Chelsea Wins on her HP Diverse

WANNING, Hainan Island/China (Thursday, 27 October, 2011) - Two Champions were crowned at the historic first ever ASP event in China today. Chelsea Williams won the SWATCH Girls Pro China and Lindsay Steinriede (USA) has taken out the 2011 ASP Women’s World Longboard Title.
Chelsea Williams (AUS) was without a doubt the standout performer of the SWATCH Girls Pro China, so it was only fitting to see her crowned the winner. Williams defeated Kelia Moniz (HAW) in an action packed Final with the conditions turning on for the 2 best surfers of the day. Both surfers notched big scores, but it was Williams who continued her dominating run to claim her maiden ASP Women’s World Longboard Tour win.

“I’m so happy to win the first ASP event in China,” Williams said. “It feels amazing to be here and surf against everyone, they were all surfing really well. Fortunately for me it was on a left-hander which rarely ever happens, so I was just stoked to show what I can do on my forehand. I think this has been a longtime coming, I’ve come close to winning so many times so it feel amazing to finally win one.”

Despite losing in the Quarterfinals to eventual event winner Chelsea Williams (AUS), Steinriede had amassed enough points to take the crown after winning the first event on the ASP Women’s World Longboard Tour in France and coming 5th here in China.

“I feel awesome!” Steinriede said. “I knew I didn’t have control of the outcome so I was just letting it happen, and it just went my way so I’m really happy. One of the first things I came in and said to my husband after I lost was that I’ve had a lot worse things happen to me, I was just trying to stay positive. To be able to still be in the Title race was awesome and to actually win it, well it’s just sinking in and I think I’m going to cry.”

Steinriede surfed fantastic all event, putting her full repertoire and smooth style on display for the Chinese crowds on the beach, but couldn’t get past the standout surfer of the event Chelsea Williams. Steinriede won the ASP Women’s World Longboard Title when the last contender standing, Kassia Meador (USA) lost to young Hawaiian Kelia Moniz (HAW) in the Semifinals.

“I was devastated because I didn’t want to leave it to chance, but I was more devastated because I didn’t get that wave I wanted,” Steinriede said. “My emotions are still up and down because I really wanted to be in the Final, but that’s ok, I’ll take the ASP World Title!”

Kelia Moniz (HAW) finished 6th on the ASP Women’s World Longboard Tour ratings after her 2nd place finish at the SWATCH Girls Pro China today. This is a breakout event for the 18-year-old Hawaiian who’s already looking forward to the 2012 ASP Women’s World Longboard Tour.

“It felt great to make the final, and beat Jen (Smith) and Kassia (Meador), that’s a big accomplishment for me,” Moniz said. “Then to surf with Chelsea (Williams) in the final was great. As much as I wanted to win, there’s always next year, I’m already looking forward to coming back here and to France. China has been amazing, the community and the event volunteers have been great, they’ve treated us like royalty and we’re so grateful.”

Kassia Meador (USA) finished equal 3rd today at the SWATCH Girls Pro China, cementing her spot as runner-up to the ASP Women’s World Title. If Meador had won the event she would have won the title, but she fell short against the young Hawaiian Moniz in the Quarterfinals.

“I feel great, I’m not much of a contest surfer so the fact that I came close to the ASP World Title is fantastic,” Meador said. “I’m just stoked to be in China surfing with all the girls, and to lose to Kelia (Moniz), there’s not many people I’d rather lose to, she’s like a little sister to me. It was such a fun heat, you do what you can and I fell short, but I’m so happy to make the finals. I’m so stoked that Chelsea (Williams) won! She’s always the in-form surfer at these events so it was due time that she won.”

