Enter a world of magic and mystery, in my own head, where surfing and snowboarding are considered real jobs! Amazing feats of daring and skill are performed every day - and that's just getting the footage onto film!
Media anarchist, film guru, surf addict and web video blogger!
The Easter Show was great with EFC Africa fighters James "Jambo" Le Roux and Jaydson Costa in studio to discuss their upcoming title fights at EFC Africa 13 at Grand West Casino on Friday 13th April. I will be attending the event and we will have feedback on next week's show. Was great to find out both fighters surf! Robby MacDonald was with me to talk about the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach, the Quiksilver Pro Junior in Durban and the Billabong Grom Games in PE over the Easter Weekend. We also had a surprise skype call from Roland Schoeman from his flight back to SA from the States, to come compete in the SA Olympic swimming trials.
Download the Podcast here - Podcast Show 29
(Right click and Save as.)
The votes are in, the judges have made their calls and the 2012 Innersection Video winner is, Albee Layer, from Maui. The guys from Maui have been dominating this competition and one wonders if they got Taylor Steele a holiday home on the Island? Jamie O'Brien came in a close second and I have to admit to thinking his entry was better! The footage from giant, Nias, alone was enough to win me over. But, congrats to Albee, I am sure he must be one stoked dude!
Marc Mathews heading for the caning of his life at "The Right".
As the XXL Awards sneak ever closer I continue my previews of the nominations and this week we look at the "Verizon Wipeout Awards". There are some horrific wipes in this batch, with Teahupoo serving up ywo of the nominations and they are absolute horror wipes. Jaws and Shipstern's Bluff both have 1 nomination a piece and they will make your toes curl while watching in sick fascination. However, in my opinion the wipe of the year must go to Marc Mathews for his absolutely crazy wipe at the even crazier wave of "The Right". I don't even want to imagine what it must have felt like to be swallowed by that warping, mutant beast of a wave! What are your thoughts...
Gaming was added to the mix this week on Captain Kai's World with Glenn, from 4 Elements Gaming. He brought his resident online gaming guru and we talked online gaming, platforms and of course the latest games, promoting the new "SSX" snowboarding game. The first Monday of every month will now play host to a Gaming review.
Rawlins was back to discuss the new AMA Supercross Champion, ABSA Cape Epic and the start of the 2nd World Tour surf event, the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach.
Download the Show 28 Podcast here - Show 28 Podcast (Right Click, Save as)
Ian Walsh making a play at big Pipeline during the Masters. (Photo: ASP)
For the 2011-2012 Winter Season, Surfline and Nike put up $25'000 for the "Wave of the Winter". This was a pretty big carrot for the crew on Oahu and saw many go for broke moments over the course of the winter. Check out the winning wave, that went down at Off the Wall, as apposed to Pipe or Backdoor - its a mental tube! A great 20 minute surf movie.
Yes happy snow fans of the deep south of Africa, summer draws to a close and the winter approaches. Judging by the last few winters and the insanely hot summer, I am calling a winter of dumps and Pow! So to get you into the mood, here is a great little edit from last year's Quiksnow SA Champs, by our man, Lebo. I cannot recommend enough, how good Afriski has become and what a great time can be had at the Quiksnow weekend. Book soon, places are minimal.
Travis Pastrana enters his new challenge in 2012 entering the Nascar Championship for the full season. In order for us mere mortals to understand the dynamics of this achievement and to take us behind the scenes of his new passion, Travis, along with Red Bull, have started a new bi-weekly web show. Personally, I am pretty excited to keep track of this as the world's best known action sports star takes on the biggest names in US motor racing. Travis has never buggered around, so I am pretty confident he will rock Nascar. Check out Episode 1...
Ryan Hipwood on one serious Cloudbreak Nomination!
The 2012 "Ride of the Year" nominations are in for the XXL Awards. My choice for this year is the wave above, Ryan Hipwood, at massive paddle Cloudbreak. That has to be one of the biggest grab rail tubes ever and it had the timer running for a solid amount of time. Greg Long's huge tube at Puerto was also solid and Jeff Rowley's Jaws Bomb was pretty amazing.
Interestingly, the 2 Tow nominations don't really deserve to be there in my opinion. While Nathan Fletcher's massive tube at Teahupoo is simply insane, he did not ride it out. Surely the "Ride of the Year" winner needs to be a made wave? Garret McNamara's giant wave in Portugal, while huge, looks pretty slow and flat. (This is the opinion of a couple of big wave chargers I have questioned on the subject.) It may have had the wave height, but it was not a great wave.
Current Tour leader, Taj Burrows, showing how dangerous he can be at Bells. (Photo: ASP)
Who will ring the famous Bell in 2012? After a manic start to the year at Snapper, with some who had been raved about, failing miserably, and others who had been written off, doing well, it is now a tough call to say who should win Bells. The shifty and difficult point break (Though it looks so perfect in those photos.) plays solidly into the hands of the Natural Footers and the poor Goofy guys will be at a severe disadvantage.
Taj took the win and the number 1 slot at Snapper and he will be difficult to beat at Bells. He is surfing fast, loose and hard - all of which will score well at the Rip Curl Pro. He also has the confidence of the number 1 seed, so watch out for Taj.
Bells looks amazing, bu it can be a deceptive arena for the surfers. (Photo: ASP)
Joel Parkinson is the defending champion and always surfs well at Bells, where his smooth, power lines are tailored for the wrapping point waves. Mick Fanning is also always going to be dangerous at Bells. At this point, there is speculation on whether the "Freak", Kelly Slater will arrive or not. Your guess is as good as mine. If he does, add him to the list of could easily win Bells.
