Surfing has always been about innovation. In the water and out of it, surfing literally invented categories and drove innovations that other sub-cultures and even the mainstream have adopted, emulated and copied. In fashion, surfing invented boardshorts and hoodies. In technology, surfing perfected the art of event webcasting. In the modern era - surfers are some of the best paid and most influential athletes in the world. This new portal on theBOMBsurf is about showcasing innovation and bringing you the latest products straight out of the R&D bays of the best brands and onto your lap(top).
Kicking things off, we introduce the new Quiksilver Alpha Surf Pack. I use a backpack every single day, so it's something I'm pretty close to and I was excited to check this pack out. So what makes it so different to any other back pack? It's designed specifically for surfers, and, yes we hear that often, but really when you start looking at the design details in this pack and what surfers really need and want from a backpack - it's all here. Every feature on this backpack has a surfing purpose - and there's a lot to it.
For a start it comes with a 100% waterproof wet/dry bag. Which means you can either leave your wet stuff, like wetsuits, boardies and towels in it - or you can keep your laptop and other valuables dry when you're on a boat trip.
There are compartments for all your surf accessories, like leash pocket, wax pocket and fin compartment. For your sunnies, if like me, you're terrible at keeping them in the correct sunglasses bag (who actually does that?) - a fleece lined pocket means no scratches and a fleeced lined pouch for your iphone, camera and other scratch-unfriendly valuables.
A clever surfing-touch is that the plastic strap-buckles are covered in neoprene, so you don't ding your board when you carry it under your arm - something I've never seen before.
Another thing I love about this pack is that the zips are plastic, so they'll never rust and the exterior fabric of the bag is very tough to survive the barrage of day-today use and feral missions in whatever remote location you find yourself when you travel.
This pack is big, but it's very comfortable to wear, even when fully packed. I could easily fit in enough clothes for a week in Mozam plus my Macbook, and all my valuables, which is what I like. I hate lots of bags. Especially when you're missioning on 4x4s and jumping on and off boats and small planes. Less is definitely more IMHO, so if you're like me you'll definitely like the Alpha.
Iain.
The Quiksilver Alpha Surf pack is available from the following core surf stores and Quiksilver stores for R1100:
Win a Quiksilver Alpha Surf Pack by entering your details below. Winner announced on 8th December.
The winner of this competition is Gavin Bradley - drawn 08/12/2011. Congratulations Gavin!
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Posted by Curtis on the 30/11/2011 09:06
Great review - awesome bag.
Posted by Ben on the 30/11/2011 09:30
Super cool!
Posted by andre d on the 30/11/2011 12:52
How cool is this bag. The sunnies pouch is a plus. The wet dry / dry wet with removable wet/dry bag is perfect for the days when you forget your wet smelly booties for too long. Where can I get one from? A
Posted by iain on the 30/11/2011 14:45
@andre d, you can get one of these Alpha Surf Packs from any Quiksilver store or core store that stocks Quik product.
Posted by Tessa on the 30/11/2011 15:51
Great idea, great bag! I know black is the new black and it will never clash with your floral pink and orange Hawaiin shirt, or show up the red wine stains from that infamous beach party, but it gets damn hot in the sun. Maybe make a floral pink and orange bag that doesn't clash with my black bikini? :-)
Posted by Al Luke on the 05/12/2011 09:23
Such a cool bag!
Posted by Joan on the 09/01/2012 07:09
I have extacly what info I want. Check, please. Wait, it's free? Awesome!
There are basically 3 things I ask myself when it comes to sunglasses. Firstly, do they look cool? Secondly, are they comfortable and finally, how good is the quality of the lenses - are they going to protect my eyes from the glare when I'm at the beach on a scorching day?
I got my hands on this pair of Oakley Dispatch IIs two weeks ago and I've worn them everyday since then.
This pair is the polished Rootbeer colour with Bronze polarized lenses. So considering the 3 questions above, this is what I found...
