That photo brings back many memories, as I was living on Maui at the time. Shirley was a great surf photographer, and a lovely lady.

In '76, a bunch of us Hawaii guys were in Bali. Uluwatu and all the regular areas were flat for days, so Shirley, Fast Eddie, Reno, Joanne, and I rented a VW van with driver for $20, and headed out to explore the island, looking for anything we could find.

The moment of discovery:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502338378.jpg

Unfortunately, we took no surf photos that day, but I got this shot of Reno's wife with some of the ladies from the local fishing village:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502338378.jpg

Hopefully I'll find more photos from that trip ..

I would love to see more photos you might have, Geary. Thanks for that little story...that was great!

I just purchased one of those devices that converts slides to digital images and intend to go through my slide collection and get some of my old pics up.

I thought the roller derby reference by Pez was pretty good...lol....

Honolua really was a board-eating spot (before the leash). In '72, two friends and I had a VW repair shop on Maui, and we used to surf together whenever we could. With a huge swell on the way, we decided to camp out at Honolua, catch a morning session, and open up shop late.

We arrived a bit late for the evening session, but could see the swell was building nicely. We woke up before sunrise, and began our paddle out even before really assessing the conditions. We at least knew enough to paddle out from the safety of the far inside, instead of the normal cut-across route.

It quickly became obvious we were facing HUGE storm surf. We could barely make headway, even from the safety of the channel. A decision was made to keep an eye on each other, and catch a single wave in. A fourth non-surfing friend was watching us from the safety of the cliffs.

Currents were so strong, we couldn't have reached the outside "peak", even if we'd wanted to. I caught the first wave from the Cave (probably an 8-footer). One partner opted to paddle straight back in. My other partner, Mike, caught a wave and wiped out. We never saw the board again. Our friend watching the fiasco from above saw the whole thing. HE never saw the board again, even from his vantage point.

Combing the rocks, we found a piece of board that had the same color, but we honestly couldn't tell if it was part of Mike's board or not. We'll never forget that day. Headed back to the shop with our tails between our legs ..

My old snowboarding partner, Jeff Ching @ Kaiser's Bowl:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502387539.JPG

Thanks for that great story, Geary....and even greater photo....wow...that is really fantastic!!!

Nothing quite like water photography, is there? :)

Yes, Peter .. some of these memories seem as though from a previous life ;^)

A couple more of my favorite water shots for you, Baz ..

Wailua (on Maui) is a VERY "local" surf spot, and rightfully so. On this particular day, I decided rather than take waves, I'd just photograph Da Boyz having fun.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502483066.JPG

In Kailua on Oahu, the Mokulua islands offer a very unique wave action, in which you can ride back & forth (perpendicular to the beach) on swells wrapping both ways around Moku Nui island. We usually paddle out by canoe, beach the canoe, and surf for hours between beer breaks.

"The Mokes" have two different surf spots, in addition to the back & forth shore break. Here's a great shot of Mark riding the back & forth, launched by the opposing swell.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502483066.jpg

Thanks again for the wonderful & interesting water shots, Geary!

The Mokes reminds me a little of "In and Outs' as depicted in "The Endless Summer". :)

And it truly is a challenge to shoot surf pics when you are a surfer....tough to give up time on your board when the waves are pumping for sure. Good on ya!

.
Another shot of Wailua .. Bigger than it looks, as my buddy Tim stands 6'7"

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502502154.JPG

Thanks, Geary......another nice pic! It is funny how waves will look smaller when looking at photos than they seem in person! My last surf trip outside the US was to Nicaragua and the waves where we were most of the time broke top to bottom so you would get hammered but when looking at them even while just standing on the shore...they didn't look all that big or powerful. Ah...the Pacific....

Well, I finally broke out my new little converter device......so let's see what one of these looks like. From slide film I shot in July 1978 when the Native Pro hit NSB....guess who....:)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502764370.JPG

One of yours truly at a fun day at our inlet....September 1978...I know...I look like a kook here...ha ha...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502764551.JPG

One year along with my good friend Randy Richenberg and his wife Cindy we rented a house in Avon, NC while we were there competing in the ESA surf championships. This was in Sept. 1978. These 2 pics are of Randy and another friend Tony Hume at our shore break at Avon. I was experimenting at the time with various telephoto lenses...the top photo of Tony is with a 400mm lens and I was set up right at the shoreline. Fuzzy I know but hey at least "someone" was taking pics while the other guys were in the water! :)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502769012.JPG

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502769012.JPG

That shot of you is pretty cool, Baz .. slice & dice, not kooky at all.

Earlier this year, our daughter got a rental studio overlooking Makaha surf break. Can't wait for a big West swell to take advantage of it. On this day there was a small south swell:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502780206.JPG

Fantastic, Geary.....

Here's one of the Bronzed Aussies in NSB for a contest back in October of 1978.

L to R: Jim Banks, PT, and Ian "Kanga" Cairns.....

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502800682.JPG

Couple pics of one of my best friends from early surfing days, JL, whom I've posted pics of here before. These are from the '77 - '78 era....

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502800888.JPG

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502800888.JPG

Terry Pressley aka 'Poker' on the left and Richard 'Palmer Jet' Palmer on the right.....

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502801030.JPG

Not sure who this is but typical day at the inlet surfing small but fun waves.....in nice warm water... :)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502801148.JPG

From April 1979

I think this is Bernie "Mad Dog" Crouch and I think that's a board shaped by Harold Iggy....and the pic 'may have' been taken on the Ponce side of the inlet....

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502801494.JPG

A few more pics from my slide collection. The subject is local board maker and surfer Randy Richenberg....one of my best friends through all my years in surfing (along with JL) and a very positive influence on my life (for better or worse!) :)

First pic is Hatteras and other two are here at our inlet...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502828342.JPG

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502828342.JPG

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502828342.JPG

I remember Iggy from '60s Waikiki days .. did he move to Florida, Baz?

Timmy McCullough was a surf photographer back in the '60s & '70s, and he recently shared these photos of Ala Moana. (Tim's dad started Reyn's, a company that Tim eventually took over.)

Conrad Canha, a very stocky surfer, could push through white water like no other surfer from that era:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502906557.jpg

Conrad & Peter Moon, a well-known local musician
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502906557.jpg

We used to get huge south swells, perhaps 4 every summer. These days we're lucky to get one swell like this every 10 years. You can barely see the lip of another wave outside of this one. The photo clearly shows the origin of the term "pole sets" when talking about Ala Moana:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502906557.jpg

Rick Parker on another big Ala Mo day:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1502906557.jpg