Decommission Decompression

INTERNATIONAL RIDING COLLECTIVE

WAKESTOCK SHINES AGAIN Winching with the Dirty South SEPT-OCT 2011 ISS4 £3.25 UK

€3.75 EUR

MADE IN THE UK

HARBOUR REACH PORT HAVERIGG WAKESKATE SHOE REVIEW PRO TOUR SHEFFIELD DECOMMISSION DECOMPRESSION

SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

42 SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

Decommission Decompression Old and new, used and disused, tales of style and fresh faces upon the aftermath of a long weekend in Wales

SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

43

Hawks New spot, new issues.. no slip and agro fisherman - all part of the fun

seeking new spots in different places is always interesting especially when there is conflict and radiation involved Words: Andrew Eddy Photos: Martin Hawks, Andrew Eddy

I

n the aftermath of a certain north Wales based competition we decided to take some crew on a little road trip to another part of north Wales called Trawssfynydd (Tras-fin-id) with an opportunity to ride a unique spot. Previously untouched by anything with more than a outboard fishing boat at 5mph it was certainly not something we were going to pass up on. On the other side of a long weekend there is no better way to clear out some cobwebs and taking a trip into the hinterland on a voyage of discovery to find new fresh, new waters. A regulated fishing lake in the mountains is always something to behold and with such a unique backdrop as a disused nuclear power plant Syndicate was on the case and eager to take a trip along with a loaded Super Air Nautique to discover what the place had to offer.

44 SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

As many of you who have ever launched a boat on a fishing lake will know, there is always a bone of contention between our love for a juicy wake and the fishermen’s love of no wake and no wakeboarders. Well true to form upon arrival we were threatened with security throwing us off the lake, being rammed if we were to touch the slipway, the Police and of course the always welcome threat of physical violence should we even so much as touch the water with the boat. A great start to the day and with a smile and a laugh the fishermen were all too happy to let us know we were not welcome. However with possibly the soundest team of “well aged gentlemen” behind us we were reassured that the council were on our side and that we were all systems go.

For the shoot we enlisted an eclectic team of new

and old, known and lesser known riders to see what the mix would turn out together.

Jonty Green of long time stature in the UK scene was always sure to bring the heat under any circumstances that he might find himself with a handle in his hand.

Jack Hammersley a rider breaking through into the next stage of his riding career dropping probably the sweetest tantrum to blind in the Wakestock qualifiers.

Jamie Nicol a young ripper from the Abersoch crew.

Jeff Haddon a rider from the midlands making a big impact on the junior scene at the moment.

And finally the international connection, all round shred master Mitch Langfield.

Left to their own devices with more wake than you can shake a fishing boat at there was sure to be some hammers fired down by the boys. With the odd natural hit around there was enough to make it interesting along the way too, even for the boat which managed to find shallow waters in the open space of the 1200 acre lake…

It is easy to put a group of friends together and let them do their thing but variety is the spice of life and it is that vein that we chose to give opportunities to new and old to see what happened. A younger generation hitting it up with those more

Hawks Jack the Hammer, nuclear tantrum SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

45

Hawks

46 SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

Hawks Hawks Top left: Hammersley with a stale nose bone Top right: Jamie Nicol counters with a frontside shifty stale Mid left: Jamie looks on at the looming power station of Trawssfynydd Middle: Jack reflects on what might be have been a busy few days in north Wales Mid right: Jonty Green is always smiling and always ripping - fact Far left: Mitch Langfield takes life very seriously Left: “Jamie prepares for a shred behind the 210

established is something that I am sure that more than a few of us have dreamt about, and this was a time that we could make that a reality. Our sport is after all not just about the chosen few, nor is it about any one person as a rider or representative for the sport in any capacity. It is about us all who participate whether it be on a weekend basis, practising wake jumps or for the full time professionals dialling in their fifth mobe.

Looking out at a lake that has not been ridden before is something quiet special, it holds a certain amount of unknowns like shallow unmarked areas that can leave you without the bottom half of your boat if taken at speed.

It can suddenly change in depth from having dozens of metres and plenty of wake to centimetres of shallows in seconds, thus some inside knowledge and a scouting run is essential when hitting any unknown territory. So with a sonar depth scanner and a little bit of cautious adventure a general area was scoped out for our run. Then some consultation with some of the local

heads proved invaluable with Tim Baily and Ysgoed Williams on hand to take us through the lay of the underwater land.

