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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

LATE/NEVER/BETTER

Better late than never. Never late is better. We work with what we’ve got. Bumpy and wonky. Windy and messy. No lack of swell but messy conditions. Nervous rookies. Local knowledge shines. A Wildcard with intent. A revenge heat in the midst of a newborn rivalry. Dying swell, better conditions. Battle of the Bru’s (again). […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

HOT WATER

Ironic. I guess that is just the way life works sometimes. I’ve sat here posting for years whinging about the WSL, and now here I go about defending them. Satiric. In my defense it is not so much the WSL I’m backing, but the judges. Those are my people. And from the outside, it’s understandably […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

DOORS

When one door closes, another one opens, as they say. The old season has ended, and the new one is set to begin. April is quickly approaching, and the first of the month brings Opening Day for the Bells Beach event window.  Ah, the good old Championship Tour. The gold standard. This is where hopes […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

MUD IN THE WATER

One step forward, two steps back. The WSL never fails. Just as I was starting to think I may like this new CEO, Ryan Crosby. Well, it’s time for some Q and A.  The Challenger Series schedule came out for next year/season, as well as the Longboard schedule. We’ll start with the loggers, since it’s […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

‘TIS THE SEASON

Tears of joy and tears of heartbreak; yes its Qualifying Season. The last event of the North American ‘QS’ year wrapped up in Barbados just last week, and now the Challenger Series season is about to come to a close at the Bioglan Newcastle Surfest in less than two days. That means we’ve got new […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

OLYMPIC QUALIFICATION

How do surfers qualify to surf in the Olympics? In case you’ve missed it, there has been quite a stir in the surf atmosphere about recent changes made by the ISA on this front. Let me fill you in with the drama. The way athletes of all sports are determined eligible for the Olympics is […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

HOT OFF THE PRESS

Have you heard Stab’s new podcast series they are calling Stab Mic? They are only 2 episodes in, and I’ve really enjoyed it so far, as admittedly aimless as it may be. Dane Reynolds brings an entertainment factor to just about anything he does, and Stab is probably lucky to have him stick around with […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

SAM DARNOLD

Editors Note – This post is heavy sports talk – football stuff. If you want to skip to the surfing, scroll down to where you see the first surf shot. The Seattle Seahawks just beat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 60 about a couple weeks ago. I watched a bit of the Big […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

THE PROVING GROUNDS

They don’t call it “The Mecca Of Surfing” for no reason. Pipeline absolutely roared for the first ever Challenger Series event there, and wow – it was fantastic viewing. For some reason or another, this feels like a tone setter for the rest of the year for the WSL; as if there is a hint […]

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coffee convo Hwilsin tour talk writing WSL

THE FIELD

The countdown is on – 1 Hour until the start of the Lexus Pipe Challenger. I was browsing around trying to find a surf cam (I quit paying for Surfline a while back) and it still looks dark, but I’m pretty sure it’s pumping. Looks like a proper swell. I haven’t written a prediction piece […]