1966

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1968

The Sun
Sydney, Tuesday, January 3 1967, page 11.


The Sun’s Surf Safari is back in action today after a week's break.
The safari team, headed by former world champiton, Midget Farrelly, will travel from beach to beach giving tips on boardriding.
Today it went to Coogee.
Tomorrow the team will be at Maroubra.
Other localities will be mentioned in “The Sun” each day.
Farrelly is assisted by South Coast Rider, Bobby brown and former Australian (junior) champion Robert Conneeley.


The Safaris started a week before Christmas and have proved a great success.
The crowd record is held by Cronulla where more than 500 people attended.
Farrelly, Conneeley and Brown were eager to get back on the job following their week's rest.
Farrelly who suffered minor injuries in a car accident about a week ago has recovered and was “on deck” for today’s Safari.

-JC, March 2014.

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The Sun
Sydney, Tuesday January 10 1967, page 6.



More than 100 people attended “The Sun’s” Surf Safari today at North Wollongong, despite a blustery southerly and overcast sky.
The Safari team, Midget Farrelly, Bobby Brown and Robert Conneeely had to struggle throuth the crowd when they arrived.
There were hundreds of children keen to learn the finer points of board riding.
The crowd was so big the BMC Mini Zebra which carries the public address system had to be moved twice.
This was to enable as many as possible to see and hear the team.
Many youngsters climbed on to the roof of the vehicle to get a better view.
Others were held on the shoulders of adults.
Earlier, when the team visited the Council Chambers, the Mayor, Alderman A.Bevan gave the team members a badge on behalf of the city.
Tomorrow the team will be at Bronte and on Thursday at Newcastle.

-JC, March 2014.

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The Sun
Sydney, January 13 1967, page 10.?


More than 2000 people watched “the Sun’s” surfing team in action at Newcastle Beach yesterday.
The half hour long demonstration was the highlight of the Safari.
Beach inspectiors cleared a special area in the surf so the team could ride without interference.
The stars, Midget Farrelly (a former wold champion and Sun-Herald columnist), Bobby Brown and Robert Conneeley turned on a great exhibition in the 5-6ft surf.
The waves were well shaped and the three surfers thrilled the crowd with some spectacular footwork and great nose-riding.


On practically every ride, each of the stars was able to stand on the nose of his board for several seconds.
Towards the end of the exhibition, Bobby Borwn caught one of the best waves of the day and performed a double spinner (turning around twice on his board).
The three riders were enjoying the surf so much beach master Rose Kelly had trouble in calling them out at the end.
Once again the team was besieged by autograph hunters before and after the Safari.
Several girls asked for autographs on their arms while others asked for the stars to autograph their school Shakespeare books.
The team will be at Newport today.
On Monday the Safari will be at Whale beach.

-JC, March 2014.

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The Sun
Sydney, January 13 1967, page 60?

Nose Riding looks like being the newest craze – for the next few months, at any rate.
The average surfer in America apparently went for it in a big way during their last summer.
The “top notchies” weren’t exactly knocking it either.
Well, would you- if you had the chance to win some of the loot being offered in the diffirent contests.

First prize in the Tom Morey contest alone was $US 2000
Nose riding is only a small part of surfing for the rider, but for the person on the beach it is probably the most spectacular.
For the judge it is easier all round since all he needs is a stop watch and a good eye.

Windandsea hoped to have the honour of staging the first noseriding contest in Australia but Queensland Caloundra Surf Riding Club got in before it last weekend.
This contest was won by a 16 year old school boy, Andy Geddes, with a total time on the nose of 12.5 in his best three rides.
Longest individual ride was 5.2 s.

Windandsea’s contest will still go on- probably in April and 40 of the country’s top riders will be invited to compete.
It will be interesting to see how many of those who have ‘knocked’ nose riding will accept when they hear of the high prize money that is likely to be offered.


Don’t ever try to keep a secret in Wollongong.
After Wednesday, I’d confidently say you’ve go Buckley’s chance.
On that day “the Sun’s” safari team went to the southern city and received a tremendous reception.
After a final appearance at the Big W department store in Warrawong the team; Farrelly, Brown and Coneeley decided to head for Sandon Point.
The swell was small but a 4ft wave was breaking when they arrived.
Not a soul was in sight when they paddled out.
Yet withing half an hour more than 50 kids arrived and were sitting on the Point watching.
None ventured into the warer.
By this time the surf had improved 4-6ft and Brownie was in his element.
Farrelly and Conneeley were also turning it on.

