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While the debate about the causes for global warming rages on, renown Halifax-based photographer Yassine Ouhilal has proof positive that warming is indeed taking place in the Arctic.
On Friday, March 12, Ouhilal will be opening an exhibit of his Thawscapes collection at Halifax’s Argyle Fine Art, 1869 Upper Water St. On display will be a series of exquisite limited edition, pure pigment on watercolour prints along with select, unique edition pieces.
Thawscapes explores Ouhilal’s deep interest in Arctic geology. The landscapes which appear in the collection are new, revealed for the first time by rapidly receding glaciers.
“At first I was unaware of how quickly global warming was altering the Arctic landscape,” said Ouhilal. “Now, with the second warmest year in a row on record, the changes are accelerating exponentially. Read more…
Following the resounding success of the inaugural Cold Water Classic Series blending adventure, exploration, surf and competition, the O’Neill Cold Water Classic Series makes a much-anticipated return for 2010.
Last year saw the series push the boundaries of surfing in a way never seen before with five ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS) events exploring spectacular surf spots throughout remote corners of the globe with the word’s best surfers competing for the prestige of winning the O’Neill CWC Series and the $50,000 prize money.
“It’s pretty much the next best thing to winning the ASP World Title,” says World Tour star Jordy Smith.
It’s not only the prize money and accolade, but the integration of exploration and adventure into surf competitions that the surfers themselves relish. Read more…
Surfing is about to reach a historic milestone in Nova Scotia.
The province’s Department of Health Promotion and Protection (HPP) has deemed the Surfing Association of Nova Scotia (SANS) eligible for government funding.
The decision was based on an application submitted by SANS under the HPP’s Recreation and Physical Activity grant program.
Having been deemed eligible, SANS will now apply for actual funding. If successful, SANS will receive core funding over the next four years.
Once allotted, funding will be used by SANS to fulfill goals outlined in its strategic plan. The goals include helping build the province’s surf community, supporting recreational and amateur surfing and promoting coastal protection.
“Basically what this funding would allow us to do is put the rad back in radical,” said SANS Co-President Graham Bondt. Read more…
Taghazout. Click to enlarge
Surf: 4/5 = Great but seasons make a difference here.
Price: 4/5 = Cheap!
Party: 1/5 = Good luck. They’re strict on alcohol.
Localism: 2/5 = It’s not your wave, and don’t forget it.
Thieves: 1/5 = Pick pockets and car break-ins are common, very common.
Time Frame: Oct/Nov 2009
Where do I start on this short story of a surf trip? With the most important points I guess.
How to get there: I’d recommend using one of Europe’s low cost carriers once you already have a flight to one of Europe’s major airports (e.g. London, Frankfurt, Paris). Ryanair, Easyjet and Royal Air Maroc are pretty safe bets to get from Europe to Morocco. I flew return with Ryanair from Frankfurt for $120 CDN taxes-in.
Here’s a basic rule of thumb: A 100 km bus or train ride costs around 25 DH or about $3.50 CDN. Read more…
Nomme Mignot
Nomme Mignot and his cousin Diego Mignot will be representing Canada in the under-16 division at the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship in Auckland, New Zealand (January 20-28).
The two surfers currently live in Mexico but hold Canadian passports. Both surfers regularly compete in Mexico and are nationally ranked.
Canadian Surfing Association (CSA) President John Fluke announced on Thursday that Nomme and Diego would be joining Team Canada. Last week, it was believed that Nomme would be representing Mexico.
Sixteen-year-old Jacob Albury of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia is the third member of the team. Albury, who was born in Ontario and has lived in the Bahamas and Nova Scotia, is in Grade 11 at Park View Education Centre in Bridgewater.
Albury took first place in the open boys division at the Shut up and Surf Classic contest in October at Cow Bay, Nova Scotia. Read more…
See more photos of Jacob at the end of the interview.
Sixteen-year-old Jacob Albury of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia will be representing Team Canada at the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship, which takes place January 20-28 in Auckland, New Zealand.
Albury, who is in Grade 11 at Park View Education Centre in Bridgewater, took first place in the open boys division at the Shut up and Surf Classic contest in October at Cow Bay, Nova Scotia.
ScotiaSurfer.com interviewed Albury through email this past weekend.
ScotiaSufer.com (SS): Tell us a little about your background.
Jacob Albury (JA): I grew up in Abaco, Bahamas but moved to Nova Scotia when I was 10, then moved back to Bahamas at 13, then back to Nova Scotia this summer. I get back to the Bahamas two, three times a year. Surfing in the Bahamas is definitely more convenient not having to change into wetsuits. Read more…
This may be ‘the ticket’ for our winter months when getting between the comfort of your warm car and the line-up is more than a frigid and depressing ordeal. It may also be a great way to save some major $$$ versus buying a Rip Curl H-Bomb at around $800.
This new product by Quicksilver will retail for around $200 to $250 dollars and may keep you just as warm.
Either way here’s the news from the horses’ mouth:
The Cypher Heat Vest provides battery powered heat and a lightweight thermal layer to warm your core and extend your session.
The heat system is incorporated into a .5mm polypropylene vest allowing freedom of use under any wetsuit.
The controller can be operated through any suit and utilizes vibration pulse feedback to let the user know when the heat vest is turned on or off.
Rechargeable battery provides 2.5 hours of full heat. If switched on and off, the battery will have no problem lasting any marathon winter session.
- Impact resistant waterproof design.
- Flexible heating pads with high and low heat settings.
- Comes with both car and wall battery chargers.