For more event info on the SWATCH Girls Pro China hosted by Wanning, photos, video highlights and your chance to win SWATCH Touch Eventwatches check out www.swatchgirlspro.com

For more information log on to www.aspworldtour.com

SWATCH GIRLS PRO CHINA RESULTS:

FINAL:
Chelsea Williams (AUS) 15.33 def. Kelia Moniz (HAW) 12.36

SEMIFINALS:
SF1: Chelsea Williams (AUS) 13.00 def. Summer Romero (USA) 8.40
SF2: Kelia Moniz (HAW) 10.90 def. Kassia Meador (USA) 9.75

QUARTERFINALS:
QF1: Summer Romero (USA) 12.00 def. Miku Uemura (HAW) 9.90
QF2: Chelsea Williams (AUS) 13.85 def. Lindsay Steinriede (USA) 9.25
QF3: Kelia Moniz (HAW) 10.25 def. Yuko Shimajiri (JPN) 6.75
QF4: Kassia Meador (USA) 12.40 def. Karina Abras (BRA) 7.10

Diverse/Dynocore™ world title...

Dynocore™ First world title..! "Mark Richo" Diverse team member & Team Australia takes two at ISA World Masters Mark Richardson © ISA / Watts

Team Updates International Surfing AssociationLa Libertad, El Salvador16 - 23 October 2011

Layne Beachley and Mark Richardson take first place in their divisions Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 23 October, 2011 : - - Layne Beachley and Mark Richardson are the toast of Australian surfing today after winning the ISA World Masters Surfing Championship for TravelSIM Team Australia in El Salvador. In clean .5m swell at Punta Roca, Beachley (Manly, NSW) dominated the Female Masters (35 years or older) for an eighth world title in her competitive comeback after retiring three years ago, while Richardson (Palm Beach, QLD) was equally impressive in the Male Masters (35 years or older).The championship included more than 20 countries with more than 120 surfers competing in the Masters, Grand Masters, Kahunas and Grand Kahunas divisions. In the only other final featuring an Australian, Nick Pearson (Byron Bay, NSW) finished third in the Grand Kahunas (50 years or older).TravelSIM Team Australia, the defending champions, finished fifth behind new champions the USA, Brazil, South Africa and Puerto Rico. Seven-time ASP World Champion Beachley was never headed in the Female Masters, taking out the final with a score of 13.10 to beat South Africa’s Heather Clarke (9.67), Andrea Lopes (9.23) from Brazil and the USA’s Alissa Cairns (5.03).“It feels really satisfying to come home with the Gold. I have eight world titles now,” Beachley said. “To have the whole team at the rocks supporting me was a really great experience. We are doing the country proud and I was really honoured to surf for Australia. This was a wonderful experience and I hope to come back next year.”After a slow start to the championship finishing third in his first heat, Richardson was forced to surf through the six elimination repechage heats but surged into the final with five firsts and a second. His momentum didn’t stop in the final scoring a day-high 15.34 for a convincing win ahead of Puerto Rico’s Carlos Cabrero (10.66), Gary van Wieringen (9.10) of South Africa and Ross Williams (6.33) of Hawaii.

“I’m just so stoked, I came third in the World Surfing Games in 2004, when I was winning and with one minute to go a wave was taken away from me and I was left in third,” Richardson said. “So this is the one that I really wanted to win. I’m so happy it happened.”Byron Bay’s Nick “Zippy” Pearson was almost the unlikely hero in the Grand Kahunas after a last-minute call-up following the late withdrawal of Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew. Pearson impressed leading into the final, but the waves deserted him during the decider to score 7.83 in finishing third behind Costa Rica’s Craig Schieber (9.86) and Chris Knutsen (8.26) of South Africa. Allen Sarlo (7.70) from the USA was fourth.In the other divisions, three-time World Champion Tom Curren won the Kahunas (45 years or older) and Juan Ashton, from Puerto Rico, won the Grand Masters (40 years or older).Final points: 1 United States 9396, 2 Brazil 9086, 3 South Africa 8886, 4 Puerto Rico 8618, 5 Australia 8480, 6 Hawaii 7664, 7 Costa Rica 6090, 8 Argentina 6016, 9 France 5821, 10 Peru 5548, 11 Venezuela 5363, 12 Trinidad & Tobago 5335, 13 El Salvador 5230, 14 Ecuador 5030, 15 Uruguay 3640, 16 Mexico 2240, 17 Sweden 1905, 18 Germany 1680, 19 Switzerland 680, 20 Panama 500, 21 New Zealand 450.The Masters TravelSIM Team Australia representatives:Female Masters (35 years or older)- Layne Beachley (NSW)Male Masters (35 years or older)- Mark Richardson (QLD)- Toby Martin (NSW)Grand Masters (40 years or older)- Scott Myers (NSW)- John Schmidenberg (NSW)Kahunas (45 years or older)- Rowan Sapwell (VIC)- Dean Shaw (NSW)Grand Kahunas (50 years or older)- Nick Pearson (NSW)Surfing Australia would like to recognise the Australian Sports Commission (ASC), TravelSIM and Suncorp for their continuing support of the Team Australia Program.