Are they cool? Well this is the pair that Jordy wears so in terms of personal endorsement they don't get much cooler than that. I generally prefer the oversized, rockstar look and so these suited my tastes perfectly. The lens orbitals of the Dispatch II are a little smaller and more rounded than the Dispatch I, and the earstems are absolutely unique. They’re a fresh twist on a look that salutes vintage style. They are made from what Oakley calls "O matter" which is the unique material that allows the ear stems to spring back into shape. The unique feature of the Dispatch II is that each pair comes with interchangeable Oakley Icons that you can change up at any point. Check this little clip out to see how quick and easy it is to customize a pair by changing out the icons:
No problems there.
Secondly, the fit. These are leisure shades as opposed to sports shades, so what I'm looking for here is comfort, alignment and weight. This pair is made up of 2 single lenses with a triangle in the middle. Comfort is optimized by what Oakley call the "Three-Point Fit" that balances pressure points instead of hooking around your ears like ordinary frames. This also means that optically they are perfectly aligned. The frames are lightweight and very comfortable to wear, so much so that once I popped these on my face I pretty much forgot about them altogether. Tick.
Finally, the lenses on this pair of Dispatch IIs is probably the best I've ever worn. I did some research and made some inquiries on these Oakley lenses, which are called the "Oakley HD Polarized" lenses, and are made out of Oakley's trademaked Plutonite lens material which filters out 100% of UVA / UVB / UVC & harmful blue light up to 400nm which means a minimized glare and the best possible protection for your eyes. Something we've come to expect from the market leader in eyewear over the years. As you can see from the images, the lenses are quite wide and so there is significant side protection on this style, and for the technical freaks out there, has a 6 base lens curvature, so now you know.
The Oakley Dispatch IIs are available from all good surf shops and optometrists and range from R1325 for the standard Polished Black pair to this particular pair which I wore, the Rootbeer with bronze polarized lenses at R1875.
Thank you for spopting by I sure hope you'll visit again soon! And you are 1000% right those nose pads stink when you have your hair up!
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Stretch Your Reality
26/11/2011
Whether it’s a boat-trip with a mate, jamming to your favourite local band at a private jol, watching the Billabong Pro Tahiti from the channel or whatever else you can dream up - share YOUR ultimate experience and get your mates to vote it into reality. So let your imagination run wild!
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Posted by Sean Limerick on the 29/11/2011 11:27
I am a huge fan of pool parties, and throw them every summer. I would love to throw the mother of all pool parties, in an awesome venue with loads and loads of awesome fun filled people in their bikinis and board-shorts. Having fun in the sun and celebrating summer like it should be.
Posted by Paul Allan on the 04/12/2011 11:00
Myanmar / Burma is just starting to open up, and with that the potential of uncrowded perfect surf and world class left point breaks. I would love more than anything to be invited on an exploratory surf mission, with mates or pro's to surf these spots for the first time..
Posted by Dean wallenkamp on the 12/12/2011 09:20
My ultimate experience would be to surf in Hawaii, to be able to catch those awesome huge waves, exhilarating and what an experience!!!
Posted by Tom on the 20/02/2012 09:23
not if you dont mind being cllead a Poser if you like it for the style thats one thing and thats fine ..but if your wearing it just to fit in to the skatebaord/snowboard lifestyle thats completly wack and you deserve to be cllead a poser
Posted by John on the 20/02/2012 20:43
I dvsiocered your blog last week and started follow your posts religiously. I have not commented on any blog just yet but I was thinking I would love to. It?s really exciting to actually contribute to a article even if it?s only a blog. I really don?t know exactly what to write other than I really enjoyed reading through 2 of the articles. Nice articles indeed. I sure will keep visiting your blog weekly. I learned quite a bit from you. Thx!
Entries will be closing soon for the LIZZARD SUMMER SURF competition which is taking place in Umhlanga on 9,10,11 December and is the opening event for the seventh annual Umhlanga MTN Summer Carnival.
The Umhlanga MTN Summer Carnival has a fantastic line up of events this year including a Trail Run on 18 Dec, Miss/Mr Umhlanga where there is a R10000 cash prize!
