Getting to spend time down in the Catlins is always a treat. Especially if you've gathered a bunch of your best mates and flown over from the south west coastline of Victoria, Australia. That's exactly what my friend Jock Serong did with Ed Prendergast and Gerard Dalton in tow last week. The trio are celebrating 47 years on planet earth and decided the trip to the deep south would give them unfettered access to some of the best waves in the country. And they were right: at one point it was just the three of them with a bay all to themselves. Even the resident sea lions gave them free reign.
I joined them one afternoon for a marathon session – almost four hours of pulsing peaks – a huge session for most of us, but these hardy Victorians lapped it up like groms sneaking off school for the day. It was refreshing to see the quality of waves they hunted down, the energy they poured into the session and the fervour with which they hunted the lineup.
And post surf is no different. Three lads closing in on the five zero, but refueling and snacking like grommets, jostling for position around the bowls – not junk food, but olives and salami and pistachios – and discussing the next surf, the forecast and who's got a hope in hell of cracking heavy, wild Kirra and the impending WSL title race. They're exhausted, but abuzz. And its contagious. Moreso for me when I realise that no matter how old we are that stoke we get from surfing with our core group of friends will never grow dull. Thanks for the reminder Jock, Ed and Gerard with a D.
See you at the beach ... Derek
PS I first met Jock when I worked with him on a story for Australian Surf Business. He is a talented surf writer who writes for The Guardian, Surfing World and has written three highly-acclaimed novels. You can learn about Jock Serong's books right here. He's a bit of a legend this bloke. Go buy one of his books ...
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