Memorial paddle out & fundraising for Japanese earthquake & tsunami victims.

Memorial paddle out & fundraising for Japanese earthquake & tsunami victims.

On Sunday May 22 Diverse Surfboards is holding a Japanese surfing contest @ Flat Rock (south Currumbin).

In memory of all the people who were killed as a direct result of the recent Japanese earthquake and tsunami, and also the many coastal village dwelling people who were washed away by the tsunami (including many local surfers), we would like everyone to join us in a memorial paddle out. People who don't surf are also most welcome to join in and participate from the beach.

At this time we would like to send to Japan from Australia a special message of health and love to the devastated people who have been affected by these events.

In spite of the radiation leaks from nuclear power plants, and the slowness of the Japanese govt to test the water, many surfers are nervously continuing to surf.
Greenpeace has requested that the ocean nearby the nuclear power plants be tested but as yet the testing has been either denied or results kept hidden from the public.

Understanding the surfers plight, the "Surfrider Foundation Japan" marine and environmental protection group has began fundraising to assist the water testing exercise. (http://www.surfrider.jp/)
Also they are aiming to minimise leakage and prevent any further radioactive contamination to the marine environment from damaged nuclear reactors at Fukushima, and to support nationwide implementation of ongoing monitoring of radioactive levels in the ocean.

We hope the ocean loving locals of the Gold Coast will get behind this generously supporting this cause.

Thank you.

Place: Flat Rock, Currumbin
Date: Sunday May 22, 2011
Contest start: 730am
Memorial Paddle Out: 12pm~
(everyone please gather at beach 20 minutes before at 1140am)



５月２２日（日）Currumbin Flat rockにて、DIVERSE主催による、日本人のサーフィン大会が行われます。

このたびの地震&津波によりお亡くなりになられた方々、そして津波に飲み込まれてしまった多くのローカルサーファーに対し、
メモリアルパドルアウトを行います。
サーファーでは無い方もビーチから参加出来ます。

この時の模様を映像に残し、日本の皆さんに元気と愛をオーストラリアから送りたいと思います。

並びに、原発からの放射能漏れ事故があったにも関わらず、日本政府による水質調査が遅れていて、
多くのサーファーが不安の中サーフィンをしています。
グリンピースからの原発近郊の水質調査依頼も拒否し、真実は隠されたまま。。。

そこで、サーファーからの視点で海辺の環境保護活動を行っている団体、
『Surfrider Foundation Japan』の水質調査活動をサポートする募金活動。http://www.surfrider.jp/

更に、 福島第一原子力発電所からの放射能汚染水の海洋投棄及び漏出の防止策の徹底・海水モニタリングの全国実施を 求める署名活動を行います。

どうか海を愛するローカルの皆様もふるってご参加下さい。
宜しくお願い致します。



場所：Flat Rock, Currumbin
時間：大会開始　７：３０am
　　：メモリアルパドルアウト12pm〜（２０分前には集まって下さい）

Jason gives the Dynocore a run

Small conditions at the Noosa festival of suring. Here's a shot by Moonwalker of Jason Blewitt riding one of our test Dynocore longboards.

Italy Surfcomp come is 2nd for Diverse Rider Mattia Morri

Mattia Morri made the best use of the WD wave dominater model in the sloppy surf in Italy this week..
with a 2nd place finish.

