Tabla de contenidos para Winter 2023 en Zigzag

There’s a cool photo of Jordy Smith, holding his son Ziggy on his hip, that we were planning to run as part of our Grom Roll Call. Jordy’s basically royalty in SA surfing circles, so why not indulge in a little paparazzo snapshot of his offspring? I ran the idea past Jordy more as a courtesy than anything else, not even considering that he wouldn’t be stoked. But he said no. “Once he’s up and riding for himself, then I think it’s okay,” Jordy shot back. “Ja… he needs to work for this stuff. He can’t just get given it.” It’s a good anecdote for an intro to our Grom Issue, because it offers a glimpse of Jordy, the father; and maybe if you squint hard enough into that bottle,…

The reason the Garden Route is a great nursery for producing professional surfers comes down to a few things. Firstly, accessibility: we have access to a wide variety of quality waves. We have pointbreaks and beachbreaks all in close proximity to each other. These are easy to get to and super-consistent, which allows you to get plenty of time in the water without compromising on life’s other commitments. Another thing is that there’s great support from the community. It’s a small surf community, and so everyone is connected and supports each other. When the community recognises your talent, they get behind you all the way. From a surfing perspective the Eden Surf Riders Federation has really grown and helped develop many surfers over the years. It’s a great platform for…

The first thing about East London is that it’s a raw place. It’s a raw town that’s divided into several different areas. You have Eastern Beach, which is quite a hardcore group of guys. Then you have the Nahoon crew, which could be split into two areas, the lifesaving shack and the corner reef guys. Another pack is the Gonubie crew, which is also a very strong group. The last group is the East Coast pack. So East London surfing is made up of a few different crews. When you put all these groups together, it becomes one very strong surf community. The waves are powerful. You don’t often see a young under-10 or under-12 surfer who’s really good in this area, because the waves are so intense. There aren’t…

DOUGAL PATERSON INVESTIGATES. BRRURDO is the jet fuel of big-wave riders. There’s this ‘understanding’: that those willing to risk it all will be rewarded with the biggest waves. At the time of her accident, Mercedes Maidana was one of the best big-wave surfers in the world. Then, in 2014, while competing in a contest held in 30ft waves off the coast of Oregon, she was hit in the face by her 10ft surfboard. “It hit me underwater like a table, right into my forehead. I felt a quick in-and-out, black stars, pulled my inflatable vest…” Bleeding profusely, Maidana was rescued and taken back to shore, where a doctor glued the cut above her eye and told her she had “a mild concussion, nothing to worry about”. Back in Hawaii, despite…

Eli Beukes is fresh out of the grom category. After a few disappointing competitive results, he has committed himself to a free surfing future. And much like the wave stretching out in front him, that future is full of possibility. After the highs and lows of a brief competitive career, Ntando 'Biggie Smiles’ Msibi has found a home in surfing, working at Durban’s Surf HQ. And while he’s no longer a grom, the youthful enthusiasm he brings to his surfing still turns heads at the New Pier.…

Muizenberg is an energy point and so we always congregated here, from way back in the day. I’ve travelled across the globe throughout my surfing career, and learnt many things from the many different beaches. But Muizenberg has got that magic! That’s why there’s such great depth of surfers coming out of Muizenberg. There’s something special about this place. It’s an epicentre for transformation in our sport, and it’s great to see black surfers coming through. It’s great to see everyone having fun in the water. Families surfing together. People of all different ages and races, all coming together and enjoying the ocean. We have a massive variety of surfers at Muizenberg, and some really talented youngsters coming through. There are many surfers who froth to get to the Berg…

What has contributed to the Cape St. Francis and J-Bay region becoming such a hotbed of surfing talent? Is it the face-brick-flanked streets of J-Bay? The potholed roads? Or the special free-range meat the crew at Nina’s puts in their spicy lamb curry? Surfing begins and ends with waves. Surfers need surf. And they need a ton of it to become world-class surfers. Ever heard of the 10 000-hour rule, made popular by Malcolm Gladwell? Well, the 10 000-hour rule is a concept that suggests that it takes approximately 10 000 hours of deliberate practice to achieve mastery in a particular skill. By dedicating extensive time and effort to the deliberate practice of surfing, surfers can develop the necessary skills, knowledge and experience to become world class. In order for…

