Not sure about your coast, but I was inundated by choppy waters this week. Every single day was the same, though it was worse during the early part of the week when snap squalls appeared from off the radar.

They rode over the top of good energy, unsettled the surface conditions, which meant I spent more time reacting and trying to stay on the level, rather than relaxing and staying calm.

Monday: A steady onshore regime set itself up in the Tasman Sea, while Snapper Rocks was surprisingly and unceremoniously dropped from the Championship Tour. Twenty-something years it’d been running steady.

Tuesday: An easterly devil wind soured what would have been a great day of waves, as North Narrabeen was surprisingly added to the CT after twenty-something years off the calendar. It had been absent even longer than Snapper had been present. The Dream Tour concept was suddenly turned on its head.

Wednesday: Not only was Margaret River confirmed as a CT event but so too was Rottnest Island - another surprise of course. Sudden too. It was about his point I began feeling seasick, a condition not aided by the third straight day of jumped up onshores.

Thursday: Dawn broke to an ill wind blowing across the Oz media landscape, with news Facebook had purged the News Feed of every media outlet. It doesn’t affect Swellnet much, but the WSL, who maintain flexibility by contacting fans via social media and then live stream across Facebook? How will that be affected..? No-one can say for sure. And the wind of course was onshore…

Friday: ‘Twas onshore again and I could barely bring myself to look at my inbox for what may leap out. Yet when I did the Swellnet Forecast Notes appeared on the monitor. “Swell increasing,” it said. “Wind decreasing.” 

And a calm descended on the land.

Yours metaphorically,
-Stu

Rottnest Island added to Aussie CT leg

Whew! Too much news from Woz HQ. I'll spare you every story except for the last one - Rotto on the CT. The little island that could, now can. For all the twists of the newly rejigged Oz Woz leg, check the homepage and scroll down. Read More >

Baz Cornell Achieves Airbnb Superhost Status

This week, Toonalook enforcer Barry ‘Baz’ Cornell reached a milestone as his backyard bungalow continually proves a hit with visitors looking for the authentic Toona experience. Thanks to Ding Alley for yet another scoop. Read More >

Hyndline: A thirty year timeline of foam and fibreglass

Hyndline is thirty boards - one selected for each year spanning 1973 to 2003 - emblematic of either Derek Hynd’s own history or its broader historical significance. He’s at once the curator, the shaper, and the mercantile man too.  Read More >

It's gone! Surfing's social media hit

In a case of 'be careful what you wish' for, Facebook pulled the plug on every Australian media outlet - including the WSL who live stream contests on the platform. What will this mean for surf media and those who follow it? Read More >

Watch: Sandbar cheer with JJF

Chip shot takeoffs and undersucking freefalls.
Head-high waves that double in size down the line.
A sandbar that's here today and washed away tomorrow.
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