Description
Surfing Life’s Travel Issue is dedicated to those who want to get out and have a look around, with plenty of pointers from longtime road warriors thrown in for good measure. Travelling means saying yes where normally you might say no; sharing experiences with people you’d never normally cross paths with; and opening your mind to different cultures and ways of being. Given the world’s current political climate and a nasty strand of politicians using fear of the unknown to drive a racist, divisive agenda that threatens our precariously perched planet, maybe we owe it to ourselves to leave our comfort zone, get to know the world a little better, and kill that irrational fear dead. Best of all, if you follow the advice contained within this issue, you might just score the waves of your life while you’re at it.
In this Issue…
The Forget It List – Places you should consider avoiding, unless you have a death wish.
The Endless Plumber – A list from around the world of the best wave pools of the past, present and future!
Jack Robinson – Prince of the Indian Pacific. Jack gives his tips on to how to slot yourself into any lineup in the world, without any problems.
Out of Africa – We pit Skeleton Bay against a hard to reach African Right Hander in a celebrity death match and find out which wave is better!
A Sri Lankan Special with Asher Pacey, Harry Bryant and Bryce Young.
Ace Buchan pens a feature article, Smile High Club, which is worth admission price alone!
Felicity Palmateer Packs her bags!
Owen Wright – Challenge Accepted. Back to full health and with a new addition to his family.
Plus! Additional 4-page gatefold with Photographer Andrew Shield from somewhere you’d rather be …
And that’s not all!! Double-sided wall Poster courtesy of Rip Curl and Mick Fanning’s mystery right!
Alex Davies –
Dear Surfing Life,
Thanks for fueling the stoke.
I picked up your travel edition and was blown away by the quality of content. It is the first time I’ve bought your mag’ in a long while, and I wasn’t aware of the direction it has been taken. But fully loving it.
Waaaay back, in ’88 or ’89, I had a copy of ASL which struck a chord. The cover was someone in a stand up pit, and the feature article was Portugal.
I was in high school, and the magazine disappeared into my math teacher’s possession, never to return. But the idea of this far away country that I had hardly heard of, that apparently had epic waves, stuck with me.
About 10 years later I was in a carer rut, with an imploded group of mates (drugs) and at an end of a long term relationship. So I saved up to buy a one-way ticket to England.
Knocking about in hostels in London I met a girl who said she had been surfing in Portugal, and wrote down a list of breaks I should check out. The mystical land I’d heard about in ASL was now with-in striking distance!
Still, I’d gone to Europe to find out if there was more to life than just chasing waves, and it took me another couple years to get to Portugal. By this time I was in a relationship with a beautiful Polish girl, but it was on the rocks. She had gone back to Poland for a while, and I wasn’t sure she was coming back. We decided to meet in Faro, on the southern coast of Portugal to see if we could rekindle something.
I had a 6’6″ 2nd hand Nev, that I’d bought in a surf shop in Newquay for way to much money. But it was a beautiful board. So that was coming.
In Faro, we hired a car, and for the next two weeks, drove almost the length of the Portuguese coast. We pitched a tent every night, mostly on campsites, but also on deserted beaches and headlands. I scored some great waves, surfing almost everyday. Nothing epic, but it didn’t matter, I was often the only one out, and we were having the time of our lives, soaking up the culture and exploring.
Of the 10 years I ended up living in Europe for, that trip was one of the best. The beautiful Polish girl is now my beautiful wife of nearly 10 years.
We live on the coast in Oz and I’m surfing every chance I get. I discovered in Europe there is more to life than chasing waves, but that nothing can replace it.
I’m looking forward to your next issue.
Regards,
Alex.
Braithy –
Thanks Alex!
Basically mate, we’re stoked if you’re stoked. My love affair with surf mags was something similar to yours. A cover sucked me in, back in 1997, and I had to find out where it was. Before I knew it I was booking tickets and getting myself there. First time I’d ever left Oz, too.
Keep the stoke alive!!