Alana Blanchard Surfer Girl - Sports Illustrated Swimsuit & the North Shore

Ok boys, your favorite surfer, Alana Blanchard, is in the new Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition, as good a reason as any to go buy it. On this episode of her Surfer Girl web show, she shows us behind the scenes footage of the shoot in Las Vegas, as well as some time with her friends on the North Shore. Enjoy...

Meet Pro Surfer, Coco Ho

To say Coco comes from Hawaiian royalty, is not an overstatement! Daughter to Michael Ho, and niece to Derek, this tiny bombshell has grown up in the North Shore sunlight and holds her own on the golden mile! One of the most down to earth and affable surf stars you will ever meet, follow her on Twitter to find out, she is fast making a big name for herself on the ASP World Tour.

Captain Kai's Podcast - Twiggy from Hawaii, Ultimate X, Rolling Retro & Chris Cab!

Grant Twig Baker on his $5000 Oakley Biggest Slab winner. He talks about this session during our interview.

Jam packed show! We had Twiggy skype in live from the North Shore before departing to Australia where he won the Surfing Life Oakley Biggest Slab Award. He gives us the lowdown on the Mavericks event, what will happen with the Eddie and Red Bull jaws events and who has been flying the Saffa flag in Hawaii.

Markus and Rupert join to amp you on this weekends Ultimate X event in Cape Town and I launched a great competition to win ticket packages.

Robby from Vudu Surf joins us to discuss this weekends Rolling Retro event and of course Chris Cab was in studio, causing mayhem and distorting the Mics..

Download or Listen to the Podcast HERE

John John Florence defends his Volcom Pipe Pro Title

Dale Staples representing for the North Shore Saffas and making 9th!

Pipeline was not at its utmost best, but there were waves and the focus shifted from the lefts to the Backdoor Rights. The lone Saffa, Dale Staples charged hard and ended up making the Semi Finals and a well deserved 9th place. Josh Kerr and Chris Ward were on a hard charge and pushing the limits with super late drops and "backdoor" tubes. But after all was said and done, it was defending champion and North Shore royalty, John John Florence who managed to defend his Pipe Pro title and take the glorious Spartan War Helm Trophy home, which happens to be right there...

Volcom Pipeline Pro 2013 - Starts Sunday

The contest season on the ASP World Tour starts with a bang at Pipeline for the 2013 Volcom Pipe Pro. The 5 Star event always brings drama and great action to the start of the year and you can bet that 2012 winner John John Florence will be looking to defend his title! The usual suspects of North Shore chargers and World Tour stars will battle it out for honors, though I am most excited to see how the Saffa boys go. (Well, that's hoping some of them get in...)

The North Shore Saffas - Spex, Frog and Vani G, Episode 1

Frank "Frog" Solomon and Josh "Vanilla Guerrilla" Redman discuss life and stare in each other's eyes on the bike path. (Photo: Spex)

The "Late" Season starts and already the Pacific Ocean has obliged with one great North Shore swell pumping through over the weekend. There to greet it are a pack of Saffas (South African Surfers) living on the North Shore for the next 2 months chasing waves, photos, results and respect. What really makes me super stoked about it, is that they are some of my best buds! Enter the crew of Sacha "Spex" Specker, Frank "Frog" Solomon, Josh "Vani G" Redman, Andrew "Roosta" Lange, Grant "Twig" Baker and Ant Fox. These guys are there to ride and document the North Shore, surf some competition and ride the dream.

Over the next few weeks they and other other South Africans will join Spex on my radio show to fill us in on what has been going down. All the stories, the drama and the results! So keep an eye on this here blog and the Monday Radio show on 2 Oceans Vibe. In the meantime here are 2 videos of week 1 on the Shore!

Frog & Josh 808 week 1 from Sacha 'SPEX' Specker on Vimeo.

Waimea Bay from Damien robertson on Vimeo.

Meet Pro Surfer Maya Gabeira

Maya is drop dead gorgeous and deadly in the big waves!

Meet the hard charging big wave hell lady, who also happens to be a tiny and gorgeous women. Maya Gabeira comes from Brazil and learnt to charge big waves on the North Shore of Hawaii. This lady is not scared, even when asked to surf naked for ESPN...