There is much excitement and anticipation for this year’s surfing contest as Lizzard have put up R5000 cash prize for the open men’s division, and SPAR KZN are giving the top open ladies R5000 cash. Hurricane Surf are providing fantastic prizes, and 100 plus will be treating all the competitors to energy drinks. There will also be a paddle battle where surfers have to paddle around a buoy out at sea and the first person home will win R1000 cash from Muscleworks.
Local chief lifeguard Ross Kearns, Jestyn Viljoen & girls
The event has attracted top surfers such as Ricky Basnett (previous winner of the Mr Price Pro) and Brandon Jackson (top World Qualifying Series surfer). Surfers such as multiple SA Champ Matt Bromley will be flying in from Cape Town for the challenge.
Glen Pheasant is the Contest Director for the surfing contest said “This is the third year we are putting on the Lizzard Summer Surf and what is so unique about this event is that we include both long and short boarding and we include the pro and amateur surfers. We have so many families down on the beach all having a great weekend of fun in the sun. Add to that we have some of South Africa’s top surfers taking part so spectators will have some good action to watch”
49 Milne Street, (below Peter Lawson surfboards), Durban
Kevin : 084 701 6912
COOL RUNNINGS, one of Durban’s most iconic and cosmopolitan pubs, is celebrating summer, surfing and everything ‘Durban’ on Saturday 3rd December. Cool Runnings, with its great Caribbean laid-back vibe and Reggae sounds has been integral to the Durban party scene for the past 16 years.
Bunny chows, wors rolls, fish n chips, ice-cold beers, shooters and drinks at cut-back prices will be available from when the jol starts. Big screen surf movies, including the latest “Bong” movie, will start at 5h30 until 8h30-ish when the bands start jamming. Surprise give-aways during the jol.
The event will take off with two local bands, EXPLOSION and FOOLS OF FATE.
All four members of Explosion hail from the coastal surf village of ‘toti, play funky party rock n roll sounds influenced by the likes of Led Zepplin, Jimmi Hendrix, Deep Purple - and Jack Daniels. Their music is catchy and upbeat with more flavour than a Durban “bunny”.
Relatively new Reggae rock band, Fools of Fate, hail from KZN’s South Coast. The four band members play with heart and a passion for music translating into a unique sound which invites all types of music lovers to dance, sing and have a good time. ...so don’t be Foolish and leave this one to Fate.
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Posted by Lottie on the 07/01/2012 13:03
I'm not esliay impressed but you've done it with that posting.
Really ctsloy. Ouch. I was expecting much lower prices for data plans, due to the introduction of a horde of affordable smarphones, but heck, they just seem to go north.I've been ranting about this here for quite sometime now. lol. I just really see a huge market that needs to be explored. I mean, there are quite a number of people who have at least GPRS or EDGE phones, why not capitalize on that.Leave DSL, Cable, or maybe WiMax to take care of residential connections. Focus more on mobile internet access to be more affordable.
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Axi Muniain and Pablo Garcia win $4000.00 at North Canyon Tow In Trials presented by Wavejet
26/11/2011
1 Place. Axi Muniain and Pablo Garcia
Congratulations to Axi Muniain and Pablo Garcia of the Basque Country in Spain for winning $4000.00 in the North Canyon Tow In Trials presented by Wavejet. The victory secures them a spot in the 2012 international big wave competition that will take place in Nazaré, the first competition of its kind in Portugal. The sponsors proudly awarded the surfers with a $10,000 purse. All the surfers received a minimum of $500.00 and the winner received $4000.00.
“I’m very happy and looking forward to coming back to Nazaré and surf these great waves”, said Pablo Garcia at the award ceremony. Axi Muniain was also very excited with the victory: “The big wave riding world starts now to talk about Nazaré. What exists here is immense.”
Axi Muniain and Pablo Garcia won $4000.00 with 185 points, Al Mennie and Andrew Cotton (Ireland/UK) received $2000.00 for 2nd with 132 points, and Hugo Vau and C.J. Macias (Portugal/USA) were the rookie standouts with 105 points taking 3rd and receiving $1000. The conditions were very challenging which made for an exciting action packed final.