The following letter is from Amy Schwartz, Vice President of the Surfing Association of Nova Scotia (SANS)
The Surfing Association of Nova Scotia (SANS) is a provincial organization – established to represent the interests of surfers from across the province.
SANS is working on an strategic operational plan at the moment and one of our key goals is to ensure that SANS represents interests and issues related to surfing from across our province.
At our next Board Meeting on December 10, I plan to make some recommendations on how SANS can do this better.
If you have any ideas or thoughts on the following, please send a message to surfridersns@gmail.com:
- How can SANS represent the interests of surfers/surfing areas in all parts of Nova Scotia (not just HRM!)?
- What are the issues/needs/highlights/challenges about surfing or the surfing community in your region?
- How can SANS get more input from people from various regions of Nova Scotia?
- Other thoughts?
We would appreciate any feedback you can give us!
Best,
Amy Schwartz – VP SANS
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O’Neill and Ron Jon Surf Shop’s are having a fall-winter sporting goods sell-off.
If you’re in or near the Montreal area November 25, 26, 27 or 28, drop by with some cash (cash only) as you may pick up some great gear for a bargain.
If you’re from Nova Scotia and by chance will be up there for the sale, send us an email here at: info@scotiasufer.com
We’d love to speak with you!
The International Surfing Association (ISA) is once again awarding academic scholarships to junior surfers.
The main objective of the 2010 Individual Scholarship Program “is to provide financial support to junior surfers who demonstrate an actual need, in order to facilitate an experience in surfing while encouraging the importance of education.”
The money must be used by the recipients to travel to surf contests and/or upgrade their surfing equipment, as well as to foster their education.
Nova Scotia surfer Isaac Norman was one of 20 scholarship recipients in 2008.
Who is eligible?
All junior surfers who were 17 years of age or younger on January 1, 2009 and are enrolled in school and in good standing.
Applicants must also have a credible financial need for a scholarship that could not be provided by their families, sponsors or local government. In other words, the scholarship must make a big difference in a surfer’s academic and surf career.
And finally, applicants must be an inspiration to others.
The deadline for applications is December 11, 2009.
For more information on the ISA scholarship program or to apply, please contact Canadian Surfing Association President John Fluke by email at: canadiansurfing@yahoo.com
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Seventy-two-year-old Tofino-area surfer Ruth Sadler relayed the Olympic flame to West Coast pro surfer Raph Bruhwiler during a tricky torch turnover in Pacific Rim National Park on Vancouver Island Sunday.
Bruhwiler proceeded to catch a second wave and surf the flame into shore.
This was just one of many stops for the Olympic torch on it’s 106-day journey that will commence with the winter Olympics in Vancouver and Whistler in February.
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has won the O'Neill Cold Water Classic in Tofino, BC. Photo courtesy of O'Neill.
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has won the O’Neill Cold Water Classic (CWC) in Tofino, British Columbia.
The 26-year-old Tofino-area surfer beat Australian Jay Thompson in final heat on Saturday. Devries scored 16.43 points with his best two waves, easily surpassing Thompson, who notched 9.47 points.
Devries earned $20,000 U.S. for taking first place in the Cold Water Classic, the first pro surf contest held in Canada that was endorsed by the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP), the governing body of pro surfing.
Devries was local wildcard entrant for the 6-Star World Qualifying Series (WQS) event. He had never before advanced to the top 16 of an event endorsed by the ASP.
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has advanced into the finals of the O'Neill Cold Water Classic in Tofino, BC. Photo courtesy of O'Neill
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has advanced into the finals of the O’Neill Cold Water Classic (CWC) in Tofino, British Columbia.
The 26-year-old Tofino-area surfer beat Cory Lopez of the U.S. in his two-man semi-final heat on Saturday.
Devries will go head-to-head with Australia’s Jay Thompson in the final of the 6-Star WQS event.
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has advanced into semi-finals of the O'Neill Cold Water Classic in Tofino, BC. Photo courtesy of O'Neill
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has advanced into the semi-finals of the O’Neill Cold Water Classic (CWC) in Tofino, British Columbia.
The 26-year-old Tofino-area surfer beat Ireland’s Glenn Hall in his two-man quarter-final heat on Saturday.
Devries, the only Canadian surfer still in the contest, is now among the final four international surfers in the 6-Star WQS event. He will go head-to-head with American Cory Lopez in the semi-finals.
If he wins, Devries will advance into the finals.
Photo: Jeremy Koreski, courtesy of O'Neill.
Canadian ripper, Peter Derives, wows the crowd at North Chesterman beach and scores a 12.67 in heat #4 of round 16 of the O’Neill Cold Water Classic to advance to the quarter finals.
He beat Joan Duru from France who scored 8.44 on his best waves.
So far, Pete is third overall for best average score on waves and 7th overall for the best score on a single wave.
He will compete tomorrow in the quarter finals so stay posted to keep updated on his progress!
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has advanced into Round 5 of the O'Neill Cold Water Classic in Tofino, BC. Photo courtesy of O'Neill
Canadian surfer Pete Devries has advanced to Round 5 in the O’Neill Cold Water Classic (CWC) in Tofino, British Columbia.
The 26-year-old Tofino-area surfer captured first place in his four-man heat in Round 3 on Thursday, notching the third-best score among 48 surfers. He followed that up by taking second place in his three-man heat in Round 4.
Devries, the only Canadian surfer still in the contest, is now among the final 16 international surfers in the 6-Star WQS event. He will go head-to-head with France’s Joan Duru in Round 5 on Friday.
If he wins, Devries will advance into the quarterfinals with seven other surfers.
