More than 100 people have died and hundreds of thousands have been displaced in the south Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul as the region grapples with historic flooding. The official count is that 113 people have been killed by the floods, and 230,000 people have lost their homes in Rio Grande do Sul, according to AP News. By May 10, the floods had impacted nearly two million people. With entire cities underwater, several Brazilian surfers have answered the call for help. For the last few days, big wave maestros Lucas Chianca and Pedro Scooby have driven Jet Skis around city streets ..read more

Tanner Gudauskas, perusing SURFER's annual Big Issue from 2016 Alex Kilauano There once was a time – long before the days of TikTok influencers and the infinite scroll – that surfers around the world would consume surf imagery only in the form a hold-in-your-hand magazine. It would arrive in your mailbox once a month, and when you pulled out the glossy zine, your eyeballs would be hit with what was undeniably considered one of the most important pieces of surf photography for that month: the cover shot. In the 60-plus years of SURFER magazine’s publication, there have been hundreds of covers t ..read more

Photo: Zoard It’s 4:00am in 1976. A young Sly Stallone drags himself out of bed, cracks four raw eggs into a glass, gulps ‘em down, and trudges up the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.  Cue the theme song. A lot’s changed since Rocky. Particularly, when it comes to the world of pre-workouts and athletic supplements, the raw egg industry has been edged out by a mega-market, valued in the hundreds of billions, of powders, protein bars, gels, tinctures, gummies, and pretty much every other presentation and method of consumption imaginable. Even surfers, these days, are inc ..read more

The suspect charged for the murders of Rhoad and the Robinson brothers. Photo: Baja California Attorney General’s Office In the days following the disappearance, and subsequent deaths, of three traveling surfers in Baja, Mexico, authorities have been on the hunt for answers. The bodies of Jack Carter Rhoad (30), and brothers Callum (33) and Jake Robinson (30), were found last week south of Ensenada, near where they had been camping and surfing. They were discovered at the bottom of a well with gunshot wounds to the head. Related: Bodies Found in Search for Missing ..read more

Surf coach Matt Myers has built himself quite the stable over the past few years. The Santa Cruzian (who also is no slouch on rail) has guided numerous surfers through Challenger Series event wins and ushered them to the Championship Tour. Success stories include Brissa Hennessy, Alyssa Spencer and Rio Waida, who qualified for the 2023 Championship Tour (the first Indonesia ever to do so) by winning two CS events under Matt’s neon cap. Matt's attention to detail in comps across the globe (showcased in his YouTube channel) has caught the eye of surfers and media everywhere.  His current c ..read more

Photo: Rainbow Studios/Chad Konik From 1900 to 1904, Pablo Picasso was in, what art historians call today, his Blue Period. The somber, sapphire-hued works depicted beggars, the downtrodden, the old, frail, and blind. It was, the artist revealed, a reaction to a friend's death as reflected in his painting. “The world today doesn't make sense, so why should I paint pictures that do?” he said. Bleak and haunting – yet beautiful. If Dion Agius, the longtime Tasmanian free-surfer and stylish specimen in and out of the water, was currently in a period of his extracurricular, non ..read more

That’s a wrap. The 2023/2024 West Coast Board Riders season is finished following the Sun Bum at Ponto event and the USBRC National Championships presented by New Earth Project field is officially finalized. The last two spots were secured at the South region’s final event with Team Encinitas, Carlsbad, Oceanside, and La Jolla vying for their chance at National Championships glory. Team Encinitas entered Sum Bum at Ponto with a slim, nine-point lead over Team Oceanside – who held a tight, three-point advantage over Team Carlsbad. A standard “May Gray” day couldn’t damper the electric atmospher ..read more

In one iteration or another, surfers have long gathered to celebrate, to talk story, to relive the season’s greatest moments, and to take home oversized checks. That’s especially true when it comes to big waves — because big waves deserve a big stage. Now, once again, the big wave world has that platform for pushing the boundaries, and honoring those who do, with the SURFER Big Wave Challenge, coming to Nazaré, Portugal on October 19th, 2024. Top honors in the event will include Surfer of the Year, Ride of the Year, Wipeout of the Year, Biggest Paddle, Biggest Tow, and more. Helmed by longtime ..read more

Justine Dupont French athlete Justine Dupont has been at the pinnacle of big-wave surfing for a number of years and is well on her way to a spot in the GOAT conversation. The 2022/23 season was stamped with Dupont’s authority. She’s been a mainstay at Nazaré, where she bases herself full-time, making her mark on every major swell at the Portuguese big-wave mecca and ranging out on strike missions as the conditions call for it. Another breakthrough moment for Justine came on January 13, 2023, when she got the call to join a clandestine mission to the Cortes Bank, a mysterious shallow reef loc ..read more

Laura Enever You never know when the biggest wave you have ever encountered will loom up before you and test your resolve. This happened to Australia’s Laura Enever in January of 2023 on an outer reef along Oahu’s North Shore on the same day the Eddie Aikau contest was running at Waimea Bay. Enever was an alternate in the Eddie comp but didn’t want to spend the day hoping someone would no-show, so she made plans to meet up with other free surfers way out to sea at a break that only shows its face on super special occasions. Suddenly, Laura found herself in position for a monumental blue wall ..read more