Like many of the bodyboarders who dedicated themselves to chasing the world’s heaviest waves in the early 2000s, Aussie Brenden Newton is no stranger to hairy experiences. I first heard his name pop up in an account of the day Mickey Smith and a crew of fellow boogs first spotted Aileens, the now infamous big […]
Oakley HSTN Review
[Shop the Oakley HSTN range here] From the eyewear brand famed for an unparalleled performance aesthetic, Oakley’s HSTN deliver an original, modern look. So impressed were we with the design, we decided to test them by chasing January’s giant swell to Spain Andalusia’s coast on an epic roadie. Oakley HSTN Width: 132mm (size 52) Frame: O […]
Meet The Cycle Zombies – The Californian Surf Family Bringing Old Bikes Back From The Dead
[Folowing a great summer showcasing their range of classic and contemporary bikes at our drive-in cinema, we’re offering readers the chance to win a weekend’s worth of free Harley-Davidson rental. Click here to enter. To celebrate the partnership, we’ve also been penning a series of articles exploring the unholy union between surf and bike culture. […]
Changing The Game: The Oakley Bali Pro, 2013
The Championship Tour goes meta: How an innovative Oakley event held at the relatively recently unveiled break at Keramas set the tone for the modern ‘video game surfing’ pro era. When Oakley announced a brand new venue for the 2013 Championship Tour season, Keramas in Bali, the Dream Tour’s prime locales and ethos had already […]
2021: Women’s Wrap Up
As we cast our eye back to 2021’s eventful and powerfully charged run of events and happenings in women’s surfing, it feels like 2020’s fallow year gave way to an incredible year of achievement, energy and creative expression. Powerful icons within surfing celebrated stunning achievements, cementing their rightful places within surf lore and history, surfing […]
Wetsuit Review: needessentials 4/3mm Thermal Chest Zip Wetsuit
We all have that mate who claims to not feel the cold, refusing to ditch their 3/2 until deep into December… usually the same guy that won’t acknowledge Christmas until a week out and puts their tree up on December 24th. I’ll admit, I once was that guy, but not anymore – now I’m older, […]
The Derek O’Neill Story
How Derek O’Neill, son of a plumber from rural Victoria, Australia, left school early, became a wetsuit sales rep, bought a round the world ticket and went from a part time sales assistant in Newquay surf shop Boardwalk, to CEO of Billabong International and co-founder of Vissla in Europe. Piping Hot to Freezing Cold, late […]
The Derek O’Neill Story: Part 2
[Missed Part 1? Read it here] Australia – France 2013 – 2021: Creating & Innovating Derek and I make the decision to hit it; we leave the Vissla office in Soorts and jump in my van, dog in the back, direction Bourdaines. By now, the sun is pretty high in the sky and the sea […]
Deep Cuts From The Wavelength Archive – Part V – Photo Special
Twenty-twenty-one marks Wavelength’s 40th year in print. To celebrate the occasion, we’ve spent the last twelve months diving deep into the Wavelength archive to bring you a series of short stories featuring key cultural moments, entertaining asides and colourful characters from around the British surf scene and beyond. Read part I here. part II here, […]
Wavelength presents the Spring Classic
As 2021 draws to a close with it comes the end of Wavelength’s 40th year. But what happened to the birthday party? Back in the Spring we’d planned on celebrating by throwing our first ever festival, but the universe had other ideas and we had to put plans on ice. But rather than retreat quietly […]
5 Things You Didn’t See On The Tudor Nazaré Challenge Broadcast
A peep up Nazzy Tow Challenge dryrobe? Nazaré tends to be a pretty popular one in terms of live online audience. Forecasted days in advance, a great chance of shit going horribly wrong, also never a bad hate watch – and if you can‘t find the energy to type ’shame league’, preferring the character economy […]
Listen: Ep 27 The Winds of Change
It can be tough to pin point precisely the best part about being sufficiently blessed by fate and fortune that I get to do a regular podcast with Ben Mondy. Not just do a podcast, but to get paid for it, too. I know, right? In this latest episode, Ep27: The Winds of Change sure, […]
LISTEN: Surfers Not Street Children Founder Tom Hewitt On The Inspired Surfers Podcast, Presented by Jimmy’s