- JC, March 2014.

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The Sun Sydney, Friday January 20 1967, page 58.

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The Sun
Sydney, Friday January 27 1967, page 62.


Organisation of this year’s State championships will go down as one of the greatest surfing bungles of all time.
If the whole matter wasn’t so serious, it could be funny.
The titles were set down for this weekend, but came in the middle of the week and nobody had clue what was going on.
Even the people responsible , the contest committee of the NSW Surfrider’s Assoiciation, were lost.
Luckily, a meeting was scheduled for Wednesday night and after a lot of stirring and harsh words, a new plan was proposed.

The titles wil now be held at Avlon on February 18-19.
Only heats and rephages will be held that weekend to select the top 15 seniors 15 juniors and 6 girls.
These will comprise the State team to go to Bells Beach at Easter for the Australian championships.
The finals of the State contest will be run at a later date.
Entry forms will be available at board shops and wil have to be sent in by February 13.


St. George went down to Mid Steyne in a good 6ft surf at Mid Steyne last Sunday.
The contest was close with the Saints winning three of the five heats.
Mid Steyne’s team depth was the deciding factor and they finished up with 379 points to Saints’ 3601.
Mid Steyne’s Kevin Platt top-scored on the day with 37 points, with Bobby Brown (34) and Frank Latta (33) from Saint George next.
If you’re thinking its a bit strange Kevin Platt scoring higher than Brown- don’t.
THAT Bobby Brown is not THE Bobby Brown.
There happen to be two Bobby Browns at Cronulla and both are good riders.
To avoid confusion, maybe one of them might consider changing his name to Cedric, Cecil, Alfred or even Slick, Curly or Toes.

BOB EVANS is on a real winner with his latest surf movie: “High on a Cool Wave” at present showing at the Union Theatre.
The film has good dialogue, humour, action and most of all, tremendous surf.
The first half is shot up around Noosa and Double Island Point where Nat Young, Bob McTavish and belly boarder George Greenough really turn it on (?).
The second half has a few old shots, and more recently the world championships in California and surfing in Hawaii.

The shots of Peter Drouyn surfing Sunstet and Pipeline at 8-10- ft on his 9 ft board are probably the best in the film.
Drouyn’s last ride at Pipeline has to be seen to be believed.


Windansea has lost both the Dee Why Shield and the Air New Zealand Trophy for failing to have contests within specified periods of time.
The next teams in line will compete for the trophies.

- JC, March 2014.

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The Sun
Sydney, Friday February 3 1967, page 60.


A big holiday weekend crowd was treated to an impromptu feast of riding at North Avalon last Sunday.
Midget Farrelly and Nat young both decided to get in a bit of practice – and picked the same beach to have it.
What a battle royal it was.
They fought it out wave by wave, the superb riding keeping the crowd entralled.
The pair rode so well that any newcomer to the beach would have thought it was a premature start to the Australian championships.

Midget, with his grand 30 yard nose rides across the wall and Nat with his powerhouse manoeuvres in “the soup” were a delight.
Although the “clash” was quite coincidental one could have got the impression it was set up by the ASA to stir interest in the championships.
This was not the case.
It all started abnout 1.30 pm when the beach was crowded.
Midget arrived and immediately became the centre of attraction.
The former “golden boy" hit the water with his stringless board and the beach came alive.

Shortly after Nat appeared.
At this stage there were about 50 riders in the water.
The surf had crept up around the 5ft mark and was very “shapey”.
The two stopped at nothing – head dips, five over 10, classic standing islands.
The off-the-cuff encounter was a terrible indication of what we can expect in the championships.

And while on the championships, Rob Conneeley returned on Tuesday from a long weekend joint to South Australia, with a warning not to take the southern boys too lightly at the Bells Beach contest.
Rob had the opportunity to spy on the SA surfers when he competed by an invitation in a meet which was part of an annual festival held at Port Lincoln.
He won the contest after a touch and go fight with two locals.
Rob made the trip south with two Manly riders, Graham and David Treloar.
The contest was held at Mount Greenly Beach, 650 miles south of Adelaide, Rob tells me.
To add to the successs of the carnival, the SA surfriders association netted over $800 and 4000 spectators.