With the remains of a disused bridge still standing in the wake as a reminder of former glory and a channel set through one side which in its’ heyday was a path for a larger keel boat we had our route planned and it left nothing more than to launch the Super Air and get on the water. After a stunning start to the day, driving through rolling Welsh landscapes filled with views fit for any king the powers that be decided to close in our newly found lake and display in full glory the true power of total cloud coverage. Not an ideal situation when you are trying to photograph wakeboarding but nonetheless it added a certain mood to the day and made the overshadowing power station all the more ominous.

To make things interesting we put it to the riders to make each trick look SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

47

Above: Mitch throws down with a massive cab melon for the birds Right: Nothing clean about the water but plenty to be said for a laid out back 3 off the double up, Jonty Green

“After a heavy Wakestock weekend a nice chilled photo shoot was just what the doctor ordered” Jack Hammersley like their own, it was not all about the super tech tricks, more just styling out whichever grab you chose and make it your own. It was interesting to see the riders all put their own variety of similar tricks down, some held, some poked, some floated, each time we were shown each riders take on the trick and how they wanted it to come out. It brought a lot of personality to each ride and made for more some good shooting with some new tweaks and pokes coming from all the boys.

First out the gates was Jack “The Hammer” akin to Jack the Ripper but maybe will be remembered for slightly different things, I’m pretty sure he never killed anyone but he can definitely tear apart a wake. Jack is known for his style and explosive riding, seemingly riding a wake that nobody else can see, one that gives him unprecedented pop and float out some meaty bangers for the crew. Most notable trick was his stonking nuclear tantrum which has become his signature move of late. Next up was our local man Jamie Ni-

48 SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

col, Jamie has been riding up at Abersoch with the Off-Axis crew for some time and putting a rider that is more akin to the ocean on flat, fresh water is always inspiring as you see the energy and excitement shine through.

Not fighting against the tide and having a chunky ramp to boost off, Jamie showed himself to be another style master in what was shaping up to be a solid performance from one of the lesser known riders in the boat.

A short interlude and some more exploration into unknown territories lined us up for our next instalment of mass reduction, Jonty Green adorned his boots and made for the water. Jonty is one of those riders that needs little or no introduction and the same when it comes to the wake. Given more than a decent launch pad Jonty starts firing in all different directions, the highlight might have been a fully laid out crail glide or blind 3 off the double in some mushy waters.

Hawks Hawks SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

49

Hawks Hawks

50 SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

Top far left: Jonty walking his own path and doing things how he likes them, method tail poke Mid left: Mitch fires out a meaty method Above: Jonty lays a crail glide all the way out at the bridge Bottom left: Jeff Haddon takes on the challenge with his floaty stalefish Bottom right: Mitch with more poke than a vindaloo

“It’s always good to ride behind a pimp boat, even if I was still feeling like a tramp after a week of camping” Jonty Green

Onto our next wake rider, Jeff Hadden. Jeff is still very much a junior yet is already pulling no punches in his bag of tricks and sports a full compliment of inverts, regular and switch. There is more to be seen from this young ripper and we will no doubt be seeing this kid develop in the coming years.. watch this space. Jeff didn’t stop when he hit the water, literally one move into the next, totally effortless and cruisey yet determined and focused.

Our final rider of the day, Mitch Langfield from the hallowed golden shores of Australia but now currently residing in Florida, Mitch is no stranger to the international scene. Mitch has more tricks than a magician. Poked and stalled spins flying out in every direction, huge laid out grabs then late 3 or blind 1 makes for a tasty run in which we were treated to more than a few.

Variety is the spice of life and Mitch brought plenty of it with him.

The grab style presented by each rider was awesome and really makes a difference when you are a bystander, each hit of the wake brought a new contrast to tricks we have all seen before, just better. Some things you can’t transmit easily in writing but the feel of the lake with the eerie power station looming in the background with disused roadways and bridges dotting the lake made the whole experience slightly surreal. Lakes normally have a certain vibe about them and this one certainly did, it said something about the history of the place and maybe something about the future of the lake.

This may not be the last time we see a wake boat at Trawssfynydd but was certainly the first. Different and obscure, just the way we like it.

SYNDICATEWAKE.COM

51