Jordy, ecstatic...

Craig: Right Jordy, congratulations and all that. You’re busy, got places to see and people to do. Five minutes of your time. Five questions, one minute each. That cool?

Jordy: Cool, go for it.

Craig: OK. Excellent. Well done bru. We’re all very proud of you. In your acceptance speech you mentioned the JBU and the boys down at the bottom gulley cheering you on. How did this make you feel?

Jordy: It’s always great to get support from the JBU. (Jeffrey’s Bay Underground, the local surf club) I have be coming here for many years and to be recognised and appreciated by the locals is awesome. It made me feel really special. Thanks guys.

Koffie and the JBU crew going mad as Jordy is carried past. © Kolesky/Nikon

Craig: Does it make a difference having your family around?

Jordy: For sure. We are a closely-knit family and it was really awesome to have them here with their ongoing support for this event. It’s also always great support from the extended family back home.

Craig: That semi against Bede was pretty special. It shows that you can never give up until the siren goes. How did it make you feel?

Jordy: I have always maintained that it’s never over until in the fat lady sings. I knew I could do it; it was just that the waves weren’t coming. I have experienced being in the same situation before when I won the ISA World Open games at Huntington Beach, but it was an amazing feeling to get the heat win in the dying seconds with the whole beach screaming for me!

Craig: Number one in the world, first South African to win a world tour event since Shaun Tomson. Do you feel any added pressure, or is pressure still not a thing that really exists for you?

Jordy: It’s a fantastic feeling to be number one and kinda achieving my set goals. There will still be a certain amount of pressure but it is all about learning how to deal with it, so I take it one heat at a time and use it to my advantage. I have seen Taj, Kelly and Mick all having to deal with this same scenario, so I guess I can also learn from them. Also, I am very proud to be South African today!

Craig: Sean Holmes did well and cleared away some of the world tour contender riff-raff. You must be stoked for him as well.

Jordy: Oh yeah. Super stoked for him. He is the best wildcard ever to have surfed this event. Not just this year but last year as well. He really showed that it doesn’t matter what age you are you can still do well. Stoked that the South Africans did well on their home turf. Thanks Sean, as you laid the way to me now being number 1 in the world.

Craig: Cool, that’s five questions. Thanks. Enjoy the jol.

Jordy: Cool no worries.

With all proceeds going to the Supertubes Surfing Foundation, the annual Billabong Golf Day and Charity Auction is always going to go down well. It was a beautiful day for the golf, but when the Sun went down it was time for the fun and games of the auction. Gathered dignitaries included the likes of Cheron Kraak, Sal Masakela and Graeme Stapelberg amongst others, and as soon as dinner was over the auction started. Marius Roberts was the auctioneer and soon had the crowd eating out of his hand. There were 5 surfboards on auction (two of them were creased), the signed vests of the finalists from the 2009 Billabong Pro, a signed pair of Occy boardshorts from the 80’s, some incredible artwork and paintings from local artists Martin Bakker and Deon Lategan,and an Xcel wetsuit pack, amongst others.

Some of the items up for auction © clinton theron

A few collectors had flown up from Cape Town to be present at the auction, amongst them Richard Brice. Last year Richard bought a board from Kelly Slater for R10,000, with all the money donated by Kelly to the Supertubes Foundation. Richard liked what he saw, but so did some local collectors. The prices started off slowly, and the boards didn’t get very high prices to be honest. The Occy boardshorts and the paintings picked up some great prices, and then the two signed vests from last year came up. After some fierce bidding it was down to Richard and Barry fighting it out, with Richard taking the vests for the princely sum of R15,000.

Richard and the vests from 2009. © Clinton Theron

Sal Masakela was in attendance, and was pretty stoked on the Metallica boardies. Only 5 such boardies in the world, and signed by the whole band. After another run of good bidding it was Sal who emerged the victor with the boardies as his spoils. Sal is going to be hanging out at the contest site and doing some of the webcasting, so if you see him go and say hello.

Sal Masakela and the Metallica boardies © Clinton Theron

This year there were a few less surfers around at the Golf Day than last year, but there was still enough attention to the auction to gather R100,000 for the Supertubes Foundation. A great effort for all involved. Once the final items had been auctioned off and the night was drawing to a close, the stalwarts headed over to the bar to get close to the wood and chat about the upcoming event. There is a very good swell coming, and there is a chance that the first few days could be all time Supers. If you’re in the area I’d suggest you find your way down to Supers for the early on Thursday morning. There could be some big barrels.

Occy, Richard and the boardies © Clinton Theron

It takes a lot to really impress a jaded old man like me. To be honest I am the epitome of an armchair critic and an Internet hater combined. I sit around in my leather chair, with my oil heater next to me, and some soft chewing sweets on my desk, and I go around and find fault with all things surfing. Then I write about them. Edit my work over and over again until I am proud of the words and I can sit back in my leather chair and admire these words. Whether they be hateful or truthful is sometimes irrelevant, it is most important for me to have a feeling of pride over what I have written. In the words of the great Eeyore, “Pathetic, that’s what it is, pathetic.”

