness 

Surfboard Factory Yamba NSW. 


Our own Mark Chapman’s interpreation of Surfboard 

and hotrod loon Mark Rabbidge. 

One shot, taken of Ric’s gold and slightly rusty 

looking kombi outside the McTavish surf factory in 

Yamba, NSW, boards strapped to the roof, captures 

a moment in surfing history. 

His 1976 photograph of Mandurah surfer Chris 

“Feggsey” Fullston with his Ford Falcon station 

wagon parked up on a limestone and sand car park 

made by surfers at the Left-Handers surf break in 

Western Australia captures the willingness to take 

any vehicle, anywhere, to get to the waves. 

Jim said surfers had bashed a track through to 

the carpark they made and it was known to wave 

chasers and fishermen. 

He said the road in had since been closed for 

conservation and environmental reasons and there 

was now a bitumen car park further to the north and 

a walk back along the beach to get to the waves. 

On the Sunshine Coast champion longboarder 

Bowie Pollard has built quite a collection of 

classic steel to make his beach trips all the more 

interesting. 

Bowie, who manages the Caloundra Beach Beat 

Surf Shop when he’s not surfing or working on his 

cars, traces his interest in vehicular restoration to 

his childhood. 

“I’m pretty much my dad’s son,” he said. “My Mum 

worked and Dad built cars and boats and sold 

houses.” 

He said his earliest memories are of surfing and 

cars and to this day he’s retained a love of classic 

surfboards and cars.

His Dad was a self-taught mechanic who 

homeschooled Bowie as a child, teaching 

him the basics of academia and the 

realities of working with your hands and 

creating something from nothing. 

Bowie’s current car collection, in various 

states of repair, includes a 1959 Cadillac, 

a 1966 Ford XP Coupe, a 1959 Corvette, 

and a 1962 Ford XK wagon which is the 

go-to surf wagon. He also has a 1989 

Heritage Soft Tail Harley and a 1978 

TT500 Yamaha in the shed for some 

speed on two wheels. 

His daily drive for work – a Hyundai Getz. 

“I’ve kind of got to a point I’ve got what 

I want. I’m always buying, building and 

selling, but I’ve built my way up to go 

what I’ve got now,” Bowie said. 

“Everything I have has air bag suspension, 

so it’s just low. It’s something you don’t have in a 

lot of these cars, but the ride is really nice.” 

The XP Coupe was the first car Bowie bought, when 

he was a 13-year-old. It’s still in the shed and his 

Dad is working on it now to give it another lease on 

life. 

For the next generation in Bowie’s life, the children 

of his partner Janelle, Kaylah (8) and Chloe (10), the 

love of surfing and cars has been passed along. 

There already plenty of photos of the kids hanging 

out of the car windows or tackling the waves – 

making the most of the Sunshine Coast life. 

While Bowie’s choice of classic vehicles, particularly 

the Caddy, have ample roof room for boards, for 

others their choice of surf mobile has been a little 

more rugged. 

On the south coast of New South Wales surfer, 

fiberglass artist, and mad scientist Neal Cameron 

has always has a penchant for Manx Surf Buggies. 

Bowie pollard’s roadster and corvette 

With big fat wheels, a low centre of gravity, and 

plenty of power, the buggy cuts a Mad Max type 

vibe on the beach – with the extra practical side of 

being able to tackle the dunes and the road. 

Neal’s Manx even made the national news in 

January 2020 when he used it to drive down the 

beach and deliver fuel to Bendalong and Manyana 

when other routes were cut by the bushfires. 

He’s also known for travelling Australia in a coach 

he converted into a two-bedroom mobile home, 

complete with a bath, solar power, kitchen and 

living room. 

When it comes to the buggy, he warns that its not 

all fun and games when it comes to driving them. 

“If you make a mistake on the road, you know 

you’re driving - you get lots of feedback,” Neal said. 

“It understeers downhill and around corners. 

There’s an art to driving a short wheel-base buggy. 

“If you put your foot down it picks the wheels up. It 

takes a while to get used to.” 

When he’s not driving the buggy to the 

beach Neal has a V8 Holden Commodore 

station wagon that is his chariot of choice. 

Across the ditch, surf photographer, 

publisher and all round lover of 

recreational campers, Craig Levers has 

plenty of stories to tell about wild surf trips 

chasing waves, photos and fun. 

