An extremely joyous occasion.
Almost nine months ago, the most anti-depressive story ever came and went. You certainly forgot that it was even on BeachGrit, as the Kung Flu began to rage and suck up all the oxygen, but you can go back and read here or I can just tell you that it was about a wonderful man named Stephen Thomson who decided that New Zealand’s farmers were too stressed and needed surf in their lives.
Well, one thing led to another and Surfing for Farmers was born, a wonderful partnership between the New Plymouth Surfriders Club and the local farmers in the Gisborne area who could come for free gear, lessons, and laughter in the salty sea.
But have you ever heard of a finer thing?
I haven’t and neither had the good people at New Zealand’s 2020 Real Estate Institute of New Zealand Awards for Excellence as its members bestowed the Small Community Award of Surfing for Farmers.
Buoyed by such success, the program is moving nationwide, all the way across the north island from Gisborne to Taranaki, and hopes to attract over 3000 farmers this summer.
Taranaki surfriders club president Mark Dwyer invited his farmers to come down to the club on Tuesday evenings where they will provide surfboards and wetsuits as well as surf lessons and told the local broadsheet, “They can have a few cold ones and a barbecue afterwards so it’s a great way to get farmers away from the stress of their farms, to exercise and socialise with their farming mates.”
Are tears not in your eyes yet?
Can you think of any other sectors of our community that could benefit from the positive power of surfing?
Surfing for Plumbers?
Surfing for Inmates?
Surfing for World Surf League CEOs?
It’s the giving season. Dig deep.
Commented on Disqus? Log out, tap the Disqus button, and your old name and comments come back. The box is ours.
Your comments are still here. Every one of them.
Twelve years of BeachGrit comments came across from Disqus. Connect and we will show you how many are yours. We get your username, nothing else.
Connect Disqus to reveal.
In Hawaii the boys have been on the “Surfing for Rich Hoale’s” program. If you are rich one of the top local pros that can’t get a paycheck from RVCA will offer to be your 12 year olds new best bud and surf coach as well as block for you at the surf break of your choice. It’s really great. All the rest of us locals really appreciate it. The whole community is just super stoked that these rich hoales are getting to score set waves with their rent a local blocking for them. It’s rad, they bring out GoPros to film the filthy rich brats so they can show their less fortunate rich hoale friends on the mainland that have not been able to find nice enough homes and schools to transplant to yet. Covid has been just great here. No tourist. But choke malihini. Never seen the water so crowded. And no one says shit because everyone wants to be one of the boys. Aloha hard!
you described the new era perfectly
The only thing worth celebrating here is the depths of the internet Chas has plumbed to find this.
“between the New Plymouth Surfriders Club and the local farmers in the Gisborne area”
I hate to state the obvious but its probably the Taranaki farmers…..Gissy is a nice long drive away – approx. 8 hours depending on which route you take.
Good burgers in Palmerston North and if I remember correctly, a nice skate park to break up the drive.
I find this article a bit suspect as there are 3000 farmers going to get together and there is no mention of mull, or bringing your own gumboots for later in the night.
its all a big play to get them away from the farm so the anti wool vegan liberation army can open the gates and return the animals to the wild where they belong.
In Asia Minor .
Those Kiwi farmers really love their short shorts aye? https://uploads.disquscdn.c…
I heard the bearded hipsters that owned Wainui store got run out and it’s now gonna be a fush n chups, meat pie and haggis shop.
My brother wears these ones haha
surf industry – “How do we get more people into surfing?”
Us – Get fucked
I like the pic of LongTom, but always thought he lived in Australia?
I have some beauties of me and the goats , don’t encourage me.
The goats, you and a sharpened ball hacking blade
I saw the pic in the top right corner and imagined Andy Irons about to strangle the goat and serve him for dinner …..
Does anyone have the greatest of all time Goat Recipe ? If we can have John John why not eat Goat Goat ….or would that defy logic
You can’t have your GOAT and eat it ?