Fwd: DIVERSE at Reef Bali Pro on Kuta Beach

Photo Captions:
  

1. The tip of Dewa Ardika's surfboard leading him out of the only barrel of the day.
2. Dewa Ardika's reaction to the MC's announcement that he placed second in his heat and advances to Round 3

Fwd: DIVERSE at Reef Bali Pro on Kuta Beach
Hi Dave,

Nice pic of DIVERSE Board & rider....
PETER NEELY
INDO SURF & LINGO
PO Box 50 Peregian Beach Qld 4573

skype: peterneely
www.indosurf.com .au
Open Division Action Gets Underway on Day Two of Reef Bali Pro at Kuta Beach

23 June 2010, Kuta Beach-Bali: Round 1 and the first four heats of Round 2 were completed today in the Reef Bali Pro at Kuta Beach, as the highly anticipated increase in swell finally arrived resulting in glassy 3 foot waves for most of the morning.
 
Standouts during the morning's session included Kadek Murtika from Canggu, who found the head-high lefthanders coming in from the south very much to his liking, resulting in a Round 3 berth as his reward for taking first in his Round 1 and Round 2 heats.
 
The wave of the day honor belongs to a lucky Dewa Ardika from Kuta, who in the final minute of his Round 2 heat slotted into the only barrel of the morning and managed to find the doggy door, going from last place in the heat to second, thereby dodging an early exit and gaining himself a spot in the third round.
 
Of historical significance was the presence of Affan from the island of Sumba competing in his first ever Coca-Cola ISC event.  The Rob Machado look-alike has been living and surfing in Bali for a while, but has never competed in a formal competition until today.  Although he failed to advance into Round 2 with his third place finish in Round 1, he showed that he could surf with power and style so no doubt we will see more and better results from him in future Coca-Cola ISC events as his contest experience increases.
 
The contest organizers called a stop to the action at just after 11pm due to the low tide and strong wind conditions.  Action will resume tomorrow morning at 6:30 am, with the higher tide and less wind setting things up for the remainder of Round 2 and at least the completion of Round 3.  See attached heat draw for tomorrow's lineup.
 
 
You can follow the action on Facebook via Reef Indonesia and Indonesian Surfing Championship, and on the Coca-Cola ISC Tour Reef Bali Pro minisite at www.isctour.com/events/padma.
 
 
The Reef Bali Pro 2010 is sponsored by Reef Indonesia, Kawasaki, the Hard Rock Hotel and Centerstage, the Hard Rock Café, Hard Rock Radio, Coca-Cola Amatil Indonesia, Heineken, Optik Seis, Waterbom Bali, FHM, Surf Time Magazine, Lines Magazine, and sanctioned by the Coca-Cola Indonesian Surfing Championship Tour.
 
Photos and text:  Tim Hain – Coca-Cola ISC Tour

Diverse Surfboards...Japan Cup 2010 @ Tugun beach

Diverse is proud to announce the First Diverse surf Japan Cup at Tugun. This event is for Japanese surfers only this year! we will have an expression session & lots of cool giveaways...

Quick new years Surf Trip

New years day 2010 4am- Kuta, Bali

Alarm on my Phone rings... No Power on in town again, i have to catch a 6am flight so the quick shower & pack bags in the dark routine begins. First time i had stayed in my mates Villa so the scramble with the Iphone as a torch got me by.
Out to the front of the villa complex, waking up the security boys to give me an Ojek (motorcycle taxi) to the busy Denpasar airport. There was clear skies with no wind & still a few leftover bangs, pops & whistles from the Revelers who had left over fireworks & energy from NYE. 5 minutes short of the airport the solitary cloud in the dimly lit sky found us & loaded buckets of rain! All moist and checked in fine, Gotta love priority seating on AirAsia!

Thru turnstiles in Singapore airport moving with Cues of pensive jet-setters, doing their own personal security scanning of fellow travelers with eyeballs of judgement, along with Immigration, Customs & Health officials doing their official stamping & screening. Hello its Luggage collection time! As this was one of several legs of my promo tour i had sent fresh boards ahead of me from the Diverse Factory at home via unaccompanied baggage. I had sent them on 21st dec to make sure i had left plenty of time for them to arrive before me.

