Smorgasboarder_Surf_Magazine_43_s

issue 

43 

SPRING 18 

f r e e 

SURF MAG 

smorgasboarder 

family tree 

oke surfboards 

surf road trip - waves, boards & beautiful sights

Surf Shop 

G E R R I N G O N G , N S W 

Celebrating 

40 YEARS 

I N - H O U S E 

C A F E 

c 

“Australia’s Largest IndependEnt Surf Shop” 

HUNDREDS OF SWIM 

+ FASHION BRANDS 

1,000+ 

SURFBOARDS 

S.U.P 

EXPERTS 

DEMO 

150+B O A R D S


Photo: Dave Swan 

foreword 

Sometimes you get lucky. Somewhere along the Great Ocean Road, Victoria. 

Jiff Morris (our NZ smorgasboarder team member and writer who goes by the name Jeff when in 

Australia) knows the appeal of the open road better than most. He has spent a better part of 

his life clocking up the K's. With that in mind we thought it only fitting he write the foreword 

for this very special edition dedicated to the surfing road trip. 

The freedom of the road trip. There’s many kinds of 

trips, there’s the plane trip, the boat trip, the rail trip, 

the who left that thing lying there? Call my lawyer 

trip, the stop these pink and purple fire-breathing 

dragons attacking me trip and my favourite, the 

road trip. 

In the late 70’s I worked for Levi Strauss, this 

involved some road trips up and down the east 

coast and central west of New South Wales. I 

stayed in the best motels in town and ate steak 

and lobster for dinner, leaving my surfboard at 

home. Later, I had my own clothing agency and 

this involved lots of trips up and down the coast. 

I stayed in the cheapest caravan parks in town, 

slept in a sleeping bag, ate rissoles and Deb Instant 

mashed potato for dinner or if I wanted to be flash, 

went to the local R.S.L – (surfari to an Ari) but these 

trips included my surfboard. Great work, good fun, 

not much money. I think that I enjoyed the latter 

more - maybe, it was a long time ago. At least I 

could get in the water. 

Such is the nature of road trips, they’re all different 

in good and bad ways. As one old truckie once 

said to me, “the tar gets into ya blood”. I presume 

the meant the bitumen and not the stuff in the 

Capstan non-filter hanging from the side of his 

mouth. 

As a city boy from the insular Northern Beaches of 

Sydney, the new experiences and different people I 

met out in the country were a real eye opener. 

From the unfamiliar country stores with the unlikely 

name of Hong Yuens, that sold things that did other 

things to wire, to Byron Bay or Boring Bay as it was 

known then, to Bob Cooper and his surf shop in 

Coffs Harbour, these are the great memories and 

life experiences that road trips create. 

There’s still lots of places and things to do and see. 

Sure there’s more people around now, but that’s 

not always a bad thing unless they’re dropping in 

on you. 

The point is, grab your board, put some petrol in 

the car, don’t wait for anyone else, (if you sing as 

badly as me, they’ll only keep telling you to shut 

up), and go. Talk to people, observe things, take 

some photos, catch some waves, be friendly and 

the world will usually be friendly back. 

Stay in cheap places, stay in expensive places, if 

you can, go to the pub, talk to people, they usually 

talk back. Road trips are great. Enjoy the edition. 

3

The 

Flying 

Fish 

Our latest Fish model is a great alternative to 

your regular short board or longboard for the 

right days. 

The Flying Fish is an EPS foam core 

performance fish which features stringerless 

flex and memory return. This can turn on a 

dime and drive when its required. The board is 

more for the average to advanced surfer. 

The 2 ½’’ thickness of the board under the chest 

area makes this board a great wave catcher. 

Call 0412 376 464 or 

Email mark@riley.com.au 

www.balsasurfboardsriley.com.au 

HANDCRAFTED IN AUSTRALIA 

Riley Balsawood Surfboards are made using renewable resource balsa and recycled 

polystyrene for performance, durability, beauty and lower environmental impact 

SHIPPING ANYWHERE, INCLUDING NZ

BRUSH 

ON 

CLEAR 

GRIP 

• Easy, DIY clear and clean 

paint-on grip 

• Gearbox fin boxes with all wood covers 

• Wood coloured fin boxes 

• Fin box install kits 

• Timber fins 

• Surfboards 

• Blanks 

• Cork tail pads & SUP deck grip 

• Aussie-made leashes 

• Raw balsa/ cedar DIY board kits 

• Instructional DVDs 

• Timber Board racks 

• Pinch and Roll storage 

• Tide clocks 

• Sharkbanz shark deterrent 

wearable devices 

ALSO AVAILABLE 

Clear board grip tape - Let the beauty of 

the balsa show through with clear Versa 

Traction Grip Tape. Environmentally 

friendly and suits all size boards. 

Wholesale enquires welcome 

Australian Environmentally-friendly handcrafted 

surfboards for the individual in all of us, with a 

guarantee. Enjoy Responsibly


issue forty-three 

spring 2018 

03 foreword 

08 stuff 

18 road trip 

57 art 

58 surfboards 

64 grassroots 

surf businesses 

67 aloha barry 

cover illustration 

rory, choc and dan of 

oke surfboards. 

WINNER 

BEST NON-DAILY 

PUBLICATION 

QUEENSLAND MULTIMEDIA 

AWARDS 2013 

FINALIST 

BEST NON-DAILY 

PUBLICATION 

QUEENSLAND MULTIMEDIA 

AWARDS 2017 

advertising 

tami argaman 

tami@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0466 439 330 

editorial 

dave swan 

dave@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0401 345 201 

new zealand 

jiff morris 

jeff@smorgasboarder.co.nz 

0220 943 913 

south australia 

james ellis 

james@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0410 175 552 

design 

the team at horse & water creative 

mark, kate, elise, helen, eunji 

mark@horseandwater.com.au 

accounts 

louise gough 

louise@smorgasboarder.com.au 

want to get your hands on a copy? 

there’s three ways to score yourself a 

copy of smorgasboarder. 

1) subscribe - the mag is still free - you 

just pay for delivery. 4 editions per year - 

$25 annual subscription (Aus and NZ) 

2) call in to one of the businesses 

featured in this mag - they’ll have some 

free copies. If they're not, they won't. 

3) download or read it online at 

smorgasboarder.com.au 


Smorgasboarder is published by Huge C Media PTY 

LTD ABN 30944673055. All information is correct at 

time of going to press. The publication cannot accept 

responsibility for errors in articles or advertisements, or 

unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or illustrations. 

the opinions and words of the authors do not 

necessarily represent those of the publishers. All rights 

reserved. Reproduction in part or whole is strictly 

prohibited without prior permission. 

6

t-shirts. 

wearable 

surf art by real artists 

t-shirts, subscriptions & more available on the Smorgastore: 

www.smorgasboarder.com.au RRP from $40 buckaroos. 

8


stuff 

no kreepy krawly 

words & photo: dave swan 

Through the years I have ridden quite a few of the FIIK electric 

skateboards from the Big Daddy offroaders right down to the 

smaller cruisers. This new Pool Cleaner is the smallest and most 

lightweight I have ridden to date and I was immediately a fan. 

Specifics: Model -FIIK Pool Cleaner | RRP $699 

Simply put, it is so easy to handle and manoeuvre. It’s the same 

manoeuverability wise as your standard skatey and she is easy to 

pop over those bumps in the pavement but has the added benefit 

of a double-sensored, brushless-hub DC motor. No need for 

pounding the pavement with one leg, just jump on and scoot down 

to your nearest break for a surf check at 20 km per hour. So much 

more fun than jumping on one of those swell forecasting sites. 

Mark... not a seagull. 

Order yours here: Fiik.com 

9


stuff 

surfing lennox 

If you’ve surfed Lennox you understand why so many speak of it with affection – a perfectly formed wave with plenty 

of power. This book marks the 10th anniversary since Lennox was declared a National Surfing Reserve, celebrating the 

history of surfing in this once sleepy fishing hamlet. Now available through the Smorgastore at: 

www.smorgasboarder.com.au RRP $49.00 

space saving storage solutions 

SHEPPSolutions is a fresh start up based out of 

Toronto, Canada. Their mission? To develop high 

quality, elegant, and sustainable products. SHEPPS’ 

first offering is a hidden surfboard wall mount dubbed 

the GNARWALL. It's not just a clever name, it's an 

elegant, refined solution for surfboard display and 

space saving storage. By utilising the board’s fin 

box, the GNARWALL functions whilst using minimal 

components. One complete system consists of a wall 

hanger and wooden hook…that’s it. Check them out 

on Instagram (@SHEPPSolutions) and Kickstarter! The 

GNARWALL starts at $26. 

sheppsolutions.com 

natural sun shield paste 

SeaZinc is a 100% natural zinc sun shield 

paste handcrafted in small batches in Australia. 

Designed to provide long lasting protection from 

the sun's UV rays while in the surf, SeaZinc 

contains high quality pure and organic ingredients 

that nourish and also moisturise the skin. 

There are no harmful chemicals in SeaZinc, 

so it is safer for you and also the planet. The 

packaging is also completely recyclable. We 

deliver to all areas in Australia and worldwide. 

seazinc.com.au 

10


stuff 

high five 

words: dave swan 

What's it like? That’s often the first words 

spoken when people lay eyes on this board. 

That and, “don’t do drugs!” Despite its odd 

appearance, it is far from dysfunctional or a 

mere quirky experiment. It works. 

I had ridden a smaller 7’ version of this board a few years 

back but was keen to see how the larger scale variation of 

this Mark Rabbidge Five Finger Splade fared. Measuring 8’6” 

and only 6’3” less the hand carved rear, it was an altogether 

new experience. Whereas with the 7’ version you could drive 

and slide off your bottom turn before a wild release off the lip, 

the 8’ creation is more of a glide machine. Line up a section, 

crouch down and feel her take off. No fins, no friction and 

with that there’s plenty of speed, even on the smallest of 

runners. There is also some subtlety about Rabbidge boards’ 

rounded rails that make them so fun to ride. They just seem 

to suit my surfing style. 

