CHARTER ONE // 20 MARCH - 31 MARCH // 2004

Passengers: 
Neil Croft, Philip Doyle, Gareth Grant, Martyn Grant, Bryce Warburton, Michael Fawcett

The Westerlies and weather were upon us as we headed into the wild sea for our first charter of the 2004 season. I was glistening with fresh paint and clean decks; even had a prototype beanbag plonked amongst the old 'had their day' deck mats. The crew was back to their usual smiling, welcome aboard selves, the Captain's organizational stress seeping away, B was bouncing and chirpy as ever, and the passengers stoked to be escaping to a slice of paradise.

Straight into the end of a fairly lengthy low swell period. Small muddled up waves to wet the appetite. The water was warm, the reef cuts minimal, and life as we all knew it was grand.

Day 2 dawned as my anchor hit the sand in an empty keyhole. The swell had hit and the waves were quite literally - doing it! Perfection, Indo style. I witnessed some amazing barrels as the waves encompassed the surfers. A good morning with reef cuts all round. I don't mind blood on my decks, just don't bring sand aboard.

Gareth, the only natural footer amidst the passengers was in heaven and kept babbling something about the best surf of his life. Come to think of it, so did the goofy footers. Most of them were smashed (normal at this break). Phil broke a board. But they kept going back for more. The captain surfed for 5 hours in answer to one of the most asked questions of all time; 'do you get to surf with us?' He too was babbling something about cleaning out the cobwebs. The radio was firmly in the OFF position.

It was a long, tiresome, lovely, lonely day.

The next few days cemented the surfed out feeling at a little left that just kept peeling. More waves than you could poke the bow of your board into. Minimal friendly crowd of blokes off the Mangalui joined us. The Westerlies clearing as the cyclones, Fay and Oscar, smashed the sea to pieces further South.

Phil came unstuck in the pre dawn patrol and 3 stitches were inserted into his noggin. Mike, the pom found his feet and began to enjoy surfing over coral. Neil, the old bastard of the troupe, stayed out for 6 hours showing the younger guys what stamina is all about. Was it the surf-starved existence in Darwin that caused his high wave count? Na, the bloke just loves it. Bryce began tapping into the power of the waves and by the end of day 4 he sat there sipping a Bintang supremely stoked to be away from the Sydney beach breaks. Marty just kept laughing with his expletive, 'its all bloody good'. Phil, also from Darwin, was surfing the same day as the stitching incident. Is there something in the beer up there?

The weather turned magnificent and we cruised here there and everywhere. Blue skies and starry nights. My new 4-blade prop pushed me through calm seas. Apparently there were other boats around, but when we surfed, we were alone. Relaxation at its finest. Unfortunately, there was one shitty moment on the trip·.big bad Bryce broke the back out of the dunny. A crack in the porcelain that had all and sundry in some precarious morning balancing acts for the last couple of days!

CHARTER SIXTEEN // 12 NOVEMBER - 22 NOVEMBER // 2003

Passengers: 
Rory Stander, Jeremy Baldwin, Andrew Hogg, Kurt Stander, Gary Wintle, Gary Naidel, Paul McGroder.

By an amazing coincidence, the last trip of the season was booked by a group where everyone's first name was "Bob"! To avoid confusion, especially after a few frosty ones had been sunk, they were al given nicknames. Thus Fisherman Bob, LA Law Bob, Bald Eagle Bob, Baron Bob, Yarpie Bob, Giggling Bob and Eight Poo Bob all sailed out of Padang harbour with a Bintang in hand.

After cruising through the night, Team Bob was shattered to pull up at the right hander to hear that there was only one other boat in the whole of the Mentawis and it was going back to port the next day. Spewing! As the swell picked up and the wind whispered offshore, Captain Bob led the way with the tube riding. That night in the Barrenjoey Beer Garden , peroxide was put on the wounds, the Broken Baron Boards were put away and everyone was laughing as the only other boat headed home.

Five surfs in a day? Fall asleep after dinner and beers by seven o'clock? Wake up the next day and start all over again·.

The wind changes and off Team Bob goes in search of lefts·and the next day a different left·.and the next day rights·and so on.

Fisherman Bob was convinced that the island chain was fished out even though everyone else managed to catchy fish·go figure. We couldn't even find out the results of the Rugby World Cup Semi between Oz and the Sheep so we just kept surfing and relaxing. The BBQ kept the chilli ginger tuna steaks coming around, and the secret marinate steaks, and the butterflied leg of lamb, and the crew kept the Bintangs on ice·.

Back to the rights cranking across the "testing challenge on your backhand" reef to watch Captain Bob park in the tube forever. We all bagged him when he finally didn't come out of one and broke his favorite board just to find out he had FIFTEEN more in the hold.

The days flew by as we skirted new islands and spots before one final surf in the lee of Gilligan's Island . Bintangs back to Padang , Bintangs at the airport to land in Singapore head for the bar just in time for the Rugby World Cup Final and to almost get the special result. As the Singapore Airlines flight headed home, Eight Poo Bob chuckled to himself over a beer as he thought about what all the experts had said:

"THERE'S NO WAVES IN THE MENTAWIS AT THE END OF THE SEASON." Ha!