Yet once in a while something really attracts my attention and gets me frothing. The first time I heard Nirvana’s Nevermind. The first time I saw Slater surf in real life. The day I saw a shark swimming towards me. These things freaked me out and got my brain whirring around. It happened again recently.

After attending a few junior events around the country I was pretty much over it. Apart from a hand full of (that’s 5) surfers who were surfing really good within the constraints of a competition environment ie. Surfing for judges, there was very little out there that impressed me. A couple of surfers were giving it a go in free-surfing and in expression sessions, but no one was doing it for me.

Brendon throwing down some new school into his compo surfing.

Then a little birdie emailed me a link to a video clip of a lightie surfing – http://innersection.tv/video/129. Do yourself a favour and watch it, do Brendon and South Africa a favour and register on Innersection TV and vote for Brendon while you are at it. This is one of the raddest things to come from South Africa since, well, probably since Jordy. That Brendon did most of it himself is even more incredible. I was so blown away by it that I had to get hold of Brendon and quiz him immediately.

What a marvelous little vid and well done! What made you decide to enter on Innersection?
When I first found out about Innersection, I thought it was a great opportunity to diversify from the confines of the ‘QS. I also enjoy the creative challenge of getting surf clips and doing the editing.

Did your mom really do all the filming? I see she got interviewed in Innersection as well.
No, she did a fair bit, but I also got my good friend Deen Hill to film me.

Where were most of the waves filmed?
Mostly around Kommetjie, and a couple in Durban.

Where is that one sick double barrel?
It was actually Scottburgh main beach! You gotta love winter.

Brendon chilling

How has the voting been so far?
To be honest, accumulating votes is not an easy task, especially since Innersection have come up with the most complicated voting system. The fact that internet is costly and that not everybody has access is a big handicap. The Americans and Ozzies also have a huge data base to draw from.

Anything you want to tell the people who are going to vote? Perhaps a word or two on how to vote? (It’s a bit complicated)
Just give me 10 stars hahaha. Nah, you need to join Innersection in order to vote. Voting is based on a 10 star rating. I am up against stiff competition.

Did the video make you feel any more confident competing in the Mr Price Pro? (Brendon got a fifth.)
No, it made no difference. In fact, it made me a bit more nervous.

Ok, well good luck on the voting.
Thanks very much.

So head on over to http://innersection.tv/ click on sections and scroll down until you find Brendon’s section. Then vote how you see fit. Only three days of voting left!

It’s not often that we dedicate space to a surf store in these desperate times, but we figured that the new Channel Islands store in Gateway deserves a proper introduction. While the rest of the surfshops apart from one or two continue to subsist as fashion outlets with shop assistants that don’t know their Dumpster Divers from their mini-mals, the Channel Islands shop is the real deal. So we went in to investigate. All images Kolesky/Nikon

The man running the store is Stan Badger. It was time to speak to the man. Here is an interview with Badger where he talks about his new life and his responsibilities.

Stanley. Good to see you being productive. What motivated opening a Channel Islands store in South Africa?

Stan Badger © Kolesky/Nikon

Channel islands has been the leading board brand world wide for decades. When you speak to any South African surfers and ask them what board they would love to have in their quiver, their response is always, Channel Islands! We wanted to bring Channel Islands into S.A. to cater for surfers who are passionate about design and quality. The massive range of Channel
Islands are created and tested by the best surfers on the planet. It is amazing to have Channel Islands available in Africa and shaped in a store right in front of the public, here in Gateway.

What is your job?
I am the general Manager of Channel Islands Africa. I run the C.I. wholesale department, which distributes Channel Islands surfboards, apparel and accessories to all the independent and chain, core surf stores around the country as well as reunion Seychelles and Mauritius. The C.I. headquarters is based in Gateway Shopping Centre. Which is our showroom and core surf
store. I also manage our retail store with the help of my highly qualified sales team.

How did you get your job?

Stan's office © Kolesky/Nikon

How has the public reaction been?

Another view from inside the shop © Kolesky/Nikon

What has proven to be popular amongst the designs?

The shaping process © Kolesky/Nikon

How has the demand for the boards been on the whole?
It’s been great! Like I mentioned earlier it’s the one board brand every surfer wants in his quiver.

How’s Stanley’s water time been?
Well starting up a business for one, takes a lot of time and effort and therefore I have missed out on a good few coast days. Like my boss told me it’s the teething phase. Everyone tunes me its payback for playing the giddy goat for 10 years. I have also been carrying a few injuries. Look, in the future when everything is properly in place and I know how to manage my time better. I will be surfing heaps and on a quiver of the best boards in the world!

Happy to be where you are?
I am amazed at where I am! Last year this time, I would have never have guessed I would be doing this. Don’t think anyone would of. It’s a big change in lifestyle, but I needed a change and it feels good to have some direction. I am just frothing to do the best I can for customers
and the Channel Islands brand in Africa.

