The Opening Ceremony

A W. E I N R A G L A N C E L E B R AT I N G T H E O P E N I N G O F T H E R A G L A N VA C O N TA I N E R .

The idea was simple

- drop an empty shipping container outside the Raglan Surf Emporium, fit it out, fill it with RVCA gear and throw a party for the punters. So one weekend in November the RVCA family headed for the seaside surf town to pour beer, man the BBQ and (hopefully) score waves on the famed points in between.

Parading in the following pages is Rambo Estrada’s photographic record of what went down. Enjoy the ride.

There were no waves

on the points so the gang ended up at Ruapuke where the surf, though big enough, was terribly uninviting. A short stick competition, with the loser having to paddle out on his own, seemed like a good idea.

Jubilation is a great happiness Dan Farrell and celebrate their

feeling of and triumph.

Ollie Cairns good fortune.

Despair,

on the other hand, is the complete loss or absence of hope. Thomas Smith, who was perhaps the grumpiest about playing, had the misfortune of selecting the smallest stick – ah, Murphy’s Law. However, Thomas is also a master of delay tactics and managed to have only one foot in his wetsuit by the time Dan here was suited up and riding his first wave.

When he eventually did hit the water, Thomas got to work dropping wallet.

Ollie ponders

whether he should add a ‘by’ to the sign so it reads better.

Dan is

an electrician by day and was called on to wire up the VA Container for Benny. It just so happens Dan rides surfboards really well too. Here he lays rail while at the same time attempting a Rob Machado, Kelly Slater high five at pipe type thing with Benny Connolly.

While on the gravel road to Ruapuke

we came across some wandering sheep. Team leader Benny stopped the wagon and he and Dan re-paddocked the two lambs. Their heroics were forgotten on the next corner when a dying lamb, with a festering wound and wool falling from its side, was spotted. The poor animal needed a quick death and although Dan and Ollie had pocketknives no one in the car could slaughter the animal. Heroic men were turned to whimpering boys. We told the nearest farmer who was later seen walking up the road with a gun. It turns out sheep rustling had been an issue in the area and the poor lamb had probably been hit over the head and left for dead as rustlers took its mother away. It’s little wonder “no dogs or be shot owner” signs hang on fences.

Thomas is all style,

here he performs one of the fundamentals of surfing – the backhand bottom turn. As you can see his eyes are on the target, he is beginning to compress and leading the turn with his front arm – all things any surf coach would be proud of. Good work Thomas.

When the surf is bad

and your team riders aren’t logging any high performance photos you need “lifestyles” to fill magazine holes. Benny here is one third Mexican, a third shepherd and a third outback Jack or what’s better known as a Canherdjack.

A

‘boards in the boot’ photo is quintessential surf trip.

Estrada pays homage with his, obligatory, take on it. Insert ‘take your pick’ caption.

Holding a buttercup

under your chin (supposedly) indicates whether you like butter or not. If your chin turns yellow you do. It would appear Lucy Houghton here likes butter a little bit – or she prefers an even spread on her toast rather than it dripping.

Five hundred

is a little bit euchre a little bit bridge and had its beginning in America pre 1900. The United States playing card company copyrighted the rules in 1904. It was the game of choice on this trip. Blanton Smith might look subdued sipping his coffee but deep down he is ruthlessly competitive when it comes to cards, as Shaan Davis is about to find out.

Throwing a party,

with free beers, bangers and burgers, always helps.

With the smell of onions wafting through the air it wasn’t long before crew, including every backpacker in a 10km radius, were tucking in.

Cam Neat has a keen sense of smell and was one of the first to arrive.

According to

the 2013 census Raglan has a population of 2736, which is 4.3 per cent of the Waikato district. Add in a constant flow of backpackers and surfers and the number quickly doubles. As it turns out the tub of ice-cold Grolsch didn’t last long and a keg was brought in to help quench the punters’ thirst. JC’s son proved to be handy on the pump and enthusiastic about the job – much to his mother’s disgust.

Elka Moeller about to utter “what does the fox say?”

Dan, Ollie, Jereme Aubertin and Brad Timberlake relax after pumping out 100 burgers and 300 sausages and bread.

If you’re in a hurry

to get to the beach don’t hitch a ride with Rambo Estrada, he’ll stop every time there’s a photo to be captured. It took him five hours to drive from the Mount to Raglan (normally a two hour drive) because of detours and “cool fog” which he just had to stop for. Raglan sure looks nice from the hills though and we appreciate your effort.

When the keg ran dry

and the BBQ cleared the crowd moved on and so did the RVCA family. First to the pub for the Kiwi’s game against Australia and then back to the Whale Bay pad where the party continued. When Estrada turned up early on Sunday morning with news of pumping Ruapuke the gang were still asleep. Benny attempts to drown the hangover before waking the lads.

By the time

the gang arrived at Ruapuke the wind was up and the call was made to head back to the points in the hope of shooting more “lifestyles.” You’d be forgiven for thinking Ryan wasn’t overly keen to hit the water.

Dan has been dabbling

in a bit of shaping of late and gave his bonzer-inspired board a go for the first time out at Indies. By all accounts it went well.

Ahhhh, the line up lifestyle.

Shoulder high Indicators

was over-populated when the crew paddled out and joined five Brazilian tourists already in the water. Thankfully we’re an intimidating bunch and they soon moved on.

Had Martin Potter been commentating this day he may have said, “Thomas throws caution to the wind.”

Raglan shot to

international fame after Bruce Brown’s 1966 surf flick The Endless Summer. In it the waves are described as, “so long it’s ridiculous…if you go out surfing at Raglan for the day you get two rides, one after breakfast and one after lunch. If you go for three you’ll starve to death.” Benny and Thomas head home after their breakfast ride.

Ryan looks a little happier than he did pre-surf.

Lifestyles, surf shots, party pics, team photo,

tick, tick, tick, tick.

Surf memorabilia

- Wizards of the Water was a 1981 surf flick starring greats like Cheyne Horan, Mark Richards, Dane Kealoha and Buzzy Kerbox. As for the hula doll well I’m not sure.

This photo is

like one of those classic paintings where no matter which angle you look at it the eyes follow you. What’s even better is you can’t tell whether Thomas is angry, sombre or confused.

Ollie tries to sleep

off his late night revelry. When most went to bed on Saturday night Ollie, along with Dan, Brad and their girlfriends, had a “bathroom party.” Details are sketchy but it would appear three naked boys and half naked girls managed to fit inside the tub.