Pipeline Masters in memory of Andy Irons 2012 Preview

Ian Walsh, a dangerous Wildcard, charges a big set in 2011. (Photo: ASP)

It is pretty fitting that the final event of the ASP World Tour is Pipeline. So many great stories and rivalries over the years have gone down and many a World Title has hinged on this event. This year is no different, with Joel Parkinson, in the hunt for his first World Title, in a dog fight with Kelly Slater, looking for number 12, and Mick Fanning on the outside needing a miracle to take it, but hey, it has happened at Pipe before! Add to this the pack of wildcards, all Pipe specialists frothing to take down the big names from the World Tour and you have a recipe for an epic surf event. Oh and of course, the most dangerous wave in the world...

John John Florence is going to be deadly. Jamie O'Brian still wants to put this trophy on his mantel and young Sebastien Ziets leading the Triple Crown is going to be holding nothing back. Then you have guys like Kieron Perrow on the border of re-qualification and needing a massive result, well he has won last year and made back to back finals.

This could be the contest of decade with great swell forecast already for the first few days. So sit down, strap in, make sure your internet is working and enjoy...

Adam Melling wins the Vans World Cup of Surfing at Sunset Beach

Adam Melling putting his rail on the line for the win at Sunset. (Photo: ASP)

It was old school versus new school at Sunset as guys like Adam Melling, Ace Buchan and Kiren Perrow fought off the charge from the young guns like Perth Stanlick, Gabriel Medina and Sebastien Ziets. When the VOG (Volcanic Smoke Mist apparently.) had settled though, it was Melling who came out on top and took the win, confirming his place on the World Tout for 2013 in the process. Ziets made his second final in the Vans Triple Crown, putting him way out in front for the title and earning him a wildcard for Pipeline. Travis Logie made it to the Round of 32 and Jordy Smith got one round further to the Quarter Finals.

30th Edition of the Pipeline Challenge is go for 2013

There have been some crazy moments over the years at the Pipeline Challenge. Some of the biggest days ever surfed out there, South Africans charging and winning and of course some gruesome wipeouts. Next year sees the 30th edition of this iconic Bodyboard event and of course SA kingpin, Sacha Specker defending his DK title.

Surfing Magazine Swimsuit Addition 2012 - Hawaii

Looks like summer may be trying to fight through the gloom of winter here in SA, so i thought a little taste of summer waves and bikinis was in order. Thanks to Surfer Magazine for the behind the scenes footage of their annual Swimsuit Edition. I mean who does not love gorgeous woman in bikinis on the beach?

SURFING Magazine Swimsuit Issue 2012 47 Second Teaser from SURFING Magazine on Vimeo.

2012 Swimsuit Issue on Location: North Shore, Oahu from SURFING Magazine on Vimeo.

Who is JOB 2.0 - Episodes 6 & 7

Jamie O'Brien lives the life we all dream of on the North Shore. He has plenty of haters, but one thing no one can deny is that he is the boss when it comes to Pipeline and Backdoor. Watch as he casually does 2 surfboard step offs, rides switch foot and generally toys with waves the rest of us might not even surf. Then check as him and his mates take you camping North Shore style on the Big Island and get up to all sorts of mayhem and trouble. Enjoy episodes 6 and 7 of, Who is JOB 2.0...

Wave of the Winter - The best of the 2012 North Shore Season

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.

The King of the North Shore - John John Florence

John John very calm and relaxed on a Pipeline Bomb.

By now you all know who John John Florence is, but it may not have sunk in yet how much he rules the North Shore line up at the tender age of 20. As if winning competitions from Sunset to Pipeline and Backdoor were not enough, he just won the Performance of the Winter award in Hawaii. Just watch the video and its not hard to see why! I cannot wait for this kid to surf the WCT events at Teahupoo and Cloudbreak, it's going to be mental. Have a listen to Shea Lopez's predictions of John John's 2012 WCT future in the second video.



 

Jacko on the North Shore

 

Brandon Jackson decided to give the North Shore of Hawaii a good go this year and spent an extended amount of time there proving himself at Backdoor, Pipeline and the Food Land check outs. You will notice Josh Redman, Frank Solomon and Twig making cameos in the video as they also dedicated a lot of time to chasing the Shore this winter. Pretty short video, but I liked the edit and some good surfing from Jacko.

