New Media Landscape

CHANGING SEASCAPE: Gangbusters has opened up its content to all Saffa wave riders.

The inclusion of two new players on the national surf media scene can only mean a better all-round eco-system in surfing. Gangbusters was launched this week by veteran surf journalist Craig Jarvis, who has invited surfers to engage with the product, which is online-only, free "and is aimed at everyone who surfs in South Africa". Readers can download it here.

Jarvis pointed out the need for collaboration in the industry, and has teamed up with Wavescape and Boardtalk Magazine, as well as engaging in neighbourly dialogue with Surfing South Africa, and the World Surf League.

Boardtalk has been around for a few years. The brain child of East London surfer Sean Coppin, it is now owned by East London photog legend Louis Wulff, and the move to go national is an exciting development for them. Cape Town-based photographer Sean Thompson (not the former world surfing champion) has joined Boardtalk to help out with content.

Boardtalk will come out twice a year with good quality design, says Thompson, who says a big driver for them was encouraging a sense of community among surfers. In terms of being another print magazine surviving in a tough market with the only other print player Zigzag, he said: "We are pitching at a different market. They are pitching at the bigger brands and the Solomons and the boys, and we pitching at Mr No Name at Long Beach. Hopefully there is a way the two can coexist and hopefully we can all keep going on and print can hang around for a few years yet!"

And while Boardtalk stays with its plan to come out with two coffee table print editions a year, Gangbusters is purely digital, and made to be consumed on phones, tablets, and any other screens, and will come out monthly. Jarvis says "anyone can get a photo in the mag, so plenty of opportunities for everyone to get their 15 minutes of fame"!

In this new-found spirit of collaborative enterprise, owner and publisher of Zigzag Surfing Magazine Andy Davis did not mention anything about how the news of Gangbusters or Boardtalk might impact Zigzag in terms of competition, but rather focused on the positives.

"Ultimately it's all a good sign as it shows that there is a lot of interest in surfing. Some of the feedback we are getting from core surf brands and manufacturers is that there has been a 300 percent increase in sales since Covid struck. There has been a spike of interest in surfing," he says.

Davis added: "It remains to be seen whether the market will suport that many mags, but it's cool to see so many enthusiasts, and so many people who care about surfing, who want to talk about it, and create media about it. It's good for the culture to have a diversity of views and different offerings for different people. I think that's fantastic. It's a reflection of surfing's growing popularity, and that bodes well."

NEW DAWN: Perhaps surf brands will support the surf media that supports them? Photo Red Bull

The first issue of Gangbusters showcases Jordy and MFeb on an East Coast surf trip that scores some epic waves. They luck into point-breaks, beaches and reefs and get most of them without anyone else around. Two of the best surfers in the country with very different approaches to the art of wave-riding, the two surfers were perfect foils for their respective surfing styles.

Gangbusters looks at the photography of popular Durban photographer Dave Lindemann. Dave shot many perfect but empty lineups during the hard days of the early lockdown. Also, he captured many incredible images from both Durban coasts, including dawn patrol shoots and high-action imagery.

Stevan Rice is a lesser-known big wave charger who started off his surfing career at Addington. He has now graduated to Mavericks and was serendipitously-placed to be there for Mavericks' best season Stevan Rice is a lesser-known big wave charger who started off his surfing career at Addington. He has now graduated to Mavericks and was serendipitously-placed to be there for Mavericks' best season since it was first surfed.since it was first surfed. He got some bombs, including the wave of a lifetime, so Gangbusters caught up with him and filled in the holes with peer-reviews from Twiggy and Grant Washburn.

In international news, there is also an interesting article on the new Wavegarden Cove set up in Switzerland and all the exciting developments there. Founded by a 25-year-old Adam Bonvin the wave pool is called Alaïa Bay and is situated in Sion in Switzerland, which gets more than 300 days of sun a year. Miles Masterson reports from the Cape West Coast, where Cape Town big wave surfer Mike Schlebach has formed an environmental NPO to fight beach mining. There is already a lot of coastal damage up there, and nothing is being done about it.