My final assessment? I had asked Mark to shape me one of 

these. I picked it up on my recent roadtrip down the coast, 

which you will read all about in this edition. Having ridden 

it near religiously now for the last few months, I am keen to 

order another version. It’s that addictive. 

mark_rabbidge_surf_design 

11

stuff 

NEW 

RANGE 

out now 

lazy sundae 

Whether you're after an ice cream sundae or a frothy 'sundae' session, Lazy Sundae takes aim 

at providing quality streetwear and accessories to keep the good times rolling. Confected in 

the Australian capital and melting their way onto the scene they have plenty of styles to sink 

your teeth into. Lazy, sweet and bad to the cone, grab one today and give it a swirl. 

lazysundaeclothing.com 

surfing the alphabet 

If you have a young child or 

grandchild who’s learning their 

ABCs, and perhaps also learning 

to surf, then Surfing the Alphabet is the perfect 

bedtime book to add to their collection. 

Written and illustrated by Avoca Beach surfer and 

cartoonist Buddy Ross, and designed for both girls 

and boys, this fun book teaches young grommets the 

alphabet using basic surfing terms, simple rhymes 

and colourful illustrations. It’s a perfect birthday gift or 

Christmas stocking filler. Retail price $25.00 AUD 

surfingthealphabet.com.au 

garage handplanes evolution 

The Garage Handplanes Riva Onyx model is the 

pinnacle of handplanes, enhancing performance for 

existing bodysurfers and the ultimate introduction 

to board-free wave riding for the surfer who has 

everything. 

Two decades of evolution have resulted in this highlyrefined 

carbon fibre model, a wide planing area, gentle 

entry rocker and sculpted concave for superior hold, 

especially with the optional keel fin, creating a plane 

that is guaranteed to take your bodysurfing to the next 

level. 

garagehandplanes.com.au 

12


stuff 

wave women 

The new kidz on the block! Wave Women was established by two best friends who love nature, sharing good times 

and enjoying the waves our beautiful planet has to offer! The Wave Women creators gain inspiration through surfing, 

snowboarding and the outdoors. "Earth is our home and we love all its beauty. Creating Wave Women/ Wave Kidz has been 

nothing short of a blast. We are excited to see where this goes and see people fall in love with the designs, just like we have. 

Our collection is designed and made from the heart. Our well-designed brand offers a unique and unisex design, delivering 

stylish apparel which continue to evolve as a must have in your wardrobe. The result? Cool, easy, unisex looks with youthful 

elegance and unmistakable signature style." All the beautiful pieces are manufactured with the greatest attention to detail. 

wavewomen.com.au 

13


stuff 

Real Surf 

Real Surf in Lyall Bay, Wellington is exactly that - a real 

surf store - with a huge range of surfboards, wetsuits 

and surf hardware. Surfboard repairs on site and helpful 

staff who all surf. 

So if you want a store that brings you real quality gear 

as well as board repairs and a surf school for those just 

starting the surfing experience then REAL SURF is the 

one for you. NZs #1 Core Surf Store 

realsurf.co.nz 

pedal and paddle 

Planning a Coromandel loop road trip? They have all 

the equipment at Pedal and Paddle (rentals) for the 

famous loop. 

SUP's and kayaks for exploring the stunning coast 

and cycles to do the back country trails including the 

spectacular top end track from Stony Bay to Colville. 

They will also pick you up and deliver you to your 

adventure in the Coromandel. 

pedalandpaddle.co.nz 

coastal sports kaikoura 

For that next surf adventure that goes further than your 

local coffee shop. They are cold water specialists that 

want to get you further out there for longer. 

Not just your average surf shop, Coastal Sports, are 

more about the journey than the end. Rain, sun or 

snow, be ready for what nature wants to throw at you. 

Same location for 15 years. 

Call on +64 3 319 5028. 

coastalsports.co.nz 

supshed 

SUPshed in Orewa has become a pillar of their local 

paddle-boarding community. They have recently become 

a major supporter of local paddleboarding events and 

have become a key contributor to the Orewa Paddle 

Board Club. Along with this, they bolster the community 

by organising tonnes of demo opportunities to introduce 

paddleboarding to the public and follow this up by 

offering comprehensive lessons for all age groups and 

experience levels. 

supshed.com 

14


stuff 

seventhwave 

You have invested in a decent car to make sure you get 

to the best secret waves without any issues. You've got 

the best boards from your local shaper to make sure 

you have the right board for the conditions. 

Spare leggies, extra wax and fins thrown in, just in case! 

What about your wettie? When it’s going off when you 

get there, do you have the best? 

If that wind chill is biting and the water's a bit cooler, 

is your wetsuit going to keep you out there for as long 

as your arms hold up or keep you so warm you're only 

coming in because you're starving and have to eat. 

Does it get heavy with water when paddling, slowing 

you down, or make you tired because it’s not that 

flexible? 

Is it going to blow out when you're out there or worse, 

when you're putting it on? Is it going to dry fast so you 

can tolerate putting it on for the afternoon session? 

If you want the reliability and the best (like your 

boards and car) then you need the best wetsuit too. 

Seventhwave Wetsuits have been making wetsuits in 

NZ for over 30 years. The cold waters of the South 

Island are their testing grounds. They focus on quality, 

fit and warmth. The lifetime stitching warranty speaks 

for itself. They use a Premium Limestone neoprene that 

is super flexible, lightweight, super warm, durable and 

ultra fast drying. The high air cell structure in Yamamoto 

Limestone neoprene (compared to common petroleum 

based neoprenes) is the key. Standard sizes or a 

custom fitted wetsuit to go with that custom board? If 

you hate being cold and wasting epic surf time, hate 

putting on a cold wet wettie and want a suit that will 

last, fit well and not let the roadtrip down, Seventhwave 

will sort you out. 

seventhwave.co.nz 

for those who are after something 

with plenty of horsepower and 

unbridled speed. 

quarry beach surfboards 

Carsey makes everything from performance 

shortboards through to retro shapes, longboards and 

big wave guns. 

The road tripping legend, Ben Rees. 

qbsurfboards.com 

15


roadie essentials 

Whether it be for surf, or for snow… on a quest to follow some swell, or keep up with a powder front… to get a wave 

while visiting family, or getting some turns in with your crew… there are some essentials to keeping a 'Road Trip' above 

water, out of the wind and on course. 

So, before you leave on your next epic sojourn, here’s a few ‘bits of kit’ and ‘helpful tips’ to keeping a smile on your dial 

and reminding yourself that any Road Trip is an adventure, no matter the size of the swell, or the depth of the pow. 

Safety & Security 

These two factors are key to the enjoyability of any 

road trip. No one needs reminding of how devastating 

a breakdown can be. Do the essentials; of checking 

water, oil, air pressure, etc… But, once you’ve made 

your destination, remembering where you hid the keys 

is critical. 

A car key security safe (like this one from Ocean & 

Earth) is something that leaves your mind at ease, with 

you knowing you can get out 

the back and sit for as long 

as you like, without having 

to continuously scan the 

horizon to make sure 

no sneaky bugger is 

loitering around your 

wagon in the carpark. 

‘On The Road’ Research 

Having a Guide Book 

tucked into the console 

sometimes comes across 

as cheating to the Roadie 

purists … however, it will 

often find you some places 

that even modern GPS maps 

just bypass. A bit of forethought 

will often find you a well-written 

guide by someone passionate 

about ‘the journey’. It should be detailed 

in directions and deliverance, however conveniently 

vague in description and experience… the latter of 

which is a ‘felt’ commodity and should be kept for 

those making ‘the trek’. Two small books that fit this 

profile are the New Zealand Surfing Guide and Snow 

Search Japan. Both of these little, compact books are 

filled with essential knowledge for making your surf 

and snow trips just that little bit better. 

16


Sunnies 

So many varieties and they 

are very much a personal 

thing. However, I can not go 

past a pair of Oakley or Otis 

sunnies to cover my butt (eyes); 

for checking out the line-up, scanning 

for a line down the slopes or just getting from A to B. 

‘Do It All’ Shorts 

The Small Things Matter 

For me, there’s a few other little items I’d always 

keep in the wagon …let’s say, ‘just for safety’s 

sake’!!! An FCS Key, a block of wax (snow or surf), 

some sun cream, a Keep Cup for a coffee, second 

use plastic bags, tie downs for the roofies, a 

Phillips head screwdriver and some shrapnel (free 

loving coins in the $1 and $2 variety). 

They make them in gals and guys 

varieties. Hybrid shorts are the 

way forward for the Roadie. 

You can cruise in them in the 

wagon, jump in for a wave, have 

a swim at a waterhole, jump in 

for a spa after a few runs … so 

many options from a pair of shorts 

that really just do everything. 

last minute tips 

If you’re doing a 'Roadie': 

• Be happy to go 'left', if your logic tells you 

'right' 

• Be keen to engage in some conversation 

with ‘that person over there’ 

• Be available to help someone in a situation 

that is detracting from their 'Roadie' 

• Be open to everything that is offered, 

whether it is what you expected or not! 

If you have hit the road and travelled 

a path… if you’ve driven a highway 

or just a laneway… once you’ve 

reached a point or landed at a 

destination… whatever you have 

done, will all be components to 

achieving 'A Roadie' … it will be your 

trip, it will be an experience, and you 

will remember it for life. 

NZ Shred 

nzshred.co.nz 

17


r o a d t r i p 

Some ducks do fly south for the winter. And so it was, with my trusty Stumpy Duck in tow along with the 

latest edition of Smorgasboarder, I headed south down near the Victorian and South Australian border 

where the water is cold, the waves are big and people with seemingly no common sense run amok. 

words and photos: dave swan 

18


Photo: Cathedral Rocks just outside of Lorne on fire. 

