Surf with Occy
This coming September The Perfect Wave travel company have organised a trip to Aloita Resort, Mentawais, with Occy as the host. The trip has been arranged with Swellnet who've managed to stooge someone into the deal (me!) to write about the trip and, I don't know, do other things too.
Aloita Resort offers swish accommodation right in the heart of the island chain. Two speedboats can transfer guests to all the best set ups. Occy will be on hand to share his experience and knowledge. He’ll help you improve your surfing with honest advice ("You need shorter legs"), and keep you entertained when it's time to talk story ("So I says to Kelly, this is how you do the foxtrot").
There'll also be a personal professional photographer available. Andy Potts will shoot still and video footage of the trip. Andy will provide each individual with high quality yet inexpensive packages. There will also be photos, posters and custom tour t-shirts available for autographs.
Comments
What a wank, $100 xtra a day
Ummm same thoughts too Morris,
But hey, how much did that Giovanni Decaprio suit cost you....!
Got it from the salvo's welly and then took it to a tailor to be altered to fit for a modest fee.
Feel sorry for occy that he has to stoop so low for a buck, prostituting himself out to be dribbled all over by 14 men in a gangbang of idolism.
Feel sorry for him???
Occy has had no problem selling himself to who ever pays for years. Skoda, Pepsi, dodgy beach side real estate
He has had all four trotters in the trough for quite a while
So a paid surf trip with sycophants would have been a no brainer
Seems to be the new thing these days, pay to surf and hang with a pro, musician even shapers, IMO kinda weird bordering on creepy.
IMO it would be the worst time to go stay at a place like this as they will be fully booked=instant crowd everywhere you go, also can you imagine the surfers this would attract, it would be like one of those TV dating shows with one rich guy and twenty chicks all jostling for his attention, only thing it would be most likely male surfers not chicks.
Surfing Sycophants is proud to present.....
Going somewhere and Occy happening to be there , getting on the beers and spontaneously talk shit.... Gold. Paying for it ? Freaky.
Still sounds like you scored yourself a nice gig Stu .
That sounds like fun. And if the concept repels the 'cool' people, all the better.
Stu's got the best seat in the house, free trip and can just sit back and observe between free meals and surfs.
Occy will earn his money, no early nights for him if he feels like one. Always some one who wants to have a beer with him.
Hey wally, do you think I'm "cool"? I'm chuffed you think so. No one else has ever thought so.
Who are all these trolls and why do they care so much? Work for kooky surf travel co's with zero cred? Work for other websites with no associations? Occy is a legend period. He has a legion of fans. People look up to Occy - he is one of the world's most liked surfers of all time! Allowing average joes the opp to surf with their idol is a killer idea. One of my best mates is going. Occ's no doubt making an earn. Get over yourselves kooky haters!
Oh yeah and hey I look forward to seeing Occ ripping and reading bout the legend on swellnet.
Have been surfing a few times with occy and had a few beers, didn't cost me anything, nice kid. I wouldn't look up to him though, he's just your average joe who happens to surf great and has not done a day of work in his life, nuthin wrong with that by the way.
Hulk, I reckon your mate is a dickhead for paying about a grand more to go on this trip, luckily occy will be paid well to make him feel like a special mate along with all the other tryhards with to much money. And you Hulky are the worst of the hater's , cause you don't agree with me.
Stu are you going to be doing an honest write up of what goes down or is it to be an advertorial in return for a freebie.
Morris, I'll be writing about it as I see it and as I experience it. TPW know this, as would anyone who's read our site for any length of time. They know we don't pull punches.
So in that spirit I'll say that some of the comments on this thread are petty. I wouldn't go on one of these trips myself, each to their own, but to arc up over it in the way some have is nasty and small-minded. And for regulars Swellnet users to take advantage of our attitude toward free speech to launch attacks on something as minor as a celebrity surf trip is pathetic.
So there you go...no punches pulled.
The Unexpurgated Occy!
Despite the added cost, who wouldn't want to share a few smoking barrels in a tropical paradise with a bloke that surfs better than you? It's like golfing or snowboarding in that you always lift your performance level when teamed up someone who really excels at what they do.
Could be worse, it could have been Julian Wilson instead of Occy.
Hmmm ive surfed with plenty of pros X and current at the time in the Mentawai's mostly at Maccas, yeah its good to see them rip in perfect waves for a bit, but it also sucks once you want to surf yourself a few had edict but most are just naturally competitive and ignored others and didn't wait there turn paddling straight inside, partly because there skills could allow them to take off a few metres deeper than everyone else, so to a degree its understandable, but it also meant they never waited there turn always getting a set waves while other lesser skilled surfers who had waited in line missed out.