Curry goat with rice and peas, West Indian style…
I have a good mate who grew up on Guadeloupe, great cook ,(his brother was a chef at Lennox Head ) very good surfer , great bloke , likes his reggae and everytime I went to his house I put a toilet roll in the freezer … absolutely delicious but so fuckin spicy !
Not to mention the Ti Punch aperitif …. 55 degree Rum , sugar and lime juice …. and no ice
Surfing for serial killers?
Having grown up on a farm in NZ, I can confirm 1)the depressive side effects of farming 2)the efficacy of surfing in treating these depressive symptoms. In fact surfing was so successful for me I bailed the farm, took off round the world chasing waves and never looked back.
Met a group of Kiwis on a surf trip a while back. There were 3 of them, all good surfers. Two worked in the surf industry, (boards and wetsuits), and the other bloke was a farmer. It seemed a strange mix for a travelling group. Turned out the farmer owned land on the North Island that fenced off a few pretty tidy reef/point set ups. The other two had wangled there way in to his good graces with deals on boards, wetsuits and trips to tropical surf destinations.
Win win winter suituation ….
I’ve been surfing for 42 yrs and now farming for 6, and am completely against this new increase in FAL’s crowding our rural NZ breaks.
Perhaps there are others like me, or those who are considering a move from the city/suburbs to the country that would be interested in forming an opposition group for surfers to share farm gear and a bit of help with work, as well as burning all the FAL’s in the surf…
What are you farming?
Beef cattle and growing garlic too (which will be a good ongoing crop in another couple of years)
With Jacinta back in, there should be plenty of new people looking for garlic.
Been visiting since ’89, every year between 2 weeks and a month.
Used to swing through Raglan, friends there…. not so much anymore, but one guy bought a spread and began cattle as a side job.
He asked one windy day if I could help him with the herd…. oh man, it’s a fun story for someday.
Dude began popping corn at festivals and it grew into a business and recently sold it, so I may go back to say hello now that he has time or drag him to the area I return to.
I’m just glad you didn’t say corn.
What posessed you to start farming at 40ish? Cowshit and drench and hay and fencing. Fark.
Took that long (48, am 54 now) to be able to afford it haha
Cowshits good for gardening.
Drenching is easy and we only do it about four days a year.
Get a contractor in to do the hay.
Fences don’t break that often.
It leaves heaps of time for leisure activities and beer drinking instead of sitting in commuter traffic for a quarter of ya day.
And little change in life for covid haha
I’d highly recommend it to anyone at any age…
You hiring?
Hopefully in a couple of years I’ll be able to afford to pay someone…
From the Negatron administration’s Surfing for Plumbers Ministry of Information and Propaganda…
https://uploads.disquscdn.c…
Coastal sheep are shitting themselves.
Three THOUSAND farmers?
That’s a lot of farmers.
Untapped by the populists but their time will come.
With a population of only 5 million ( and 6 million rugby players ) with 50 million sheep , someone must be looking after them ?
“Surfing for BeachGrit commentators”. It’ll be wildly popular. I have been running a small, but successful case study for quite a while now. Do you know where can I apply for government funding and/or tax exemptions?
Old ranch owner John farmed a small ranch in Montana. The Montana Wage and Hour Department claimed he was not paying proper wages to his workers and sent an agent out to interview him.
“I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them,” demanded the agent.
“Well,” replied old John, “There’s my ranch hand who’s been with me for 3 years. I pay him $600 a week plus free room and board. The cook has been here for 18 months, and I pay her $500 a week plus free room and board. Then there’s the half-wit who works about 18 hours every day and does about 90 percent of all the work around here. He makes about $10 per week, pays his own room and board, and I buy him a bottle of bourbon every Saturday night.”
“That’s the guy I want to talk to, the half-wit,” says the agent.
“That would be me,” replied old rancher John.
Great, more people in the water.
c’mon New Zealand, you guys are supposed to be witty or was “Surfers for Sheep Shaggers” too on the nose?
Ah herrmm, it was more correctly called, “Surfing for Sheep Shaggers”.
It was wildly successful.
Suggest Partnership with UGG BOOTS ?