Tabla de contenidos para Winter 2024 en Zigzag

Change is never easy. Ernest Bendeman, known for his long tenure at the helm of Billabong and now the co-owner (with his wife) of Bruce’s Café, has started calling my table at the café "the office". For the past three months, this idyllic setting behind the slipway – overlooking Hulett’s Reef, and the famed right-hander for which the cafe was named – has played host to countless emails and phone calls to contributors, photographers, industry insiders, advertisers and colleagues. Not to mention all the WhatsApp messages. Thanks to the setting I can comfortably get up and wander the parking lot, keeping a close eye on conditions up the point and down the beach, and waffling into my phone while my laptop stays (safely) on the table. There’s no denying that…

Fortunately, some good people are fighting the good fight. The legal and grassroots battles against these operations highlight the urgent need to balance development with the preservation of environmental integrity and community heritage. We caught up with some of the organisations involved to gauge what is happening up and down the coast. West Coast Environmental non-profit organisation (NPO) Protect The West Coast (PTWC) has been hard at work since it was formed in early 2020. For those who might not know, PTWC came into being when Cape Town big-wave surfer Mike Schlebach tried to drive to a semisecret surf break on the West Coast, but was prevented from doing so by a new mining operation, which tried to block his access on a dirt road leading to the spot. It…

CLUB (noun): A formal or informal organisation dedicated to a particular interest or activity, where members meet regularly to participate in shared activities, discuss common interests, or socialise. I had no idea why he was wearing a sailor’s cap. It was hot, we were I all sweating profusely, and he had on jeans, a cut-off T-shirt and a black sailor’s cap, with long sun-streaked hair underneath it. He was in his late 50s. He walked up to our table, and pointed to the moniker on the breast of his cut-off T-shirt. “North Narrabeen Boardriders,” he said proudly, tapping the logo on the tee, and walked off to get a beer or something. We sat quietly in a dark corner of a dank pub on the darkest street in the back…

THE BORDER REGION is a wave-rich happy hunting ground for those in the know. The Johnson clan knows all the best spots and the prime conditions to score them on. Tyrell lines up shack number 17 for the morning. WHETHER LENSMAN SEAN THOMPSON was skillfully avoiding a classic Dunes sandblast or artfully setting up the shot, we love the low angle of Max Elkington’s high line. JESS DE SMIDT embracing the new Cape Town trend of dawn cold-water immersion in the best possible way.…

If someone corners you in an elevator and quizzes you on what you love about surfing, would you be able to articulate just one thing? No chance. When we sat down to start building the new Zag, we wanted to take a step back to remind ourselves why we’re doing this. We wanted to reconnect to the core of why we surf. Here then is an incomplete list, illustrated by some amazing imagery. Dig in and dream. Then hit us up and tell us what you love about surfing. A NEW WAX JOB THE FIRST DUCK DIVE A FRESHIE SEEING YOUR MATE GET THE WAVE OF THE DAY MIND SURFING PUTTING IT ON THE RAIL A TRIP TO THE TROPICS AN EASY PADDLE - OUT STYLE FEELING SURFED OUT WATC HING…

Shorty Bronkhorst needed no prompting. “The first time I came here was more than 40 years ago.” He had a gravelly voice, offset by a naughty, boyish smile. “I was living in Durban, and started surfing there in ’49. One day, me and two buddies came south on a surf safari. We didn’t know where to go, just cruising along the coast looking for waves. So we pulled in here – I mean, right here,” he pointed out the window to the rocks. “‘That looks like a decent spot,‘ says one of my mates, and I slammed on the brakes. Just then the roof rack broke, and all the boards just went pgeeuw.” He slid his hand across the top of his beer glass onto the table. “So… we stayed.…

THE BELIEF THAT INDIVIDUALS ARE STRENGTHENED THROUGH THEIR CONNECTIONS WITH OTHERS. You’ve heard the saying, there’s no ‘I’ in ‘team’… in Wolof, that translates to ‘ndem’. Wolof is the most prominent dialect in Senegal, and the language spoken by the young women of the Surfkids Shredding Senegal project. The Senegalese coastline has long been the haunt of discerning travellers who go for the warm water, the variety of breaks and the relatively small crowds. And for terranga – for the vibe. The Almadies Peninsula, located at the westernmost point of the African continent, is home to some of the best surf spots in the country, while Dakar, the capital city, serves as the epicentre of Senegal’s surfing culture. It is here, off the beaches of Yoff, that surfing has seen…

MATTHEW KOEN HOME BREAK Noordhoek PROFESSION Founder and fin-maker for Good For You Fin Co. YEARS SURFING 17 LAST PADDLE WAS AT Muizenberg WHAT MAKES YOUR SPOT SPECIAL? The beach has so many different sandbars and options for waves. With a diverse quiver, you can get really fun waves all year round. IDEAL CONDITIONS? 2’-6’ waves and medium-strength SE winds. BEST ADVICE FOR A NON-LOCAL PADDLING OUT FOR THE FIRST TIME There are plenty of good waves along the beach, so finding a peak with only a few people on it is best. TELL US ABOUT THE LOCAL CREW The local crew is an all-out mixing pot of wave riders. One thing in common is that they all like to get tubed! CURRENT QUIVER? Chomper Surfcraft 5’5” side-cut fish Dower…

THE ATLAS MOUNTAIΝS are a vast and well-known mountain range that spans over 2 500 kilometres across Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. It’s divided into three main sections, namely the High Atlas, Middle Atlas and Anti-Atlas. The High Atlas range is home to Jebel Toubkal, the highest peak in North Africa, standing tall at an elevation of 4 167 metres above mean sea level. The Atlas Mountains have a rich history dating back thousands of years, with the indigenous Berber tribe being an integral part of their folklore. According to Berber oral tradition, the range is the abode of spirits, jinn and other supernatural beings. The stories of these mythical creatures guarding hidden treasures in enchanted caves are still passed down through generations. Interestingly, the Atlantic Ocean takes its name from…

Adin Masencamp on a bomb at a mystic deep-water reef. In late June Adin chased a swell with the likes of Twiggy Baker and others, and pushed himself beyond his comfort zone – and the results were both beautiful and brutal. He scored some backhand bombs, but also ended up paying the price. He was hit by a thick lip that pushed his knee into the board, tearing his MCL (medial collateral ligament) and benching him for two months. “The MCL is commonly torn from a direct blow to the outside of the knee,“ explains Phil Nel, his biokineticist. “It’s pretty common in surfing, with the nature and dynamics of our sport.“ Phil knew right away what it meant for Adin’s plans. “My exact words to Adin on first assessment…