Also had one X-pro stay at a resort i was working at and in that situation in the water it was different, he always let others get waves and called them into waves, good for the resort guest but not for others..ha ha he still ensured he got the best ones though.
True Indo, but it comes with the territory I suppose. They should know what they're getting themselves into prior.
If it was a boat load of pro's that would suck and I probably wouldn't even bother paddling out. But he's only one man and he can't catch every wave:)
Good one stu, put that punce morris back in his place, he's just a hater that boy. I reckon I might book a ticket myself, it'll be sick!!
On second thoughts I might save my money and wait for an offer of a romantic weekend with Stephanie Gilmore when she retires, hopefully stu wont be invited along to report on that one.
But then I would like a video of it.
'you always 'big lifty' your performance level when teamed up someone who really excels at what they do.'
Cheepers, I don't know what to say, thanks zenny. And the Bananarama girls were spunks, but try hards... too much rehearsed, lip twitching action. Shocking Blue's Mariska Veres knew how hot she was, just chuck a sack on, fuck the dancin' and smoulder away. Plus, I'm sure you could see the way she was looking at me. Am I in the right thread?
Yes uppity, but the wrong site.
Cash for comment Stu.
Fuck you Shaun.
Yeh, well anyway, occy and his mates tried to pay me to go surfing with them once. Or maybe it was jervis and bordo? I stayed true to the spiritual dance of surfin' and went into reclusion.
Hey Morris my mate is a real hard working, low key surf fan. She thinks Occy is the best surfer ever just like tens of thousands of his fans globally. She thinks paying a small $100 a day premium to go on a limited numbers surf trip with Occ is an epic opportunity. In fact she is honoured to be going surfing with the legend and stoked to chill, watch and learn. Oh yeah and she is married, works, has children and is no groupy girl. Lots of people dig Occy's powerful surfing, his down to earth persona, and the fact that he has made mistakes and fought back to win a world title. Hey Morris whats with your quote, "wouldn't look up to him though, he's just your average joe who happens to surf great and has not done a day of work in his life."
Wow, who are you to judge? Whats your definition of work? The guy worked his but off, won a world title, thousands of surfers all over the world idolised him for decades, still do. Good luck to him and his fans I say. Stop dissing da Occ!
Okay Hulky, good luck to you and your mate, just calm down and don't get your knickers in a twist luv.
"Surf Fans" the whole concept rubs me like 80 grit sandpaper.
What happened to the good old days when all you had to do was sashay into the competitors area with a bag of the best Colombian and you would have a couple of world champs hanging on your every word.
aw c'mon guys,paying a $100 a day extra to surf and story with Occ......probably have one of the funnest trips of your life...as for all the $ comments....who cares if Occ is making a buck....out of surfing......that's all he knows and does a brilliant job at it...
Funny I had a similar offer from the same Co......to go on a trip,and tune surfers into their equipment and take some newer design S/bds along and help surfers understand their bds,fins etc.....so they would come back after 2 weeks with the knowledge of how make their equipment better and fine tune their equipment by moving and adjusting fin position.....
Brutus, there is no problem with occy making a buck, but I would have thought that he would have had enough money and not have to rent out his friendship. Maybe he didn't sell those billabong shares quick enough.
I reckon a week with a shaper would be far better value, 2 or 3 shapers would be better to get a look at different perspectives on the same things.
shaun, ,the idea to go on a boat,would be for surfers to learn more about their equipment,and how to fine tune in the tech side of their custom bds,depends on who wants to learn about s/bd design,which is an extremely small minority....do surfers realy care about whether they have the best bd of their lives or average is good enough???
..2 divorces have seen Occ shaken down , so yeah he still has to make $'s......as he did not get the millions everyone thinks...
I guess each to there own hey, i guess these trips sell otherwise they wouldn't do them.
In all fairness of all the trips I've seen advertised the Occy one would easily be the best for anyone that has every met Occy they will know he his 100% the real deal exactly like he is on DVD etc
This is the way I see what is going to possibly happen in the line up. Whenever occy goes out 14 giggling school girls will follow him, occy will get the first wave as no one will want to catch a wave before him cause they want him to see how good a surfer they are so occy has to be paddling back out so they can surf pat him. Not everyone will want the wave after occy as he will still be surfing the wave and not watching the one behind, but the more savvy surf fan will take that wave after occy and kick out next to him and get a bit of one on one time whilst paddling out,"sick aye". Generally it is going to be a circus, but everyone has fun at a circus don't they.
