March 31st 2026: Lined up

This week, we bring you a series of lineups from the past few years. These are days when all the elements aligned with my coastal meanderings. These are magic days that will reside in surfers' memory banks for years to come. 

With time, these memories sparkle and shine just a little brighter. The drops were bigger, the take-offs defied all physics and the intensity was dialled right up. And that's the beauty of a life well-lived.

This past weekend, I celebrated a close friend's 50th, and the gathered mass of surfers and characters dived deep into archives brimming with moments. 

It's such a treat to recount stories and adventures with people you've known for more than 34 years. Mostly, we've been bound by surf, music and a zest for life. While we've all taken very different paths in life, the strands that bind us together are unbreakable. I'm grateful to know these people and to still be able to laugh with them until I can barely breathe. We bring the kindred spirit out of each other, and that's something special for anyone in their 50s. 

See you at the beach, Derek

PS Back when the surf nationals were on up in Gizzy, I had an assignment for The Guardian to photograph the stingrays of Tatapouri. This is a real treasure for New Zealand, and the crew at Dive Tatapouri, the people who run the reef ecology tours, are absolute gems. You can read that story right here on The Guardian.