CHARTER FIFTEEN // 29 SEPTEMBER - 9 NOVEMBER // 2003

Passengers: 
Bob Lemon, Peter English, Rob Elliott, James Hamilton, Chris Desmond, Ralph Guderiahn

The Lemon was stripped bare. Gone was the golden green of a swayed crossing.

Gone was the sturdy fibreglass. Gone was da chunk of foam. The Lemon Stripped Bare - a meta-phor the voyage.

Selemat stirred the batch of resin and filled eloquent Bob's dinged board. It was the first day of another "Old Bastard's Tour'. Some had been seasick, most had hit the reef, 2 fins had been snapped out. Was this why the Captain should have started the tour at a somewhat softer reef break? Stuff that! They were on their own and the waves were perfect, and the lads were getting right back into dormant memories - board shorts, blockout, and surfing their brains out!

And so began the November shuffle. Looking for the waves and new equatorial summer swells.

"No Pete, I don't want to ride your mini mal!" yelled the Captain as Pete hung 5 past him on one of the smaller lefts of the trip·..giggling like a grommet. Was that a Quasimodo that Rob just pulled? "No I don't want to have a go!" At least Hambo's riding a normal board and certainly throwing it around. Chris won't get out of the bloody water and Ralph's cruising past on his ····. Aaarrrgghhh MINI MAL!!!!!!!!!!! As for Bobby Jeruk·..knee-boarder, that rare breed of surfer, a class unto their own. Off the bottom, top, always in the pit·.a forgotten question·.Are you a goofy footer or natural footer?????

An all round classic late season trip. A particularly weird thing happened, we came across of floating pallet full of Heineken beer. Can you believe that? The World Cup and all!!!!!

A special mention to my wife - B - who not only put the boy's little present together but began catching waves and feeling the pulses the Indian Ocean has to offer - she wanted to say sorry to Ralph yet again·.she didn't see you.

Old surfer trips never die, they just take the boat in November!

CHARTER FOURTEEN // SEPTEMBER // 2003

Passengers: 
Tony Warrilow, Stephen Blakey, David McGroder, John Allen, Kate Skarrat

I was just stoked John and Belinda were at the airport to pick us up. I pictured them in Honeymoon bliss, playing scrabble in Phuket and forgetting about the charter. But then again, John is the 'Office' Manager and its time to get back to work. Our first contestant, David McGroder, John's fire fighting brother. Second, Belinda's fire fighting brother. The hose control between these two is spot on. Tony, 'the Wildebeest' Warrilow the next contestant was a werewolf photographer extraordinaire. The beauty of the group, Kate Skarrat, a professional surfer from the Goldie. And of course there was me·.John Allen·the 'consummate seppo' as the captain put it. The adventure began amongst feeding sailfish in the Padang Harbour. Rinsing the aeroplane grime and our previous existences away at a picturesque nearby island, we were ready for the overnight crossing. The ensuing days, we surfed ourselves senseless, dragged our lures and mixed the Bintangs with Heinekens. We are on holiday aren't we? Just checking! It wasn't long until we had nightly slideshows, compliments of Tony's technology. Feasted on Elvis's culinary creations (my favorite being the BBQ Spanish mackerel with a rich green curry sauce - EPIC!) and doctored various ailments. Selemat's passion for fishing is unparalleled and it wasn't long until we were hooking up more than a rock spider in Thailand. Spanish Mackerel, Dog Tooth Tuna, Trevally, and even a barracuda.

The swell hit like a Mac truck and our limits were pushed. The captain pushed us deeper and we saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Mangrove missions, and snorkeling entertained between free fall take offs, and heart pumping rail-grabs. We are still on holidays, aren't we?!!!! Kate had to leave the party to compete in the Quiki event in France (WIN FOR THE BJ). We had lost a team player, so we were forced to drink heavily and jump off the top of the boat naked (well I was)! Dodging other boats in a Mentawai game of chess, we were surfing alone once again. The Wildebeest landed the fish of the trip, Steve soul arched into another barrel, Dave claimed he wasn't going to drink tonight - but did. And, I, well I relaxed on the deck and listened to The Clash. God Bless Joe Strummer. Just another day in Paradise. Above all, this trip allowed us to get back to the basics - wearing no shoes, breathing fresh air and just surfing. Is there anything else??????????????????

CHARTER THIRTEEN // 27 AUGUST - 3 SEPTEMBER // 2003

Passengers: 
Helmie Tilders, John Paraman, Mark Paraman, Eddie Godfrey, Gavin Ruddolph, Jason Reynolds, Ashley Walter, Ross Lindsay.