Then we have the younger guns. Jordy Smith is looking in great form after Snapper and being 3rd on the rankings will help with the confidence. (Just hope his Dad's snoring does not keep him from waking refreshed!) Bells suits the Jordy package and with 2, 3rds already there, he is ready to step up and ring the Bell. John John Florence, fresh off a huge win at the Margaret river 6 Star, will also be brimming with confidence. If the surf goes to "Point Break" sizes then the youngster from Hawaii will certainly be the one you don't want in your heats.
My outside shot, Josh Kerr. If the waves are super clean, this guy could ring the Bell. He has been surfing really well the last 6 months on tour and is due a win. He has it all from the power lines to the air. Don't be surprised if Kerr and Bells ring each other!
ASP Press Release: BELLS BEACH, Victoria/Australia (Monday, April 2, 2012) – The
Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Ranger will commence its
waiting period tomorrow and the Southern Ocean is poised to deliver
excellent conditions for the world’s best surfers to do battle in.
Event No. 2 of 10 on the 2012 ASP World Championship Tour, the Rip
Curl Pro Bells Beach will recommence the race for the ASP World Title
and the elite ASP Top 34 will do surf for the honor of ‘ringing the
bell’ by event’s end.
Taj Burrow (AUS), 33, current ASP World No. 1 and former Rip Curl Pro
Bells Beach winner (2007), is fresh off a victory at the season-opening
event on the Gold Coast and will look to consolidate his efforts this
week at Bells Beach.
“Coming off a win definitely helps in terms of confidence,” Burrow
said. “It’s impossible to commit to long-term projections so early in
the year, but I definitely want to back myself up with a good result
here.”
Coastalwatch Plus, official forecaster for the Rip Curl Pro Bells
Beach, are calling for the start of the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach to
be nothing short of excellent. The forecast broadly hinges on an active
storm track affecting the far southern Indian Ocean through to Western
Australian longitudes over the next week.
“I’ve never been much of a forecast guy,” Burrow said. “I usually
just try to approach each day ready to surf anything. From what I’ve
been hearing though, it sounds like we’re going to have a good week of
waves. I’ve been working on my boards and I think I’ve got some good
ones ready for Bells. Equipment is crucial as Bells is such a unique
wave.”
While Burrow currently sits atop the elite ASP World Championship
Tour ratings, the Western Australian admits that the depth of talent
within the ASP Top 34 is staggering.
“There are absolutely no easy draws on tour anymore,” Burrow said.
“It’s about as elite an ASP Top 34 as you can get and everyone is
capable of posting a win. It makes it really exciting to watch and
hopefully I can put in some good showings this week.”
Burrow will take on highly-touted rookie Kolohe Andino (USA), 18, and
trials winner Nic Muscroft (AUS), 29, in Round 1 of the Rip Curl Pro
Bells Beach.
When competition kicks off, up first will be Jordy Smith (ZAF), 24,
Kieren Perrow (AUS), 35, and Fredrick Patacchia (HAW), 30, in Heat 1 of
Round 1.
Running in conjunction with the men’s event is the second stop on the
2012 ASP Women’s World Championship Tour, the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach
presented by Ford Fiesta.
Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 24, four-time ASP Women’s World Champion and
current ASP Women’s World No. 1, regained her frontrunner status last
month with a hometown win on the Gold Coast. The young natural-footer
claimed an unprecedented four ASP World Titles from her first four
attempts on tour, but last year fell to No. 3 as she was dethroned by
Hawaiian sensation Carissa Moore (HAW), 19.
“Winning any event on tour is a great feeling, but definitely winning
at home and at the opening event of the year is special,” Gilmore said.
“Compared with 2011, I’m in a much better place this season. I’m not
dealing with any injuries and I’m feeling a lot more relaxed. It’s
definitely a different kind of mindset that you experience when you’re
the frontrunner as opposed to chasing the frontrunner, and I think
that’s played in my favor to start the year off.”
A three-time past winner of the Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach
(2007, 2008, 2010), Gilmore’s affinity with the wave will serve her well
this week as she takes on her fellow ASP Top 17 competitors.
“I’ve been surfing and competing at Bells for as long as I can
remember and it’s a special place in surfing,” Gilmore said. “I don’t
mean to sound redundant as everyone says this, but it truly is an
incredible natural amphitheater and when the waves are on, it’s one of
the most rippable spots on the planet. I think my style of surfing
definitely suits the walls at Bells and I just hope we get swell for the
event.”
While a percentage of pundits within the surf media questioned
Gilmore’s motivation and commitment to competition following her
dethroning last season, the progressive natural-footer has brushed such
criticism aside, reaffirming her desire to win and her perspective on
maturation.
“It’d be an easy thing to say that after winning the first event of
the year, my focus has returned, but that’s just not accurate,” Gilmore
said. “My focus never left the tour – I’ve always wanted to compete, and
I compete to win. The ASP Title is still the goal, it’s still a driving
force in my life – it’s just not the case that I have a singular goal
anymore. That said, all my efforts right now are geared towards
preparing for Bells and I’m very much looking forward to it.”
Gilmore will battle rookie Lakey Peterson (USA), 17, and wildcard Nikki Van Dijk (AUS), 17, in the opening round of competition.
Event organizers will convene tomorrow morning at 7am to assess conditions for a possible 7:30am start.
The Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach will run from April 3 – 14, 2012 and will be webcast LIVE via http://live.ripcurl.com
The coolest event in Snowboarding finally made it onto American Television over the weekend and we can only hope, that somehow the show makes it to SA Screens. In the meantime here is the full web video to salivate over. Supernatural is the brain child of Red Bull and Travis Rice and takes the free riding from their films, such "the Art of Flight" into a terrain area for competition. Enjoy the video...