1st hurdle, The cargo office was not answering the phone! it was new years day... oh-oh, public holiday! The helpful information desk sent us in the direction of the freight terminal, as there were planes coming in she thought we might find someone to help us. The Taxi ride was pretty much a whole loop around the airport. Once we were thru the security checks leaving our passports etc, we found our way to the office manned by a 13 y/o kid with a PSP who went to work with his dad! His Dad came thru with some info on the office computer. The boards had not left Australia yet! “maybe tonight sir, please come back tomorrow”. Not good enough, as we were leaving in about 1 hour on the ferry to Malaysia! Ok no new boards, promo material, T-shirts & banners to use at the Monsoon Madness Competition i was going too! Lucky i had a few customers with boards there already to borrow. Its cool I can sell my boards with my heart & hands & my laptop.

Next stop was back to the airport to meet 14 of the crew from Phuket board-riders, Thailand, They joined us for the 20 minute bus ride to the ferry terminal. After another cue-ing session with immigration, Customs etc we were on the Ferry leaving the harbour cruising past Sailboarders racing container ships. Desaru Beach here we come.

Thru the next cues of Customs etc & into 2x Pajeros, with the remainder of the boys & boards piling into a lorry winding along a coast reminiscent of Dunwich at north Straddie complete with calm waters & mangroves. Five minutes into the Drive we turned down a small single lane side road with the Driver explaining in simple english “shortcut” we found ourselves meandering thru palm plantation trees & small settlements of families playing in the afternoon sun. Road signs warned us of Monkeys, Wild Pigs & surprisingly Elephants! I was glad we didn't run into any of them playing in the afternoon sun. Brief glimpses of the ocean didn't look promising for swell as the coastal road took us past seaside hotels from the 80’s, we found our destination of Golden Beach Hotel @ Desaru, Johor, Malaysia. A 4star hotel with a couple of falling stars over years of weekend use with a small beach break right out the front!

a Quick surf check reveals a 1 foot sloppy beach break, but its low tide & looks to have potential banks for the morning! The young guys from Thailand slip out for a couple wet ones, then we are off in the back of a Hilux with 12 others to the local dinner choice. Spicy hot Rice & chicken washed down with ice cold fruit juices... Alcohol is illegal for Malaysians , But no problem for tourists. So for all of us who wanted a beer we drove 10km up the road to the market that had some liquor to buy. We were stopped by a police roadblock! All the visiting guys including myself had left our passports/ID in our room! I am sure the Police must have been happy for the contest to be in town as they let us all off & directed us to the Bottle shop/roadside cafe. $2 cans of Carlsberg special brew @8.8% filled our bags & a couple made sleep come quickly!

Rise & Shine 5am just like home. No-one is up so i take a little walk down to the water to see that the surf is clean & fun looking. Breakfast voucher in hand i head over to the buffet much like any other in the Asian arena. With a full stomach i am off to the contest site. After 10 minutes of looking around the Contest Director Ajill asked me to help out & judge, with five more i was 2nd head judge! A little dismayed on how to judge bodyboarding etc i took on the challenge & learnt pretty quick. I was impressed with the standard of short-boarding with current Malaysian champion Mamat & Bandah Aceh surfer Yudi setting the bar. The waves are much like a japanese beach break or an ordinary gold coast summer windswell beachie. Little left + right hand peaks good for a couple turns if your lucky!