“Kiwi and Aussie grommets are brought 

up on a steady diet of road trip tales,” 

Craig said. 

“ I grew up frothing over the Road Trip 

issues of Surfing World in the 1980’s. 

It’s hardwired into us to want to explore 

coastlines, push our own surfing and 

boundaries. 

“Camping is a distillation of that and in 

turn having a vehicle that is specialised for 

extended roadies. 

“When I was a grommie, my best mates Ste’en and 

Tim Webster had access to their oldies’ VW Kombi 

camper. 

“All my first surf and skate trips where in that, so 

the precedent was set. It had a fridge and stove, 

we could make hot tea after a cold winter surf at 

Indies!” 

For Craig, the early introduction to the potential 

of a vehicle offering more than just a seat to sit 

on, meant every wagon he’s had since has been 

worked into a camper of some sort. 

“Every vehicle I’ve owned has been with surf 

roadies in mind,” he said. 

“The standard surf buying prerequisites - can you 

chuck a squab in the back? Where are the boards 

going? 

“As an evolvement of my love of surf tripping, I 

started taking photos. The combination of those 

two passions lead to me becoming the Senior 


Photo: CPL Craig Lever’s Chevy Silverado on another surf trip. 

Photographer at NZ Surfing Magazine. 

“I held that position for 15 years, and for eight of those 

I was also the editor. 

“I had to [wanted to] have good roadie wagons for that 

job. The Toyota Surfs and the Nissan Terrano were 

the best. 

“But I have always coveted proper campers. 

“Ironically, seven years after leaving the magazine I 

finally bought a campervan. 

“It was an old Hi-Ace 4x4 Japanese converted 

camper. 

“I bought it as a tester, to see if the campervan thing 

was really what I wanted to do. I fricken loved it!” 

One thing Craig didn’t love so much about that 

particular van was its slowness on the open road with 

all of the camper gear built into the back adding plenty 

of weight. 

“I was always mindful of pulling over to let people 

pass. Even so, some drivers did some pretty loose 

manoeuvres around you,” he said. 

“The missus and I started associating long hauls with 

dodgy over-takes. 

“So, we lost the plot and bought a Chevy Silverado 

4x4 ex Ambulance that had a 6 litre V8 petrol motor. 

“It was so sick, the only thing it couldn’t pass was a 

petrol station. 

“We loved the room in it, the comfort of driving it. Say 

what you like about Seppos, they do know how to 

make a mean machine. 

“After three years owning that we realised it wasn’t 

quite right. I have to add though, even now we have 

moments of seller regrets...then we remember the 

petrol bills.” 

Neal Cameron and his Meyers manx 


Photo: CPL Craig Lever’s landcruiser troopy 

“Go! The best 

stories are made on 

surf trips, don’t 

procrastinate... go.” 

When it came time for a replacement, a Hi Top 

Landcruiser 75 Series Troopy popped up on Craig’s 

radar and he swooped in and bought it. 

“We both have loved Troopys for a long time. 

“Ours was converted from new in Auckland for a 

rental company. So, it had everything, it all worked, 

totally functional. 

“I still pulled out the whole back and replaced 

everything.... it was lockdown, can’t go on surf trips 

anyway right?” 

With so many vehicles to choose from, and so many 

surf trips to recall, Craig said picking the best ever 

was pretty hard. 

“You’d probably think I’d say the Troopy aye??? 

“I think the Troopy is the best surf wagon I’ve ever 

owned. It’s the one I go ‘this would have been THE 

one for working at the surf mag, doing photo shoots 

and trips’. 

“But weirdly, and it’s probably nostalgia, it’d be the 

second wagon I ever owned; a 1967 HR Holden 186 

longblock with a Nissan 4 speed conversion - 4 on the 

floor instead of 3 on the tree. 

“I chucked a mattress in the back and had a little crate 

with a camp stove, plates and cutlery. 

“Me and the lads thought we were full-style bandits in 

that thing.” 

As for the “must have” for any decent surf wagon? 

“You gotta be able the stash the boards inside so they 

don’t get nicked or fried in the sun. 

“At a pinch, be able to sleep comfortably in the back.” 

When Smorgasboarder asked Craig about his “wildest 

surf trips” – the challenge level was high. 

“Pretty hard not to sound like a wanker answering this 

one!!! 

“It was my job for 15 years to have the wildest 

surf trips. Like, literally, that actually was the job 

description. I’m so grateful for those times. 

