Monday, December 19, 2011

Come Hell or High Water GET IT NOW

A Body surfing Film documenting the plight of the torpedo people: Thanks to those who raised the alarm. . .

Come Hell or highwater can be downloaded NOW..right NOW..

  \\\\\\\COMMENCE DOWNLOADING\\\\\

 This is through the surfnetwork website..i have a love hate with these guys.. they have heaps of stuff, but I don't like being strapped to my bloody computer to watch films.

Friday, December 16, 2011

Handplane Tree


Make someone a handplane for Christmas

Or you could could get one from Thomas off his Handplane tree.

Thomas Bexton makes sweet logs and sweet handplanes.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

asymmetrical handplanes





These look SIIIIIIICK.
go get one at Almond Surfboards.. Someone tell me how they go.

gonna have to make one..wheres me plywood?

Friday, December 9, 2011

BODYSURFERS RULE!





Nice article in the Honolulu Weekly with Mr Mark Cunningham and a bit of a review of The Keith Malloy Film , Come Hell or High water.

'Ave a look


BODYSURFERS RULE!

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Handplanes - The Wegener Brothers

Jon in California



Tom in Queensland


So you have these brothers, one on one side, the other on the other side, both doing really similar stuff, pushing the use of wood, both a part of the alaias return to the water, and it seems churning out the odd hand plane, I'm sure if you called, they'd be able to make you one..

...And in the true handplane tradition, the buzz about making your own is also allowed, accepted and encouraged.. Jon with Cyrus Sutton will also sell you a little pack with paulownia which is here if you want one...And theres even a little instructional video... go have go. no excuses now.
Yes, you can just rip down a fence post, cut up old furniture, or steal mcdonalds trays, but sometimes, you wanna do things right.. and that means a nice hunk of wood. worth doing, worth doing right.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Deadman at Deadmans



Starting at One Minute, a deadman at deadmans.

True surfers can also bodysurf.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Handplanes -Ventana Surf, Santa Cruz




Theres so many epic handplane makers out there these days and I'll have to try them all eventually.

Ran across these the other day though, bueeewwwwwwwdiful.. dig that woodwork

By Ventana Surf Co, Santa Cruz

They have lots more on their site. go have a gander

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

More Visuals from the San Fran Bodysurf Classic








A few more epic photos of the competition from the lens of Ryan Tatar ...go have a look for more on his blog Shakasandsinglefins.com...Its worth your time.

Monday, November 7, 2011

San Fran Bodysurfing classic run and won

Just one of the many prize fighters to step into the ring for the Bodysurfing Classic - San Francisco last weekend.



Mark "the man" Cunningham took first prize, which is sorta cool to know he can still smash it in a rubber suit as well as dickies.

All results, wrap ups and photos (((((here)))))

...and even an article by the San Francisco Chronicle.

edit: ........and surfermag...

Thursday, November 3, 2011

KS KS KS KS KS KS KS KS KS KS KS - Not bad

Congrats to Kelly on his eleventh bloody world title.

Kelly can bodysurf as well... starting at 1m25s



Kelly has soul

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Body Surf Classic>San Francisco



The Judging Criteria:
THE CONTESTANT WHO EXECUTES THE MOST RADICAL MANEUVERS GENERATING POWER AND SPEED THROUGH OUT IN A FUNCTIONAL MANNER IN THE MOST CRITICAL SECTIONS OF THE BIGGEST AND/OR BEST WAVE FOR THE LONGEST FUNCTIONAL DISTANCE WILL RECEIVE THE HIGHEST SCORE.

Wild card or guaranteed slots will be offered to people of gratuitous ability or contestants who arrive with exceptional snacks, provided they are also in good standing with The Bodysurf Classic.

The Bodysurf Classic to be held in San Francisco, Ocean Beach on November 5th, 2011 at 10:00am.
The Bodysurf Classic to be held in San Francisco, Ocean Beach on November 5th, 2011 at 10:00am.
The Bodysurf Classic to be held in San Francisco, Ocean Beach on November 5th, 2011 at 10:00am.
The Bodysurf Classic to be held in San Francisco, Ocean Beach on November 5th, 2011 at 10:00am.
The Bodysurf Classic to be held in San Francisco, Ocean Beach on November 5th, 2011 at 10:00am.
The Bodysurf Classic to be held in San Francisco, Ocean Beach on November 5th, 2011 at 10:00am.

More Information

Friday, October 28, 2011

Handplane to Rivermouth - a little film...

"The idea is simple. To use as little energy as possible to ride waves in a new way."