19


Heading straight down the guts, I was keen to 

get to my furthest point as quickly as possible 

and work my way back. It had been a couple of 

years since I had been down this way and it sure 

felt good to be rolling on the open road like Willie 

Nelson. 

One of my overnight pit stops was at the Victorian 

Central Highlands town of Avoca not far from the 

Pyrenees Ranges, about 71 kilometers north west 

of Ballarat. The nearest surf break may be another 

two hours further south but this is absolutely 

stunning country worthy of checking out on your 

way to the coast. 

Heading down from Queensland, with such a big 

drive in front of you, it is always good to earmark 

some desirable destinations to get to. Avoca is one 

of their destinations. It sure as hell wasn’t where I 

ended up the night before. Due to fading light, the 

effects of drought and a massive amount of roos on 

the move, I had to stay the previous night in Dubbo. 

When you mention Dubbo most people comment 

on the zoo. That’s probably because that’s about 

the only positive thing you can say about the friggin 

place. Sorry to all the Dubbogans out there (not 

quite sure if that’s what they are called ). In fairness, 

the crackheads at the local holiday park seemed 

friendly enough and at least didn’t try to shank me 

during the night whilst I slept in my van. 

Alas, it was closed on that night. Disappointed, 

I strolled across the road to the Hotel Victoria, 

which immediately lifted my mood. Perhaps not 

as appealing from the outside, it certainly was 

on the inside - a great little Victorian country pub 

with a fireplace and friendly barman that had me 

feeling like Cliffy Clavin from Cheers. Their beautiful 

dining room also serves some hearty pub fare that 

will send you on your way with your cockles truly 

warmed. You have to love a warming of the cockles 

– whatever that means. 

The next morning I was up early, keen to get to 

the ocean as soon as humanly possible to refresh 

from my arduous two-day drive. I was headed for 

Cape Bridgewater just outside of Portland. It is one 

of my must-dos on the road: must commence surf 

trip with a surf at Cape Bridgewater, must call into 

the Wye River Pub, must have a slider at Lorne 

followed by a Bingo Bango chilli pizza from Pizza 

Pizza, must call into Aireys Pub for a pint, must 

call in to see the guys at Anglesea Surf Centre and 

Craig Baird at the Torquay Surf World Museum. 

Whatever else I can fit in whilst on the Victorian Surf 

Coast is a bonus. 

Anyhow, road trips in the main are about ‘going 

with the flow’ and even having a laugh when you 

screw up – like being stuck in Dubbo – but most 

importantly they are about getting out of your 

normal surrounds, venturing across our wonderful 

country, seeing some absolutely magnificent sights, 

catching up with good friends and making some 

new ones. That takes me back again to Avoca and 

an awesome little pub where I was keen to sample 

a few sherbets – The Avoca Hotel. 

20


when this is your office 

how can you complain? 

Photo: The Twelve Apostles 

21


22


Yes, the waves were good, 

ranging from unreal to 

holy-crap-balls 

to no-friggin-chance. 

Now before anyone gets their knickers in a twist, 

I will not mention any other breaks down this 

way aside from Cape Bridgewater and of course 

Bells and perhaps Cathedral Rocks. I believe the 

secret is out of the bag on the latter two breaks. 

With regards to Cape Bridgewater, I understand 

it is okay to mention it because a couple of extra 

surfers in the water there is not such a bad thing. 

Apparently, the Cape is where cold water coming 

from the Great Australian Bight meets warmer 

currents coming down the east coast of Australia 

and voila, you have an abundance of marine life 

and some big bloody white pointers to boot. A 

couple of extra people in the water allows you to 

live by the edict – you are never going to outswim a 

shark, just make sure you can outswim the person 

beside you. 

From the following pages you will see I scored 

some waves along the coast. I could profess to 

have intentionally timed my run down to Victoria 

but the real truth is I don’t have a clue. Those surf 

websites with their forecasts bore me to tears and 

I have never quite understood all of those squiggly 

lines. Nope, I just arsed it, as is often the case. 

Lucky to be in the right place at the right time, 

although had I given my trip a little more thought on 

the surf side of things, I would’ve had the common 

sense to have taken a decent size gun and not a 

5’4” self-made mini Simmons (called the Stumpy 

Duck) just because it fitted in the van and didn’t 

make it too cramped in the back amongst my 

mattress and magazines. Lucky I have friends. 

Yes, the waves were good, ranging from unreal 

to holy-crap-balls to no-friggin-chance. Nothing 

like a frosty ocean, freezing cold southerlies and 

some undie-filling swell to get the blood pumping 

and make you feel alive. The bonus amongst all 

of that is along the way I got to call into some of 

my all-time favourite coastal towns like Port Fairy 

and take in unbelievable sights such as the Twelve 

Apostles, Bay of Martyrs and London Bridge. 

The smorgasboarder office in these parts is quite 

amazing. 

23


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26


anglesea 

surf centre 

Many would consider Torquay to be the epicentre 

of the Surf Coast; possibly those less familiar 

with the Great Ocean Road, due to the fact it is 

the home to Rip Curl and Quicksilver. I, however, 

would disagree for just 15 minutes south west of 

there are the little coastal townships of Anglesea 

and Aireys Inlet. Anglesea derives its name from 

Anglesey, which is an island in North Wales. Prior to 

that it was known as Swampy Creek, which is way 

cooler but probably not as appealing to the tourists. 

You can hear the conversation, “Where are you 

heading? I am off for a week’s vacation in Swampy 

Creek. Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. 

Anyhow the town changed its name to Anglesea in 

1950 and I for one, absolutely love it. It is also home 

to a place I must visit every time I pass through – 

the Anglesea Surf Centre. 

Further on down the road is Aireys Inlet now said 

to be recognised for its culture and as a flourishing 

literary hub. If you know anything about me or have 

indeed taken note of my writing style, you will know 

that Aireys appeals to me for somewhat different 

reasons. It’s home to the Aireys Pub and it is a 

ripper. 

In terms of the two areas, it doesn’t matter in which 

order you visit but I would suggest it is more relaxing 

going to the former last. 

So first, the Anglesea Surf Centre; proclaimed to be 

Australia’s Premier Secondhand Surfboard Dealer, 

I truly think it is. In all my travels I do not believe 

I have come across a shop in Australia, or New 

Zealand for that matter, that carries the quantity 

of second hand boards that they do. And there is 

always some absolute gems hidden amongst the 

hundreds of boards in the racks; at an exceptional 

price point. What makes the joint even more 

appealing is that it’s not run by knobs. That’s a 

bit harsh you might say, but if you are honest with 

yourself you would recognise the knob population 

worldwide is growing and the surf industry is 

no exception. Bruce Little runs the show at the 

Anglesea Surf Centre along with his son Trenton 

and a team of down to earth local surfers. 

Bruce has been living and surfing the area since the 

early sixties. He continually strives to maintain his 

attitude that his work provides the opportunity to 

live his life the way he wants. 

The Anglesea Surf Centre carries over 150 second 

hand boards at any given point in time and they 

have a quite a few new boards as well. If you 

are looking for a trade in or cash in, they take 

15% commission on consigned boards. It’s very 

much a traditional surf shop, as opposed to those 

’boutique’ style surf fashion stores. Their core 

business is surfboards, wetsuits and the essentials 

that you need to get in the water. 

angleseasurfcentre.com.au 

anglesea_surf_centre 

27


rogue wave 

Next necessary stop along the road as I prescribed 

is the Aireys Pub, now also home to Rogue 

Wave Brewing. Where do I start? Firstly, the 

pub, there is just something about it. Yes, 

it has this rustic appeal; yes, it has an open 

fireplace, which if you have ever been to 

Victoria is generally appealing no matter what 

the season; yes, it also has an incredible 

vista looking out from Split Point Lighthouse 

all the way to Lorne point; And yes, the food 

is pretty darn incredible, like pub smoked 

pulled pork shoulder quesadilla and 350g 

Otway Ranges rib rye kind of incredible 

(there’s also other options for the everincreasing 

surfing vegans amongst 

us god bless your chia seeds socks). 

However, there is something else about 

it that’s just so magic and relaxing about 

calling in for a couple of beers after a 

surf, sitting by the fireplace and letting 

the blood return to your frozen feet whilst 

you recover from hypothermia. I just 

absolutely love this place. 

In recent years, what has made it even 

more appealing is that the beers are 

better! Yes, I have turned into quite the 

beer snob but yellow fizzy water just 

doesn’t do it for me anymore. If the government 

is going to increase to buggery the excise duty on 

beer, to the point it costs as much as a small car, I 

want to ensure I really enjoy it. Since starting Rogue 

Wave Brewing in 2015, owner Tim Wood has added 

to the appeal of the hotel. Not only can I call in for 

a pint of Cranky Mrs (which is usually the result of a 

lengthy road trip) they have even bottled it. 

Rogue Wave Brewing. creates a variety of premium 

beers, from clean crisp pilsners, sessionable lagers, 

wheat beers and pale ales to funky unfiltered IPAs. 

Best of all, they use no artificial ingredients or 

additives. 

As Tim Wood explains, “Our beer is a continuation 

of our lifestyle. We won’t be told what massproduced 

beers we have to put on tap by some 

foreign owned, multinational, beer factory. Our 

focus is beer with no extracts, no chemicals 

and no additives. 

“We sourced and commissioned our state 

of the art brewery ourselves. Our computer 

operating system is locally designed and 

built and gives us precise and absolute 

control during the brewing and fermenting 

process. Anyone can brew beer, but we’re 

passionate about brewing great beers. 

Our first year saw us win three awards at 

the Australian International Beer Awards.” 

With my mouth watering by that stage, 

Tim went on to add, “We’re the luckiest 

people on the planet. We don’t dream of 

living somewhere else, or working some 

other job, we love it here.” 

What’s also appealing about the place is 

the sense of history; the hotel’s history. 