Officially opening the event at 2pm was the minister for tourism Malaysia. Government interest is high in surfing & its related business channels. Pumping music reminicent of early mornings at Double six in Legian, with camo clad army officers patrolling the park & beach admiring the beauty of youth. Malaysia is a strong muslim country so there was a lot of the girls on the beach were wearing veils! Being a Tourist beach town things were pretty relaxed. Surfing Guest of honour for the Event was Dede Suryana from Cimaja in Indonesia
I had an opportunity for promo with Malaysian TV as they were on location filming at Getaway style program, The producer had asked me of the possibilitys of arranging a surf lesson for their “Jennifer Hawkins” style host. Quickly aided by Local surfer girl Brenda we set them up with basic instructions about paddling, standing up & using a legrope etc. My good friend Dede Suryana 2 x Indonesian surfing champ helped by taking the Sharmeen the host into the water to get wet surfing for the 1st time. As entertaining as i was watching her get pounded by the shore break almost loosing here wear the Film crew managed to get the shots they needed. Proceeding onto interviewing me on the merits of board type, design, style & basic construction, fortunatly i had a Diverse board from one of my customers for the high performance example. Making do with a Thailand made minimal for the beginners example. Nice to give a plug to DIVERSE on national Malaysian TV!

Dinner that night was a dodgy beachside resturant, with the hunger being quenched but the taste buds were not! one of the ladys with us managed to find a fly in her fried rice! Jokes aside she did not order Flies with that!
The contest organizers from Bigfoot Industries had arranged for beach party kicking off around 11pm, turning out to be a lot of fun not unlike a full moon party anywhere in Asia, with crew dancing until sunrise to well mixed jungle beats. I took my judging seriously and was in bed by 3am to the Doofing sounds of DJ’s pounding a good beat.

Ground hog breakfast buffet with the contest kicking off at the reasonable time of 9:30am. The waves were a little bigger with a bit more water on it making it fullish. Competition surfers seemed to make the most of the conditions riding the waves that came thru very well. Still struggling with the concept of judging the bodyboards i took a break & wandered the beach stalls looking at all kinds of things from food stalls to Hookah pipes while the sound systems pumped out amping music mixed with a live reggae band on the park stage!

by the afternoon finals the waves had deteriorated as most contests do, with the smaller younger guys looking like favourites to take out the event. Hailing from Cherating the boys were used to long right hand point break waves, getting long rides with perhaps a little too safe manouvres. Contest Winner Yudi from Bandah Aceh put down some powerfull turns taking chance with radical turns over safe long rides. His Gamble payed off winning quite convincingly over the billabong sponsored grommy from Cherating & Malaysian champ Mamet.
A quick speech from the Malaysian tourism minister, followed by retired local army General started the presentation, Handing over certificates of appreciation to sponsors & judges. With prizes being giving to all division winners, where nods & handshakes took prevalence over acceptance speeches. Good thing really as we had 30 mins to say goodbye to all the new friends, pack, checkout of the hotel & catch the last ferry back to Singapore for the day. We had plans of Surfing the Standing wave on Sentosa island at the WaveHouse in Singapore in the morning before our flights back to Bali that evening.
We made the ferry, of course being the last ones there! Once thru all the customs/Immigration rigmarole we had a mission getting 2x taxis with boards! Apparently they dont like to pick up from the ferry terminal because they miss out being able to charge the $10 airport terminal tax. Eventaully we caught one, Heading to our guide Arfian house. he had insisted we stay at his house. Arfian & his wife Radiah were awesome treating Myself & Dede to an amazing dinner in Arab st. By 1am we were in bed after adding countless new friends we had made over the weekend on facebook! So many hookups for new surfing destinations around south east Asia!

Monday morning starts off with a large chinese style breakfast spread prepared by the grandma who had magically appeared at 5am to cook breakfast for guests! Steamed pork buns thru to a dragonfruit salad we were treated like kings. a phone call from our friends at the Wavehouse , The barrel had been put out of action with a loose surface coating & would not be running today or for another 2 weeks! Fortunatly the Flowrider was still running so we went to Sentosa Island anyway. We met the owner and made arrangements for 2 hours on the Flowrider. We found it more difficult than it looked but a lot of fun, Tom (owner) explained to us that it was easier for non surfers to learn than for more experianced professionals becuase a lot of the actions & weight placement was the opposite. Quickly we found that to be true, watching young chinese boys who had never surfed, maybe not even swim before picking it up very quickly. Dede Suryana was blown away how good some of the local regulars were, flipping & sliding, making tricks look easy. I was intrigued by the board designs. Once the staff found out they had a visiting shaper they quickly brought out several shapes for me to try. Our local instructors who were also the current Champions were totally stoked for me to show some interest in making them some new design boards. Several ideas were running thru my head with concaves & sidecut etc. Out with my trusty mini tape measure & iphone to record some basic dimensions. I knew i was going to have trouble sleeping that night creating some new shapes in my head. Tom spoke of the new model wave they were working on installing in the future that may actually bring surfing to the Olympics in a few short years.