Surfers riding Byron Bay on Monday didn’t even flinch when told cyclone “Dinah” was fast approaching.
That night though they brushed the cobwebs off their gunboards.

Victorian riders must be feeling the cold early, a leading Brookvale wetsuit manufacturer this week dispatched a large consignment of suits and vests to a number of Melbourne retailers who are being besieged with orders.

-JC, March 2014.

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The Sun Sydney, Friday February 10 1967, page 5. SURFER WINS HER HEART Martia Gomez, 19, a beauty contest winner from the Phillippines, took one look at Sydney’s beaches and decided she must learn to ride a surfboard. “The Sun” obliged and yesterday arranged for Maits to have a surfing lesson at Manly from former world Champion and Sun Herald columnist, Midget Farrelly who headed the recent Sun Surf Safari team. SHE SOON LEARNED Although she is a good swimmer, Maita had never been in the surf. She made good progress under Farrelly's tuition. Maita’s ambtition now is to take a surfboard home to Manilla when she leaves Sydney next month . -JC, March 2014.

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This means, naturally, that shapers, glassers and the like have to work longer hours and with greater precision.
Visit off

-JC-GC, March 2014.

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Hawaii AWAITS big a black-out in the fourth World Surf­board Title has set a lot of people think-

J tire surfing world.

The big question Is: If Hawaii passes up the big title (Hawaii is well able, physically, to meet the rather stringent demands of the International Surfing Federation) what chance do the smaller surfing nations like France, South Africa, New Zealand have?

Africa and France have already been seriously considering taking on the mighty tasks associated with setting up facilities for accommodating hundreds of surfers and tens of thou­sands of spectators for up to a period of ten days, not to mention raising the funds to air-transport more-than 20 international sur­fers half-way around the world.

Australia set the pace in 1964:  Peru  presented the most radical and exciting contest back in 1965 and the U.S.A. presented a mammoth example of pre­tentious organising (which , came off successfully) in San Diego, 1966.
The National Committee of the A.S.A., stunned By Hawaii's refusal, took a very serious look at the problems of taking up where Hawaii left off and put out feelers to the N.B.C. television  network to check whether their token assistance offer of $12,000 applied also at this end of the world.
This week, out of the blue, came a bombshell ! offer from Victoria to present the World Contest at the State's world-renowned big surf location:  BELLS BEACH.


Vice-President Col Tur­ner brought basic details of the project to Sydney this week.
He expressed confidence in the support of several of Australia's foremost business groups and stated that the progressive BARABIL SHIRE COUNCIL, Press and civic authorities of Geelong, were firmly be­hind strengthening the already considerable status of Victoria's coastline.

Through experience, we have come to know that the annual Bell's Contest has turned out giant waves every Easter like sausages out of a machine.
Lets face it . . . Bell's is the only big surf beach in Australia that could hope to provide waves that could even out-gun Hawaii.

Furthermore, if the Vic­torian bid conies off and Bell's was able to click with 15 to 20ft. surf, I am sure a new international appreciation of technique in the big stuff would flow toward Australia.

The reason is simple to anyone who has seen the action in Hawaii's giant waves
the Australian '. idiom is flexible perfor­mance before anything else and at Bell's, our top boys can really turn it on, regardless of size.

- JC/GC, April 2014.

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The Sunday Telegraph,
Sydney, November 11 1967, page 120?

The whole thing has blown sky high because, right out of nowhere, one of the tiniest countries of the surfing world has exercised its options and notified that It will present the 1968 World Surfing Championships.

Just last Wednesday, a letter from Eduardo Arena, chairman of the Inter­national Surfing Associa­tion, typical of the man, full of facts but couched in the adventurous prose style of a Peruvian aristocrat.

Romantic Puerto Rico, in the heart of the West Indies, one of the newest and littlest-known areas of great waves anywhere in the world, had made its pressure felt.
Chairman Arena pointed out that the Puerto Rican Government had enthu­siastically decided to give the big meet its full co-operation and support.

The ABC television net­work of the United States immediately confirmed its financial support and keen interest in doing a full one-hour color spectacular for America.

International teams would comprise four con­testants and a Judge and all expenses would be paid for some of the not-so-distant nations' Australia would receive all expenses for two contestants and a judge.
It was also pointed out that Puerto Rico would possibly partly help the other two surfers and would supply all accom­modation, meals, and entertainment free to any other International surfers who could make it under their own steam.

