We are past the shortest day and winter really kicks in now. It's the time of year we all start thinking about a cheeky tropical respite. Even if it is just 10 days- hell 7 days of fun in the sun.
Over the last week I got reminded about one of the best Indonesian Boat trips I was a part of. In 2000 a boat trip was organised after the World Grom Titles in Kuta. It was a star studded trip, Jay and Holly Quinn, Dan Scott, Matt Scorringe, Bobby Hansen, Ben and Leigh Hawker, Ainsely Gunness, Kylie Milek, Dan Birch, James Coulston and Rowan Smith. It was pretty much the who's who of NZ Junior surfing at the time.
The team scrambling for the shoulder at Scar Reef
The boat trip itself was the well trodden route, Nusa Lembogan to Desert Point on to Scars, then Super Suck and finally on to YoYo's. What was exceptional was the swell we scored.
The 75th Cover of NZ Surfing Magazine, Matt Scorringe. We chose it as the cover because Matt was only 15 at the time and we were trying to draw some weird parallel between Matt's age and the Magazine's vintage- both born in 1985.
Matt on the perfect line.
The Groms were well and truly challenged, very literally thrown in the deep end. Scar Reef was pretty sizey.
Micro grub, well in 2000 he was, Dan Scott at Scars
Super Suck is a hard wave to score good. There was no swell forecasting involved in this trip, the boat had been booked for the week months before. We just got damn lucky with the swell.
Ben Hawker on a smaller one at Super Suck and Ainsely Guness looking on in. How rad are all the booties in these pix!!!!
Ainsley from the same Indo escape
Rowan Smith contorted.... and the reason for this retrospective rant...
Jay Quinn, one frame out of a crazy sequence that ran as a double fold out gatefold in the 75th Issue. It was also used in the book PhotoCPL
It was a great trip for photos and probably pretty formative for all of us on it. Of course that was 16 long years ago, most of the groms are married, hell most of the groms have groms now. We are scattered, living our own lives, but still hopefully joined by past good times.
Here's another old photo I took of Rowan Smith, it was shot one Anzac Day at North Piha and was run as a centre-fold in NZ Surfing Mag. It was a crazy bank that stayed around for months. Rowan was living in Auckland at the time and a part of Keyhole Boardriders and Ratso sponsored him for boards. The Oz-Kiwi had earned a reputation as a cruisey bloke that rips. As mentioned above Ro' is actually the reason for this post.
Rowan and his boy Jaxon
Rowan has been doing it tough the last 7 weeks. He's been in ICU the whole time, the doctors struggling to figure out what is wrong with him. His Ozzy mates have rallied and created funding page for his young family. It has been unreal to see everyone chipping in for the family.
The link to the funding page is HERE
If you remember sharing waves and laughs with Rowan, if you remember being stoked on his loose natural style in the Piha line ups... well isn't that worth a couple of bucks for his family?
Thinking of you Ro' ...bro... get through this mate
From The Book Store
From where all the books started waaaaay back in 2008; what was I thinking! 5 books later and another on the way. Wanna get retrospective about a chunk of NZ Surfing; well....
Just click on the image to see more of the book