Featured Archives: the best of the best - Page 2 of 15

Watch: Southern Blast

Derek MorrisonJul 2, 2024July 25, 20240

Southern Blast tells a story of natural beauty and the looming threat of oil and gas exploration along Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania’s coastline – endangering a unique coastal lifestyle and surfing culture. Southern Blast is a beautiful cinematic celebration of the wild landscapes, abundant marine ecosystems, and local communities...

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,...

Review: O’Neill Hyperfreak Fire 4:3 Chest Zip Steamer

Derek MorrisonJun 14, 20242

O’Neill seems to have stumbled across a magic formula with its Hyperfreak series. Its latest Hyperfreak Fire, or Hyper Fire as it’s now called, takes that performance up another notch. We thrashed one to death, with close to 500 surf sessions, to see how it performed. It hasn’t all been...

Five Minutes With National Champion Daniel Farr

Derek MorrisonFeb 3, 20240

Hot on the heels of his 2024 New Zealand Surfing Championship we catch up with Taranaki’s Daniel Farr to find out how it feels to win his second Open title … and the moment he knew he had won it. Daniel Farr wasn’t on the radar for the 2024 National...

Business Insight: The C-Skins New Zealand Story

Derek MorrisonJan 5, 2024April 9, 20240

Bringing a new wetsuit brand into New Zealand was never going to be easy, but that didn’t deter Simon Clowes and Cian Sullivan – the duo behind C-Skins here in New Zealand. Simon jokes that he and Cian could be father and son. While there is a 25-year gap between...

Watch: Calypte

Derek MorrisonJan 2, 2024June 11, 20240

When Torren Martyn and Aiyana Powell borrowed the 35ft sailing boat ‘Calypte’ and departed from the east coast of Thailand in early 2022, they had a combined sailing experience of only a few days. Ishka Folkwell documented that journey. The one requirement of their charter was to eventually deliver the...

Oscar Hetherington Wins International Surf Photography Award

Derek MorrisonNov 15, 2023November 17, 20230

New Zealand’s Oscar Hetherington has won the world’s most prestigious surf photography contest, when it was announced that he had won the Follow The Light Surf Photography Grant award a few days ago at Laguna Beach, California. The awards are held each year to honour the late Larry “Flame Moore,...

Barrels, Beers & Dislocations: An Indonesian Rookie’s Story

Isaac ChadwickNov 15, 20230

Isolated beaches with no one in sight. Dreamy barrels curving onto a perfectly shaped volcanic reef. Amazing food for the price of next to nothing. And now Jack McLeod is being precariously lifted onto a wooden tuk-tuk boat with his left arm painfully protruding from its socket, muscles throbbing in...

The Waddell Collection: NZ Surfing Memorabilia & Boards Offered For Sale

Grant DysonNov 14, 2023November 14, 20230

One of New Zealand’s finest collections of classic Kiwi surfboards and surfing memorabilia – held in a private collection – is being offered for sale. The collection, stored in a hangar at Tauranga Airport, centres on more than 130 surfboards, both longboards and short boards, most in excellent condition. It...

Surf Business: In Deep With Backdoor Owner, Hutch

Derek MorrisonNov 6, 20230

While the surf industry seems to be in a slump, Backdoor’s Geoff Hutchison remains cautiously optimistic as he opens his 25th and biggest store in Dunedin. We caught up with the 60-year-old ripper and surf business guru to learn a bit about what’s going on in the surf industry right...