“We had an electrical fire in a six-berth motorhome 

just south of Forster on a Rusty Road trip once, that 

was pretty hectic. Got our tires slashed on the South 

Coast of NSW on another one.” 

As for Craig’s best advice for anyone considering 

sorting out a vehicle of their own and hitting the road? 

“Go! The best stories are made on surf trips, don’t 

procrastinate... go.” 

For Ulladulla surfboard shaper Jye Glass, who runs 

Glass Handcrafts (an extension of his old man’s brand 

Terry Glass or TG), surfing trips have been part of life. 

Jye sent us through a picture of his well kitted out 

Bedford camper which has taken him to breaks all 

over the country. 

“She’s a beaut, gotten me all up and down the east 

coast, from the Daintree to Warnnambool, bloody 

weapon!” 

Another surfboard shaper with a penchant for cars is 

the legendary New South Welshman Mark Rabbidge. 

Mark is well known for his one of a kind surfboards, 

jewellery and cars, and when we spoke to him for this 

story he had a yard full of metal to talk about. 

“There’s the Woody, the Dodge, my old International 

School Bus, an LTD Fairlane,” he said. 

With training back in the day as a toolmaker Mark 

said he’d been tinkering with cars since he was a lad 

growing up in Manly. 


owie pollard’s 1959 cadillac 

Jyes Glass’s bedford 


Mark Rabbidge and his dodge

Mark Rabbidge’s woody 

“Back in the 60s we all had hot cars because it 

used to take 14 hours to get to drive from Manly to 

Crescent Head and if you could do it in 10 it was 

better.” 

Mark’s collection are customised to suit his own 

needs rather than being recreated to original spec. 

Most run Ford V8 engines (you can buy a whole 

car for $1000 and transfer the gear), including the 

Dodge which in its original form Mark said used 

to cost him cents per metre (not kilometre) at the 

petrol bowser. 

The bus is the most surf oriented of the vehicles, 

set up specifically for trips with a ladder to the top 

racks so the 12ft and 13ft gliders can be taken 

along – and doors put in the back to load up more 

boards and electric bikes for road trips up to Scotts 

Head. 

Mark said there’s a joy in taking an idea and making 

it real – like sculpting something unique, that puts a 

smile on people’s faces. 

His vehicles are meant to be driven, and he said 

there’s nothing better than coming out of the café 

with a coffee in the morning and seeing other 

people enjoying the cars – posing for photos or 

asking him about them. 

“They are happy things.” 

Mark said 

there’s a 

joy in taking 

an idea and 

making it 

real – like 

sculpting 

something 

unique, that 

puts a smile 

on people’s 

faces. 




Swiss Bliss 


Snowboarding – shockingly I would consider it as good, 

if not better than surfing. I absolutely, categorically love it. 

Unfortunately, given that I live in a perennial summer town, 

we don’t see any snow and thus there is no snowboarding. 

I only get to indulge when I travel and thanks to that bloody 

coronavirus, none of us have being doing any of that for a 

few years. But soon, hopefully soon, I will once again get to 

glide down the face of a 100ft frozen wave. 

Thinking of snowboarding recently had me reminiscing 

about our family’s last visit to the snow before all the 

craziness began in 2020. Those who read our keepsake 

50th edition may recall my son got the chance to play 

football in Portugal in late 2019 with me his on-tour 

manager (believe me, it was hard work :) At the end of his 

stint, the rest of the family joined us to embark on a 

20-day trip through Europe. High on our agenda was 

hitting the slopes, the only trouble being there’s often not a 

great deal of snow on offer in mid-December. Good mate 

Craig Russell, who owns Helloworld Travel in Kawana, 

recommended we try Engelberg, a little mountain resort in 

Central Switzerland. 


Given we were travelling around Austria and 

Switzerland, and our budget was limited, Craig 

suggested Engleberg was our best chance of 

snow given its altitude as it is usually one of the 

first resorts in the Alps to get snow from the north 

or north-west. Engelberg is surrounded by major 

mountain summits, the most imposing being Mount 

Titlis to the south standing at 3,238 metres above 

sea level with the majority of ski terrain above 

2000 metres. With heaps of runs and stacks of 

off-piste options, there’s plenty of room for skiing, 

snowboarding and sledding. 