A film about handplanes and people and waves and a place in England and people and handplanes.

Drift surfing did a feature article on it....

Stranger Mag said some nice things about it.

...and it was shown recently at the London Surf film festival held this month where "Stoked and Broke" and "Come Hell or High Water" both had their UK debuts...



All content, ideas and thoughts expressed in this piece were borrowed, stolen or otherwise appropriated.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Fin Geek Alert>>>>

Not that it matters much.. because if you're in it and you're loving it, then who cares right?. But fin geeks will be interested.. and I know there is more than a few fin geeks out there... so here it is. You wanted to know what fins the best of the best of the best use?
.....


well that answers that..!

wait! theres some da-fins as well! ...



nicked from www.pipebodysurf.com/

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Big Wave Body Surfing >>DUNGEONS

DUNGEONS.. Scary.. big ugly unyielding waves, sharky, cold....all the best things that Cape Town has to offer.

Most people shit themselves at the sight of it.

Robin Möhr bodysurfs it with a hand gun.




An epic account worth reading.

Hand Guns At Dawn....




(Robin at Cape Towns Sunset reef)

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

How to make a Handplane -Deux

Go make your own.

This little video is from a bunch of creative woodworking frenchies from Hidden Wood out of Anglet on the south west French coast... pumping out alias, handplanes and other sliding devices..



If you are from the US, this video might be blocked...the mangy bastards have blocked it because of the song used in the clip
try this link instead...
orr...this one... Can someone in the US let me know if that worked?




where is Anglet? Have a look...even better, go there...one of the great surf regions.. epic waves, epic food, epic people. and breadbaskets full of bodysurfers... you could even take a non surfing missus and she'll be happy as hell... who'd say no to a trip to the french sea side?

Monday, October 17, 2011

Bodysurfer Photography Competition---WINNING

The Bodysurfer’s Toolkit Contest >>>drum rolL>>> brought to you by Surfing Magazine (and a bunch of other people)...Ta Daaaaa..

A collection of some pretty epic 20 or so bodysurfing shore wompin shots..

There's a nice little prize pack offered..



This is Jamie McClellan's entry.

Go get wet. Thats an order.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Under da Sea

Hold yer breath, its good for yer bodysurfing.



And See more of this guys epic submersed photography.www.27mm.net

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Friday, October 7, 2011

The Bondi Warrior>>



Just look at that custom ply...


Theived from Uge at aquabumps. Go check out Aquabumps.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

2011 Redwing handboarding championships

2011 Redwings Memorial events have been run and won.

wrap up

Some photos... get jealous.

Results..

...from 2009
Day1 -Part 1


Day1 -Part2



Day2

Monday, September 26, 2011

COME HELL OR HIGHWATER...let Loose!!


No sightings in Oz-Straya yet... don't forget about us.


Watch THIS space.

Trailer is here

Monday, August 29, 2011

Teahupoo Bodysurfed

After the excitement of the last few days, watching Bruce Irons et al getting flung into Teahupoo monsters before being spat out without their boardshorts.., I just had to go back and see how le bodysurfer does it...

Mike stewart bodysurfing Teahupoo

Thursday, August 25, 2011

>>>OUTSIDE looking in


That is all.

(Photo brazenly stolen in a daring daylight robbery from Ten piggies over blog. all rights are theirs. Nice photos, worth a look, cali coast, mainly log sliding...living the beach life..worth it.)

Thursday, August 4, 2011

2 waves - 4 bodysurfers

No surf means wasting time at home.

Let me help.

4 epic rides.

Watch them.

That is all.





Thursday, July 28, 2011

Support Stoke

From Monsterboards creater, Eff. Mr Stoke himself .................

"you can vote for our movie (and watch it too) at the site of the Vancouver Festival of Ocean Films, so please do!

We are very honoured to be part of it!! I have had the pleasure to visit Vacncouver and Vancouver Island two times (we went surfing in Tofino) and the place and it's people are amazing!!

Here's how it works:

Click the link at the top that says "Click here to open the festival
microsite and watch the films."

Then click Monsterboards from the list of films.

If it says zero votes at the top of the page just reload the page a
few times. It should say 5 votes.

You can vote 5x by clicking the seal in the upper right 5x.

If you could make a post and send this around to friends (or folks
with blogs) that would be awesome.

Thanks,

Eef

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

What B - S!