The Aireys Pub was built in 1904, but 

was burnt to the ground in the 1983 Ash 

Wednesday fires. The pub ran out of a tin 

shed until it was rebuilt. 

In 2011 the business closed. Unbelievably 

and much to our dismay, the pub was almost 

demolished, such news rendering Mark and I 

speechless and crying in the gravel carpark some 

years back on a #smorgasroadtrip. A town with no 

pub seemed imminent. In a last minute coup,Tim 

and a few friends pitched in and saved it. They 

renovated and reinstated it as one of Australia’s 

greatest coastal pubs. 

roguewavebrewing.com.au 

aireyspub.com.au 

29


on the road 

again 

Darren “Dicko” Dickson of Dickson Surfboards 

Nick McAteer of NMC Handshapes 

There’s plenty of shapers and surf identities who 

call this neck of the woods home. There are a few 

however, I always make a point of catching up 

with. The first guy is Craig Baird, Curator of Surf 

World Museum in Torquay. Not only is he a wealth 

of knowledge of anything and everything surf 

related, he’s genuinely such a nice bloke – it’s a 

real pleasure to call him a friend. We always end up 

chatting away for a couple of hours but that could 

easily extend to a full day if time permitted. The 

nice thing is, I get to espouse (regurgitate really) all 

that he has told me for the rest of my trip, making 

me sound so intellectual. I get to feel like the font of 

all surfing knowledge. 

Darren “Dicko” Dickson of Dickson Surfboards at 

the Surfers Shed in Torquay is another interesting 

character. Not only because he too is so welcoming 

but the sheer quality and diversity of craft he 

creates is amazing - magic longboards with 

beautiful resin colours and tints, twinnies, quads, 

5-fin rounded pins, single fins with chimed rails and 

performance shortboards. The true value of Dicko 

though is what he can offer surfers. His ability to 

cut through the crap, understand what you are 

after/ the way you want to surf and then go about 

recommending what will work best for you, right 

through to how the fins should be set in relation to 

the rail lines and tail shape – it will blow your mind. 

Nick McAteer up at Barwon Heads is another 

incredibly experienced custom surfboard shaper 

making a range of high performance craft in every 

length and style from shorties and fishes through to 

stunning logs with fabric inlays and big wave guns. 

Just check out his rich red F1 gun complete with 

yellow lightning bolt featured in our Gear section 

and you will understand what I mean. 

Next stop - Melbourne, Phillip Island and the 

Mornington Peninsula 

30


31


all in fun 

There are many loving families who couldn’t bear 

the thought of working with one another. It may be 

due to the fact we’re often the most forthright with 

those we love. You may tolerate a work colleague 

who’s a tool but if it’s a family member, you will 

probably tell them exactly what kind of tool they 

are and whereabouts in the shed they sit. Some 

families however manage to make it work. 

In 2013 we spoke with Choc, Dan and Rory of 

Oke Surfboards on how they managed such a 

feat. Five years on and they still haven’t killed each 

other, as a matter of fact, things are the same as 

when I caught up with them last; still laughing, still 

taking the piss out of each other, still loving what 

they do and still crafting some of the most beautiful 

boards you have ever seen. The business is going 

strong. Rory sat down with me and explained how. 

“It all just works. I think we’re all pretty different. 

We don’t seem to clash at all. We’ve all got more or 

less separate roles within the business. I’m shaping 

the boards and Dan’s glassing them. Choc’s (Rory 

and Dan’s dad Neil) slowly getting out of it and 

leaving it up to us but he helps out and does all the 

other stuff we don’t want to do.” 

There is no underplaying Choc’s role however in 

developing Rory as a surfboard shaper. 

“All my theories and all my ideas on boards come 

from him because I haven’t worked for anyone else. 

Design, shaping, processes; it all comes from him.” 

14 years as a shaper and some 3000 boards done 

and dusted, I figured Rory had learnt a thing or two 

himself as well. 

“Yeah, you’re constantly improving. Your eye gets 

better. With experience, you start having more 

control over the finished product.” 

The array of craft Rory’s shaping has no doubt 

further played a part in his development. 

“It was getting repetitive for a while there. Having 

10 or 12 set models, we would be just producing 

them over and over but now people have gone 

away from those. Customs are in demand. At 

the moment Dan’s out there glassing a 7’6 single 

fin with super knifey rails; he’s got a twin fin with 

a double channel; a single fin egg that’s got a 

32

Rory, Choc and Dan of Oke Surfboards 

quad setup as well and then there’s a real high 

performance short board that’s 5’10”. In the 

shaping bay, I am working away on three mals. We 

are doing everything.” 

Rory explains the shift in part is due to surfers 

either pursuing the super high-tech imported 

boards or something that is more personal. 

“Our clients are more inclined towards the art 

side of it. People want something handmade and 

something unique, something they can have input 

into themselves. So, we’ve gone that way instead 

of trying to compete or follow the bigger labels with 

a bunch of different performance board models. We 

still make a number of performance shortboards 

but nowadays are just making a greater variety of 

boards.” 

With that in mind, I was keen to know if their 

customer base was any different. 

“Not really. We do orders for mates and returning 

customers and that keeps us really busy but we 

make boards for all ages. I’m currently making a 

board for a guy that’s 71 and just started surfing. 

What we are making for our customers, as I said, is 

what has really changed. 

“When I was growing up, no one had a longboard. 

Some people they’d go off with 6’1” by 18 1/2” 

board. They might get a fish or something a little 

bit wider but no one would have a longboard. That 

was just for old blokes but now it’s pretty trendy. 

I guess some of the footage you see coming out 

of California and up the coast as well like Noosa, 

that side of surfing gets really marketed now. So, 

a lot of the guys that never would have thought of 

riding a longboard or be seen on one are ordering 

longboards now. It gets the girls into it as well. They 

see the graceful style of surfing a longboard. 

“The other thing is, no one has one or two boards 

anymore. People get 10, 12 or more boards; 

like have a garage full of them – performance 

shortboards, single fins, fish, longboards.” 

We would like to think Smorgasboarder has played 

some small part in this phenomenon. It is after all, 

what our name is all about. 

What’s most notable about the guys at Oke is the 

incredibly loyal following they have developed. I 

was keen to hear from Rory as to what he put that 

down to. 

“People like coming here. I guess you don’t 

get hassled like you do at a normal surf shop. 

33

photos: Kloe Lee Smith Photography 


You got the cool guy trying to push certain models 

on to you or whatever. We don’t really care. I’m as 

happy to make a really narrow, high performance 

shortboard for hot surfers as something that’s 24 

inches wide and 9’8” or a min-mal for a beginner. 

I’m not going to try and talk you into something that 

is not suitable for your ability. It’s got to be the right 

board for you. 

“We don’t have a certain image to protect or a style 

of board that we have to talk customers into. We’re 

not trendy cool surf shop guys, we’re more like 

labourers. We come out covered in dust and just try 

and be the real deal. What I mean by that is, we’re 

not pretentious.” 

In many ways to us, the boys at Oke are the 

epitome of what we set out to achieve with 

Smorgasboarder – to dispense with the BS that 

sometimes surrounds the surf industry and just 

get down and dirty and talk in simple terms about 

surfboard design and construction. It is what we 

perceive is the key to their success. I asked Rory 

if he could pinpoint one or two things that have 

contributed to their ongoing good fortune. 

“I guess just being honest and just sort of being us, 

not trying to follow the trend or anything. Yeah. Just 

kind of make whatever board you want and that’s 

about it. 

“Other than that, we try not to be intimidating. With 

some shops you walk into, you’re faced with racks 

and racks of similar looking boards before you’re 

greeted by the super cool retail dude trying to push 

a particular board onto you. It’s pretty easy in that 

situation to be intimidated and you wouldn’t know 

what to believe or what sort of board you’re going 

to need. We’re there to talk with you in a relaxed 

way about what you might need and then go about 

making it for you.” 

Next year marks 50 years of Oke Surfboards. It’s 

a monumental achievement in this day and age, 

particularly within the surf industry. I asked Rory 

about their plans going forward. 

“Keep doing what we’re doing. It has worked for 

this long.” 

I sincerely love these blokes and their surfboards. I 

hope they keep making them for many more years 

to come. 

okesurfboards.com 

34


35


go with the flow 

“…we were surfing this reef and I sort had a of pretty just had light a 

pretty drop into, light or drop I sort into, of free or I sort fell into of free this fell wave, into fell it, fell off 

off my my outside outside rail rail and and it just the picked wave just me picked up and me threw up 

and me straight threw me on straight to a dry on rock to a rockledge. It was It a was hard a 

hard impact impact and it and ended it ended up puncturing up puncturing, and collapsing 

my lung and I broke six ribs, and then yeah, I was in 

so much pain, and couldn’t breathe. 

“That was on the first wave. With the second, I was 

obviously in pain and struggling to breathe and it 

rolled over me and then my leash snagged on the 

bottom. That was sort of scary. I was a bit worried. 

Yeah, That was but sort luckily of scary. before I the was third a bit wave worried. came, Yeah, I was 

able but luckily to just before get my the leash third off wave and came, sort of I be was washed able 

in.” to just get my leash off and sort of be washed in.” 

36


37 

Sandy Ryan surfing in South Australia. 

Photo: SA RIPS


Photos: SA RIPS 

It’s hard to fathom what it would be like to find 

yourself in this kind of situation but to a man as chilled 

as Sandy Ryan, I guess you simply go with the flow, 

pardon the pun. 

The son of Matt Ryan, one of the founders of 

Island Surfboards on Phillip Island, Sandy has 

built a reputation as quite the hell-man and 

understandably so, he charges humongous waves. 

Indeed, Sandy is a person some may call loony but 

who all would agree is one super friendly, humble, 

quietly spoken, all-round top bloke. 

Our conversation, the first to air on 

smorgasboarder’s new podcast on www. 

smorgasboarder.com.au centres on his recent 

experience whereby he managed to pitch himself 

onto a dry reef while surfing serious waves off the 

coast of South Oz with Marti Paradisis. 