Originally famed for its Benedictine monastery 

founded in 1120, Engleberg later emerged as an 

internationally known mountain resort from the 

19th Century onwards. With that said, despite its 

proximity to Zurich (less than two hours away by 

train) and Lucerne, Engelberg is not as well-known 

as other Swiss resorts but it can certainly hold its 

own with regards to the facilities on offer. Indeed, 

amongst dedicated powderhounds it is considered 

to be one of the top freeride destinations in the 

world. Asides from downhill, there are plenty of 

cross-country ski tracks and an indoor and outdoor 

ice-skating rink. 

Where to Stay 

Thanks to Craig at Helloworld Kawana we had a 

truly stunning, fully equipped apartment less than 

a couple of hundred metres from the ski lift. It was 

an amazing property equipped with the expected 

drying rooms (for snow gear) but also a day spa 

including a sauna, steam bath, sound wave solo 

pool and multi-sensory shower. Never in my wildest 

dreams did I think we could afford it but Craig 

somehow managed to get an incredible deal for 

us. How good? 7 nights accommodation with lift 

passes and gear hire for the duration all for under 

$1200 per person - a week out from Christmas. It’s 

mind boggling how good a deal that is. 

How to get there 

Engelberg is connected to Zurich, Lucerne and the 

rest of Switzerland by the wonderful Swiss railway 

system, making it the recommended mode of 

transport to the ski area. 

The main international gateway airport is Zurich, 

which is only 85km north of the town (just under two 

hours by train). The closest city is Lucerne, 35km to 

the south (about 50 minutes by train). Trains leave 

every hour to the various cities within Switzerland. 


Nearby 

Less than an hour by train is the beautiful compact city of Lucerne. Known for its 

preserved medieval architecture, Lucerne sits amid snowcapped mountains on 

Lake Lucerne. Its colorful Altstadt (Old Town) is bordered on the north by 870m 

Museggmauer (Musegg Wall), a 14-century rampart. The covered Kapellbrücke (Chapel 

Bridge), made entirely of wood was built in 1333 and links the Aldstadt to the Reuss 

River’s right bank. It is nothing short of breathtaking to see, especially in winter with a 

dusting of snow. As for the Christmas markets, our favourite, they are out of this world, 

and this dad certainly loves the beer. 

A further hour along the train is the city of Zurich, Switzerland’s largest city. It is among 

the world’s largest financial centres, with the city home to many financial institutions and 

banking companies but it is the way it has beautifully blended all the modern amenities 

of a cosmopolitan metropolis, without sacrificing its natural side. Indeed, Zurich has 

for many years ranked among the world’s top cities in terms of quality of life. It is a 

boutique city that offers everything that implies, albeit in small and exquisite format. 

photo: Lucerne - gotta be worth it 


photo: Zurich - trace hudson

gear 

magic 

phoebe stealing her dad’s 

new board and waves again! 

photo: josh mostert 

This board is like a self-help 

guide to finding your inner 

mojo. 

“Please explain”, I hear you say. Well, my surfing 

has never been terrific but it is not altogether terrible. 

However, with the passing of age it is undeniably not 

getting any better. Sure, I may joke around, referring 

to myself as the Count of Carve, regaling how much 

I look and surf like Slater, but the cold hard reality is 

I do not. 

Often readers ask me why I am so self-depreciating. 

Plainly put, I am honest with myself. I love my surfing 

but with work and family commitments, I do not get 

as much time in the water as I would like. And yes, 

age and niggling injuries are catching up with me. 

And before someone reminds me, I know, Slater just 

won Pipe (The Pipeline Masters) at 50, but the guy is 

an out and out freak. 

So, what does all that have to do with this board? 

Well, when the waves are good here on the Sunshine 

Coast, I love getting out on a little 5’8” fish or an 

even smaller mini simmons, very occasionally a 

performance shortboard if the conditions are right, 

but in the main I surf a 9’4” log and 9’8” single-fin 

noserider. It had been a while since I had surfed a 

high performance mal. Indeed, one of the best I have 

ever ridden was by Mike Thompson, aka Mickey T of 

Raglan Longboards fame. It was his HP model. But 

as I said, it had been a while between drinks. 

Anyhow a few weeks ago I was passing my local surf 

shop, Beach Beat at Alexandra Headland, and saw 

a second-hand Brett Munro 9’1” longboard for sale 

in the trade-in rack. I was tempted. The reason being 

is my brother has a few Munro shortboards and 

fishes, which I have ridden, and they’re all crackers. 

