Taira Blakely, Author at New Zealand Surf Journal

Verdure Surf: The Future Of Flex

Taira BlakelyNov 1, 20240

Jack Candlish and team at Verdure Surf just might be the future of surfboard manufacturing. Operating on the cutting edge of sustainable surfboard development, they seem to have found accessible solutions to the environmental flaws plaguing the surf manufacturing industry. They’ve already won over top surfers and shapers, and they...

Winning And Losing With World Number 4 Alexis Owen

Taira BlakelySep 12, 20240

It’s an average Tuesday in Dunedin, New Zealand. The after school rush is in full force as I navigate traffic on the way to the St Kilda Surf Lifesaving HQ. The sky is blue and the air is almost warm – remarkably mild for a winter’s day in Dunedin. The...

Watch: Internet Birthday – Episode 3 – Dunedin, NZ

Taira BlakelyAug 15, 2024August 15, 20240

Filmmaker Geoff Campbell returns to his hometown and brings us a gnarly Thrasher skate edit, filmed in and around Dunedin, New Zealand. Internet Birthday Episode 3 features a cast of talented Australian and Kiwi skaters including Nick Boserio, Rowan Davis, and Jack O’Grady who spent two weeks cruising around Dunedin in...

Film Review: The War On Style

Taira BlakelyAug 5, 2024August 5, 20240

Like it or not, we are living in a world that has waged a war on style. Hank Bilous is deep in the thick of it, aiming to strike the right balance between technical skill and self expression. The professional freeskier, turned surfer, turned nurse explores and challenges these dynamics...

Seer Surfcraft: The White Pointer Must Die!

Taira BlakelyJul 31, 2024August 15, 20240

“I never wanted to make surfboards for other people,” says Homa Mattingly, founder of Seer Surfcraft. As we walk through his backyard shaping bay, it becomes clear to me that he’s failed – at least on that front. The contents of his shaping area have invaded his living space, and...

Watch: The Impossible Wave

Taira BlakelyJul 19, 2024July 25, 20240

Thirty years ago, ISA president Fernando Aguerre dreamed that surfing might one day be included in the Olympic Games. No one could have predicted how challenging that pursuit would be. The Impossible Wave follows Fernando Aguerre’s improbable mission to push surfing into the Olympic spotlight. After 27 years and 12,000 hours...

The Science Of Grip: The Sticky Johnson Story

Taira BlakelyJul 4, 2024August 22, 20240

Steve Morpeth epitomises the Kiwi surfer’s spirit and has built an empire around it with Sticky Johnson – New Zealand’s very own wax brand. Taira Blakely catches up with Steve in the Sticky Johnson factory in Kumeu to discover how he’s built his empire. Hailing from a line of watermen,...

Is Jack Tyro Aotearoa’s Next Big Thing?

Taira BlakelyJun 19, 2024July 25, 20240

Jack Tyro is impossible to miss. At just 17 years of age, he has established himself as one of New Zealand’s most accomplished young surfers, and is already taking on the world. And the most exciting part? He’s only just getting started. The last time we spoke with Jack Tyro,...

Cloudbreak Selected For 2025 World Surf League Finals

Taira BlakelyJun 18, 20240

This morning, the World Surf League announced that Cloudbreak, Fiji, will host the 2025 WSL Final – a winner-takes-all finale that will crown the men’s and women’s World Champions and conclude the 2025 Championship Tour season. Cloudbreak, a legendary left about 2.5 kilometers off the coast of Tavarua, is widely...

Film Review: The Road To Patagonia

Taira BlakelyJun 18, 2024June 18, 20244

We’ve all had that dream – leaving our worldly possessions behind, grabbing our boards, and embarking on the surf-road-trip of a lifetime. For most of us, uprooting our whole lives to surf simply isn’t an option, and we are left living vicariously through folks like Matty Hannon, and his new...