As a result of his injuries Sandy had a pretty lengthy 

stay in hospital and faces a long road to recovery. 

When we spoke, he was just about to begin his 

rehab that he hopes will get him back surfing 

waves before the year is out. He is one incredibly 

determined and fascinating bloke. 

“When my leash snagged I was thinking that it was 

sort of pretty scary, like anything could happen or 

it could be sort of the end. Yeah, so that was really 

heavy. Then after I got my leash free, even though I 

was still in a pretty bad predicament, I felt like I was 

not going to die or anything. I was in a lot of pain 

but at least I could get my head above water and 

just slowly drift in.” 

Sandy drifted in over a lagoon. It was at this time 

good friend Marti Paradisis noticed Sandy was 

missing from the lineup. 

“I just heard him yelling out my name. He noticed 

me when I was almost at the beach. He was racing 

over, paddling over to us.” 

Marti and a few of the local guys who were there 

then sprung into action all the while assuring Sandy 

he was going to be alright. The challenge however 

was that there was no mobile reception to call an 

ambulance and no way of carrying Sandy up the 

cliff and steep dunes. 

“The guys were sort of racing all over the dunes, 

trying to find some reception and then I had to 

climb up a cliff. They were helping us with that. They 

wanted to carry me but just as soon as I’d sort of 

lift up, it would crush everything, and it was just so 

painful. So yeah, I just slowly started sort of walking 

and I had guys behind me.” 

Sandy walked up the first cliff and then to the 

next dune where he was met by one of the locals 

who had fetched his Troop carrier. By that stage 

paramedics had also arrived and with Sandy 

struggling to breathe put him on a respirator. He 

was then taken by ambulance before being picked 

up along the way by a medevac helicopter. 

38


“I was flown to the Royal Adelaide Hospital. So it 

was a mission but all good.” 

Sandy would spend the next eight days in hospital 

recovering from a collapsed lung. 

“Ironically, when I was in hospital, on the wall in 

my room was a photo of the actual wave where I 

hurt myself. It’s such a big hospital with probably 

600 beds or whatever and it just happened that 

photo was in my particular room, which is a strange 

coincidence.” 

Now three months on from the mishap the 

prognosis is that Sandy won’t be surfing again any 

time soon. 

“I am slowly getting better and better. I’m a lot more 

comfortable and it’s a lot easier to breathe and 

certainly a lot less pain. But I’m still a little bit off 

surfing”. 

I enquired whether it would be another six months 

or so. 

“Hopefully not that long. I don’t know, it’s been 

hard enough this long.” 

I asked whether he had any trepidation returning to 

the surf and indeed tackling the slabs he so eagerly 

seeks out. 

“No. I was just so unlucky. It wasn’t particularly 

the size of the wave, it was just the reef. It wasn’t 

a big wave at all.” 

We will leave you with one final word from Sandy 

and what his dad had to say following the incident. 

“Every time I injure myself, he (Matt) always just tells 

me I’m a bit of a wimp, and he’s like, come on, you 

know guys would be playing football next week if 

they had that injury. Dad’s a classic like that. I’m 

always nervous telling him when I’m injured.” 

To hear more of this story listen to our 

Smorgasboarder podcast. 

A brief bit on Island Surfboards. It all began in 1969 

when a couple of surfers decided to make some 

boards for their mates. They enjoyed every surfer’s 

dream of uncrowded waves, pristine coastlines 

and a relaxed working atmosphere. Since then 

the Phillip Island has grown, and so too has their 

business with Island Surfboards now one of the 

most respected names in Australian surfing. They 

have two cracking stores on the island and make 

their own range of boards, long through to short, 

performance, retro, kneeboards, you name it. 

Incidentally, they also run what is reportedly the 

biggest surf school in Australia. 

islandsurfboards.com.au 

39


on the road again 

Dave and Curl 

A visit to Phillip Island is never complete without a 

beer at the Panhandle Mexican restaurant and bar 

with our mate Curl, the man behind our Aloha Barry 

cartoon. We don’t quite know what goes on in his 

head to inspire such weird and wonderful storylines 

but we sure as hell love them, and him too - my big 

brother from another mother. 

Another two of our favourites are these good folk, 

Graeme and Brenda Howard from the Island Surf 

Shack. As down to earth as the come, I consider 

myself fortunate to have met such genuine people 

in my years travelling with Smorgasboarder. They 

have the most unique little surf shop full of gifts, 

knick-knacks and clothing you have ever come 

across; everything from Mexican bajas, Hawaiian 

dashboard hula girls, coconut soy candles, Kombi 

giftlines and even Nepalese woollen yin yang 

jumpers and ponchos. Unique? You bet. I don’t 

think there is ever a time I visit and don’t walk away 

with something for the home, wife or kids. 

With the Victorian leg done and dusted, it was time 

to be off likes a nun’s nightie and make for Pambula 

on the Far South Coast of New South Wales. With 

night falling quicker than expected, I stopped along 

the way at Orbost. I always love the opportunity to 

stay somewhere I haven’t before – and there are 

some many magic spots along the way around here 

– Mallacoota was my favourite last time. 

I paid for a spot at the local holiday park and 

headed for a beer and counter meal at the Orbost 

Club Hotel. My experience there prompted me to 

write this on our Smorgasboarder Instagram and 

Facebook pages: 

Graeme and Brenda - Island Surf Shack 

#It’s nights like tonight that make my trip. A couple 

of pots and a great counter meal with good 

company at a true blue Aussie pub. 

@orbost_club_hotel #smorgasboarder 

#smorgasroadtrip #orbost #plentyoflaughs 

40


tree to sea 

A visit to Vic is not complete without 

catching up with the boys from Tree to 

Sea. Regular readers of Smorgasboarder 

would recall I had the great pleasure 

of building a hollow wooden surfboard 

with Rob, Gary and Darren, so much 

so, it’s one of the best experiences I’ve 

had in the nine years of our grassroots 

surf magazine. I am sure they too are 

still taken aback by my sublime board 

building skills. 

Since then they have changed their 

build process from hollow wooden 

construction to an altogether new 

approach. Their ‘Eco Board’ course is 

also shorter. It now only takes a weekend 

and at its completion, you have a 

stunning wooden board ready to surf. 

With Christmas just around the corner, 

it is unquestionably the perfect gift idea, 

in my opinion, for the surf-mad special 

person in your life – that’s right ‘person’, 

plenty of girls and guys have undertaken 

the course. Adding to the appeal of this 

new approach is they now have the 

ability to replicate your favourite board, 

albeit with an environmentally-friendly 

construction method. 

All Eco Boards are a super-lightweight 

composite construction made from a 

recycled EPS foam core shaped on an AKU 

machine to any size or shape you want. You 

then set about profiling, cutting and cladding 

your blank with plantation grown timber and 

cork rails before sanding and fine tuning 

the rail, deck and bottom contours along 

with setting the fin placement. All kinds of 

boards can be shaped on the course from 

performance shortboards through to retro 

shapes and longboards. 

Rob Ivers, Gary Miller and Darren Minchen 

have been running the Tree To Sea wooden 

board building workshops at Mt Eliza on the 

Mornington Peninsula for close to 10 years 

now. I can personally vouch for how well 

these courses are run and how much fun 

they are. Stop thinking about it and just do 

it. Live your life, commit ONE weekend and 

you will have a board in your quiver you will 

forever remember. 

further information, workshop dates, 

board building kits and all details are 

available at: treetosea.com.au 

41


learning the art of the craft 

We had featured it, I’d written about it, seen photos 

of it but it wasn’t until I finally saw it with my own 

two eyes that I truly appreciated how impressive a 

setup The Surfboard Studio is. 

If you want to shape your own fibreglass surfboard 

from start to finish, over the course of a couple of 

weekends, this is the place to go. You choose the 

style of board you want, the boys send a blank 

through the shaping machine, providing you with 

a rough outline of your board and you get straight 

into shaping it. 

As soon as this is done you commence with 

choosing your rail template, pencilling in your 

rail lines before taking to it with a hand saw. 

Next you’re sanding away your deck, bottom, 

nose, tail and rail contours. Before the first day is 

over, you install your fin plugs or fin box ready to 

recommence the following weekend. 

The next Saturday you learn to glass your board, 

complete with resin colours, laying down your decal 

in the process. Next you’re sanding away and profinishing 

your board so she is ready to ride. 

There’s good reason the people are all smiles in 

these photos. For one, it is a hell of a lot of fun 

learning to shape your own board and there is a 

great sense of pride in crafting something you can 

use. However, the happiness is also in part due 

to the guys who run the course. Zak Koniaris is a 

long-time friend of us here at Smorgasboarder but 

also one funny bloke. He runs the show, and also 

cooks up one ripper of a lunchtime feast with a 

couple of coldies. 

Zak works alongside experienced shapers Simon 

Forward, Michael Anthony and Alan Rousa, all who 

have an incredible wealth of surfboard shaping 

experience. 

The weekend I visited, Simon was taking the class 

and he just had this calming presence. Indeed, 

he’s got the perfect demeanour to teach surfboard 

shaping. 

42


43


Finished 

goods 

...There’s good reason the 

people are all smiles in these 

photos. For one, it is a hell of 

a lot of fun learning to shape 

your own board and there 

is a great sense of pride in 

crafting something you can 

use.... 

• All courses are run at The Surfboard Studio 

warehouse in Preston, Melbourne 

• The sessions are conducted in groups and 

run once a month 

• The course runs over 2 x 8 hour sessions 

(Saturdays between 8am – 4pm) 

• Private bookings are also available for 

individuals up to groups of 4. These courses 

are usually run during the week but can be 

tailored to your schedule. 