After a quick tasty lunch at the WaveHouse we were escorted VIP on a golf buggy limo to the Carpark & Airport promising to return with more time to enjoy thinhgs & a handful of boards to test out. If you have a couple hours spare when you stopover in Singapore, catch the train to Sentosa Island & have a go, you can hire boardies there, lock up your carry on in the baggage lockers & rip it up, you pay by the hour & it sure beats drinking at the Airport watching people while your in transit!
Back on the flight to Bali & a good nights sleep for me....
more Pics here...

ISAAC PADDON TOURS HIGHWAY ONE

(pic- Larry from Fox Wetsuits frothing over the DIVERSE boards on display at the Spring Cassic in Cronulla on the weekend.)



I had the chance to hit the road last weekend for a short tour playing 4 shows and surfing in the spring classic in Cronulla on the Saturday. The waves were small but clean and very surfable. I took a range of boards down on the trip but due to our tight music playing schedule didnt get much time time in the water. I drove to our first gig at The Pacific Hotel in Yamba On Thursday Arvo after work .After the usual very late night there, drove the 7 hour trip to Newcastle just in time to get in the water and catch the last 20 minutes of light. With only an hour to spare before the next show, I managed to restring the guitars , sink a quick ( warm ) beer and race to the View Factory Arts Cafe to sing my heart out. With The longboard contest in Cronulla the next morning ( 3 hours away) and being after midnight already we had to decide to either drive that night and have a quick sleep before my heat, or have a quick sleep and leave at 3:30 am . We opted for the latter. I arived just in time to judge the first heat, slip into my wetty , and try and still see straight. I vowed it would be the last time i play a show the night before a contest. Although cloudy and fatigued the day ran smoothly and a lot of people were stoked on the DIVERSE boards i had on display . The quality, the Art and the shapes were what most people were impressed on. The day followed with the presentation where i placed 1st in over 30's and 4th in the opens. We then jumped on stage and cranked up the amps. The south side crew were an apreciative and hospitable audiance and it was a pleasure to perform for them. With no where to safely store our music and surf gear we waited till the last partyers had left and attemped to sleep next to our gear on stage curled up on a hard floor rapped in towls and whatever else we could find to keep warm. After the 4 hour partial sleep on the surf club floor, we headed off in the van back up the coast to our next gig at Barrells Bistro in Sawtel on the coffs coast . We made it just in time to the gig and played one off the sleepiest layed backe gigs in a long time . I think i only opened my eyes in 2 songs . The small but quality crowd seemed to love the performance. Next stop was Arrawarra spot x Surf camp, a usual rest stop on our sleepless journeys . Ariving back yesterday arvo it was good reflecting on the short but interesting times we had experienced on another one of our Highway one music/surf tours. and now as im back in at work in the Diverse surfshop on the goldy i can do some thing else i love, and that is talking to customers about one of the most favourite things i do . Enjoying the pleasure of surfing the waves of the ocean. It also occurred to me the the oil leak in my van had got alot worse. we used 17.5 litres of oil on the trip. it cost more in oil than fuel. Pleasures of being on the road. Isaac

Richo wins another Aussie title! thats his 3rd!

Country Energy Australian Surf Festival
Country Energy Australian Surf Festival finishes in style

Saturday, 29 August 2009

As the curtain closed on the Country Energy Australian Surf Festival nine Australian Surfmasters Titles were awarded at Lighthouse Beach today.

Having seen 344 competitors in 260 heats over the past two weeks with 23 Australian Titles handed out, the final day of competition was certainly one to remember.

