Balmoral Point

[flatrocker]

Flatrock is the jumpoff spot for Winki Pop and is also the scene of many a bloodbath, washing machine, potato mashing for any beginner surfer who is too keen to get out at winki in an east or NE swell.
Don't be too keen to jump off the rocks at any of the rock off spots. Check out Don's set of pix at DY and cringe .
Buzzy I don't recall that puking bit waht was the rest of it? It must have been along time ago and I have never lived in Harbord. Bonked a few girls around there and spent some time in the pub and even did the "bus stop" in the Diggers disco around the late 70's.
Actually I remember that the Freshie guys sport in those days was to get into any type of fight during the night in the street outside towards the beach and that was a good night for them.
I was usually disappointed that it wasn't over something worth it like a girl, or a drink or money or something.
Also Batesy was in QBC.
The farrels farm pic is a five shot print that I assembled in photoshop and is bloody amazing when you go up the same spot and see the original old houses disappearing every year.

[flatrocker]

Also matthewPL that day at Wyargine Pt. was the same day as nat was out and half the northern beaches as well. Neilsen Park was also on.

Check out the houses on the headland . You could have bought one for a pittance then...

If it ever happens again at Wyargine,make sure that you do not surf out into the harbour as there are sharks there and if you are paddling alone as against with others in a group there is a higher probability of an individual becoming an entree!

At another spot over the water Doug Lees and mates from QBC used to go out at Dobroyd Bommie and in 8 -10 ' sets paddle up to sets and then stop dead in the water and sit there while it sucked them up upside down and they would go over inside the tube still sitting on there boards! For fun.

[fletch]

I've always wanted to try this novelty wave ever since I saw a photo of it in tracks about 20 years ago.

[buzzy]

Yeah, I wish I could remember the guy's name. As it is I was probably 13 or 14 at the time. I remembered his name for ages but I've lost it now. Since I'm 38 now that gives you an idea of how long ago (ie around '79/'80). The sculling contest was with Jan, who you have in one of your photos. He's a couple of years older than me, and would have been 15 or 16 at the time. I remember he didn;t throw up then (we went through 1 and a half flasks between us), but I remember he had a private moment of releief the next day in the surf.

I didn't really know you well as you were a fair bit older than me. I was just an average grommet.

[flatrocker]

Sorry Buzzy I can't remember either but Jan Bruun might. As you may know he is an absolute hellman when it comes to "Deadmans". That photo in my gallery shows him at the top of one of the biggest and wobbliest waves I have ever seen out there. Jan pulled back on a couple and I only see that as the move of an intelligent human! He saved himself for the real ones and got a couple of bewdys.
I actually like those photos of him as it shows the immensity of the lip and I wish I had shot it on video/film.

[flatrocker]

Also I'm 46 and I would like to know what the hell you were thinking at that age 13 or 14 getting drunk at freshie! You obviously survived to tell the story.

[spotty]

[quote="flatrocker"] Jan pulled back on a couple
Jan pulled back because he's a big girl...just kidding. Jan turns 40 this Sat,send him the pics!

[flatrocker]

The old bugger! I'll do him a print .

[theboat]

I've surfed Balmoral twice, neither were good sessions at all, but i think i have only gone when it wasnt that good conditions. I did have one great little booger (lid...yuk-i know haha) at mansions, just one little cove around. Just really ledgy barreling short waves ontop of the rocks. Mad fun, but if you missed the pit andd got caught by the lip, you are in trouble... be carefull!

[nubby]

ive bally point good a fair few times.....mate ive even snapped the nose off my board one arvo, tryin to take off behind the shelf and backdoor the little baz section about 2 feet from dry rock and on one of em it just went dry and i virtualy took off onto the point and snapped the nose off me board.....and it was like chest-head high.......another classic day in the mid 90's, it was nearly 4ft, and over night the swell had ripped a hole in the shark net right on the rocks. you could get a quik barrel on takeoff (like above) then come out and chuck a few cutties, then fully fade back into the rocks, shoot the hole in the net and GRAB the net as you turned back right and give it a big pull and flick yourself into the shore inside the net. it was pretty classic. my dog was down there with me that day too and got washed in following me out to jump off!

[buzzy]

Nah, I didn't expect you would remember flatrock. An episode of a grommet throwing up is memorable to him, but not so memorable to others. And grommets make a point of knowing who the older guys are, whereas the older guys only really know the groms if the are exceptionally cheeky or absolutely ripping, and I was neither. I'd think Jan would remember though, even though it was quite a time ago now.

I remembered the bloke's name who had the party now (even though I didn't really know him). It was Macca's 21st in his house at harbord.

[flatrocker]

There you go I remember the house and I think Macca was sharing with two maori twins called Paul and Tony. Great blokes. I was walking down the track to Bingin about 8 years ago filming an Aloha surf trip and one of the twins and his girl were walking out. He works on the oil rigs in WA and nips over for a month or two and saves heaps of money in the bargain.

Macca lives in Thredbo and has been the lifestyle ambassador for ever.

Great skier and don't get into a drinking competition with anyone down there as it is a local pass time.

The rest of the tribe as you may know are all over the shop!

Your tribe, as most of us will find as we get older, have gone off all over the world and some are rich (filthy) and some are down and out.

It's the Big Wednesday storyline all over.

All of those partys from back then have folded together in the synapses now but something comes along and jogs the memory every now and again.

I know that I didn't do anything too embarrassing back then other than surf, get naked and chase girls, socialise and work, generally in that order as you may well agree was the correct order of life pursuits at that age.

Hope that you followed our glorious lead for a while and then slipped off to a regular normal life.

[buzzy]

Yeah, I'm sure you remember the W'n'S era sort of fizzled and North Steyne seemed to lose it's essence for a while. It was around about that time I was working full time and studying at night and losing fitness and surfing seemed to slip further and further down the priority ladder. It came back, but later. I only keep in touch with a few old mates. But those guys you grew up with are always mates for life.

[Bunker Spreckels]

But those guys you grew up with are always mates for life.

Bro' that is the truth. Except when the freaks check out a little early-some without paying their checks--------woooo haaaaaa.

Peace Out