2 Place, Cotty & Al
“It was so awesome of Wavejet and Redbull to step up with the prize money. That was the key to making it a memorable contest that will encourage competitors to train hard for next year. I'm so stoked to have been a part of it all and I am looking forward to riding a Magic Model Wavejet out here next year!”, said C.J. Macias, who received 3rd place and Best Tube and Best Wipeout.
One of the unique things about the event was everyone received a minimum of $500.00 to show up and there were checks cut for Best Tube, Worst Wipeout, and Best Maneuver won by Axi. All in all it was an amazing event and a perfect warm up for the real deal in 2012.
3 Place, CJ & Hugo
“It was a great day. Everyone seemed to have an awesome time and most importantly everyone is safe. All the teams put on a great show even without the most perfect conditions. The Spanish impressed everyone especially in the final heat taking home the grand prize, an invitation to next years event! Congrats to everyone who participated and made the event possible. After all the rescues made yesterday I think it is very clear to more people that Praia do Norte is not a place to mess around and is the perfect training ground for the rescue and tow surfing center. I am very excited to stay in Nazaré a little longer and make sure the building continues for the first ever rescue center that will be complete for the event in 2012!”, said McNamara, the host of the event.
Axi Muniain
ZON North Canyon Show 2011
Garrett McNamara is back in Portugal to embark on another mission exploring the waves of Nazaré, in the ZON North Canyon Show 2011. This is the second mission of a three years project, initiated last year. This is a Nazaré City Hall and ZON project to internationally promote the region as a destination for surfing, show casing the unique aspects of the “Nazaré Canyon”.
The “Nazaré Canyon” is a rare geographical phenomenon, the biggest in Europe and one of the largest in the world, which can be explained as a gap on the continental plate with 170 kilometers of length and 5 kilometers of depth. The “Nazaré Canyon”, that is located right in front of Praia do Norte, receives the swells from the Atlantic Ocean and creates waves with abnormal size, compared to the rest of the Portuguese coast.
Special Thanks:
PRESENTING SPONSOR: Wavejet.
SPONSORS: Red Bull and ZON.
INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORTERS: Turismo de Portugal, Região de Turismo do Oeste, Instituto Hidrográfico da Marinha Portuguesa, QREN, + Centro and EU.
SUPPORTERS: Go Pro – D’Maker, DL Publicidade, Grupo Miramar, Hotel Maré, Benimoto, ITU, Escola Profissional da Nazaré, Physioclem, Luís Silvério, SPAL, Ana Trindade – Mediação e Gestão de Seguros, Continente and Yamaha.
MEDIA PARTNERS: Fuel TV (Televisão Oficial), Antena 3 (Rádio Oficial), SurfPortugal, SurfTotal, Zona Radical, Sport Life, Men’s Health, Drift Magazine, EST – Easy Surf Trips, Fluir, Waves, 18 Seconds, Surfer Rule, Surfers, Surfos Magazine, The Bomb Surf and Towsurfer.com.
ORGANIZATION: Câmara Municipal da Nazaré, Nazaré Qualifica, Clube de Desportos Alternativos da Nazaré and FPS – Federação Portuguesa de Surf.
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Posted by Tibbie on the 09/01/2012 07:23
Keep these articles cmonig as they've opened many new doors for me.
The ORIGINAL kraeon song is far more better than COPY CAT PRITAMa??s song. ITS VERY SAD THAT THESE DAYS BOLLYWOODa??s some music directors cant make their own music. Pritam is SHAMELESS. Anyway I love the ORIGINAL kraeon song very much and i love this couple too! and I watched the kraeon song in video I just love this,I got tears in my eyes after watching it. Its very good story,drama everything.I wanna see it .AND WHERE I CAN SEE THIS Korean SERIES called a?ceKim Hyung Sup Sarang Haeyoa??.
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Jordy Line
24/11/2011
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Posted by Henry C on the 03/01/2012 13:07
Can I get this stuff at O'Neill stores only or regular surf shops too?
Great qsitueon. And yes, because for some, it is easy to fall under false teachings. A lot of people did bad things due to thinking the world would end May 21. (Killing themselves, quitting their jobs, eating so much junk food thinking it wouldn't matter .you get it.) But, if we are to blame anyone it would be Harold Camping, a false prophet.