In the latest episode of the Inspired Surfers Podcast, Jim is in conversation with Tom Hewitt MBE, founder and CEO of Surfers Not Street Children – a charity that uses surfing, mentorship and care to intervene in the lives of children living on the street in South Africa and Mozambique. After first encountering street children […]
The Best Wavelength Print Features Of 2021
This year sees Wavelength celebrating our 40th year in print and while much has come and gone since those early days, we remain as committed as ever to creating quality compendiums of surf culture you can hold in your hands. Our 2021 volumes contained over 280 pages of long-form stories and beautiful imagery, from local […]
Deep Cuts From The Wavelength Archive – Part IV– Defining A Generation
Twenty-twenty-one is Wavelength’s 40th year in print. To mark the occasion, we’re diving deep into our archive to bring you a series of short stories featuring key cultural moments, entertaining asides and colourful characters from around the British surf scene and beyond over the last four decades. Read part I here. Read part II here. Read part III […]
Nate Tyler: Smooth Operator
Perennial smooth operator Nate Tyler reflects the cruisey energy of the rural Central California hinterland he calls home. As seen in recent the Manera film Due West alongside Brendon Gibbens, his stock in trade, above the lip wafts before shapely cliffs and seas stacks still look great from every angle. Creative curves and hard edges […]
WATCH: Seeking Sheltered Cornish Corners On A Hike With Izzy Henshall
“I really want to surf there again this winter,” says 18-year-old Izzy Henshall of a super sheltered spot that most only think of when the rest of the coastline is maxing out. However, after a few missions over there, Izzy has figured out that occasionally, when other waves are still drawing the crowd, you can […]
Chronicles of Gnarlier: Machete Wielding Burglars in Bimshire
As told by Roland Cadeaux I went to Barbados in the early Naughties with two good mates from home. It was around March time, the end of a miserable winter, and Barbados provided the perfect antidote to a brutal 6 months in the UK; warm, blue water, great weather and waves… The dream trip, then. […]
Chelsea Woody On Rebellion, Textured Waves, ‘Cadavre Exquis’ & The Beauty Of Deep Connection
Chelsea Woody is a Santa Cruz based healthcare provider who, when not deep at work in her scrubs, seeks the soothing tonic of surfing to wash away the day. Her discernible style and sense of play, plus her work as the co-founder of Textured Waves, a grassroots collective that has powerfully amplified the voice, role, […]
On Reefs: Jase Finlay & The Underwater Cave
Imagine wiping out on a wave, waiting for the turbulence to clear and then attempting to resurface only to discover you were trapped in an underwater cave.
That’s exactly the nightmares scenario that befell Aussie bodyboarder Jase Finlay while surfing a slab in Ireland.
Read his full account in all its harrowing detail, right here:
The Winter Wetsuit Rules
Note, the title of this article is not Winter Wetsuits Rule. They don’t, as such. They’re merely a means to an end. They help us get through.We’d all rather be in trunks, of course, but that’s not the reality. So, we get by. We cover ourselves in layers of wonderful neoprene, we stay stoked. Our […]
A Tale Of Smuggling, Bad Grace & The Best Wave Of Lord Ted’s Life
The following is an excerpt from Surf, Sweat & Tears, a biography chronicling the epic life and mysterious death of British surfing legend Viscount Edward William Deerhurst, otherwise known Lord Ted. In this chapter, author Andy Martin recounts a trip to Bali in the early ’80s that would prove seminal not only for Ted’s surf […]
An Interview With The World-Famous Artist Who Created The Internet’s Favourite Fake Lineup Shot
A few years back we launched an investigation into the origins of the internet’s favourite fake lineup shot. While we managed to draw a few concrete conclusions back then, we fell short of identifying where the image actually came from. Then, last year, after we’d all but forgotten about it, we discovered that our article […]
Wetsuit Review: Vissla High Seas 4/3
[The Wavelength shop features the very latest and greatest in performance wetsuits, for the chilly brines of home to lower latitude protection. Shop our hand picked wetsuit range here] Water Temp: 11 – 14° C Weight: 1200g Construction: Limestone Neoprene, I-Foam, Fever Fiber, Ridiculous Rubber Timing, they say, is crucial. As in life, as in love, as, […]
