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Kosta: La Cote Basque Au Fil Des Vagues
Photos from Chauce and Urribe

Here’s a raft of photography from two of the Basque Coast’s finest chroniclers of French and Spanish surfing. Concurrent with the release of Chauce’s new book, Kosta is a long-form study of the region’s surf, articulated through stunning line-up photos. While the romantic favorites are well represented--Guethary, Anglet, Mundaca--the book overwhelms with the sheer breadth of surf experience on tap. From knee-high longboard peelers to quintuple-overhead reef breaks, this photo feature takes you to the land of pelota, octopus, and vino tinto in Grand Luxe Fashion.

Sure Form
Tom Wegener Planes a Life in Noosa Heads
By Phil Jarratt

The Joker... where to start? One of the classic personages on the contempo surf landscape, Tom brings a fresh perspective to everything he attempts. His Curriculum Vitae includes: Lunada Bay; noseriding mastery; a law degree from USD; serious shaping skills; the production of a homespun, cable access surf show; participation in Siestas y Olas; “Big in Japan” status; fatherhood; subtle knowledge of Tea Tree and Granites at Noosa... all supported by cackling, beer-fueled bonhomie. Phil Jarratt, his neighbor in Queensland, considers him a kindred spirit, offering this issue’s profile.

Rare Birds:
Ghost Tree
By Ryan Masters

“Ghosts exist. Perhaps only as rumors first, whispers of some titanic pitch out in the fog, up the coast, far offshore. Perhaps never breaking at all, existing only as theoretical combinations of submarine topography, wind and swell. But sometimes the real thing materializes, standing up out of the sea, once, twice, maybe a half dozen times a year like some beautiful myth come to life.” Journey with us to the rarefied atmosphere of Carmel-by-the-Sea for a look at a truly sublime--and treacherous--oceanographic occurrence.

Drafting Pettibon
By Dan Duane

“What need, O shipmates, to sail for any port? Let us sail for the sake of surfing.” And with that snippet of Homer-esque poesy, Pettibon slings us into his gutsy, low-fidelity ink renderings of the surf experience.

Or not. Pettibon claims that surfing is merely a device he’s salvaged from his mental notebook, no more than a vehicle to express whatever he has lodged in his craw at any given moment. We’re not buying it. What look like mere tosses are in fact studied, informed drafts of wave riding color and form. As a surfer, you’ll know it immediately.

The Spirits of Katiet
By Tim Baker

“Lance was soon winging his way over to the Mentawais with the rest of our bulging entourage to revisit the scene of his great surf discovery. Fourteen years on, Lance was now 52, and Lance’s Rights was a prime stop for a booming surf charter business. But Lance showed no bitterness about sharing his discovery. He was passionate about promoting Surf Aid’s humanitarian work there, excited about being reunited with the friends he made at Katiet and as amped as any grommet at the prospect of riding that wave again.”

The King of Beasts
Ricky Grigg on Buzzy Trent

We’ve been waiting for a go-to-hell Trent feature as long as you have. It’s here.

Buzzy: Did you ever read Peter Capstick? He wrote Death in the Long Grass. It was about hunting leopards in Africa; about how vicious the leopard was. But, you know, courage isn’t something you can go down to the super market and put in your shopping basket. Like when Omar Shariff and Peter O’Toole are about to lead a charge down onto the Turkish army column in Lawrence of Arabia and Omar looks at Lawrence and asks, “No prisoners?” and Lawrence answers, “No prisoners, cheri.”

Plus...
an Anthony Friedkin black and white suite, the Galapagos, Nat Young on contests, Doug Haut, Nick Gabaldon, a Jeff Divine portfolio, Gerry Lopez, and a man entering the mouth of a plastic shark.

Find a warm chair, some north light, and indulge in some high-test armchair surfing.

Tranquilo,

Scott Hulet
Editor, The Surfer’s Journal