Plus, our golden rule here at Smorgasboarder is 

to support good people and not tossers. Brett 

Munro is not one of the former. He’s a real salt-ofthe-earth 

bloke and I am stoked anytime I get the 

chance to catch up with him when passing through 

Byron. There are no airs and graces, he is not too 

cool for school, will always give you the time of 

day and is more than happy to explain what he has 

endeavoured to achieve with each board he shapes 

– and he shapes a wide variety. I always recall what 

my brother said to me about Brett Munro that best 

sums up his demeanour, “He’s not up himself and 

there’s no attitude. He just listens to what you want, 

answers your questions, asks a few of his own and 

steers you in the right direction. You’re not made 

to feel like a dickhead if you don’t understand the 

intricacies of surfboard design.” 

Anyhow, back to the story about this board. As I 

mentioned, I saw it on the rack and couldn’t resist it. 

It seemed super lightweight and I figured if I couldn’t 

get the best out of it, it would be perfect for my 

surfing buddy – my daughter Phoebe. It was late in 

the afternoon by the time I got home – a little too late 


gear 

photo: josh mostert 

Phoebe Swan 

for a surf unless I wanted to entice num num time, 

so I figured I would just have to wait until morning to 

christen it. 

Any surfer knows how incredibly important it is to 

have the first ride on your new stick so even though 

it was more than likely going to end up in the arms of 

my daughter, it would forever be my board with that 

initial surf. 

Paddling out I was surprised how quick it was. I 

thought being so lightweight it would have been 

thrown around in the choppy conditions but it rather 

skipped across the water. Then came the moment of 

reckoning and by goodness this thing was a speed 

machine. I could not believe how quickly you could 

move across the face and how much it performed 

like a shortboard. So used to riding a log, I was 

initially outrunning sections before I could think of 

what to do on the face. Being more of a front foot 

surfer I found the round tail so much to my benefit 

in terms of easily turning the board on a dime. It 

had been quite a while since I had done a cutback 

on a mal (in my own awkward way). Suffice to say 

this board made me feel like I could surf again. It 

was a rather surreal feeling and I cannot thank Brett 

enough for allowing me to feel a little younger again 

and just that incy wincy bit more like Slater (on a 

longboard). 

The Board 

9’1” x 22 1/4” x 2 3/4” Flat-V 

modern longboard 

burford blank with 5-ply stringer 

6oz bottom, 6+4oz deck with tinted free-lap 

glassing, pro-sand finish 

carbon fibre reinforced rails 

10” fin box with FCS2 side fins 

The Shaper 

Brett Munro has been shaping boards since 1974 

– just shy of 50 years. He learnt to shape under the 

guidance of mentors such as Kingsley ‘Knackers’ 

Kernouski, Bob Davies, the late Al Burns, and Rod 

‘Grub’ Dahlberg. 

He has ventured far and wide from his native New 

Zealand in search of perfect waves, all the while fine 

tuning his shapes. In the summer of 1981 he moved 

to Australia and established Prana Surfboards out 

of an old banana shed in Coffs Harbour before 

eventually settling in Byron Bay in 1993 where he 

has been ever since. 

You have to love the description of his factory setup 

on the Munro + Sons website: 

“Tucked away out the back of the industrial estate, 

Munro + Sons is an old skool family-run, no frills, 

dust and fume filled factory where boards are still 

made entirely by hand, start to finish under one roof 

by master craftsman and living fossils, with decades 

of experience.” 

Brett has shaped for state, national, professional 

and world title champions and is one of the few 

contemporary shapers who still hand shapes every 

single one of his models. 

Performance orientated in their design, Brett 

shapes a multitude of boards from twin-keel fishes 

and quads to shortboard thrusters, single fins and 

longboards. Best of all is his focus on personalising 

each one of his boards to suit his customers. As he 

explains, “We are a humble, small scale business, 

who have chosen to focus on building lasting 

relationships with every customer that walks through 

our door. We work directly with them to design their 

perfect board, whatever their ability, or wherever 

their next adventure takes them. Nothing will ride 

better than a custom board that was built to suit their 

personal needs. 

As for my brother’s Munro boards I referred to earlier 

in this piece, some are now close to 20 years old and 

still look brand new, which speaks volumes of the 

quality craftsmanship and the top end materials they 

use at Munro. 


gear 

FILTHY PIRATE 

6’6” x 21” 2 7/8” 

Sweet twin fin for myself. Fantastic 

print by @surfdecals on 3.5 ounce 

impact glass. Hard to see but gloss 

finish has made this print jump off 

the board it’s so cool thanks Ian. 