Eduardo Arena, whom I know to be a man who does not exaggerate, told that the contest would be held at a location known as Rincon, next October, and stated that the surf and its surroundings were excellent and exciting.

I certainly believe that everything about this con­test should be fabulous.

The unknown features of Rincon . . . the millionaire on holiday attitude of the sparkling West Indies . . . the mystique of the place is excitement enough.
But, what a trip for a group of young surfers!
On the same route lie Tahiti, Hawaii, California, Mexico, Miami, New York.

Across the Atlantic to Europe and round the world back to Australia or, alternatively, back across the United States from New York to Los Angeles and return across the Pacific Ocean, slopping off at Hawaii at the absolute top time of the winter season for great surf.

Further, I believe Rincon is a point surf going right and It Is my sincere per­sonal opinion that we have at least ten surfers with the ability and mental attitude to dominate this world tournament com­pletely.

- JC/GC, April 2014.
Evans, Bob: Would you believe tiny Puerto Rico?
The Sunday Telegraph, November 11 1967, page 120?

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The Sunday Telegraph
Sydney, November 19 1967, page 122.


Several weeks ago, he came back on to the beach scene and tentatively tried a few waves, handling the transition from weight on the outside leg, to weight on the inside leg, almost automatically.
A week or so later, I checked him at Narrabeen, still on his old board, pul­ling re-entries, roller coasters and stuck so far out in the soup, that, at times, only his head and shoulders were visable above the weight water, as he advanced on the curl from behind.

Just last week, "Nat" took delivery of an 8ft. 8in. vee-bottom, vee-back ver­sion of the new super-board trend, from Gordon Woods.
Several times, dur­ing last week's hot weather, Long Reef turned on beau­tiful surf and "Nat," who knows these waves well, took the chance to test the new unit.
I was surfing there myself, so am in a position to state that "Nat" has taken a further step forward on his World Championship form of last year.
This board encourages the rider to follow the action pocket on a wave, like never before.


Full rail turns and un­believable bursts of speed, were commonplace on every wave ridden.
He would drive down the face of the wave, in a prone position until about 10 feet out in front then, rising and shifting weight simultan­eously, would snap the most savage full rail turn im­aginable, and go rocketing diagonally upward at the crest of the wave, where he would hang a similar amazing full rail cut-back and then, in a series of stalling turns and acceler­ation bursts, milk the wave of all its power.

If "Nat" returns to com­petition this season, it will be with an even more at­tacking style than previ­ously and he will be a hard man to beat... by anyone.

-JC/GC, April 2014.
The Sunday Telegraph, Sydney, November 19 1967, page 122.

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The Sunday Telegraph

Quite a few of the team are guys I have known for years . . . Mickey Munoz, Steve Bigler, Peter Peter­son, Thor Svenson and Skip Frye.
Also some of the hot youngsters from the California scene, Petey Johnson, Mike Purpus and the talented girls, Joey Hanasakl and young Margo Godfrey.

Lots of friendship and goodwill and good inten­tions and, on the surface, it looked like the perfect opportunity for we Aussies to enjoy a great exhibition by the top performers from the biggest surfing nation in the world.

Saturday was to be the day of competition between the tourists and an invited group of Aussies.
Long Reef provided the waves; an early morning four footer, which develop­ed and expanded gradually into an occasional eight-foot wave by early after­noon.

Everything was pretty standard . . . Just another surfing contest . . . until the wraps started to come off the boards.
Revealed to the gaze of the interested Aussies were a stack of surfing units, which would have graced our beaches (in 1965).
Well made . . . honestly shaped, nicely finished, obsolete surfing equipment.

To say that we were dis­appointed was an under­statement.

By comparison, the local surfers nursed their skinny, stumpy, broad, intensely concentrated little vessels into the washy waves and began to trace unbelieveable valuable tracks all over the swells that seemed to receive them as grace­fully as fish, rather than as an impediment to be carried on the shoulders of their peaky shape.


Varying in length from 7ft. 6in. to 9ft. and in in­finite variety of spectac­ular bottom shapes . . . concaves . . . double con­caves . . . vee bottoms ... offset planes ... compli­cated convex-concave com­binations ... variable skeg positions ... fins with all stages of flex and foil ... flexible noses ... flexible overall shape ... advanced; some even slightly experi­mental but most featuring design Innovations that have been proven in the last 12 months to be valu­able and enlightening assets to the progress which become an essential in the demanding Australian surfing scene.