Just BSing

By Caltona


There it came once again, the salty fizz escaping, through gravity, from the very depths of my sinus cavities. Another splendid early session; now another warm shower soaking with its initial skin tingle-burn and the slow thawing of extremities with blood eventually circulating through the chilled inner core. While wetsuits extend the season and the thicker 4-3mm get-up is more flexible even than much thinner suits of years and decades past, and although my girth has further improved the length of a day’s go-out, the deep sub-surface canyons’ up-flows win over each time and we all get too cold to continue.

Bodysurfing conjures an inane vision for most non-devotees. Even hardcore watermen and waterwomen, surfers and boaters and fisherpeople of all varieties, whose diverse uses of the Pacific should arguably provide some depth of view, are as a whole ignorant of the possibilities. Most have a tourist’s eye view of what my crew celebrates. Most have bodysurfed in the most basic sense and therefore feel they have some knowledge. It’s much like completing a coloring book and calling oneself an artist, or winning in a game of tag and calling oneself a sprinter. Well, yeah, technically they are the same activities, but there are levels you know?

You want to irk a bodysurfer? Talk about “real” surfers......Read on here...


All rights to San Diego Reader.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Bodysurfing indonesia - with Laird hamilton et al

A group of surfing superstars bodysurfing in Indo.. nuff said. Get into it.

even a bit of underwater bodysurfing...noice. Im sold.





This is from the movie "waterman"...worth a looksee.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Surfs up Brooklyn





Travels took me to the US of A, New York City.... The promise of maybe finding a drinkable coffee took me to Williamsburg, Brooklyn...and there i found, shining like a dusty jewel, in between factories with stray cats crawling all over it... a surf shop..
and not just any surf shop... mollusk surf shop...I can confirm there is absolutely no surf in brooklyn.. but these guys still had a sweet range of hess and brownfish handplanes...also a fine selection of noseriding sliders...couldn't believe my eyes..

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

How to make a Handplane

Want to see a master at work?

ok.

Thomas Bexton, the bearded waveslider of the north...


Thomas Surfboards from Bird Man Media on Vimeo.


Water is still 20 degrees..... the swell is dropping...time to put the boards away... time to womp ...

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

>>Under pipeline>>

I love this, french bodysurfer Fred David shows what the reef looks like under those perfect spinning tubes.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Submerged Sandy Beach- Oahu

Nick takes nice photos....and videos...and lives in Hawaii.

What does the underbelly of Sandy Beach look like?

Sandy's from Nick on Vimeo.




..For more Nick....www.nickchudeau.com

womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp womp.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

The Double Hander





More homemade Handplane action..

In a brave and adventurous leap forward in handplane design...the man who gave the world the Dual Fireball Handpods now brings the double hander to life.

From the plywood kingdom of Billyboarder....www.deluxepaipo.com


Its time to rip down a fence post and hit the water.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Submerged Sliding




Beautiful Photo.

Just one among many.

from The Black and White Life.

Caption says this is Ryan Heywood..

'spose this is the same Ryan Heywood of Bodysurf.com.au fame.

Now you've got two more things you can look at. Keep going. It's worth it.



...and from Morgan Maassen..more.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Shark Island>>>>>>>

Yesteryear...

Bodysurfing the notorious cheese grating, ridiculously heavy Shark Island in the 1970's..



From www.bodyboardmuseum.com.au (....the best source for all your flouro, hyper colour, zinc cream 70's and 80's magazine article needs. ..a sick little website.)

...This year

From last weeks uber-swell... the island again..


from www.leahmaclean.com

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

:::Spotted:::



Strike 2 !

A bodysurfer gets into the annals of Sprout Daily for the second time... more more more !

Sprout Daily...providing a daily chronicle of the surfing life around Manly.

Monday, March 28, 2011

:::Spotted:::




In the deep south of Sydney lies a beach called Bondi.

Snapped by the chronicler of these parts, Eugene of Aquabumps...

...a bodysurfer and his plywood.


Go see www.aquabumps.com... there are also recent photos of Slater who was in town sampling some local sydney 6-8ft slabs last week.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Come Hell or High Water by Keith Malloy

Coming not soon enough.

New movie by Keith Malloy,

all about bodysurfing....

Come Hell or High Water Trailer from Woodshed Films on Vimeo.


Malloy filming the master, Mark Cunningham, for the film


Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Wedge = Sandy Hook





The art of bodysurfing -- less glamorous than surfing and tough to master -- lives on at the legendary, and dangerous, break. A new generation of daredevils is joining old-timers in the water.


With the lifeguard tower boarded up, the sand mostly empty and the waves fizzling into foam, another bodysurfing season at the Wedge has drawn to a close. The daredevils who brave the wild waves at the legendary Newport Beach break are shelving their fins until next spring.