• Other courses on handshaping, glassing and 

CNC cutting and design are also available 

Find out all you need to know about the 

course at: thesurfboardstudio.com.au 

44


wheels 

As you no doubt read earlier in this edition, I was 

more toey than a roman sandal to get down to 

Mark Rabbidge’s shaping shed in Bendalong and 

pick up my custom built Five Finger Splade. When 

I called in, Mr Rabbidge was at it again, tinkering 

away on another new project as he always is. He 

offered up this defence. 

“Well, everyone has their hobbies. Some guys 

golf, play tennis, I don’t do that. I have to make 

something. Make sh*t. If I am not making a board, I 

am working on a car or something else. I have been 

doing it all my life. 

“The cars are removed from the surfboard shaping 

and can be another creative outlet. You get an 

idea and a few visions of what you want to do and 

then you try and do it. Sometimes it works and 

sometimes it doesn’t.” 

His labour of love this time was a 1977 F250 Ford 

he and good friend Neal Cameron were converting 

into a hot rod camper. You will most definitely 

see how super cool this turns out in the pages of 

Smorgasboarder in the foreseeable future. 

For now however, I turned my attention to another of 

his recently completed projects. 

“Yeah, it’s pretty cool. It’s a 1953 International Coup 

Ute body that I put onto a 1990 4WD Nissan Patrol 

chassis and cloned a 5 litre Ford V8 to it. Looks like 

an old car but it’s a new car. New brakes, power 

steering, bit of grunt. Fun.” 

Fun and interesting, that’s what my visits to Mark 

Rabbidge’s place always are. Such a good bloke. 

more info: markrabbidge.com 

45


Neal with a Maui & Sons creature he made. 

46

principle 

The most notorious equity market crash event 

outside of the 1929 Wall Street crash was Black 

Monday in October 1987. It registered the steepest 

one-day fall with losses in excess of 20 per cent 

among global markets. Amid extraordinary scenes, 

investors crushed into public galleries around 

Australia and watched in horror as the key market 

indicator, the All Ordinaries index, crashed 515 

points, wiping a massive $55 billion from the total 

value of all shares traded. 

This story centres on the impact that crash had 

on a Mr Neal Cameron and is an excerpt from an 

upcoming hour-long Smorgasboarder podcast 

interview with Neal. Without hyping this up too 

much, I have to say this is one of the most intriguing 

interviews I have ever done in the history of 

Smorgasboarder. 

I have met Neal many times, shared many a coffee 

and / or beer and certainly a lot of laughs on my 

travels down the coast. He is one funny bastard. 

I knew a little about him running a surf shop in 

Coogee and his inventions in foam and fibreglass 

but I didn’t know all the bits in between. I had seen 

him regularly photographed with some of the most 

stunning women but I didn’t know the full story of 

how he came to live in a bus. 

I have always however been aware of his 

contentment with, what some may consider, the 

alternative lifestyle he leads. I didn’t know what lead 

him to make that decision though. Neal picks up 

the story, recalling the turn of events with regards to 

the crash and what it meant for him as the owner of 

Positive Connection. 

Neal’s Promoskate team - another side of business of the time.


“The stock market crash was a ripper, because 

unlike the last one where nothing happened, the one 

at the end of the 80’s saw every surf shop except 

for Steve Core go bust in the Eastern Suburbs. They 

all went. 

“Business just stopped. People stopped spending. 

Nobody was spending. And it wasn’t just surf 

shops, it was anybody who had clothing shops, or 

anything that wasn’t a necessity, they all basically 

went to the wall, which was a complete contrast to 

the 80’s where everybody had money. It was spend, 

spend, spend you know, everyone had 20 bucks in 

their pocket at any one time, which is like having 

$100 now. It was a very crazy time but it all came to 

a raging halt.” 

Reflecting on the time, Neal offered an honest selfassessment 

of his perceived skills. 

“I discovered that a lot of the things I did in the 80’s 

weren’t based on my ability, it was just being in the 

right place at the right time. You kind of couldn’t go 

wrong with anything you started in the 80’s. It was 

easy. I mean, I walked into the shop when I took it 

over and based on the way we’d previously run it 

I thought, well gee, we can fix this up and go back 

and make it a lot better. And you know, I tripled the 

takings in the first two months because I knew how 

to do it. 

“I found that I could identify things, look at it, make 

it better, make it work; kind of separate yourself 

from it and make a third party out of yourself and 

look at it. But then what I discovered was that I had 

no idea, because I’d never been to business school, 

of what you do when something goes bad. Like how 

to professionally sink something - damage control.” 

As all of us can attest to, having read the same story 

over and over again about the Clive Palmer-esque 

business owner who ‘can’t recall anything’, this is 

the domain of the accountant and the lawyer.’ 

“Yeah, accountants and people like that, who’d say, 

‘So you’re going to have to fold up next month and 

you need to do this and that to protect yourself. 

Then you’re going to do this and you’re going to do 

that and you’ll suffer minimally and everybody else 

can get stuffed and they won’t be able to have a go 

at you.’ 

“That was the general way that things get done I 

think these days. Whereas I decided, well, I didn’t 

want to do it that way. So, I went to the bank and 

borrowed the money on a 26 per cent overdraft, 

paid everybody off and lived in a garage for three 

years to pay the debt off to the bank. I could sleep 

well at night but it wasn’t the smartest business 

move.” 

Neal explained that many were surprised by his 

actions. 

“A couple of my larger suppliers were surprised 

when, knowing that I’d gone down and I paid off the 

last bills, which were at that time fairly substantial.” 

This experience was part of the reason why Neal 

never re-entered the retail industry. 

“I was never really interested in business that much 

anyway. At the time the surf shop was simply 

something that I wanted to do. You got paid for it. 

If you make money out of it, -Yeehaa- and the other 

things were just things that were fun that came 

along at the time.” 

With his hefty overdraft chained to his person, Neal 

set about literally carving himself a new career. 

He rented a house with a garage and adjoining 

workshop.” 

“I basically had the whole workshop area for nothing 

because I had people in the house paying the rent, 

and I just lived out in the garage, which was actually 

part of an old stable, because in Kensington they 

had old horse stables and they converted them. It 

sounds terrible, but it was good.” 

Having formerly worked with good friend and 

kneeboard shaper Peter Berry, Neal had a solid 

understanding of foam and fibreglass. He picked up 

a job working for Storageman, who subcontracted 

work to him. Storageman’s clients included the likes 

of Mambo and Rip Curl. 

“I worked with lots of different companies – Mambo, 

Rip Curl, Maui & Sons, City of Sydney Christmas 

decorations, making big fibreglass soldiers and 

teddy bears… you’d walk into the backyard and 

there’d be giant teddy bears and soldiers and 

Mambo stuff. It used to look amazing sometimes, it 

was like a kid’s fantasy.” 

That’s what Neal continued to do for many years 

to come as well as security for some high-profile 

Sydney identities. He was even part of Bob Hawke’s 

security assignment. To hear more of Neal’s 

story tune into our Smorgasboarder podcast at 

smorgasboarder.com.au. 

48


49 

Neal makes plenty of weird and wonderful fibreglass stuff. 

photo: Adam Watson Parcell


on the road again 

Ben Shaw - Raw Surfboards 

Kent Ladkin of Natural Necessity 

For fear of sounding like a broken record, I don’t 

want to go on too much about the drive from 

the Far South Coast of New South Wales to 

Wollongong but it is a must for anyone who hasn’t 

done it before. There is always a wave breaking 

somewhere and so many great little coastal towns 

along the way; Eden, Tathra, Bermagui, Broulee… 

you could spend weeks in the region. 

There are also so many cool surf shops and 

talented shapers to see along the way. In terms surf 

superstores you can’t go past Natural Necessity at 

Gerringong. It basically redefines what a surf shop 

is – it’s range of boards, accessories and clothing 

is incredible. You then have stalwarts of the local 

surfing communities like Southern Man Surf in 

Ulladulla, who also own the local Rip Curl shop 

as well. Kent and Juanita Saunders are salt of the 

earth people who always give you the time of day 

and will help get behind and support grassroots 

businesses like ourselves. Ocean & Earth also have 

their headquarters and a huge factory outlet in 

Sussex Inlet – try to escape there without spending 

some money. I never have. 

Then you have the super cool, hip little surf stores 

like Finbox in Thirroul and Switchfoot Boardstore 

in Pambula, owned and run by Jed Done of Jed 

Done Surfboards. 

Daren Glennan of Entity Surfboards 

On the shaper side of things, there good people 

such as Ben Shaw of Raw Surfboards who always 

has some super fine surfboards on the racks at 

his shaping shed in Tathra, or he can custom build 

one for you. There’s also Daren Glennan at Entity 

Surfboards in Culburra Beach who also makes some 

great performance shortboards, single fins and 

longboards as well. They’re just down-to-earth guys 

who are easy to talk with, who have a true passion 

for their craft. The kind of people that make these 

road trips so memorable and such fun to go on. 

50


A whale of a time - Forrest Ladkin captures life in Gerroa. 

51


who is he? 

It’s a question I’m regularly asked on my travels. Many people have seen his 

beautiful balsa creations in person or amidst the pages of Smorgasboarder, but 

often know little about the man and how his boards have become so highly sought 

after. When I recently caught up with Mark, I asked him that very question. 

photo: Ian Hamilton, Lime Light Creative Studios 

52


“Well I’ve been making balsa wood surfboards now 

for 22 years. That all started by importing balsa 

wood from Ecuador and that was sort of a little bit 

of a sideline to what I was doing at the time. I was 

working as a carpenter and a builder, but I was just 

getting sick of the building industry. So, I bought 

some balsa back after a year trip around Central 

and South America and brought some sticks back 

with me, made a few boards up, realised how 

good balsa wood is - the actual material itself, how 

strong, light, easy to work with and how beautiful 

the boards are - and then went back and got a 

container. And so I’ve been doing that ever since. I 

phased out the building and have just been making 

boards since then and now getting balsa from 

Papua New Guinea.” 