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South African's top surfers line up for Guido's SA Open at Port Alfred
24/11/2011
Greg Emslie current SA Champion and PST ratings leader
South Africa’s top surfers line up for Guido’s SA Open at Port Alfred
A former World Champion, a bunch of National champions, current and former South African Team members, surfers returning from competing on the World Qualifying Tour and a host of top locals will bring the Surfing South Africa year to a fitting climax when they compete in the Guido’s SA Open of Surfing, a Surfing South Africa Pro Surf Tour event, at Port Alfred in the Eastern Cape on December 3 & 4.
Two time World Masters Women’s champion and multiple SA Champion, Heather Clark of Port Shepstone, current South African champions Greg Emslie of East London and Nikita Robb of Cape Town (formerly East London) as well as Under 20 and Under 17 SA Champion Sarah Baum of Durban are set to top the list of entries in the 2A rated PST event which offers R15,000 in prize money, courtesy of Guido’s.
Joining them will be a host of surfers from all parts of South Africa, all of them eager to end the year off in style.
Emslie and Robb won their National titles at the Billabong SA Championships in Seal Point earlier this year. Baum took the Under 20 crown at Seal Point and then went on to win the Western Province Open in Cape Town and the Under 17 title at the recent Hurley SA Junior Championships in Durban.
Emslie also became the SA Masters Champion at the National Masters Championships held at Nahoon Reef in East London in August and will arrive in Port Alfred as the defending SA Open champion.
Entries are still open and with plenty of prize-money and PST points on offer in both the Men’s and Women’s events, a trip down to Port Alfred seems like a good idea. Guido’s, the sponsors of the event, will be holding a year end bash at the restaurant on the evening of Saturday December 3 and everyone is welcome to come and join the celebrations.
Entries into the surfing contest close on November 30 and heats will be posted on www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za on December 1. All surfers and officials are invited to attend the opening function which will take place at Guido’s in Port Alfred at 7.30pm on Friday December 2.
The Guido’s SA Open of Surfing is hosted by the Kowie Boardriders and presented by Surfing South Africa. It forms part of the 2011 Surfing South Africa Pro Surf Tour.
smart post good stuff going in your body means kepieng everything else well balanced. my favorite way to start the day is with a quick, fresh smoothie.bananas + frozen strawberries + milk + yogurt + cinnamon + peanut butter = amazing.
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Lockrack
23/11/2011
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Posted by Ashley on the 05/12/2011 09:38
Not a good idea to spell words incorrectly in a advert. Suggest you correct "seems of surfskis".
me
looks like a workable system, well done
Posted by Jasemin on the 20/12/2011 21:42
Yeah that's what I'm talikng about baby--nice work!
Oh gosh, some cemomnts! Wow, I'm not just a velveteen blogger anymore. Waving madly and thanks for the kind words, Janet and Michelle.Next erotic book, Janet, will have to have more spine action inside, I mean. And yes, Michelle, Edge City is the only place to set up residence while as for toe-ing funny you should mention that, since there's another bathtub scene in the new one, wherein toes but you'll just have to wait.
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Trials are on for wednesday at Praia Do Norte, in Nazara
The North Canyon Tow In Trials presented by Wavejet is scheduled for this Wednesday, November 23rd, at Praia do Norte, in Nazaré, Portugal. The conditions will be perfect for the Trials. The winning team will secure a spot in the international big wave competition that will take place in 2012 at Praia do Norte, being the first of its kind in Portugal.
In between the semi- and finals Garrett McNamara and CJ Macias will attempt to surf giant waves at Praia de Norte without a tow-in on WaveJets, surfboards equipped with a revolutionary new clean energy propulsion system. The Wavejet! Come watch as history is made.
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Posted by Kevin on the 20/02/2012 11:48
neobux is bteetr if you dont want to spend a penny, just click view and promote look at my channel on how i made 500+ in one month with paypal PROOF!! if you think about it thats a pretty decent car payment, or an average apartment Check it out its amazing!!
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