Creator of The Search, friction-free surfing and the fish craze loses everything. Want to help him out?
A couple of nights ago, iconic surf writer, former pro surfer, creator of Rip Curl’s The Search campaign and fins-free pioneer, Derek Hynd, lost his house, and most of his, his son’s and a pal’s stuff, in a fire.
Now, when you’re Derek Hynd, a former world twelve, whose writing and ideas influenced everyone from Tom Curren to Andrew Kidman to Ellis Ericson, it ain’t just junk that goes up in flames.
Hynd, who is sixty-two and whose “friction-free” surfing and reflections on his throat cancer form the nucleus of Beyond Litmus, this year’s sequel to the seminal 1996 film Litmus, saw a forty-year collection of writing, memorabilia and his surfboards, including the little five-eight Skip Frye fish from Litmus, disappear in the flames.
(Note: Andrew Kidman photographed the iconic board before it combusted.)
And, so, a Facebook page has been set up to raise twenty-gees for DH who, despite his influence never really saw much cash, to get back on his feet.
He lives simply and is reflecting on how little he really needs despite this devastating loss to family and the general archives of international surfing. He is completely off grid and does not like asking for anything but right now needs basic help from friends and community.
Urgently required is a water tank, an old cleaned computer and the gaming equipment that many sons are locked into. He also needs a decent lightweight wheelchair for a mate who also lost the lot on Monday night. Thereafter, simple resources to demolish, remove, restructure, rebuild. It was a recent dwelling thus no asbestos.
That’s about it. Bit of a bummer. Help pretty well welcome.
Derek’s email is [email protected]
So far, a little under $A1500 has been raised.
Help a brother out, yeah?
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Does he still have his place in jbay ? When I have a holiday house there I will think of donating
Cheyne Horan sends his best
Other more worthy causes to gofund, DH will survive.
House insurance??
If it couldn’t get in my truck with my bike, skis and dog, I gave it away or dropped it in a pawn shop that I never went back to.. it was the freest I have ever been, for 15 years.. I am sorry bout the fire amigo, it sucks for sure, but I truly feel that there are positives that you have to embrace in every experience, or else you get mired in the negative.. should I ever have to quit surfing, it will be a blessing in some other form.. but for now….. Scott look at the navy models on the east coast, we are in a bit of a cycle.. let the pumping begin, starting mañana, and the wife gets back from down south, just in time to take over kid duty for me.. Freedom!! (in a george michael sort a way)
Surprised and dismayed to hear so much vitriol and pettiness.
DH just went through throat cancer, and then loses his boards and books and photos and art and whatever. At 62, that’s not an easy position to be in.
Chas wake up live thread?
I have opened a luxury retirement home for surfing weirdos in the past months. Hynd will find open doors and shelter once again, and most likely drive me bat-shit crazy (as if I bloody needed any assistance) once again. I wanna see him no-fin the bombie out the front. In any case, the entertainment and psychological torture combined is never disinteresting. In return, he will water the lawn. The lawn is huge. It’s a Sisyphean task that will most certainly please him.
Clay Marzo…
”Gaming Equipment”?!
Yeah, I found this odd too. Apparently this is for DH’s adult(?) son. I did not know DH had a son. I googled the son’s name wondering if he surfed.
Google brought up an Instagram and…well…
He’s almost certainly wealthy enough to dig himself out of the hole he’s in Scotty.
If he’s not then he’s still got a good 10 years or more of working life to sort it out
Just a nickname VONR….rich people (or previously rich people) asking for money is a bugbear of mine.
I like DH’s writing, that’s not in doubt.
He also did a good thing at Noosa: he gave an absolute spray to a JetSki driver and the kid (presumably a young pro) who he picked up.
Boiling Pot was pumping and after each wave you faced a 15 minute walk around. The ski pick ups saved that 15 minutes.
DH gave it to the two of them with both barrels; a string of F’s and C’s that I haven’t heard in any setting for a long time. It was what the rest of us were thinking but he said it
Still at householder stage and not yet sanyassin. BTW shouldn’t you still be asleep?
Hey Derek/Chas, any idea if Hynd still owns the J bay place?
Longtom’s gone quiet on me.
If he sold it, any idea when and how much for?
Surely would have got some decent coin for it, given it looks straight down Supertubes and is on the absolute ocean front.
Did he have insurance?
Does he have a regular job?
He’s certainly very fit, I saw him every day at Noosa during the Oma swell and he was getting stacks of waves.
It kinda seems like he’s a fit 62yo who is not working, uninsured and who owns a luxury beachfront property.
If that’s true then I’m not sure it’s a good look for Beach Grit to endorse a go fund me campaign for that type of guy.
Possible options for Derek Hynd to get himself out of trouble are:
1. Use the insurance money to rebuild the house
2. Use the money he’s saved on not having insurance to buy the things you’ve listed in the article
3. Get a regular job. At 62 and his level of fitness he’s probably got a good ten years work left in him
4. Sell the J Bay pad
5. Start a go-fund me campaign to avoid having to do options 2-4
Jeezuz give the cunt a break he just lost his fkn dog mate
Neighbours dog
Fuck that’s even worse
Depends whether the thing yapped all night or not, might be a blessing
He goes through dogs like bog roll. Fucker is always losing them.