The appeal of sourcing his balsa from PNG is the 

larger section lengths and the quality of the balsa; 

PNG balsa in the main is much lighter in colour and 

weight than Ecuadorian balsa. The logistics and 

pure time to import to Australia is also significantly 

simpler and more economical. 

Mark also has some trees north of Cairns that are 

nearing maturity and are ready to be harvested. 

The balsa from these trees is different in colour and 

weight again. This can be beneficial when looking 

to match colours with customer requirements. 

53


“Certain customers want to match woodwork, 

furniture internally. So, I can pick through all my 

wood. I’ve got logs now. I’d have a thousand sticks 

in stock to pick from. If someone wants a certain 

length, size, width, density, colour, whatever, we can 

supply it. 

“I can supply a board, a wood blank, whatever 

stage they want it at, depending on their skills and 

their tools and whether they can get help off friends 

or teachers or whatever because everyone wants 

to have a go at making a board, but they might 

not have the skills to start it from the raw wood. 

Therefore, I’ll give them a blank half-shaped or three 

quarter-shaped where they just finish off the rails 

and glass it themselves.” 

Aside from shaping his own line of surfboards, Mark 

supplies balsa to many surfboard shapers across 

Australia and as far as the United States. 

“I’m making blanks up now for Hobie Surfboards 

in California. I’ll make up a solid blank. It’s like a 

classic mal blank with eight sticks, three stringers. 

I’ll send that over to California, they’ll shape that up. 

And you know, Pieter Surfboards up in Newcastle, 

they’ll order blanks, McTavish orders blanks, 

Bennetts order a lot of blanks. I’ll supply balsa for 

stringers to Bennetts and also to Midget Farrelly’s 

Surf Blanks. 

Anything’s possible with balsa. You know, there’s 

a lot of history there. It goes back to the 50’s and 

60’s and it’s such a good material to be shaping 

next to foam, or next to cedar, to give the great 

characteristics of the old time.” 

Smorgasboader readers would also be aware of 

Mark’s regular surf and surfboard shaping trips over 

to Papua New Guinea. 

“Yeah, I go over there every year and we’re about 

to head back over in November. Usually we go 

before or just after the season, but this year we’re 

going early November, which is peak season for 

surfing. We’ve got a couple of spare spots available 

if anyone’s interested. You can come over and just 

surf if you want to or fish or dive and if you wanted 

to make a board, you can; next to me and a couple 

of other guys or you can just watch one being 

made.” 

With Mark’s guidance you will learn to shape a solid 

balsa surfboard that is sure to last a lifetime. 

“The other type of board I’ll do is a foam core with 

a Balsa skin over the top. But we just don’t have 

the tools and the material and the technology over 

there to be able to do that. I did do it on one trip 

and it nearly killed me. I did four or five boards with 

foam and I came back a wreck. We had problems 

with humidity and resins and everything, but we’ve 

sort of got over the resin side of thing. I’m using a 

UV cure resin now. Humidity doesn’t affect that. But 

yeah, that’s been an experience going back there 

once, twice a year. We’ve taken schools over there; 

20 kids over there, made boards and helped the 

locals. Helped the locals learn how to make a board 

and how to use balsa. That’s been successful.” 

As mentioned, Mark not only shapes solid balsa 

collectibles but high-performance recycled foamcore, 

balsa-skin shortboards, longboards, fishes 

and funboards right through to alaias and standup 

paddleboards. 

“Everything is custom made. So the customer 

comes to me saying, you know, I like this sort of 

board but I’d like something bigger or smaller or 

whatever. Everything’s built by hand, you know. 

There’s no computers here. We make templates up. 

We’re doing rocker templates and rail templates, 

and deck templates and everything to, you know, 

get things right for customers. No two boards 

are the same. We like to keep them unique and 

individual and the customer can put their little touch 

on it. They want a nose block, tail block, certain glue 

up in a fin, certain sunrise in a D fin, you know, 10 

stringers if they really want. I’ve built boards with 40 

stringers in it for a 40th birthday.” 

The only issue with Mark’s boards is that customers 

don’t return unless they are after a new shape. 

“My boards are a lot stronger than a regular 

polyurethane blank board, mainly because of the 

density of balsa, the glue-up we’re doing, the 

laminations - you know, give it extra strength. I’ve 

had three snaps in 20 years, so that’s a pretty good 

record. And in those three snaps it was pretty much 

an internal glue-up. It wasn’t to the right specs. 

So, I replaced those boards. I’ve done probably 

over a thousand finished boards, probably another 

thousand blanks and another thousand kits on top 

of that in 20 years.” 

balsasurfboardsriley.com 

54


Everything’s built by hand, you know. 

There’s no computers here. 

55 

photo: Ian Hamilton, Lime Light Creative Studios


end of the road 

And with my final interview done and dusted it was time 

to hit the road singing that classic Boyz II Men song 

everyone loves but very few admit to: 

Although we’ve come 

To the end of the road 

Still I can’t let go 

It’s unnatural 

You belong to me 

I belong to you 

Yes, I belong to the road and it to me. It is in my blood. But I shall 

return. Look out for our next edition where we pick up Part 2 of our 

Roadtrip – the Sunny Coast to Sydney. 

56


painting the waves 

words: tami argaman 

Mitch Revs is a 28 year old self-taught artist from 

Newcastle. He started surfing when he was 10 

years old, but back then he had no idea what a big 

influence it would have on his career today. 

“I was never competitive, it was all about fun and 

mateship” Mitch says. 

“Surf is therapy for me, it’s a way to clear my head 

and get away from the pressure of work and life in 

general.” 

Mitch works as a free-lance artist and designer, 

which makes it easy for him to work on the road 

and see the world. He creates content for national 

and international brands as well as custom 

artworks and murals. 

“Art is a way for me to express my 

life and leave my positive print on 

society” Mitch says. 

Charity is a big part of his motivation. “I love 

supporting organisations who have a mission to 

bring happiness into the work”. Thanks Mitch, we 

love supporting people like you. 

more info: @mitchrevs 

www.mitchrevs.com 

mitchrevsart@gmail.com 

57


gear 

58


black magic 

Mitchell Rae and Isaac Harry of Outer Island Surfboards have done it again. 

Pure surfing alchemy. Mitchell explained the build process. 

“We rose to the challenge on this one. It’s a Black 

Magic custom order 6’4” twin fin for Lewy. 

“Lewy’s wife, Nerida, presented us with some great 

ideas for her hubby’s new twin fin, stuff we hadn’t 

done before. She took charge of the design/ art 

side of the order. 

“I’ve been taking note of some of the recent 

work coming out contrasting high gloss and matt 

finishes. It’s tricky but the end result is stunning. It’s 

hard enough to do just as rails and panels let alone 

what we did, picking out the Spirit Eye in black on 

black, gloss and matt. 

“We glassed the board with black pigment tints 

to start and worked out the rest as we went. The 

bottom took some head work as well with Isaac 

doing some test panels to get the best results.” 

The board is truly something else. Indeed, when 

you came across boards like these, as you so 

often do when you pay a visit to the Outer Island 

Surfboards’ factory, you are taken aback. We just 

had to put this in the mag to share with our readers. 

“We nailed it I reckon. It’s a great looking board 

all round, handshaped with a nice balance of old 

school and new wave elements. It looked great 

just in black glass tints before the other design 

elements were added. The clients are stoked with 

the finished results.” 

Now that’s what we call a custom build. 

outerislandsurfboards.com 

59


9’4” double cedar 

stringers with green 

tint #surfboard 

#surfart #resinart 

Hellcat 4 Channel Twin Fin 

5’7’’ x 19 ” x 2 5 / 16” 

RAW SURFBOARDS 

340 Tathra Road, Tathra, NSW 

E: rawsurfboards@aapt.net.au 

M: 0417 910 432 

Sexy set of Glide twin fins off 

my own template that equates 

to speeed to burn. Cool resin 

tint with cut laps and available 

in all sizes. 

DARREN DICKSON SURFBOARDS 

Shed 4, 10 Baines Cr, Torquay, Vic 

P: 0437 246 848 

E: dickosurf@gmail.com 

The Cage Fighter 

Greg Hogan was Inspired by Tony “Dorris” Eltherington while on 

a surf charter in the Mentawais. Designed to be ridden in good 

quality waves (bigger than the length would suggest) but also 

works in the local beachies. Full nose area for ease of entry 

into waves, pin tail and 5 fin setup as standard (for versatility) 

“the ultimate 1 board Indo quiver”. Full range in store, but often 

custom made to order! 

ISLAND SURFBOARDS 

147 THOMPSON AVENUE, COWES VIC P: 03 5952 2578 | E: cowes@islandsurfboards.com.au 

225 SMITHS BEACH ROAD, SMITHS BEACH, VIC P: 03 5952 3443 | E: cowes@islandsurfboards.com.au 

ISLANDSURFBOARDS.COM.AU 

60


19” x 23’’ x 16 ½” 

Owner Operated Model, 9’4 to 10’2 

This model has a scooped out concave leading to a flat area for 

stablilty and roll in the tail, 50/50 rails. It is our go to log, it nose rides 

a dream and easily jams nice turns off the rear. 100% handshaped 

and made on the central coast NSW. $1300 comes with fin and tint 

or spray of your choice. 

IMPRINT SURFBOARDS 

Central Coast, NSW 

E: imprintsurfboards@hotmail.com 

M: 0451 220 800 

This is becoming a popular shape from 6’ thru to 8’. Fuller nose outline 

and a nice rounded pin tail. 10” Center box and quad options. 

Gets your wave count up but still lively off the tail. 

This ones 7’4”- 22 1/4”- 3 1/8”- 53.6lts. Resin 

tint swirl bottom and rails 4x6x4 oz glassing. 