Great glass and tint by @twin_peaks_ 

glassing. Single concave to heavy 

vee with a deep double concave in 

vee running out of tail. Can’t wait to 

surf this little filthy piece of water toy. 

7’6” SPLINTER 

Catch waves with ease. 

Enjoy the single fin vibe or if you 

prefer set up as a thruster or 2+1. 

Build your own in one of our 

workshops or we can build for you. 

TREE TO SEA 

Mt Eliza, Victoria 

DARREN DICKSON 

SURFBOARDS 

Shed 4, 10 Baines Cr, Torquay, VIC 

M: 0437 246 848 

E: dickosurf@gmail.com 

M: 0409 211 751 0423 804 975 

E: info@treetosea.com.au 

W: treetosea.com.au 

SCAN FOR 

MORE INFO 

A fun board that was fun to make 

with a sweet resin tint. 

#clarksurfboards #resintint #cutlap 

#madeinadelaide #burfordblanks 

#ridefutures #customsurfboards 

V2 ROCKET MOD 

TWIN 

5’6” X 19 7/8 X 21/2 

Flat rocker, single concave into 

double with V tail. 

Single channel to tail. 

Lively! Plenty of volume under the 

chest. Go to board in your quiver. 

S deck tail. 

THE DING KING / 

CLARK SURFBOARDS 

Units 7 & 8, 9 Chapman Road, 

Hackham, SA 

E: leightonclark01@yahoo.com.au 

M: 0422 443 789 

NERVOUS INDUSTRIES 

M: 0418 110 044 


surfer_ Matt Mcleod | pic by_ Michael Lester | shaper_ Darren Burge 

WORLD CLASS 

AUSTRALIAN MADE 

SURFBOARDS AT 

AFFORDABLE PRICES 

Custom Shortboards 

Hybrid & Fishes 

Mals and Logs 

Factory 3/6 Kerta Rd, 

Kincumber NSW 2251 

M: 0415 577 085 

RABBIDGE 

SURF 

DESIGNS 

PHONE: 02 4456 4038 

MOBILE: 0427 767 176 

EMAIL: markrab88@gmail.com 

mark_rabbidge_surf_design 

different to the rest. 


gear 

“Custom made surfboards for 

real surfers” 

6`10” DMT 

Twin Fin flax seed and basalt 

with bio epoxy resins. 

100% handcrafted. 

MUNRO SURFBOARDS 

2/7 Acacia St 

Byron Bay, NSW 

M: 02 6685 6211 

W: www.munrosurfboards.com.au 

ROCKET ACE ECO- 

SURFBOARDS 

“The Happy Planet Surf Project” 

4/1 United Road, Ashmore, QLD 

E: rocketaceecosurfboards@gmail.com 

M: 0415 727 670 

5’ 7” TWIN FIN 

MANUFACTURERS OF FINE QUALITY 

LONGBOARDS, CLASSIC RETRO AND HYBRID BOARDS. 

Noosa Heads, Australia 

fuyusurfboards.com | Paul Winter 0418 884 242 

CHRIS GARRETT SHAPES 

| PHANTOM SURFBOARDS 

M: 0424 450 690 

E: phantomsurfboards@gmail.com 

W: chrisgarrettshapes.com.au 


SURFING 

WITH EMUS 

THERE’S NO SURF 

ON THE CAPRICORN 

COAST. 

Maybe one day soon Yeppoon will have the coolest surf parks 

ever in Surf Lakes, but the ocean? Usually, it’s beautifully flat 

as a tack - as you’d expect on the tropical Queensland coast. 

But when the cyclone swell is on, so are the waves! 


With recent storms, Emu Park - a little coastal 

village about 20 minutes south of Yeppoon - was 

one of the local spots that saw locals spending a 

good few days in water, making the most of the 

conditions while they lasted. Whether surfing, 

watching, or simply getting amongst the broad 

smiles and good vibes that the wind blew in, Emu 

Park’s main beach (just out the front of the Emu 

Park SLSC) was the place to be for fun waves. The 

lesson? Always have a board handy - you never 

know when you’ll need it! 

Always have a board 

handy - you never know 

when you’ll need it! 