I will go out on a limb and nominate Ted Spence(r) as the most dynamic per­former of the meet ... the intense Keith Paull ... the busy John Monie ... the smooth Russell Hughes ... the spectacular Kevin Parkinson, the swooping Bernard Farrelly, the care­ful contouring of Ken Middleton ... the aggres­sive smoothness of Richard Harvey ... versatile Frank Latta, whose board achiev­ed a new all-time chunki-ness, 26iin. wide, 11in. back, 7ft. 101in. long: in surf­board dimensions, that is, almost square.

Bigler and Frye were functional in the way they have been known to oper­ate; Purpus and Johnston were efficient products of the California surfing sys­tem; restricted in techni­que; partly by their equip­ment and partly by the in­fluence of techniques that have been deeply Ingrain­ed by the classical and much older background to their surfing.

I am not knocking the Yanks, who are a great bunch of fellows and I am not plugging our fellows as a race of super surfers.
(However, I am saying that unfettered . . . non-commercial thinking has inspired a fluid trend in this country toward a greater appreciation of purposeful involvement and through constant thought and experiment ... a significant break-through in design has been achieved.

Evans, Bob: Oh, those boards!
The Sunday Telegraph, December 3 1967, page 120.
- JC/GC, April 2014.

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The Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), 6 December, p. 41
SURF board, wide thin rails

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The Sunday Telegraph
Sydney, December 10 1967, page 121.



How excited can you get . . . Hawaii, here we come . . . again!
The strongest group, of Aus­tralian surfers ever to leave these shores.

Suddenly all the pieces have fallen into place, the passports and the visas are granted and ready . . .

Bob McTavish already has departed; two radical vee-bottomed surfing units tucked under arm.
Young Manly man Ted Spencer, who won the Wind-and-Sea contest last week, has an 8ft. 6in. vee-bottom "stubbie" and a 6ft. 6in. vee-nised "gun" all fabri­cated by the progressive KEYO shop.

Nat Young has been working out design theories for months, and if you have seen him per­forming recently you would be aware of just how far out his new techniques have gone.
Gordon Woods has pro­vided, the facilities of his custom shop to ascertain that the three "surfer stubbies" for Nat are re­fined in detail.
His board quiver contains a hippy 8ft. 8in. rolled bottom, an 8ft. 7ln. speed machine with the stylised rail contor of a rac­ing snow ski specifically for Hawaiian waves only, and a radical deep vee-bottom with a gun nose measuring 8ft, 8in.

Peter Drouyn, Queens­land's star performer, has two slightly more conserva­tive models; a concave nosed 9-footer for standard waves and a mini-gun 9ft. 4in. long.

However, the radical units don't only belong to the young fraternity.
Bob Spence has designed a 9ft. 6in. board with a very un­usual wide tail section giving great lift tor such a short board.

The word is that Russell Hughes also may make the trip and rumour has it that Bernard Farrelly could be a starter.
 I am person­ally covering both the World Professional event and the Makaha Internat­ional Championships for my new movie and, of course, the Sunday Tele­graph . . . plus a good long surfing look at the other Hawaiian islands of Kaui and Maui.

Evans, Bob: Hawaii, here we come again.
The Sunday Telegraph, December 10 1967, page 121.
  - JC/GC, April 2014.

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The Canberra Times
18 December 1967, page 17


HONOLULU, Sunday (AAP). — A nine teen-year-old surfer of Sunset Beach, Hawaii, has been named winner of the third annual Duke Kahanamoku invitation surfing championships.

He is Jock Southerland, whose championship form was judged finest in the competition held just a short distance from his birthplace.
Southerland won from a field of 24 contestants, mostly from California and Hawaii.
Australia's Bob McTavish failed to qualify.
The judging was based on yesterday's performance in 8ft to 10ft waves.


Waves of 15ft expected today failed to materialise and the competition was called off.
A short while later a tragical storm hit Hawaii, and there were no surfers amateur or professional in the water.
Hawaii's next surfing competition will be the 15th annual international surfing championship at Makaha.
Australia's Midget Farrelly has entered the competition and judges still are waiting final word on whether Australian Nat Young will be a contestant. About 380 surfers are expected to compete in the contest, beginning December 31.

Trove

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The Sunday Telegraph
Sydney, December 31 1967, page 59.