Led by some amazing performances from a host athletes the biggest amateur surfing event in the country closed with a bang,

Mark Richardson (Palm Beach, QLD) was the king of Lighthouse Beach today, taking home his third Australian Title in the Open Men division.

“I’m lost for words,” the 37-year-old said, brimming from ear-to-ear.

“To have beaten the likes of my fellow finalists is something I’ll remember forever.”

Defeating Josh Johnson-Baxter (VIC), Eli Criaco (Coolum, QLD) and Jirrah Laws (VIC), who finished second, third and fourth respectively, Richardson was in amazing form from the get-go.

“The level of surfing in this event was first class,” he continued.

“I wasn’t even good enough to qualify for the Queensland team and here I am with the Aussie flag draped around me!”

Diverse also had the pleasure of our open womens longboard rider Debbie Boggis win a aussie title earlier this week!

hello from Japan

rom: 石川　晋 Go Ishikawa
Date: 2 August 2009 5:03:15 PM
To: dave@diversesurf.com.au
Subject: hello from Japan

hi Dave how r u?
thanks for the board.
that goes really good.
noseride is good and also highperformance.

the pic from comp last monday.

Diverse Teamrider Mark Richardson the standout at the Printpoint Masters

Winners decided at the Printpoint Queensland Masters Surfing Circuit at Coolum's Sunshine Coast

The race tightens for State Titles after second leg of the Printpoint Queensland Masters Surfing Circuit.

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 28 June, 2009 : - - Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia - Queensland’s finest masters surfers aged from over 28 to over 55 showcased their talent today on the Sunshine Coast during the second instalment of the Printpoint Queensland Masters Surfing Circuit. Strong westerly winds which were predicted did not eventuate and competitors revelled in the clean ½ metre conditions throughout the entire day.

Mark Richardson (Currumbin) was the stand out surfer of the day and took out victory against a strong field in the final of the blue ribbon over 28 men’s division.

Richardson posted a combined final score total of 16.07 (out of a possible 20) after a day of surfing methodically through his qualifying heats. Other finalists were Simon Massey (13.93), Dean Hall (9.50) and Mark Kennedy (7.30) who finished second to fourth respectively. Richardson dominated the majority of the final however Simon Massey emerged as a late threat in the closing stages by posting a thrilling score on a quality clean set wave. Richardson was ecstatic with the victory saying “ It’s great to snatch a win against a field as strong as this and I’m looking forward to taking it to the other competitors when we meet for the third event at North Stradbroke Island”.

In the over 35’s division it was Dean Hall who took out victory with a flawless display of surfing blending 'old school' power with an arsenal of 'new school' manoeuvres. Hall battled with Mark Richardson throughout the final and eventually sealed victory posting an excellent score in the dying moments. Hall, who was unable to attend the first Printpoint Masters earlier this year was overjoyed with his victory and commented “ This win gives me valuable points to take to North Stradbroke Island and hopefully I can perform well there and secure a place in the Queensland team”.

The older salts of the competition didn’t leave all the action up to the ‘young guns’ in the 28s and 35s. Peter Buckley (Palm Beach) was victorious in the over 55’s impressing the judges with his radical display of surfing in a ding-dong battle with Andrew McKinnon (Currumbin).

It was Mark Richardson who took out the coverted “Tooheys wave of the weekend” with the highest score of the event (9.33) and walked away with 4 carton of ice cold Tooheys Extra Dry.

The exclusive Printpoint Masters Queensland Surfing Circuit three-event series continues to set the benchmark for surfers aspiring to a national master’s title. Divisions include senior men (O 28), O/35, O/40, O/45, O/50, and O55.

For more information check www.surfingqueensland.com

Alley Classic is next weekend...!

heres Dru Warming up at the Jim Beam teams Event at Dbar Last Weekend..

Jaiden Elgey Wins Arnette Junior Surf Challenge

Hey Dave i got back from the Sunny Coast yesterday, I ended up winning the Arnette Junior Surf Challenge im soo stoked. I won with a 7.17 and a 9.00!! My boards are goin soo good, the surf was only like 1-2foot but pretty fun. Speak to you soon...