Now what's Stu going to get up to? Well I reckon he will stay up late one maybe two nights watching the festival of occy with an alcohol injection and go for one surf with the herd. His article will be based on these brief moments and he'll make the rest up.
He's a crafty bugger is young Stu, he'll be making the most of his trip and surfing on the opposite timetable to occy thus avoiding the pack and turning in early for those solo dawn patrols, he may even be heard to say on the trip out of there, "really Occy was there?"
Hey Brutus, maybe you could a thing where you could talk and a small group of surfers could listen and hang on every word you say.
Ah shit, you already do it for nothing in Winki carpark :-)
hey shaun...shit sounds like I have some mates to talk to ...why don't you come and introduce yourself,ya might learn something...
The most blatant drop in ever in my life, was surfing 6ft solid snapper 6 years ago.
Being patient and having respect to the locals, after an hour or so I managed to grab a bomb wave, behind the rock a good few turns, then lo 'n' behold Occy drops in......?
I actually surfed with him for 2 or 3 turns, cool I thought, but hey he kept on giving me the look of cunt this my wave now, so fuck off.
It tarnished my respect I had for a great surfer, who I followed growing up surfing.
I suppose it worked, never have surfed snapper since, never will :)
Who cares, fuck it I'm gonna buy a ticket on that trip and do the same back to Occy :(
Cheers.
I'm a sucker for alcohol injection Shaun. Can be a real prick finding the vein, and the killjoy publicans never like the sight of IVs, but there's nothing like it for getting on the piss.
in the real old days,rumored Bob Dylan used to shoot pure alcohol into the jugular......instantly pissed no hangover.......
Classic stuff, Neil Young never needed too......:) Hey hey.
So you are a real journalist.
Anyway, if it gets boring, you could always play the dancing with the stars video.
Not very intense swelling, should have just dunked him. Would have been hilarious, semi pro squibs squealin and squawking everywhere. But, spoken like a true surfee hard nutter, you'll get the fucker eh!
Well I'm one of the Rich kooks who paid the extra money to hang with a Pro. Fucking best time of my life. What a Bummer this Morris fag wasn't there. Thanks heaps Stu, Occ, Perfect wave, Andy, Carn, Toasty and Aloita Staff.
I read all these comments before signing on to the trip and had a totally different perspective of what this trip could offer. To me it was an opportunity to surf good waves with a great surfer who could help me and other intermediate surfers to get more out of our surfing. That, Occy did deliver. He embraced all Styles and personalities and I'm sure everyone went home feeling more confident in their surfing.
I guess its easy for people to pick the shit out of a good thing and those guys that did that missed out on a great Trip. The people that new it was a good idea had a time to remember for the rest of their lives. Thanks again @stunet #Morris shove it up your arse you has been.
Why are some so worried about what others are doing? How does it affect you anyway? Everyone is different which is good isn't it? No need to belittle other peoples choices.
Earlier this year I paid an extra couple of grand than i normally would so I could go to Telo Island Lodge - somewhere I've always wanted to go. Had the best time and would do it again in a heartbeat. Epic waves, no crowds, cool surf guides and a great resort. Having Shieldsy, Noa and Shane Fletcher on the same trip by chance was the icing on the cake. Memories last a lot longer than foregone coin I reckon....
Just 2 questions
yew, did occy cum in your mouth? Did you swallow?
Well Morris I rest my case about you being a fag if thats the first thing that springs to your mind.
To Answer your first question I didn't pay for that inclusion of the package but I'm sure The Perfect Wave could organise it for you on the next trip. And your second question Thank you for that because i almost forgot to mention how good the food was on the trip, bloody beautiful. Morris I think you might have to pack your own special sauce though if your thinking about booking next time.
Cheers for you inquiry mate!
Yeah Yew, there is no Doubt Perfect Wave could talk occy into doing almost anything if the $$$ are right and I have never seen morris with a woman so yes maybe he would like that sort of pleasure cruise, I must say I am surprised as a friend of Stu's you are using such homophobic labels like Fag when all morris was inquiring about what sort of extra services occy added to the package since you were grovelling at his feet anyways, so enough of the gay bashing please!
Shaun my boyfriend doesn't think I'm homophobic so clearly you've got no idea.
The story goes like this, for the last week yew_shredding has been in the Mentawais scoring pits while Shaun and Morris have been sitting in front of the computer probably in their undies with a hand on eachother's dick putting up whingey shit like the above on Swellnet forums
I can not deny this as I see yocal is a subscriber to our pay for view cam site "stranglethebudgie.com"
Lol Classic. Fly on the wall @yocal.
