In the spring of 1981, Simon Evans and Geoff Tydeman sat down to consider the pressing issues of the day. The Cold War, the coming launch of the space shuttle Columbia and Michael Jackson’s Thriller almost certainly came up. Other business included Simon’s designs for the masthead logo for Geoff and John Conway’s exciting new creation, Wavelength Surfing Magazine.
The idea was to launch the magazine at Britain’s first-ever world tour surf event, the Euro Pro-Am, taking place in August at Fistral Beach. The comp would bring the likes of Shaun Tomson and Rabbit Bartholomew, then superstars of the surfing world, to the Atlantic roller fringed, golden sands of Cornwall. What better place to launch the title, Europe’s newest, brightest, most exciting vehicle of printed surf stoke?
They needed to make a statement, and this being the big ‘80s, that meant bright, loud, unabashed. How could they blow the existing surf mags out of the water? How could help spread word of the art of wave riding, the greatest lifestyle on earth? Surely, only a bright pink masthead would do. As opportunistic as they were creative, John and Geoff took over the tournament and used it as the launch party for the new magazine, despite the fact that the contest sponsors, Alder, owned Surf Scene, one of two other British surf mags at the time.
Surf Scene who? Exactly.
Back then, the whole of Newquay, Surf City UK, was abuzz with excited talk of ‘The ‘Length.’ With John as contest director and his wife’s family owning the Sailor’s Arms pub and club in town, contest parties also became Wavelength parties. The title’s faithful following was launched amongst scenes of unrivalled revelry. Friendships were made, shared stoke bonds forged. Late into the balmy August night, people swayed to the enchanting rhythms of an expert disc jockey despite the restrictiveness of impossibly tight shorts and trousers, and vowed to surf, dance and read Wavelength forever.
Naturally, a collection of bright and garish ‘80s leisurewear soon followed, designed once again by Simon Evans. Tracksuits were a must, part of the shock new trend of wearing sportswear, even if not doing actual sport. People also wore running shoes, first seen in another new sport called jogging, even if not actually going jogging. There were full tracksuits for the fully committed, long sleeve tees for everyone else. This being the ‘80s, logos were as bright as possible, and measured in acres rather than cm. If you were checking the surf or merely waiting by your TV set for Channel 4 to launch in late 1982, only the comfort and style of Wavelength The Surfing Magazine tracky bums would now do.
Along with Simon himself, local surfers were roped in to model the range, including the likes of WL favourites Grishka Roberts and Darren Potter. Modelling then meant strong, confident poses, perhaps looking off into the middle distance, occasionally pointing at some unseen curiosity or event. They were naturals.
This year, to celebrate our 40th anniversary, WL, still made from within sight of Fistral’s famous sands by folk still occasionally lured to late-night revelry by the siren call of the Sailor’s, pulled a few of those very images out of the archive to be shared. Pubs and clubs being closed, popular internet photo-sharing app Instagram was chosen to convey the message, where they met a particularly warm reception. Simon’s daughter, Immie spotted them and got in touch to say, “That’s my dad!” and that he still had all his original designs on slide film. Needless to say, a few weeks later they were in the scanner, and we set about recreating the original clothes.
The designs were revamped and relaunched to make the Wavelength Heritage capsule, a fresh take on a classic, much-loved look. The modern fabrics are even softer and higher quality than the originals, but the vibes are the same as they ever were.
We teamed up with Oakley for the Wavelength Heritage capsule shoot, the legendary eyewear brand being an obvious choice because of their deep heritage in all things surf. Having been a dominant presence in beach culture since ’84, today the brand have brought back some of the most iconic eyewear styles of the era, delivering a potent combination of unrivalled looks and the very highest of performance optics.
(1) Adam wears the Retro Surfer Long Sleeve T-shirt in Golden Sun (£27.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades Origins Collection, with Prizm Road lenses (£149.00). Amber wears the Heritage Tracksuit Crew (£48.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Trail Torch lenses (£149.00).
(2) Adam wears the World Surfer Heritage Hoody (£42.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades Origins Collection, with Prizm Road lenses (£149.00). Amber wears the Surf City Long Sleeve Heritage T-shirt (£25.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Trail Torch lenses (£149.00).
(1) Amber wears the Surf City Long Sleeve Heritage T-shirt (£25.00).
(2) Amber wears the Heritage Tracksuit Crew (£48.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Trail Torch lenses (£149.00).
(1) Amber wears the Heritage Hooded Tracksuit Top (£48.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Trail Torch lenses (£149.00).
(2) Adam wears the Heritage Full Tracksuit (£75.00) and Oakley Frogskins™ Lite Origins Collection with Prizm Jade lenses (£121.00).
Surfboard by Zedsleds
(1) Adam wears the Heritage Tracksuit Crew (£48.00) and Oakley Sutro Lite Origins Collection with Prizm Black lenses (£149.00).
(2) Amber wears the Retro Surfer Heritage T-shirt (£25.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Trail Torch lenses (£149.00).
(1) Adam wears the Retro Surfer Long Sleeve T-shirt in Golden Sun (£27.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades Origins Collection, with Prizm Road lenses (£149.00). Amber wears the Heritage Tracksuit Crew (£48.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Trail Torch lenses (£149.00).
(2) Adam wears the Heritage Full Tracksuit (£75.00) and Oakley Frogskins™ Lite Origins Collection with Prizm Jade lenses (£121.00).
Surfboard by Zedsleds
(1) Amber wears the Heritage Hooded Tracksuit Top (£48.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Trail Torch lenses (£149.00).
(2) Adam wears the Surf City Long Sleeve Heritage T-shirt (£25.00) Oakley Evzero™ Blades Origins Collection, with Prizm Road lenses (£149.00).
Surfboard by Zedsleds
(1 & 2) Amber wears the Retro Surfer Long Sleeve T-shirt in Golden Sun (£27.00) and Oakley Evzero™ Blades with Prizm Grey lenses (£149.00).
Surfboards by Zedsleds.
Zedsleds is a no bull surfboard brand that specialises in handmade custom craft for the individual.
They endorse the re-birth of retro with a high-performance twist, building boards that facilitate the reemergence of true surf style. With guidance from one of the UK’s top board builders, Bill Attlee, whose been at it since the ’70s, they create multi-genre boards that take inspiration from the extensive knowledge of the Escape Factory.
Find out more at @zedsleds.
