November 2021 - New Zealand Surf Journal

Billy Stairmand Advances At Haleiwa

Derek MorrisonNov 30, 2021December 5, 20220

Raglan’s Billy Stairmand has bounced back from a string of shock first round exits throughout the Challenger Series to surf his way comfortably into the Round of 32 at Haleiwa, Hawaii. It’s the final curtain of the 2021 WSL Challenger Series and the draw is loaded. That makes Billy’s journey...

Alexis Owen & Poppy Entwisle Win South Island Primary School Champs

Derek MorrisonNov 30, 2021November 30, 20210

Alexis Owen and Poppy Entwisle open their summer competitive surfing campaigns with emphatic wins at the South Island Primary School Champs, held at North Wai, New Brighton, at the weekend. The warm coast of New Brighton delivered waves in the 1-2 foot range for the contest with a mixture of...

The Betty Zine Culture Fount

Derek MorrisonNov 23, 20210

Out of lockdown blooms a new magazine that puts women at the centre of New Zealand surfing culture and champions their connection with the ocean. Find out how these three, in their early 30s, turned lockdown adversity into a magnetic creative surf production … and why it is here to...

Ben Thouard: Inside Chopes With One Of The World’s Best Photographers

Derek MorrisonNov 16, 20210

As world-renowned photographer Ben Thouard releases his new book, Turbulences, filmmaker Morgan Maassen documents his creative process at one of the world’s most beautiful waves: Ben’s home break, Teahupo’o, Tahiti. “Ben Thouard is based out of Teahupo’o, Tahiti, where he spends the vast majority of his time and energy swimming...

Win A GoPro HERO10!

Derek MorrisonNov 15, 2021December 5, 20220

We’ve teamed up with GoPro and Barton Lynch’s BL Blast Off and have a brand new GoPro HERO10 to giveaway to a New Zealand surfer. We’re calling for all aspiring young filmmakers and grommets out there to work together and load up a small (up to 60-second) edit to the...

Watch: Goddesses

Derek MorrisonNov 10, 2021November 10, 20210

Acclaimed filmmaker Morgan Maassen brings us his latest film, Goddesses, which explores the lives of three young Tahitian girls: Vahine, Heimiti and Kohai Fierro. Set in their home against a dramatic backdrop of Tahiti’s jungle, mountains and reefbreaks, this film is as mesmerizing as it is soulful. “My obsession with...

Watch: Eimeo Czermak Scores Late Season Teahupo’o

Derek MorrisonNov 10, 2021November 10, 20210

There’s something very exciting happening at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games venue of Teahupo’o in Tahiti. The local surfers are stepping up to the plate in a big way, led by a mixture of the older guard and the new rising stars in the Tahitian lineup. In this film teenage...

Bask: Volume II

Derek MorrisonNov 9, 2021November 9, 20210

Filmed over the nine months of the university year in Ōtepoti Dunedin, the Bask series returns with a vengeance. Filmmaker Isaac Chadwick has turned up the dial on the party and surf elements of Dunedin’s student surfer lifestyle. It’s clear early on that twice the blood sweat and beers have...

Surfing With Sea Lions: The Cheat Sheet

Derek MorrisonNov 3, 2021December 13, 20220

Surfing on the Otago Coast is a sublime experience most of the time, but the number of surfers who report supposed “near-death encounters” with sea lions is puzzling. According to Doc Coastal Otago Ranger Jim Fyfe, we’re reading them all wrong. In this film he offers us his cheat sheet...

Conservation: How You Can Help Our Hector’s Dolphins

Derek MorrisonNov 2, 2021November 2, 20210

Fisheries New Zealand is asking for feedback on proposed fisheries measures to further protect South Island Hector’s dolphins. Hector’s are the small wee dolphins that love to surf and hang out with humans – especially kids. An encounter with a Hector’s dolphin will brighten up anyone’s day, but they need...