#clarksurfboards #thedingking #madeinsa 

#burfordblanks #ridefutures #custom 

THE DING KING / CLARK SURFBOARDS 

Units 7 & 8, 9 Chapman Road, Hackham, SA 

E: leightonclark01@yahoo.com.au 

M: 0422 443 789 

CHRIS GARRETT SHAPES / 

PHANTOM SURFBOARDS 

M: 0424 450 690 

E: phantomsurfboards@gmail.com 

CHRISGARRETTSHAPES.COM.AU 

Custom surfboards, contact Chris 

or see Board Culture at Mermaid 

Beach for stock boards 

61


Not the newest newest edition 

to our longboard line up but 

one of the most popular, I 

can’t put into words how well 

this board is working and how 

positive the feedback has 

been. Since my first one I’ve 

been hooked. Devon Howard 

described it as the best 

longboard he’s ever had. And 

has been riding it non stop for 

the past 2 years. 

A long, medium width blended 

nose concave that flows 

into a slight roll through the 

back end. Foiled right out the 

nose and tail with 50/50 rails 

through out its like everything 

I’ve ever wanted in longboard 

perfectly balanced and rolled 

into the per board. 

Recommended Skill Level, 

beginner to advanced 

Length 9’0” to 10’2” 

Thickness 2 ½ to 3 ½” 

Width 22 ½ to 24” 

THOMAS SURFBOARDS 

4 Project Ave, Noosaville 

THOMASSURFBOARDS.COM 

BANTAM 

is in our performance 

series. The 

combination of 

moderate rocker, 

medium rail, and 

single concave 

running off the tail, 

allows this board to 

maintain speed and 

manoeuverability in 

critical sections and 

drive through the flat 

sections. Suited for 

beach breaks and 

points. 

Different strokes for different folks. 

I make surfboards specifically tailored to the rider not 

carbon copy cut-outs. Talk to me about your next 

custom. Shortboards through to longboards and 

everything in between. 

Available sizes 5’6-6’ 

FCSII-FUTURE-Thruster 

PU-EPS/Epoxy 

RABBIDGE SURF DESIGNS 

P: 02 4456 4038 

M: 0427 767 176 

E: markrab88@gmail.com 

ROOSTER BRAND 

Instagram,Facebook & Tumblr: roosterbrand 

E: roosterbrandltd@hotmail.com 

WWW.ROOSTERBRANDLTD.COM 

62


F1 GUN HP 

9’9’’ x 23 1 / 4 ” x 3 1 / 4” 

Designed for 

powerful surf or 

Longboarders that 

don’t want to go to 

the nose. Single / 

double concave with 

continuous curve 

rocker. Available 

as a custom from 

9ft- 12 ft. 

NMC SURFBOARDS 

Barwon Heads, Victoria 

M: 0438 800 539 

E: nmcsurf@bigpond.com 

5’8 x 19 ½ x 2 7/16 – 

30.7L 

SWORDFISH 

Easy speed, super 

responsive but with 

plenty of hold for 

drawn out turns. Will 

perform equally as well 

in clean hollow waves 

or soft summer swells. 

My personal favourite 

and daily go to board! 

Made in our certified 

Ecoboard construction. 

Call us to find out 

more.. 

BLACK SQUARE SURFBOARDS 

1/28a Acacia Ave Port Macquarie, 2444 

M: 0407 604 753 

E: info@blacksquaresurfboards.com.au 

BLACKSQUARESURFBOARDS.COM.AU 

OKE SURFBOARDS 

1/1-7 Canterbury Rd, Braeside, VIC 

M: 03 9587 3553 

E: rory@okesurfboards.com 

OKESURFBOARDS.COM 

63


support the grassroots 

surf directory 

alkali adorn 

Beautifully handcrafted artisan jewellery with rustic unpolished 

silver, gorgeous shells and precious stones to create one-of-a-kind 

pieces. Inspired by the surf and the natural wonders of the sea. 

Contact Kate Jones, to order your own unique piece. 

the surf emporium 

Clothing, wetsuits, surfboards, surfboard and wetsuit rentals. 

Open 7 days 9am – 5pm 

Volcom Lane, Raglan 

P: +64 7 282 0018 E: info@raglansurfemporium.com 

raglansurfemporium.com 

the board shop 

New Zealand’s Surf Specialists – The Board Shop has been at 

the cutting edge of hi-tech epoxy surfboard, longboard and SUP 

technology for over 20 years. Drop in or check them out online. 

49 Barrys Point Rd, Takapuna, Auckland 

P: +64 9 486 0930 | theboardshop.co.nz 

coolest spot in town 

A front row seat to beautiful Lyall Bay, Wellington’s top surf spot and 

the best brunch around! 

Located at Lyall Bay at Wellington. Opened 7am – 5pm 

maranuicafe.co.nz 

new zealand 

jiff morris 

jeff@smorgasboarder.co.nz 

0220 943 913 

island surf shack 

Gear we carry: Carve sunnies, watches, clothing, boards & surf 

hardware, Ocean & Earth clothing & surf hardware, Maddog Boards 

& surfing hardware, Bear clothing, Bamboozld Bamboo Socks & 

Boxer shorts, Mexican Bajas , Sunbum sunscreen, ILoveEarth 

recyclable collapsible reusable coffee cups, Old Guys Rule Tees & 

accessories, Nepalese woollen yin yang jumpers & ponchos, Golden 

Breed, Hawaiian dashboard hula girls, coconut soy candles, Kombi 

giftlines and replicas, fun beach and hawaiian gift lines. 

150A Thompson Avenue, Cowes, 

Ph: 03 5952 1659 

for 

more 

enquiries 

australia 

tami argaman 

tami@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0466 439 330 


64


the heart of the surf community 

your original surf shop - packed full of the best gear 

Celebrating great customer service along with the latest surf gear 

and fashion for 44 years and going strong. 

T7, 119 Princes Highway, Woolworths Centre, Ulladulla 

P: (02) 4454 4904 

Instagram: @southernmansurf 

southernman.com.au 

goodtime surf skate and sail 

Caring for a surfer’s every need since 1971. 

Goodtime Surf Skate and Sail @goodtimesurfandsail 

29 Ipswich Rd, Woolloongabba 4102, QLD 

Car-park at rear of the store, off Gibbon St 

P: (07) 3391 8588 E: info@goodtime.com.au 

www.goodtime.com.au 

surfware australia 

So much surf gear in store you will be amazed! 

From surfboards to skateboards, wetties, surfwear and all the latest 

gadgets. SPECIAL FOR THIS ISSUE: LADIES BIKINIS 50% OFF & 

MENS TEES 2 FOR $40. 

2 Bulock Street, Caloundra Qld 

P: 07 5491 3620 surfwareaustralia.com 

surfing accessories 

We have Australia’s hottest new surfing accessories to keep you 

in the surf longer. Our innovative products can help you enjoy the 

surf and outdoors even more and provide you with protection and 

comfort as you follow your passion! Stockists of H2Odyssey webbed 

gloves and X-STING-WISH®IT. Organic sting relief. 

seeyououtthere.com.au 

tried and trusted blanks 

Family owned and run for the past 55 years, our consistency is the 

best in the world. Our blanks come in a multitude of different lengths, 

rockers and weights. We also have an extensive variety of timber 

stringers of varying widths. And we have all the shaping tools you 

need to make a board from scratch! 

5 Stewart Road, Currumbin Qld 

P: 07 5534 3777 burfordblanksaustralia.com.au 

for your culinary delights 

The Rivermouth General Store. Great coffee + speciality teas, 

gourmet food, fresh juices, smoothies, art, awesome vibe, surfing 

stories + the floor is worth reading. 

101 Sunpatch Parade, Tomakin Nsw 

Instagram: @therivermouth 

Facebook: The Rivermouth General Store 

65


support the grassroots 

indo surf travel insurance 

The NEW Travel Insurance that also 

covers 

SURFBOARDS - even IN USE surfing! 

$25 Million Emergency Flights & Hospitals 

Price Beat Guarantee! 

indosurf.com.au 

PIHA 

DOMAIN 

MOTOR CAMP 

piha domain motor camp 

Camp on the beach in front of the iconic 

Lion Rock, at one NZ’s top surf breaks. 

Rates from $18 a night for tent sites. 

E: pihacamp@xtra.co.nz 

P: +64 9 812 8815 

raglan longboards 

Quality surfboards Long or Short 

Short or Long term rentals 

Mickey T. custom shapes 

Full repair service. 

P: +64 7 825 0544 

raglanlongboards.co.nz 

surfboards designed and shaped 

by mike jolly 

Full repair service. Rentals, surfing gear 

and good advice. 

122 Seaview Road, Piha Beach NZ 

P: +64 9 812 8723 

pihasurf@xtra.co.nz 

sup centre 

Life’s better standing up. A one stop 

shop for everything SUP with the best 

brands, range, prices and expertise. With 

access to all the major SUP brands in NZ, 

through a nationwide delivery service. 

20 Melrose Street, Newmarket, NZ 

P: +64 9 520 3366 

supcentre.co.nz 

standup paddle boarding nz 

South Island’s complete SUP centre. 

Lessons, hire, demo, training, sales. 

Unit 2, 1030 Ferry Road, 

Christchurch NZ 

P: +64 3 384 5086 

groundswell.co.nz 

brunswick surf shop 

Chock full of awesome threads, sunnies, 

surf and skate accessories, Therapy, 

Matt Hurworth and RA Hand Shaped 

Surfboards to have the locals frothing. 

1/12 The Terrace, Brunswick Heads NSW 

p: 02 6685 1283 

brunswicksurf.com.au 

preece’s surf shop 

Plenty of new and used surfboards, 

bodyboards, wetsuits, clothing and 

accessories. The only surf shop right on 

the coast. Open 7 days. 

159 Esplanade, Port Noarlunga Sth, SA 

P: 08 8386 0404 

preece-sthport-surf.com.au 

66

Fun fact: Surfing naked is called a ‘hang-eleven’ (from surfing-waves.com). 

...until next time, cheerio! The smorgasboarders.

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