As a youngster, I grew up at Ansteys on the Bluff. When I was 12 my parents made the decision to move to town. We got a spot right on the beachfront in front of New Pier – the perfect place for a young kid to get into surfing. It’s so accessible, and easy to surf. You could surf two hours before school and three hours afterwards. Within a kilometre of New Pier you have a variety of waves to choose from, depending on your ability, until you eventually work your way up to New Pier, which is the most high-performance wave of the lot. Growing up, all of us lived on the beachfront, and we’d just spend hours surfing together and pushing each other. Not only my generation but…

I think there’s two bits of advice. I From the age group of 12 and under, it’s more catered towards parents. I obviously see a lot of parents who really want it for the child. And I don’t know if that’s really them wanting it for themselves, secretly. The first thing to identify would be the stoke of the kid, at such a young age. Identifying how stoked that kid is and how passionate he is about surfing, in all its forms, is probably the most important thing, for a parent. And then, just being able to facilitate their stoke and their passion towards it. That’s going to be the sign of how far they’re willing to take it. How much they’re really in love with it. And then the…

Blessed with a succession of world-class left-handers and a dedicated and growing surfing community, Liberia is destined to produce some of West Africa’s finest waveriders. This year, the 10th Annual Liberian National Surfing Championship attracted competitive surfers from the whole region – Ghana, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone and São Tomé – to battle it out with Liberia’s finest on the perfect sand-bottomed points of Robertsport. The annual surf competition is the biggest event on the social calendar, and brings the whole extended community down to the beach to watch. The Robertsport Surf Club is owned and run by the community, with a club house right on the beach, and a steady supply of affordable surfboards provided by Swiss NGO Provide the Slide, who collect and redistribute surfboards from Europe…

Not all nurseries are equal. Some have better ‘toys’ than others. Better teachers. Better facilities. And when one nursery sticks out as better than any other around, it naturally attracts people, and fosters a dynamic and competitive environment that yields excellent outcomes. So why is Kommetjie such a good nursery for pro surfers? Simply put: because of its great and varied waves. Albeit that it’s cold, windy and kelpy. You don’t have to look that far back to see that Kommetjie has produced more than its fair share of world-class pros and renowned chargers. Names like Brendon Gibbens, Matt Bromley, Michael February, Eli Beukes, Simone Robb and Tanika Hoffman come to mind. Not to mention loads of other junior and senior surfers over the years who have been paid as…

PE, now known as Gqeberha, is probably not top of your list for super-hot surfers; but we’ve had our fair share. World-class surfers such as Gavin Rudolph, Warren Dean, Quinton Jones, Dylan Stone, Granville West, Matthew McGillivray, Craig Anderson and many others all spent their formative years in the windy city. Although some have moved on, the roots remain. And the roots are what feed the tree. Good waves are easy to surf; but what hones technique and hunger is small, shitty surf. Kelly Slater was made in crappy reforms in Florida, home to some of the worst surf in the world. The list of world-class talents from the east coast of the United States is a long one. Not that many big-wave chargers, obviously, but well-rounded, technique-based craftsmen and…

Managing the expectations of parents, teachers and peers – while still trying to have a jol, score good waves and get featured in Zag’s Big Grom Roll Call. This is tough. Because you gotta have Zigzag-quality A-grade surf photos to be included… Which means this is NOT an exhaustive list of SA’s up-and-coming surfing talent. But it’s enough to get a snapshot of the next generation of Saffa surfers coming through… and the kids are alright! KAI HALL AGE 16 LOCAL BREAK KZN, South Africa and Bali, Indonesia “I have quite a few surfing goals, but I prefer to do than say. I want to be successful and get big pits and surf the best waves I can find.” NATE COLBY AGE 17 LOCAL BREAK New Pier, Durban “Growing up,…

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