The future of Channel Islands in South Africa?
It is exciting times for surfboards in S.A. Channel Islands International are constantly working on new models and designs with the likes of Kelly, Dane, Taylor and Machado and its our job to get these models into production in Africa as soon as they are available. There are some crazy new designs coming soon!

Thanks Stan good luck with the shop.
Cool. Say hello to the lighthouse for me.

Stanley Badger – stanley.badger@cisurfboards.co.za>
Channel Islands Phone 031 5663155

Jordy can perform amicably with just one move.

A couple of years ago Kai Neville came to stay with me. It was a time prior to Modern Collective and prior to Jordy and the Rodeo Flip. There might have been a Passion Pop around, a couple of Air 360’s and some awesome moves here and there, but there wasn’t a crew flying through the air on every wave. Kai was filming some of the best Australian and South African junior surfers for a project for Australian Surfing Life, and he lucked into some good waves all the way from Durban down to Cape Town. I sat in one or two of his editing sessions.

As the stoked young Australian surfers like Leigh Sedley, Clipper Kimmins and Micro Hall gathered around the Apple, Kai went through the footage. A massive Cave Rock bomb with three big turns – delete. Perfect four-foot New Pier and a nuggety goofy-footer doing about 5 hooks – delete. Q-Bay set with a solid hack and some massive cut-backs – gone. A big throwaway air with a back-of-wave landing – saved!. A grinding East London left backhand barrel air attempt – a keeper.

The deleted waves were red-hot, easily good enough for the best South African video of the time, and Kai was deleting them without a care. The Australian groms were completely bummed. I was curious, and a bit concerned at the good stuff that was being dumped. “Just looking for the one move,” Kai mumbled to all of us in general. Kai might or might not have started a movement right then and there.

Now that we come to contest season in South Africa we are going to be witness to a whole month and more of excellent surfing. Three contests back-to-back and a whole bunch of red-hot moves. Yet I fear that the South African surfers are lacking in one serious avenue – the one big move. Ricky had it a few years ago and got onto the World Tour with some wild big moves, and then he lost it. Jordy clearly has it, and there’s no one else.

Without wishing to detract from brilliant surfers like Travis and Davey, there are very few people with the ‘One Big Move’ approach, and this will come through in the contest results this year. The years of old-school judging criteria and the ‘two big turns followed by two small turns approach gets you through a heat’ has had a toll on South African surfing, while the rest of the surfing world has leaped forward. There has been a revolution baby, and we weren’t included. Don’t misunderstand, we have incredible surfers and amazing talent, we have stylish surfers and we have closets full of legends, but we have almost no surfers who have the ideology of One Big Move in contest surfing, an even in free surfing. Surfers from other countries think it, they breathe it every time they take off on a wave. You can see it. They go big every time, and they fall a lot. Beyrick De Vries is giving it a real go at the moment, pulling off a big move here and there. Who else?

Maybe one of the reasons is the right-hand point syndrome, with so many of our surfers groomed on perfect right hand pointbreaks from Scottburgh to Mossel Bay. These waves almost dictate a style of surfing that sees a surfer riding from take-off to finish without falling off. The waves are so good that you really don’t want to fall off. Compared to the hot bed of D-Bah peaks and other such quick beachbreak one-move locations world wide, many of our top surfers concentrate on down the line speed, smooth style, correct hand placements, and 10 half-turns in order to ride the wave all the way through. How do you recognise them? They rarely fall off. They never fall off. They ride pointbreaks and they whip it, but they never push it. They never wipe out. Anyone come to mind? Of course someone does….

Kai and Modern Collective captured some of the biggest moves in surfing, and turned progressive surfing on its head, much like Lairds’ millennium Wave at Teahupoo did on August 17, 2000. The difference is that when Laird rode that wave, and then cried in the channel, the rest of the world absorbed what they saw and went out to chase a similar wave or bigger. Big wave surfing leaped forward with Twiggy and Greg chasing and surfing every storm in the world, and Mark Matthews getting slabbed off his head. Laird spearheaded this revolution.

But South Africans are off the radar when it comes to crazy turns and the one big move that is going to shock and blow minds. Australian Ryan Callinan won the Kustom Airstrike in Durban. Jacob Mellish won the Red Bull Air Show at the Oakley Pro Junior with a standard double-grab. Great as it was, it’s a stock-standard and safe air in real terms. There were no backside air reverse with layback indy grabs, no backside rodeo floaters, no spins and no full rotes.

Dane Reynolds, big move with a contest vest on. © Kirstin/ASP

Our surfers haven’t made the progression to change their surfing, push it harder, and fall off 100 waves before they perfect a killer move. Instead they prefer to do a few cracks off the top and an inside floater, and hope for a high 6 or a 7. These scores will result in one thing – quarter final doldrums in small events.

That’s besides Jordy, obviously, and Ricky. He also has the ability to do a crazy air in the final of a big event. He’s done them before. We’ve seen them.

I’m calling them both for this season.