Photo courtesy of Honeybee Collective

About Emu Park 

20 minutes from Yeppoon, 40 minutes from 

Rockhampton, Emu Park is home to the Singing 

Ship monument, a moving ANZAC memorial 

boardwalk, multiple beaches and walks, as well 

as a generous helping of country Queensland 

friendliness. 

The pristine coastline overlooks the Keppels (which 

are only a quick 30 minutes trip away on the ferry - 

or even easier, from the Emu Park boat ramp if you 

happen to have a boat handy). 

Emu Park is the perfect, picturesque base to 

explore the Yeppoon area, or to simply enjoy some 

downtime - hide away the car keys, unwind and 

relax. 

Some of the picks for a bite and a drink? Start 

your morning with a coffee from the friendly folks 

at Honeybee Collective, the little coffee shop that 

runs from the Surf Club. In the evening, enjoy some 

local craft brew and great food with live music 

at Forty Seven 10 in the evening. Alternately, 

pick up some tasty takeaways from Emu Park 

Pizza, or relax with a beer and some true country 

atmosphere at the Piney - the Pine Beach Hotel. 

There’s plenty of accommodation right in the 

village, from hotel rooms at the Endeavour Inn, to 

camping at the Fisherman’s Beach Holiday Park. 

Or why not just book a full house with parking 

for the boat, walking distance to everything, like 

the Cockatoo Beach Cottage on AirBNB - see 

emuparkholidays.com.au. 

Photo courtesy of Tourism and Events Queensland

All tangled up 


Those of us who have raised kids have 

possibly turned around on occasion to 

find their lovely little cherub doodling 

away on the living room wall. 

That initial shock is always followed by an exasperated, 

“how the hell am I going to clean that off” while the 

little bugger smiles away at you so pleased with their 

artistic masterpiece. 

Many articles on child psychology will explain why 

kids do this, namely that it is a means of expressing 

their creativity and a wall is just a huge blank canvas 

that is so much easier to draw on then a flimsy bit of 

paper that moves around underneath their arms as 

they scribble away. And a wall has such scale for those 

sweeping, big, colourful swirls they so frequently like 

to draw. 

Such articles also tell us that rather than remonstrating 

with your child for massacring your walls, we as 

parents should create a “safe” space for them so that 

they can doodle away uninterrupted by your scorn in 

an area that won’t affect the resale value of your home. 

We had one such child in our family and so it was, 

many many, many years ago, we allowed our daughter 

Mikaela to start drawing on her walls and she has been 

at it ever since, some 21 years now. 

Looking back on the decision, I think my wife Katie and 

I made a good one. Those walls have fed Mikaela’s 

creativity and hopefully that creativity will one day pay 

off our house. 

Thinking of our decision I can’t help but recite the 

words of the famous and yet still anonymous street 

artist Banksy who has painted walls in cities around the 

world: “Imagine a city where graffiti wasn’t illegal, a city 

where everybody could draw whatever they liked. 



“Imagine a city where graffiti wasn’t 

illegal, a city where everybody could 

draw whatever they liked. Where 

every street was awash with a 

million colours and little phrases.” 

“Where every street was awash with a million colours and little phrases. 

Where standing at a bus stop was never boring. A city that felt like a party 

where everyone was invited, not just the estate agents and barons of big 

business. Imagine a city like that and stop leaning against the wall - it’s wet.” 

Mikaela’s scribbles have brought another dimension to the room and make 

it so uniquely hers, not to mention a fantastic backdrop for her drum clips. 

Yes, aside from her art, which she now extends beyond just walls to tiles, 

t-shirts, tote bags, coasters, murals and music gear, she is also quite an 

accomplished drummer playing in three bands as well as amassing a huge 

social media following – like a 165,000 people on Instagram. 

In terms of her art exploration, she goes by the name Miktangle, given that a 

Murals 

Mikaela’s first work 

with colour on a surfboard 

shower. 

Album Covers 

Some of Mikaela’s cover 

art for Nonberk, Eli Herron 

and Happy Valley 


large focus of her creativity is centred on her own 

unique Zentangle art she has perfected since way 

back when. For those less artistic like myself, a 

zentangle is a form of meditative doodling that has 

patterns, or tangles, put together to form a Zentangle. 

Simply put, it is a fun way to create beautiful 

images by drawing structured patterns. It is said this 

method for drawing not only promotes concentration 

and creativity but at the same time increases 

personal well-being. 

