By PHIL JARRATT
Noosa dominates the Nine Foot And Single
THE fifth annual Deus Nine Foot and Single Logger Festival in Canggu, Bali, last weekend was a whole lot of fun, and as per usual, a very Noosa affair, with the judging panel headed up by your columnist and former Noosan Steve “Monty” Montell, a whole tribe of talented young (and not so young) Noosa surfers dominating the Nine Foot And Over, Nine Foot and Under divisions and the Womp Comp, and Noosa surf pioneer and shaping legend Bob McTavish presiding over the whole event like a gnomic grey guru.
Bob put an interesting thought to me while we shared a few glasses of wine at the Deus Temple of Enthusiasm.
He said: “Do you know why there are so many Noosa surfers making an impact on the world stage? They’ve grown up with the Festival of Surfing, been influenced by the best, and they’ve been noticed by the best.”
I hadn’t quite thought of it like that, but it’s certainly true, not just of longboarding but of all the retro surf arts, that Noosa’s impact is being felt around the world. And hell, we didn’t even have the full team here.
With a high quality international field gathered at Canggu, among the Noosa surfers to stand out were Deus team riders Zye Norris and Matt Cuddihy, surfer/shaper Thomas Bexon, Fraser Biden and former Noosa locals Dylan Kaczmerik and Munro Montell. But the stand-out surfer of the entire festival was yet again Noosa’s Harrison Roach who surfed with style and grace in every heat in every division, including back-to-back finals in bodysurfing and logging in tricky and challenging overhead waves.
I’ve seen him surf beautifully in competition and free surfing many times before, but last weekend at the Rivermouth Right, he was in a class of his own, winning logger, shortboard and bodysurf divisions.
Equally impressive in her own way was Floridian Leah Dawson, who now lives in Hawaii but has managed to spend quite a bit of time in Noosa of late, shooting video with cinematographer Greg Huglin. Leah surfed beautifully in the women’s invitational, but really shone when she did battle with the boys in the Nine Foot And Under division, handling some massive drops and tricky double-ups with casual style on a single-fin gun.
Leah is just at the start of an elongated stay in Bali, and is soon to move out to Uluwatu with boyfriend Alex Lopez, son of Hawaiian surf legend Gerry Lopez, who will also be heading this way next week to run one of his celebrated surf and yoga retreats. Although I don’t think I can keep up with Ulu’s falling curtains any more, I think I might have to sneak out there to catch Leah trading carving turns with Lopez pere et fils. Now that will be something to see.
Karmically cleansed
I was having a bliss attack last week and was unable to describe our “karmic cleansing ritual” at Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay. To tell you the truth, I’m not really a pampering spa bath kind of guy, but when this ridiculously expensive treat was offered gratis, I decided to leave my prejudices at the door with my clothes.
Actually, there was no door and no spa as such. At the appointed hour, a charming lady arrived in a buggy at our villa with yoga suits for us to change into. Then we were transported to a simple bale overlooking Jimbaran Bay where our master put us through some basic yoga, chanting and meditation. You know, the usual stuff I like to do before cocktail hour!
After this another change of robes and a sexy little black thong for an under garment. Now it was getting really interesting. This was where I started to float off a bit, so I’ll defer to the hotel’s own description of what comes next: “Your journey of self-renewal begins with a traditional “sound bath”: using Balinese gongs, expert healers will soothe your nervous system and lead you to a state of tranquillity. A Balinese massage follows, using long strokes, gentle skin rolling and deep kneading techniques.”
Next a Balinese priest appeared out of nowhere to “complete your enlightening experience with a karmic cleansing ritual employing age-old rites, incense, flowers and pure Hindu holy water. You’ll emerge energized and ready to explore the beauty around you with a new perspective.”
Strangely, it was all that and a bit more. A beautiful and moving experience, followed by a delicious salad, eaten as the sun set over the bay. I wouldn’t say that I’m going to race out and join the Eat, Pray, Love mamas who roam from spa to spa hoping that Javier Bardem will jump out from behind the bamboo, but I will be a little less cynical about the whole deal.
Say it ain’t so, Jim
Although the news was not entirely unexpected, following a few rumbles from the jungle telegraph in recent weeks, I was saddened to read Jim Berardo’s statement confirming an end to an era of food, wine and style in Noosa.
As he noted in his statement, Jim, along with partner Greg, has poured heart and soul into his twin endeavours of fine restaurant and fine food and wine festival over the last decade and a half, and as an event director who has recently had to take a step backwards in the interest of health, I know how personally taxing such a grand obsession can be.
But Jim should feel justly proud at what he has done to put Noosa on the culinary map of the world. Let’s hope the Noosa International Food and Wine Festival can rise Lazarus-like in 2016. And Jim, take a rest, man! Look after yourself because Noosa needs you.