@Yew Shredding,
It was a classic week, eh? I went along not really sure how it'd unfold: Would it work? Would it be weird? But it was clear after the first intro there'd be no problems and that it'd be a good laugh. More than any other pro surfer, Occ is the everyman; he doesn't look down to anyone, and in return people treat him equally. Ain't no weird-arse celebrity starstruck business with him.
For mine watching Occ from the water was the best part. I had a moment during a sizey session at Scarecrows where I was paddling out and Occ was racing down the line. At the same time I saw a cleanup set looming out the back and was left with a choice: sit and watch Occ lay rail, or paddle and try and get over the cleanup set. I sat and watched Occ bury it to the stringer and then I took the set on the head. Was worth it.
Stu , It sounds like Occy was in better shape than when he surfed at J-Bay !?
Maybe Potts needs to do an Indo trip too .
Still carrying a few extra kegs, though he was drinking lots of water in Indo, the stuff that comes in the green glass bottle, so I imagine he'd have shed a few while over there.
So did they just drop you off at the nearest detox center to recover Stu?
Green bottle? Ha Bingtang does taste like water after you've downed your first.
Worse than detox Shaun, I'm at my inlaws place. Can't even swear let alone take drugs.
Yes, this is the ying and yang effect, for every good time a bad time. Otherwise known as a wife induced karma
I heard Occy looked a bit out of sorts in the water at Telescopes even paddling a bit funny (hungover?), sounded like he is in a little bit of low point of life again as happens to us all (personal things that maybe i shouldn't write here)
He was off and on with his sessions, though he had one session at Teles that was in my eyes the best of the trip. If you came across one of the bad ones, well maybe you'd think something was amiss. Personal issues? Occ was pretty open about some of the things happening to him, but there were a couple of guys on the trip whose situation was roughly similar. They could share stories over beer, call it therapy, whatever.
I heard he broke up with his chick.
Mae? Mother of his kids? Yeah, he's broken up with her. He has a new girl but far as I know, and going on what he was saying, they're still together.
Yeah i dont know i don't follow these things, someone just told me they surfed with him in the water at Teleys and he had put on weight wasn't surfing very good was even paddling funny because he had been hitting it hard because he broke up with his chick.
But i should know better to believe anything that comes back from the islands anyway I'm going to shut up now, cause i kinda feel embarrassed to even be talking about this :P
I thought I was logged into swellnet, but I got new weekly
Haha, actually made me laugh.
Also, kinda off topic:
I was sitting at the resort bar one arvo drinking Bintangs when a yacht got towed up the channel toward Tua Pajet. "Poor bastard had to call the NRMA," said one the fellas I was with and everyone laughed.
An hour or so later I got a tap on the shoulder from one of the girls that work at the resort. "Are you the editor of Swellnet?"
"Yes."
"And do you have a commenter called Fitzy on your site?"
"Yes," I replied and wondered where this was going.
"Well, he said to say hello. His boat broke down and he just had to have it towed up the channel to Tua Pajet..."
I haven't heard anything else. So Fitz, if you're reading this report in.
Ha, classic! Hope you weren't stranded too long Fitz!
You may not have made it to the North West , Stu , but it sounds like the consolation prize wasn't too bad.
What were the crowds like ?
Not too bad, pretty much what I expected. One day at Telescopes there was 20-30 guys out, which I brushed in favour of Scarecrows with two guys out and two feet bigger. The really good day at Teles had maybe 10 - 20 guys out all day and was completely manageable. The very best day we had was at Suicides (Arik's) and there was hardly anyone out. Wave choice went more like "Can I make it?" rather than fighting other guys for it.
Great wave, that one.
Hope you bought us back a pack of gudams Stu.
It hasn't been easy and us plebs need a consolation.
Fuck, I totally forgot Steve! And I really did mean to remember. I've got 3/4 of a pack at home if you want it?
All yours. Shoot me your postal addy by email. I'm sure I've got it but just to be sure.
Well freeride if you are going to smoke you might as well smoke those goddam garangs. Can you still get the original unfiltered ones that were as thick and long as your middle finger? Now that was a cigarette, more nicotine than a 20 pack of Marlboro and enough tar to upgrade the road into Seal Rocks. Trivia question ( I can't remember). What Indonesian cigarette used to advertise itself as " not mild"?
Get Dji Sam Soes.
They are Filterless, large and slightly cone shaped. I remember it says something ridiculous like 37mg of tar per cigarette, but that's beside the point. Have one of those and a Bintang after a day full of surfing and you'll be away for the night.
send me up a trio for Grand Final night Stu and all is sweet as.
KRETEKS blindboy they are the big fat non filter ones I think.