As it is just plain weird to interview your daughter, 

I grabbed an excerpt from the bio on Mikaela’s 

website as to how her art pseudonym came about. 

“The name Miktangle came about when I was 

looking back on how I started this artistic journey. 

Funnily enough my drawings started off with a few 

simple lunch time sessions drawing small zentangle 

tiles (as seen on my tile wall) and believe it or not 

they were the very first pieces that played a part 

in discovering my style as an artist. From there my 

style developed from these meditative exercises. So, 

when figuring out my name I thought why not join 

Miki (my nickname) and tangle to create Miktangle. 

Mikaela goes on to explain 

her creative journey. 

“Ever since I was young, I’ve always loved art. I even 

started drawing on my bedroom walls, documenting 

and expressing myself in all ways possible. Every 

expression I have made is the subsequent entrance 

to my soul. Either way, my life has always veered in 

one creative direction or another. 

“I use inspiration from philosophical teachings, 

zentangles and nature to create intricate and 

dreamlike creatures and spaces. I specialise in 

creating black and white images, and I invite viewers 

to explore my mysterious worlds one piece of art at 

a time.” 

Aside from the murals, tarot cards and Zentangle art, 

Mikaela has undertaken a number of commission 

pieces, namely some album covers and a surfboard 

silk overlay. And so it was when we had the world’s 

greatest plumber, Stew McLean, install a custombuilt 

outdoor surfboard shower at our home, it was 

only fitting I commissioned Mikaela to adorn it with 

some of her work. 

I would like to wrap up this little piece by stating Katie 

and I could not be more proud of our daughter. 

To some this article might seem like absolute 

nepotism, writing about your child in your own 

magazine, and it is but to those I say, who cares – 

work your guts out, start your own mag and you can 

do the same. The grit and tenacity Mikaela has shown 

to pursue her dreams is nothing short of amazing and 

we simply love her so very much. And if you think 

her art is pretty impressive, just wait until you see her 

drumming. You can check it all out here: 

Instagram: mikaela.swan 

Tik Tok: mikaela_swan 

Web: miktangle.com.au 

STAPLES 

LOUNGE BAND 

“Drawing influences from post-punk, alternative rock 

and Britpop, Staples present their unique sound 

through a modern indie lens, combining passionate 

vocals with soaring guitar leads and jangly chords, 

and ambient synths with driving basslines and punchy 

drums.” - Triple J Unearthed 

One of the Sunshine Coast ‘s most loved singer 

songwriters, the super chilled Oskar Campbell, has 

recently formed an alternative rock band entitled Lounge 

fusing his love for old school rock with modern folk, pop 

and soul music. The number of gigs they’ve scored since 

forming speaks volumes for their rapid rise in popularity. 

DIZZY DAYS 

Injecting fresh pop sensibility into 80’s discotheque, 

Brisbane’s latest dance band Dizzy Days are fronted by the 

goose-bump inducing vocals of Aisling O’Byrne, adroit guitar 

work of EJ Carey, hypnotic bass of Bridgette Dabinett, and 

whirlwind percussion of drum prodigy Mikaela Swan. Dizzy 

Days radiate swagger, offering a sound that entices indie 

scenesters whilst being unquestionably global in scope. 

HAPPY VALLEY 

“Happy Valley is an alternative rock band based on the 

Sunshine Coast. They bring a boundless sound to the 

Australian music scene, coloured by their unique choices of 

expression.” – Triple J Unearthed 

If you like bands such as Nothing But Thieves and Amber 

Run, you will love these guys. There are even hints of John 

Butler and Jeff Buckley to their sound. 

Aside from her art 

which she now extends 

beyond just walls to 

tiles, t-shirts, tote bags, 

coasters, murals and 

music gear, she is also 

quite an accomplished 

drummer playing in 

three bands. 


SMORGAS 

BOARDER 

SMORGAS 

BOARDER 

SMORGAS 

BOARDER 

Surf is free. 

SMORGAS 

BOARDER 

2021 

#50 

Art: Mitchell Rae - Telo Islands 

th 

smorgasboarder magazine 

2021 

SURF 


edition 

magazine 

#51 

T-shirT $39 

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www.outerislandsurfboards.com 

E_ outereye@gmail.com 

P_ 02 6655 7007 

Portugal, wave pools, wooden boards 

and what it feels like to be 50. 

We’ve got boards galore, getaway shacks, 

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Order at www.smorgasboarder.com.au

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