"I don't really know what we're doing here, Stuart."

This wasn't the interview I'd intended it to be. Three days before those words were spoken I'd arranged to meet with Richard Grellman, Executive Chairman and acting head of the ASP. It was an easy interview to secure and I quickly found out why; the following day Paul Speaker of ZoSea was announced as new CEO of the ASP and Grellman was relinquished of his top dog duties.

I continued with the the interview anyway...

We're less than a week away from the start of the Quiksilver Pro, and the usual carpark banter revolving around incoming swells has turned to the state of the sand (or lack thereof) at Snapper Rocks. Recent storm swells have created a hole running down the first section of the Superbank, and while it's still surfable, the question of quality is up for debate.

If you're a surfer on the East Coast of Australia you'll know that bluebottles are the scourge of summer. Yet it appears there's a new kid in town - the Blue Dragon. Blue Dragons eat bluebottles then use their toxin to sting people

Two days before Swellnet left for a work trip to South Australia's Yorke Peninsula a 4.5 metre white shark was spotted in local waters. It was a reminder that while Western Australia may be making a run for the title, South Australia is still the heavyweight champion of the shark world. It also served as a sharp reminder to keep your wits when in South Australian waters

"It's not about the surfer, it's about the wave, the surf spot, the magic that has to come together to make a perfect tube."

If we believe our own mythology, surfing has always been riddled with drugs. These days we probably don't deviate very much from the national average for our demographic profile, but that is hardly the point. We have all seen the damage both to the well known and the unknown and would like to reduce it. These are not statistics, these are those whose skills we admire, these are our friends and family. We give a shit and would like to convert that feeling into something more than sentimental, self-indulgent emotionalism.

At the base of Damion Fuller's Board Collector blog is the motto: "Buy high, sell low, enjoy the ride." It's an excellent summation of the values Damion, an industrial designer by trade, adheres to when indulging his old fibreglass obsession. Rather than merely hoarding boards Damion has an express purpose - a method in his board collecting madness - and it's certainly not financial gain.

Let's call this a work in progress. A project with an unknown end point.

Around the world there are a handful of rivers that offer the chance to ride kilometre long, thigh-burning waves at particular times of the year. The waves are not a result of wind blowing over water, however, but a combination of a large tidal ranges and ideal river contours.