This trip we had some of Jefferies Bay legends on and they were keen for some big swell, unfortunately the biggest waves we had were 5" Franklins, it was a good session though, as we had it to ourselves and it felt great to get into some bigger waves after 3 days at Burgers, perfect burgers mind you but who come to Indo to surf that? The trip had plenty of keen fisherman and sailors onboard and we caught every species of fish that Mentawai could offer, the highlight being the 25kg Wahoo that Selemat our deckie caught, Ross scored a great sailfish also and released it. Other highlights were Eddie amusing us with the amount of shit that he bought and Gavin's ability to keep his hair perfect and Marky's attempt not to have a beer before lunch. The Boys weren't happy to hear that the biggest swell of the year hit as we anchored back in Padang, anyway they will be back in 2004 to try again. I had a great time skippering the BJ.

CHARTER TWELVE // 6 AUGUST - 18 AUGUST // 2003

Passengers: 
Brain "Will" Williams, Dewi Williams, Edward Graham, Jason Quinn, Neil Croft, Carlos De Limo Maia

Our last trip before B and I headed home to tie the proverbial knot. Will was to take the next trip and was aboard for a training run, catch a few waves and hang out with his wife, Dewi. The winds blew, the waves tubed and Carlos, our first ever Brazilian, kept us entertained with friendly stories from his homeland. Jason, another of those kneeborders, dug his fins in and carved on. Neil and Edward cruised with us on a very relaxing journey.

On the last night the winds changed and we all had a bonding experience at our new found island where we went night diving, weight lifting, and coffee tasting. Special thanks to the Sans Souci for her participation in our merry morning.

CHARTER ELEVEN // 23 JULY - 4 AUGUST // 2003

Passengers: 
John "JP" Powell, Damien "Ollie" Oliver, Sean "The Machine/The Hulk" Moore, Tony "Precious" Marquardt, Carlo "Carlos" Lowdon, Denny "Dan" Stocca, Ashley "Ash" Kelleher, Reece "McLeod" McLeod

It's always good finding a quiet wave to yourself out here amongst the madness. Even better when that wave is throwing some 5ft perfection down the reef. Ollie took the wave count here·wave after bloody wave. It was the last 2 days that culminated the charter into the epic category for waves. We were already satisfied with what we had surfed. But those lefts on the last day had to be seen to be believed.

We caught no fish till the last day. There was one of B's bikini tops for the voted moron of the day award·.had to wear it in the surf for an hour. Brought some strange looks from other boats. A good old egg fight with the Santa Lusia. The battle went our way when JP let forth with a volley eggs that had him staring in the upcoming movie·"The Eggs of Macarone". Denny took the wipe-out of the season, bounced off the reef then scored one of the best barrels of the season.

And we all got rocked to sleep on the way in.

CHARTER TEN // 9 JULY - 22 JULY // 2003

Passengers: 
Jason Hoey, Danny Hoey, Matt Loughran, Tony Prat, Paul Walker, Stuart Gregory, Jamie Spivey, Bryce Cosdon

What would posses 8 men to leave Jacksonville, Florida and venture into the wilds of Indonesia aboard a boat for 12 days?????

Now these blokes are different.

There was plenty of blood, tattoos, musical instruments, weird haircuts, fish, and an armadillo. We surfed by a setting full moon, dived beneath the sea, had a rock concert aboard Mangalui, sipped on Stu's homemade coconut daiquiris, as well as listened to some good'ol stories·and we even surfed some bloody good waves.

One word to sum this trip up·.."BOOYA!!!"

CHARTER NINE // 27 JUNE - 7 JULY // 2003

Passengers: 
Mike Dolan, Dennis Ferguson, Jeff Fieldson, Rick White, Jonathan White, Travis Foellmer

Unfortunately, Mike's bag was misplaced at the airport and I had to lend him a pair of Bondi Beach Speedos to surf in. He was not really into the 'sluggo' look so we donned him in some boardies and let him surf.

Jeff is part of that rare breed of surfers·a kneeboarder. There are plenty of names for these guys, but they are all hardcore and surf the waves really well. Jeff was no exception. Both he and Dennis showing the young blokes what a surf trip was all about.

Our first bunch of Americans for the year. Travis' goofyfooting hours surpassing everyone's surf time. The lad also landed a 14kg Mahi-mahi.

Rick was a proud dad, helping his son, Jon, celebrate his 18th birthday aboard, as well as watching him surf day in and out. Elvis made his first batch of ice-cream on this trip to accompany the birthday cake.

CHARTER EIGHT // 16 JUNE - 27 JUNE // 2003

Passengers: 
Luke Duggan, Daniel Haggerty, Matthew Haggerty, Terrene Black, Eli Soper, Robert Coote, Phil Coote.

These people scored·big time! It could have something to do with collective karma or the fact that they are from the Central Coast of NSW, a surf mad community that always seems to get good surf whenever they venture into the Mentawai Islands.

It started off with a bang at one of the better lefts and a new clean swell that had the crew all over it. They all held their own at this left and any other spot we took them to. The trip was all about the surf. 3 solid swells in 10 days. You cannot ask better than that. Such a contrast from the previous trip.