26/10/15

Surfing in Kerala: Making waves in India's sleepy south

surfimage Surfing was once a novelty in Kerala, but that's changing. Genevieve Roberts grabs her board to see what's up "This is the closest I'm likely to come to being in a Wes Anderson movie,"my new friend Ben says as we unload foam surfboards from the roof of an Ambassador car, the visual choreography of the brightly coloured boards against the coconut tree-framed horizon adding to the film-set feel. The sun is rising over Varkala in the laidback state of Kerala in south-western India, the bright red globe looking more like dusk than dawn. Fuelled with bananas and chai, we carry our boards down to the water's edge for a morning surf.

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25/10/15

Corrimal surf coach Nick Squiers wins regional surfing event

surfimageCorrimal's Nic Squiers has walked away with $2,000 in prize money and a bag of sweet memories after taking out the 2015 DP Battle Royale. Squires defeated Cronulla's Shane Campbell in the final at Thirroul on Sunday with a display of his customary power surfing in mostly clean two to three foot waves. Louis Gillick from Culburra Beach tied 3rd with former New Zealand surfing champion Jay Quinn, who also won the highly contested award for best air. The invitation only surf event boasted 32 surfers from southern Sydney to the far south coast including two 'wildcard' entries.

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25/10/15

Drifting With Purpose: A Life of Surfing and Reporting

surfimageReporter William Finnegan has spent his life drifting, but with a purpose. He reported from the front lines in Mozambique-a war few reporters covered-in the 1980s. He was on the ground in Somalia in the 1990s, and lately he's spent a lot of time in Mexico among the drug cartels and their victims. Through it all, Finnegan's been surfing, a hobby he took up as a teenager in Hawaii. He's still surfing today, riding the waves through the conflict-ridden world he travels as a reporter. He chronicles it all in his book, "Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life."

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