Patagonia is bringing attention to the life story of legendary surfer Wayne Lynch in Craig Griffin’s film Uncharted Waters: The Personal History of Wayne Lynch.

It traces his upbringing in the seaside town of Lorne on Victoria’s south western coast and his turbulent experiences as a ‘conscientious objector’ on the run from conscription and the Vietnam War. Ultimately, it is about an extremely gifted individual with an intense connection to the Southern Ocean, whose approach to surfing has been a spiritual journey often putting him at odds with the surfing subculture and society in general.

The film plays June 20, 2013 at Broad Theater in Santa Monica, California, June 21, 2013 at the world famous La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas, California and June 27, 2013 at Village East Cinema, in New York City.

[Link: Patagonia]

We didn’t really realize it before today, but we’ve always loves photos of girls duck diving. Now, thanks to the work of photographer Sarah Lee, we have someone who appears to do those very photos really well. Ah, specialization. Or is it fetishization? Either way it’s okay. Click the link to check out the rest of Sarah Lee’s photo work.

[Link: Sarah Lee via New York Daily News]

When a true waterman has to go it’s not bad to be on the water as Body Glove co-founder Bob Meistrell was on Sunday, June 16, 2013. Meistrell was on his yacht The Disappearance on Sunday morning when he had a heart attack, according to a story in the Daily Breeze. He was 84 years old.

The Disappearance was the lead boat in the 22-mile Rock 2 Rock race Sunday from Isthmus on Catalina to Cabrillo Beach in San Pedro. As he’s done in previous years, Meistrell led the paddleboarders out of the harbor about 6:30 a.m., his son said. . . But around 7, Robbie Meistrell said he’d received a call that his father’s boat, which was also carrying his mother, Patty, and a second cousin, had a double-engine failure. He was nearby and preparing to help tow the vessel in when he heard soon after that his father had suffered a heart attack in the boat’s engine room, he said.

Meistrell, who founded Body Glove with his twin brother Bill, will be remembered as a legendary diver, surfer, and waterman. Our thoughts are with the entire Meistrell family.

[Link: Daily Breeze]

St. Augustin Beach, Florida surfer Andrew Birchall, 37, is recovering from two shark bites to his foot after jumping off his board and stepping on a shark, according to a story in Action News Jax.

“When he got off the board, he apparently stepped on the shark in about waist deep water. The shark bit him we think twice. We think he bit him once, then kind of pulled his foot out of the shark’s mouth, then he got another bite on his toes,” mother Nancy Birchall said. . . She said her son has been surfing the St. Augustine Beach area for years, and never had a problem.

After a trip to the hospital and surgery to remove a shark tooth from his foot, Birchall is doing well. Seems it’s hard to step off your board in Florida without stepping on a shark.

[Link: Action News Jax]

The Volcom Fiji Pro returned to Cloudbreak on Tuesday, June 11, 2013 (yesterday in Fiji) and the six-to-eight foot monster barrels were the perfect stage for the ASP’s top contenders. Kelly Slater (pictured above) slipped past Jeremy Flores to make the quarters along with Sebastiean Zietz, Parko, Mick Fanning, 2John Florence, CJ Hobgood, Josh Kerr, and Jordy Smith.

“That was unbelievable,” Slater said. “Those were some of the best waves I’ve ever had in a contest. On the 10, I was deep in the barrel and grabbed my rail, but I had to let go to get speed and then I hit the foam ball, I barely made that one. I did the turn and got another tube. On that one big one, it was so perfect and I just wanted to be in the right spot. As I was in the barrel, it spit really hard and there was lots of mist and I couldn’t see. The foam ball pushed my tail up in to the wave and I just couldn’t come out the way I wanted to. I didn’t even care if I won or lost, because I’d get to surf again.”

For the official word from the ASP including the quarterfinal match ups follow the jump. Continue reading ‘Volcom Fiji Pro Down To Quarterfinals’

We ran into former Transworld Media President and Group Publisher Liam Ferguson in the Cardiff Reef, California parking lot on Sunday and got the low down on his new gig as the vice president of sponsorship integration at the Association of Surfing Professionals, but today the official word finally came out.

As part of recently hired Chief Marketing and Revenue Officer Michael Lynch’s team, Ferguson will help lead the process of securing sponsorship marketing partners. . . “This is an unprecedented time in the sport’s history and we are fortunate to have someone with Liam’s extensive experience and capabilities join the team,” Lynch said. “Liam has an excellent rapport with sponsorship and marketing individuals in both endemic and non-endemic circles and his passion for professional surfing is evident in everything he does. We are both very excited about this next chapter for the ASP.”

How’s the for landing on your feet? Turns out the ASP is looking inside the industry for talent as well. Not a bad idea. Ferguson’s skills will come in very handy as the ASP rolls out its plans for the future. Congrats, Liam. For the official word from the ASP, follow the jump. Continue reading ‘Liam Ferguson New VP At The ASP’

It would appear that the wizards behind the Wave Garden are continuing to perfect their magical wave building machine. They’re also giving us a much better look at what the entire place looks like. The big question: When will the first one show up in Minneapolis?

The Boardroom, the consumer surf expo that will be rolling in with Surf Expo September 7-8, 2013 in Orlando, Florida, is hosting a new shaping contest called the Chunk Of Foam Challenge. Four world renown surfboard shapers will be given an 8 x 2 foot block of foam and asked to make a surfboard out of it.

“Harken back to the days of ancient Polynesian board building,” says Scott Bass, producer of The Boardroom. “Boards were made out of chunks of wood. If you wanted a board you found a tree. We are tweaking that concept just a touch. We are challenging a selection of top-echelon shapers to create a surfboard out of an 8’ x 2’ chunk of foam. That’s it. The Chunk of Foam Challenge is an attempt to see who can really shape a good board without the modern accoutrements.”

Guess we’ll find out rather quickly who knows how to mow foam. For the official word from The Boardroom, follow the jump. Continue reading ‘The Boardroom’s Chunk of Foam Challenge’

Dylan Rieder, Natas, Greyson Fletcher, Ryan Wilson, Jack Fardell, Alex Gray, and Chippa Wilson apparently went to New Zealand and did their thing. Monster Children was there to hop on board and document a little of it. It looks like Team Average 2.0.

A least one surfer in Santa Cruz, California was apparently hoping to grab more than his/her share of the first major summer swell when they posted close to 10 fake shark warning signs at Pleasure Point, according to a story on KTVU.com.

Warning signs with the California State Parks logo were posted Wednesday night at Pleasure Point Beach near Santa Cruz warning people of a shark. . . At first glance the sign, which tells surfers to go to another beach, appears real. . . The sign ends with “Surf Cowells instead.”

It fooled some surfers for a while, but most figured it out after reading the “Surf Cowells instead” line. Desperate times requires desperate measures. We’re surprised this doesn’t happen more often.

[Link: KTVU.com]