The Friday Mix - Who is JOB 2.0, the Series

JOB where he loves to be, in gaping Pipeline Pits.

 This week on my Friday Mix, I give you the latest from Red Bull Media and that maniacal surfer, Jamie O' Brian. His surf movie, Who is JOB, was pretty much the best surf film in the last few years and on the back of that success, he has decided to make, Who is JOB 2.0. The new project is a web series made by Red Bull and a new episode is released every second week. I have been meaning to post them, but did not, hence the first few episodes are right here for you in the Friday Mix. I will post the new episodes as they become available, just for you guys! I really enjoy the show, I hope you do to...

 

 

 

 

Spex takes Pipeline DK Title for the Saffers

Sacha "Spex" Specker pretty stoked with his first win on the IBA tour. (Photo: IBA/Trouville)

If anyone was ever bothered to ask me about Spex, I would have told you he is one of the greatest waterman I know. Whether dominating on his bodyboard, surfing equally well, diving or swimming for shots, the guy is dam good! (He also dates one of the world's best female surfers.) He is a patriotic Saffer and the nicest guy you will ever meet. So I am very stoked that he took the DK podium at the Pipeline Challenge. The contest had insane waves with huge performances by the world's best. Check the other day's highlights as well!

As the only non-Hawaiian in today’s dropknee final, South African, Sacha Specker, was a clear underdog. He had been in a final twice before but never tasted victory, until today. He sat slightly wide of the Hawaiians and went about picking off waves that were running along the inside reef at Pipe. “It’s an incredible feeling winning this event. It’s a bit of a dream still. I think it’ll kick in tomorrow, when we play the Aussies in cricket”, said Specker. The Hawaiians, Miles Kauhaahaa, Bud Miyamoto and Kainoa Mcgee, put on great performances in the rounds leading up to the final, weaving their ways through the tricky barrels at Backdoor and Pipe. Kauhaahaa rode the highest scoring wave of the event- a long barrel at Backdoor. Miyamoto had the highest scoring wave of the final-a long deep barrel at Pipe- punctuated with a cutback that threw buckets of spray over the back of the wave. He was unable to find a back up wave and came second to Specker by 3.91 points.

 
 

Mutant Pipeline on Day 3 of the Volcom Pipe Pro 2012

Monster Pipe Tubes were the call for the day! Balram Stack from NY charging... (Photo: ASP)

 Day 3 of the Pipe Pro and it was one third carnage to two thirds mutant tubes! The Saffers woke up to monster Pipeline and the chirps were flying thick and fast on twitter and FB between the North Shore and South Africa. We had three guys in Round 3, Shaun Joubert, Brandon Jackson and Rudy Palmboom. None made it through the round, but watching their heats it was easy to see they tried their best. The waves were huge, scary and all over the show and none of the boys let team SA down. Personally, I would have been terrified just sitting on the beach, where a number of spectators got washed into the shore break! The final day will be posted as soon as the web video goes live.

2012 Da Hui Backdoor Shootout - Day 2

Day 2 of the Da Hui Backdoor Shootout and it was crazy out there! Pipeline seemed the more popular option, but one or two guys, like John John Florence, charged some monster Backdoor Pits. Check out Dust Payne eating crap on a Pipe monster and feel your nads crawl up into your scrotum! It is hard to believe that an event could have better waves than the Pipe Masters, but best believe it! This is PROPER Pipe and Backdoor...

2012 Da Hui Backdoor Shootout - Day1 Highlights

Da Hui Presents the 7th Annual Da Hui Backdoor Shootout. This contest boasts the most participation of Hawai’i born surfers and with it’s unique ‘no- elimination’ judging format which involves three rounds of non- elimination, four man heats and only your best three waves scored – it’s any surfer’s game. So expect to see the best waveriders in the world competing for a shot at the Shootout title!
Day 1 delivered some amazing Pipe and Backdoor pits with John John Florence the standout. Also make sure to look for Bruce Iron's incredible Pipe bomb! The swell reports look good for the next few days, so keep your eyes pealed for more action from the North Shore...

You can find out more at Da Hui