Albee Mangel style.
Nah that was chix
“new pussy new pup”, the mangel mantra
Fuck that’s heavy. Only owned two dogs, one lasted 16years the others still going strong and up for the dawny at 13
gotta eat somethin’
Why were you at noosa for every day of the Oma swell watching DH and not at work?
Got lucky with the timing, up there for a conference.
Don’t worry, I work full time and fork out plenty for life, income and home and contents insurance.
I enjoy my work, it’s community service based so therefore I’m only retiring when I physically can’t do it anymore
Where did you buy a high-horse that was already trained to jump to conclusions?
Exactly.
All good questions.
Why are the Australian surf media always begging for coin?
Why don’t they get a job?
Lucky they are otherwise we would have nothing to read
Why would we? That’s your job.
He sold the J-Bay place years ago. Was building something new that he last described as “a pile of sand.” Apparently, it’s a charred pile of sand.
Enlighten us Bazza, what do you reckon he got for it? Few million US?
J Bay is pretty expensive these days.
Maybe ask him next time you see him and get back to us
Naw. I know what he got and it’s nothing you’d sneak a Penthouse into the boy’s room about and get joyous if you’ve past age 14.
That kind of property expensive in ZAR terms and local affordability, but once you expatriate the cash to AUD you’re not going to be left with much.
Maybe it’s absolutely none of you fucking business and your obsession with the subject appears a bit demented, frankly. If I did the same I’d be subjected to character assassination. How the fuck do you think it’s appropriate behavior for you?
It got me to Bawa before it became sub par!
Silver lining!
OMG…paddled out there last year first time since catastophe struck on a simple 4-5ft day (2xOH): so the whole middle of the reef collapsed, caved in. What was, as we know, a deep bombie better than that formidable point break nearby, is now this busted up POS. There’s a current that dredges up through the new crevasse that hauls at 10 kt plus straight out to sea. Holding position on the outside peak is nearly impossible. The inside slab is this lame thing that heaves and runs 6 meters. One of the planet’s true losses. Got one, back to the boat. Dayum…
I could never return. My favourite wave in Indo.
It’s categorically a shambles, even after I tried to pretend it wasn’t.
Still gets the odd bomb..
Is there a way to donate via Paypal?
There’s a GoFundMe page, too. Pretty sure they’ll take your PayPal. https://www.gofundme.com/f/…
thanks. fuck fb
Wow, that’s an awesome house.
It’s the marker to head for when paddling in.
Any other houses affected on the J Bay foreshore?
pad behind Byron
Phew!
He still owns the J Bay place?
I don’t think so
Given that you’re pals, any idea when he sold it and how much for?
Surely $$$$$$.
Possibly the best piece of real estate from a surfers point of view on the entire planet.
it’s not my place to comment, I don’t know the details and I don’t really like your angle.
My angle is that I think Derek Hynd has chosen option 5 in my above post.
Fair enough that you don’t like my angle but if true, then hopefully you dislike his choice even more
Just don’t contribute to the fund – simple as that. I don’t have much sympathy for people who can afford multiple insurance policies but who choose not to. Tough shit for them as far as I’m concerned. These will always be grudge payments that hammer monthly income, but they hurt harder for some people than others to the point where they can become completely unaffordable.
Without knowing all the intimate financial details we should maybe just keep our smug feeling of superiority to ourselves in the face of others’ personal tragedy?
Just like to know where my money’s going. Does the person need it?
Will it be spent wisely? Have they got in their current financial situation through past recklessness?
I’ve given more to charity than I could count, we’ll into 6 figures, and I’m never going to own ocean front property.
Is Derek wealthy? He certainly at one point was at least asset rich and he’s still young enough to work.
He’s lost a hell of a lot of memorabilia, some of which is very financially valuable.
But why keep it in a bushfire prone area without insurance? Unless he has insurance but then he doesn’t need the cash.
I feel sorry for the fact he lost a lot of sentimental stuff but there’s enough doubt about the rest to make me not donate.
He might be doing it tough now but he got plenty of great waves at epic Boiling Pot in February so life’s not all bad
Why?
Donate or don’t, otherwise pipe down and mind your own
Fuck that’s shit.
Well, I purchased Beyond Litmus… does that help DH?
Yeah, it does. Kidman gives him a royalty beyond anything I’ve ever heard of or seen.
I’m glad of that.
He’s a good man, ol AK
We able to get an interview or let him scribe a feature article?
how is it. should i?
Yeh just watching finally – I like the surfing it’s getting me stoked to go for a paddle and the chat is interesting.
Well shit. The odds of me being found just went up in smoke.
If a fin burns in a fire, does it make a sound ?
Not if it is missing.