Box of Light is made possible thanks to these visionaries:
This past weekend many people from many different backgrounds and lives converged on Glendhu Bay to remember Chris Sinclair, who tragically lost his life in the surf at St Clair in the spring of 2021. His death rocked the local surf community, the New Zealand ski community, the multi-sport community, the mountain bike community and an eclectic bunch of kayakers – a community that many years ago Chris had been a lynchpin of.
Chris's wife Louise and teenage sons Ollie and Ben, and his brother Brendan, all gave stirring speeches, that left the gathered crew wiping away tears. And then the stories began to flow and the tears of sorrow were replaced by tears of laughter. We learnt, in more detail than was probably necessary, how Louise and Chris met. And we learnt about countless antics where Chris would have a great idea for an adventure, his contagious enthusiasm soon rallying a crew to undertake it. He had many close shaves as he kayaked crazy rivers and rapids throughout New Zealand and the world. Some of his global adventures were incredibly risky and didn't always go smoothly, but all who became part of those adventures – even the fails – speak so highly of their relationship with Chris.
To the surf community, Chris was always the super positive, always stoked surfer out most mornings and grinning wildly. That attitude and his sense of adventure galvanised a group of amazing friends around him. Mention an idea; before you knew it, you were planning it, training for it and doing it.
Chris never had any money in those early years but still managed to pull his adventures together. I admire that.
Fittingly, Chris wanted a party on the side of a hill with everyone indulging in some sort of adventure before coming together for drinks and kai. I chose to do the short climb up Rocky Mountain for sunrise, a whole heap chose to do laps at Bike Glendhu (seriously, this park is very new, but has hit the nail on the head with its trails and base area vibe), others walked to Diamond Lake.
I spent the evening hearing tales of Chris's adventures from such a vast array of people, many incredible achievers in their own lives of adventure. Life is short. We should all weave a little of Chris's mindset into our futures.
See you at the beach ... Derek
PS We've been hearing a lot of chatter about the new marine reserves for Otago and it seems like there is a bit of misinformation out there. One of the common stories I hear is that you can no longer fish the Otago Peninsula, and some even say between Timaru and Waipapa Point is off-limits. To quell that fear, here is the actual map of new marine reserves. I am a big fan of fishing and spearfishing but also believe marine reserves are essential for a healthy coastline. I have had the privilege of diving at The Poor Knights, Leigh Marine Reserve and a few international gems and they seem to be a win-win for everyone. In those places, recreational and commercial fishermen I have spoken with said fishing improved outside the boundaries of the reserves, too. I'm working on a bigger story about these marine reserves for New Zealand Surf Journal and I'm interested to hear your thoughts on these six new areas and how they might affect you. Get in contact ...
Box of Light is made possible thanks to these visionaries: