mike stewart
Pipeline pro
Sunday, January 24th, 2010
Dates are locked in for the first stop of the 2010 IBA World Tour at arguably the worlds most famous wave, the Banzai Pipeline on the North Shore of Hawaii. From the 16th till the 26th of February the world’s best bodyboarders will converge and compete in bodyboarding’s longest running event which started back in 1982. Twenty seven years later and it is still the most coverted title a bodyboarder can hold besides the the world title. To have your name up alongside the list of greats such as 9 x Pipeline Champion Mike Stewart, Guilherme Tamega, Steve ”bullet” Mackenzie, Eppo, Andre Botha, Damien King and Ryan Hardy has always been a goal for any aspiring professional bodyboarder. Come the 16th of February Pipeline will become the focus of the bodyboarding world!
Fifty Greatest Surfers
Monday, January 18th, 2010
A page ripped from SURFER magazine
International surfing magazine of fifty years SURFER has taken on the task of compiling a list of the 50 greatest surfers…….ever. Pro surfers, photographers, filmmakers, journalist, CEO’s of the industry and the legends themselves cast votes to determine the list. What makes a great surfer? How do you determine a great surfer? Considering the nature of the “sport” surfing, it is always going to be a subjective topic however let’s consider some of the qualities of what make’s a surfer great as quoted by surfer magazine! LUCK, being in the right place at the right time. UNIQUENESS, greatness is defined in large measures by the freshness of the tracks, the ability to find one’s own path through a terrain of imitation. BOLDNESS, courage is critical to any form of greatness so dealing with fear is key to surfing greatness. CREATIVITY, greatness in surfing needs that leaven of spontaneity and surprise. DISCIPLINE, practice makes perfect. INTUITION, the ability to know what the ocean is going to deliver before it happens. ENDURANCE, the vision to keep pushing forward no matter what. STRENGTH, whether it is physical or psychological.
You can create your own list for what determines a great surfer. There are no limits to the concept, all this aside and as the votes where counted our own Mike Stewart made the cut into the top fifty greatest surfers of all time coming in at number 41. Kelly Slater took the title and Taj Burrow came in at 49th. It’s a great achievement for Mike and bodyboarding alike to be recognised as one of the greatest of all time.
2010 IBA World Tour
Sunday, January 10th, 2010
The 2009 IBA World Tour has come and gone, with Jeff Hubbard taking the crown for the second time in what was to be the tightest title race in the IBA history.
Heading into the final stop of the IBA World Tour Hubbard held the IBA ratings lead over Ryan Hardy, 9 x World Champion Mike Stewart, Dave Winchester and 6x World Champion Guilherme Tamega. However Hubbard’s lead in the final event didn’t mean too much for the other four competitors still within a mathematical chances for the IBA World Title. The title hopefuls took to the ocean with a nothing to lose approach which seemed to have Hubbard on the ropes at times. When the dust finally settled, the local wild-cards had taken down the title chasers and it would be Jeff Hubbard who would hold the crown high.
As we enter 2010 the tour is set to become one of the most competitive and exciting world title races ever. Fresh new event locations on the calender, new faces ready to battle the more seasoned competitors and the largest prize purse ever offered. The 2010 IBA Tour is not one to be missed, stay tuned for more with dates and contest venues to released soon.