The die-hards -- guys whose concussions, fractured vertebrae and broken bones are testament to their devotion to the Wedge -- have mellowed with age. The waves -- which ricochet off the rocky jetty at the tip of Balboa Peninsula, smashing together in white-frosted peaks that can tower 20 feet -- have not. The Wedge chews up novices, flinging them onto the hard berm of sand or sucking them back into the churning surf.

The bodysurfing fraternity that held tanning tournaments and packed party houses during the Wedge's rowdy 1980s heyday has morphed into middle-aged dads. Fights used to break out among dudes angling for waves. Now, mentoring is more likely as newcomers learn to navigate that wall of water from the old hands who still can't get enough.

With a younger generation surfacing once again at the Wedge, the art of bodysurfing -- less glamorous than surfing and tough to master -- lives on.

"It is a dwindling thing -- there aren't the number of active bodysurfers that there were," said Tom "Cashbox" Kennedy, 44, who's been riding the Wedge for more than two decades. "With this new influx of fresh air, with these younger kids coming, it's like 'Wow, good, we're not going to die on the vine.' "

The Wedge crew, who call themselves the Wedge Preservation Society, successfully petitioned the city of Newport Beach to ban boards -- particularly the growing legions of bodyboarders -- at their prized spot from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from May through October. Thus a landmark, and bodysurfing preserve, was born.

"Most people grow up, mature and leave the place," said Fred Simpson, 70, one of the Wedge patriarchs, who has spent nearly 40 years in the surf here. He also helped create Viper fins, standard equipment on the feet of many Wedge regulars. Of the Wedge crew, Simpson says, "Like me, they never matured."

Juggling kids and mortgages, the most devoted have bought houses close to the Wedge or created work schedules flexible enough that they can slip into a pair of fins on a long lunch break.

And there's no denying that it's the older guys -- the ones with the battle scars and the war stories -- who are still the best.

"The old guys rip," said Sean Starky, a bearded, long-haired 22-year-old. "They still kill it."

"The best guys are like dolphins on the waves," said Ron Romanosky, a longtime bodysurfer, kneeboarder, photographer and board maker.

Bodysurfing, which requires fins, nerve and perfect timing, never hit the commercial mainstream like surfing. The sport, which some bodysurfers consider an art form, has remained pure while skirting the pop-culture radar. That, and the practice required to become skilled, have thinned out the ranks frequenting the Wedge.

But some have noticed a resurgence.

"It seems like there's a whole new group there getting stoked on it," said Kevin "Mel" Thoman, 51, a Wedge veteran and the scene's de facto social coordinator (he has the tattoos to prove it).

"It's infectious; you don't really want to stop," said Ben Frazier, 18, who's been bodysurfing since the beginning of high school.

As long as the young guys know their place in the pecking order and show skill, the crew at the kinder, gentler Wedge is happy to show them the ropes.

"I love to see these guys charging these big waves," Kennedy said. "It's almost like the way I used to feel when I was their age. There's some sort of fire in the belly you need."

Simpson has seen generation after generation come and go at the Wedge. But though the old crew is happy to see newcomers keeping their passion alive, there are no plans to hang up their fins.

"We'll have a new crop," Thoman said, "and I'll be down there in a wheelchair."


Rosenblatt is a Times staff writer.
Straight out of the LA Times. All rights are theirs.

Friday, March 18, 2011

I can’t remember the last time I was on a surfboard....


Words: Johnny Knapp

I can’t remember the last time I was on a surfboard. There have been waves, but none of my boards have left the corner in which they lean. Spiders have even taken to weaving a web that utilizes their dormant position.

My friends admitted that they are starting to worry about my absence from surfing. Because for some time now all I go to the beach with is a pair of swim fins and a piece of wood.

It all started when I tried a handplane,as they’re called, that belonged to a friend. I was always curious about them but never really gave it too much thought. I didn’t think it could be that different than the regular whopping of body surfing the shore break. Contrary to what I thought, I soon experienced a ride unique to anything I had experienced before. As vivid as my first ride was on a stand up surfboard, my first body surfing encounter with such a tool is equally ingrained. As the wave rose out of the ocean and across the sand bar, I managed to kick into it and glide across the face as one would on a board, in proper position the whole ride. Riding in the curl, the critical sections of the wave, never straying too far ahead.

