Shaping legend Maurice Cole is heading back to the UK for the first time in 20 years!
He’ll be shaping out of the legendary @Cord_surfboards factory at Wheal Kitty, St Agnes, Cornwall and if you have an order booked in with him you’ll be able to come down and watch him do his magic on your board!
MC, France back the day. How classic is this shot?
There has been surfboard factory behind the cliffs in St Agnes since around 1986 when Chops Lascelles first set up shop there. In the early 90s he moved he operation down the road to a new purpose built premises Wheal Kitty workshops. As with the old factory it was a centre of surf community, both local and international. MC has visited many times in the past, so it’s great to see him back the historic bay.
If your interested in a custom Mc board email the man himself or get onto Cord surfboards > Cord Surfboards [email protected] , Tel: +44 (0) 1872 857020
Markie and Maurice will also be having beers and talking story on Friday the 9th from 4 pm. As you may know MC has many many classic tales so it will be hilarious and informative.
Free beer and surf stories, what more do you want!
The legendary shaping bay
Markie and mum Mary at Cord.
Curren x MC reverse vee. Just an all time shot by Servais.
Navigating the surf scene on Vancouver Island is no easy feat. It’s a science involving reading charts, understanding weather patterns and ocean tides. It’s also understanding the land and the surrounding waters. It’s being ocean savvy, and having a willingness for exploration.
The island is like nowhere else. It’s cold, stormy and unpredictable. Surfing here isn’t necessarily hard; you can just roll up to the beach in Tofino like anywhere else and paddle out. However, finding new and uncrowded, higher quality waves involves a whole lot more. Long drives, long boat rides, open ocean, and unpredictable weather. A lot goes into putting a piece like this together. Sometimes we’ll travel 9 hours one way and come away with nothing. But for Reed, it’s the drive for exploration and adventure that keeps him motivated.
ALMANAC [ awl-muh-nak ] noun – an annual publication containing a calendar for the coming year, the times of such events and phenomena as anniversaries, sunrises and sunsets, phases of the moon, tides, etc., and other statistical information and related topics.
In this edit we go to a place that not many surfers want to surf. Why, it’s super powerful, if you wipeout you’re more than likely end up on the rocks plus it’s a long way from civilisation so if you get hurt, a long way to go to the hospital. This spot is your typical Aussie slab which means it breaks HARD on a shallow reef. If you can paddle it your normally a bodyboarder as breaks very quick But if you’re Nathan Florence, Kipp Caddy or Moroccan legend Jerome Sahyoun then you’re good enough to paddle it.
We were invited down to this location by a keen bunch of locals.They graciously offered me a jet-ski to shoot off to get that cinematic moment. Mind you, where you sit to get the shot is very precarious as on the big ones it tends to closeout so i was constantly looking over my shoulder to see if we were safe. Sometimes I felt like i was out at Nazare.(oh yeah, you fall off, you & your camera are on the rocks)
Also invited was my good friend & slab hunter Dylan Longbottom with his daughter Summa. What went down over the three days at Mumma Luna’s definitely wasn’t your typical surf trip. This one went down as one of the best Swell Chases ever.
WSL CEO Erik Logan responds to social media claims about Ranch judging
To the WSL community,
I want to address the conversation that happened in our community following the recent Championship Tour event at the Surf Ranch. As you likely know, a small number of athletes made statements questioning the judging of the competition and the final results.
I want to respond directly to those statements, however, we first need to address a much more important issue. In recent days, a number of surfers, WSL judges, and employees have been subject to harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence, including death threats, as a direct result of those statements. Those things should never happen in our sport or any sport, and we’re devastated that members of our community have been subject to them. It is an important reminder to us all that words have consequences. We hope the entire WSL community stands with us in rejecting all forms of harassment and intimidation.
In terms of the statements made, we completely reject the suggestion that the judging of our competitions is in any way unfair or biased. These claims are not supported by any evidence.
Firstly, the judging criteria are provided to the athletes ahead of each competition. All athletes competing at the Surf Ranch Pro received these materials on May 20th. Every athlete had the opportunity to ask questions about the criteria at that time. None of the athletes who made these statements took advantage of this opportunity at the Surf Ranch Pro.
Secondly, our rules allow any athlete to review the scoring of any wave, with the judges, and receive a more detailed explanation of how they were scored with the judges. This process has been in place for a number of years, and is the direct result of working with the surfers to bring more transparency to the judging process. It is not acceptable, and is a breach of league policy, for surfers to choose not to engage with the proper process and instead air grievances on social media.
A number of athletes at the Surf Ranch Pro received points for elements such as progression and variety, so it is simply incorrect to suggest these are not taken into account in the judging criteria. Furthermore, our rules have been applied consistently throughout the season, including at events this season that were won by athletes who are now questioning those same rules.
Surfing is an ever-evolving, subjective sport and we welcome a robust debate around the progression of our sport and the criteria used to judge our competitions. However, it is unacceptable for any athlete to question the integrity of our judges who, like our surfers, are elite professionals.
No one person or group of people are above the integrity of the sport.
Sincerely,
Erik Logan
WSL Chief Executive Officer
Three takeaways from this I guess…
If you have been inspired to issue any sort of intimidation and death threats on the back of this, you need therapy.
if you are surfer you got to get a grip and speak to the officials. I mean they aren’t that scary?
And “is a breach of league policy, for surfers to choose not to engage with the proper process and instead air grievances on social media.“.. Bit fascist really. Controversy in sport provides talking points. I mean there are footy fans still debating an offside at Walsall in 1973 that no one cares about.
O’Neill looking for junior surfers from all over Europe and the UK, between the ages of 12 and 16 to compete and be coached at The Wave by O’Neill team riders.
To enter post your best single wave surf videos tag and follow @oneilleurope (Instagram) or @oneillofficial (TikTok).
Make sure to submit your video before the 31st of May 2023.
O’Neill will be selecting the top videos that advance to the final round, where our Team O’Neill riders Beatriz Carvalho and Gui Riberio will choose the winners to surf in a team challenge at Tve Wave!
Once you’re in your team, you’ll be challenged to push your limits with one team will be crowned The Rookie Rippers champions, and the two strongest surfers will win a year’s sponsorship and join Team O’Neill!
THE FINALS WEEKEND DETAILS
WHEN – Friday June 30th to Sunday July 2nd, 2023.
WHERE – The Wave, Bristol, UK
O’NEILL WILL ARRANGE – WavePool facilities – Personalized competition jersey – Accommodation – Catering – Athletes – Staff – Judges – Airport transfer – Prizes & Goodies.
*The Winner must arrange his/her Travel to and from Bristol Airport, the UK to attend this Surf Academy.
