Morning Surf

The rain cleared away after falling constantly through the night and the wind swung round to the northwest grooming the swell from the low pressure. There were fun lefts and rights with the swell looking like building slowly from typhoon Nida far to the south. early morning there were the regulars out, Ken-san from Donya, Oguri and Mizue-chan from Rulez Peeps, Sakuma-kun from Waicoco Surfshop and Kentaro, Suhara-san and Naoki from Grace. Super low-key and mellow compared with the dog fight down the beach with everyone getting some fun ones.Thanks for the photo on the Grace Wave Check Blog Kentaro. (check links)

$1 SUSHI !!

Well, without a car, our options for dining out are a little more limited than before. However, just 5 mins walk from my place is Kappa Zushi!! This place sells sushi for $1 a plate!!! Although you don't get to select the fish you want from those swimming around in the tank and watch as the chef fillets it in front of your eyes and serves it up as the tail still flaps around on the chopping board, it is only a fraction of the price. They have a wide selection and apart from the crab which is often a little watery, as if it's just been defrosted, the fish is fresh and tasty. I always go for the Toro Salmon, which is the fatty part of the salmon. But I also like the 'aji', horse mackerel, and the 'ebi', shrimp, with avocado and onion. They opened up in Kamogawa about a year ago I guess and it has proven very popular with locals and tourists alike. I took Dad there on his last night when he was here last.
Last night Aiko and I went there for dinner and it hit the spot after a fun afternoon trying SUP (stand up paddle surfing) at Seaside with Masato Watanabe, local pro surfer and big wave charger.

Aiko's X'mas Prezzy

Camera

Well, all good things have to come to an end, or so the saying goes. I've had a great run with this Sony Cybershot H50 camera since I bought it in December last year. Unfortunately, the other day, for no discernible reason, the reverse zoom button failed. It's only a minor thing and should be fully covered by the guarantee but it also means that I'll be without a camera for about a month or so (hopefully less). Fingers crossed it's all chipper and set to go for X'mas and the New Year.

More Kamogawa Sunset

From the Grace Showroom on Route 128...
Dave snapped this one on his phone from the window at work

AMAZING SUNSET!!

Yesterday the sky lit up at sunset and put on a rare and spectacular view. Unfortunately I was working and had a class at the time so I didn't have my camera!!! bugga!!! Out the front of work the sky was bright orange with a silhouette of the mountain range coming down to the sea. Out the back of work the sky was all pink and purple with a bright pink rainbow like I've never seen before!!

Hopefully some friends managed to capture the moment and I'll 'borrow' their photo and post it up here for you to see. In the meantime, here's one that ENISHI had on his blog...And one of the rainbow from SEI...Mahalo for the photos guys

Thanks Sis!!

The perfect present! The postman rocks up every two months and drops this guy off in the letter box making my day!! Big thanks to my Sis and her family for the subscription.

BTW, how mental is that cover shot! Biggest wave surfed in NZ??

Asami's Wedding!!

Good friend and Hula dancer, Asami-chan, is getting married this weekend!! I wish her all the best for a happy married life and hope the girls have a great day this Sunday!!

Bob - SURF2SURF Video

Bobby Hanson, one of NZs top surfers and WQS competitors blowing up on this clip!
Bob - SURF2SURF Video

Luana Hula Girls

Aiko and a select few from her team performed at a charity event held in Kamogawa, run and organized by some local guys. Not a bad effort for their first effort and I'm sure they'll build on it next year and be sure to make a real go of it. They made these fliers (above) to advertise it but could have done a bit more to raise awareness. There was definitely a lot of potential for a really fun event with lots of people.

There were all sorts including a bunch of guys DJing, rapping, dancing and playing the steel drums. A real diverse group with a strong emphasis on reggae. Not quite sure how Hula got invited to attend, but in fact it actually went off really well and the girls all seemed to have fun despite the chilly wind.

It was an interesting locale, situated across from the Josai University gates on top of the hill in Futomi, just south of Kamogawa itself. I was busy scouting it as a BBQ option for next summer!! I got some video, took some photos (before the camera went on the blink...off the the store to get it checked soon) and had a great time looking after the kids with Mizuki! It was cool to be up on the hill with a nice outlook for a change and backed by natural green bush and trees, it made for a pleasant setting.

Well done girls!!!

Thanks Haru-san

Haru-san @ Nonkey Surf Shop took these photos from his deck on Oct 27th following the typhoon. Just Sei and me surfing this peak!!!