Since that moment, I have dedicated myself to what I like to refer to as having intercourse with the ocean. There is a certain sensation that comes from skimming across the surface of the ocean with the water rushing across your body. The buffer of the surfboard as been removed. The ocean and your body are parallel to one another, becoming one during the act. There is a transfer of energy between the two, both feeding off one another. Through this developed energy, pleasure is received. The body’s sensory mechanisms are overloaded by what is happening in that brief and intense moment of the ride. Jolted, thrusted, and twisted into parts of the wave not seen or ridden by boards, it takes a special medium such as the body to get there.

The whole key to the gig is to have the eyes wide open during the whole ride. Even until the moment when the lip dumps upon you, the eyes must be open–alert to what is going on all around. It’s about the view. The lip is projected in the form of an aquatic cathedral with the curtain closing in, shimmering with light from the outside world. Droplets of water, though moving fast, appear to be in slow motion as time decelerates: an intimate moment with nature veiled under the cover of the lip. The ride climaxes with a tumble down to the ocean floor, bouncing up and gasping for air, wide-eyed and alive.

For now I’ve seem to have lost all desire to do a turn. Slashing and gashing the water seems like such rude thing to do to so a beautiful lady. Today I’d rather lie down and make love to her, face to face, touching one another in the glory of the moment.

All from the beautiful online surf magazine.. Driftsurfing.com ... all rights are theirs.

Driftsurfing.com
or
Driftsurfing.eu

>>>Measuring Stick II>>>

Go see the madness of Eef

www.monsterboardsorg.blogspot.com

Eef is a happy handplaner

Eef is a plywood magician

Eef wins regularly

Thursday, March 17, 2011

>>>Measuring Stick>>>



THE PIPELINE BODYSURFING CLASSIC
JUDGING CRITERIA

4. Contestants will be judged on the following: Summary of Judging Criteria:

The bodysurfer that rides the biggest wave, with the most control, for the furthest distance in the most critical part of the wave will receive the highest points. Maneuvers while on the wave will be judged by each judge according to its functionality and the precision with which it is performed. Which is to say a maneuver in and of itself, will not automatically mean a higher score. Judges will also be watching for general sportsmanship. An interference call will be made when it is deemed that a bodysurfer's move directly affects the ride that a controlling bodysurfer has. A controlling bodysurfer is one that is closer to the critical section of the wave or who clearly caught the wave before the bodysurfer that is in the more critical section. His wave score will be halved and it will become a counted wave toward his final score.

Specific Qualities:
a) WAVE RIDING ABILITY - the demonstration of style, energy, flow, good control judgment, timing and response to the wave; good execution of all functional and aesthetic maneuvers; how existing wave conditions are utilized; and the quality of entry and exit from the waves.

b) MANEUVERS - the quality & smoothness of trick maneuvers; all maneuvers performed in the existing conditions; take offs, underwater-takeoffs, climbing, dropping, stalling, cut backs, back slides, bellyspins, spinners, & tube rides count as difficult maneuvers depending on the waves on which they are performed.

c) WAVE SIZE - the quality of wave selection; catching waves that break the highest, break the farthest out, travel the fastest, break the hardest, & wall up the steepest.

d) TRAVEL DISTANCE - the actual distance traveled across the face of the wave from the take off to the pull out or wipe out.

e) GOOD SPORTSMANSHIP AND COURTESY -All competitors will exhibit a professional, sportsmanlike regard for all of the other bodysurfers in the contest. If any competitor exhibits any unsportsmanlike behavior during competiton, their scores will not be tabulated. Additionally, a competitor who exhibits any unsportsmanlike behavior before, during or after competiton may have penalties, fines imposed and depending on severity of violations or actions may not be allowed to participate in future events.

f) INTERFERENCE - Interference will be called primarily for, but not limited to the following two (2) occasions: 1. if during a ride one rider INTENTIONALLY strikes or makes contact with another rider, 2. if one rider clearly establishes the right-of-way andanother rider takes off and drops into the path of the first rider, adversely affecting the ride.

Monday, March 14, 2011

::Gettin Started::




It starts...

The idea is to keep it small....keep it cheap...$5 hunk of offcut ply.....start with a thick piece so a deep concave can be carved into the tail... nice flat and round up front with rounded soft rails, all bite kept in the rear.
..it'll probably fail...its going to be fun finding out..

Sunday, February 27, 2011

::Dramatic Ocean::

This isn't bodysurfing at all, but these pictures are so dramatic, beautiful, and create a feeling of immense scale.
Freediving, skin diving, spear fishing, deep water, a big ocean and little human beans.
Many more at http://www.kanoazimmerman.com








Copyright of Kanoa Zimmerman, All Rights Reserved