Halloween Party

Thanks to Dave and his wife Etsuko for hosting an entertaining Halloween Party. Almost everyone there got into the fun side of things and dressed up. There were Ghouls, Devils, Witches and even a Friar Tuck. There was also a bunch of food that people cooked with skull pizzas and the like. I tried to make some sausages look finger like with cheese nails and dipped in tomato sauce (blood) and stuck them on some French bread that was doing it's best to imitate a bug of sorts.
Jun(ko) SeiAikoMe

I got a lot of mileage out of that mask as I used it all week at school as we had a Halloween Theme throughout the week. I got a variety of reactions from deadpan 'and?' to screams of horror and a few tears. But it was all good fun

WinBe Halloween with a class of 3rd graders (8yr olds)

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Off to a little Halloween shindig at good friend Dave's tonight. He's been getting everyone in the mood for it by allocating costumes courtesy of Faceinhole.com
Here's his version of me. Too funny!

On another note, can't wait to see this new surf flick 'modern collective'. Here's a sample of Jordy Smith

Modern Collective teaser ft: Jordy from Poor Specimen on Vimeo.

OTSUKARESAMADESHITA

Well it was a sad farewell to the Spacegear which has served us so well over the last 6-7 years or so. Unfortunately rust waits for nobody and her time was up. A huge mahalo to Akihito who so generously gave me a great deal when he was forced to upgrade from a diesel to a petrol car due to new exhaust regulations for the greater Saitama and Tokyo areas and to Suzuki-kun from Mitsubishi Motors in Kamogawa who helped out with regular servicing.

We managed to put 50,000 kms on her and used her as a second house visiting a variety of places and camping where ever took our fancy. We have been as far south as Kyushu, taking the ferry from Tokyo to Kita Kyushu and driving thru Fukuoka, Nagasaki, across the volcanic plateau to Miyazaki and down to Kagoshima. We've visited family in Osaka doing the 7-8hr midnight mission to save money on tolls and avoid traffic. We've regularly headed for the southern tip of Izu Peninsula for surfing and relaxing in the pristine sub-tropical climate around Shimoda. We've been up the mountains in Gunma snowboarding and sliding around on the narrow icy roads to the ski fields. We've taken family up to Nikko and toured the National Park area there. We've taxied tons of people to and from Narita airport, especially when we got married. We've done regular summer surf trips north to Fukushima and Miyagi Prefectures and most recently to Iwate with Shinya. It's really enabled me to see a lot of Japan ad do it with surfboards in tow and at my own pace.

For now we are 'ECO' as we ride bikes around town. The search is on for a replacement and until then I know that Aiko will miss the monthly trips into the city where we shopped at Costco to cater to our international tastes, to catch a flick or just to break the monotony of shopping at Jusco.

Thanks for the memories.

Sayonara and otsukaresamadeshita! May you R.I.P. buddy...

Those Seaside Rights

Just Junji Sonoda (JS Surfboards) and his wife, Momoko, out surfing these at B-side

Funny as Remix

This is classic!

Answer to the QUIZ

Fun SEASIDE in KAMOGAWA

Only about 6 out! Shared some waves with friends Sei-san, Momoko, Kazuki, Ofuchi and 2 or 3 others. Maki took this picture from BLOOM looking into the lefts. That's me bobbing around on the right eyeing up some of the rights coming thru.

Just what I needed after 2 days in Tokyo to cleanse the soul...

Quick Quiz

"It's 3 o'clock in the morning and you buy a pie. What should you always do???"

Post your reponses in the comments box below.

The answer will be revealed to those who don't already know it after the weekend.

Surf Comp

Bloom User's Cup was held Sunday 18th at Seaside Beach. I was going to update yesterday but was hungover and couldn't be bothered sitting down in front of the computer to do it.
There was only a small field but it was quite competitive and the sun was out. The swell picked up considerably from Saturday when it was questionable at best and there were good waves throughout. Unfortunately the waves abandoned us in the Longboard A final but I was lucky to pick off a nice left at the start which saw me through. It would've been cool to get sets pouring through but I guess it's just the luck of the dice and you have to make do with what you've got.

The winners TrophyMaki, MCing the contest and overseeing proceedings. Good job mate!Koharu fanning the fire while Ken-san's curry cooks. Oishikatta!!Honda-san from POP Wetsuits talking to Tsuyoshi Tobita (pro surfer) before the exhibition.Judges tent, (L-R) Mayumi, Eri, Oguri, EnishiHoptong Smith.

Hoptong is a friend of Dave's from Hawaii who resides in Makaha, Oahu. He now rides for Grace Surfboards and has been visiting for the last 2 months doing photo trips and sales trips. He's probably seen more of Japan in that short time than I have over the last 10 years!! Anyway, after the Bloom Cup, Dave and Taro threw a farewell BBQ in his honor. Great to have seen his surfing and drawn inspiration from it. The guy can surf anything and do it with style. In the above picture you can see him carrying a traditional wooden board ridden in Hawaii from the old days. That party, combined with the excitement of winning the contest led to me enjoying one to many beers, hence the hangover yesterday. All guns firing today though and it's off to work.

See ya next year Hoptong!!