9 Things You Missed At The Deus 9ft & Single

So you missed the four-day party bender that was the Deus 9ft & Single presented by SWELL. From bodysurfing contests, to shaping forums, to single-fin shootouts and everything in between, it was a fine way to spend an extended weekend. Whether the waves come to the table at these kind of events can mean the difference between an exciting performance or a drinking marathon, and in this case it was a mixture of the two. Stab has compiled a list of what went down over this hazy couple days:

The Fish Fry: A non discriminatory, come-one-come all, anything-goes extravaganza. Didn’t matter who you were or how well you rode, all you had to do was turn up, claim one of the fruity shapes laid out on the lawn and take it for a splash. Party waves were encouraged, leg ropes were not. 

The Fish Fry. Slept in? Hope you’re good on a finless.

Yeah, you missed out.

Shaper’s Forum: Where foam-cutters and riders discussed the fine art of turning inanimate objects into finely-tuned surf vehicles. Some of the wisdom you missed came from the mouths of the likes of Bob McTavish, Thomas Bexton and Jye Byrnes, while the Temple of Enthusiasm’s refreshment selection lubricated a dialogue of stories, banter and the perfect contour (basically people got drunk and talked about shaping). 

Bob McTavish talking about the Bluebird he shaped Harrison for the South To Sian feature film, in front of the very board (back left).

The Body Womp: A sans-board event where fibreglass was replaced with swim-fins and performance enhancing caps. Apart from one local competitors chance meeting with the reef, it was all high lines, tubes and good vibes on the guts and on the shore with Jared Mell’s commentary stoking the humour.

Critical Slide Society ambassador and Brisbane Lawyer Simon Patchett came outta nowhere with unbelievable form. He edged out Harrison Roach to clinch the win.

An art exhibition: Artist Harry Holiday’s body of work titled Pulp Friction exhibited in the Deus Temple of Enthusiasm, with his display of oils and limited edition prints encouraging a bit of mingle and inspiration between events. 

A few fine pieces on display.

The Men’s Nine Foot & Single Competition: Backed by stacked lines and glass-like texture, the traditional main event ran in exceptional conditions. Not only was there plenty of rail work, jive and classic toes-over going down, a few Canggu drainers rolled through allowing for a little tunnel stuffing here and there. Californian Jared Mell, who continued to rule on the mic between heats, snuck his oversized plank into one particular grinder that got the crowd particularly vocal.

Sixteen-year-old Deni Blackboys, crowd favourite, over the tip.

MC Mell locks nine foot of rail into a Canggu pipe.

‘South To Sian’ premiered: The latest film from Dustin Humphrey documenting Harrison Roach and Zye Norris’s 4000km Indonesian adventures with two dirt bikes, a 4×4 and a broad-spectrum of surfboards aired at the Temple of Enthusiasm. This was the first of a string of premieres leading up to the final release through Garage Entertainment on July 1.

Women’s Expression Session: One hour of fine long-form surfing by eight lovely ladies from around the world. This session was all about fancy footwork and fluid style in clean runners in addition to one unfortunate incident involving a botched party wave that left Hawaiian Sierra Lerback with a limp and a few stitches (see, longboarding can be hardcore).

Women’s lineup, lined up.

Honolua Blomfield staying chill in the Women’s 9ft and Single event.

The Under Nine Foot & Single: Where the only prerequisites required boards had to have only one fin and no leashes were to be worn. Wave quality hung around allowing enough curl for hiding and energy and size to wet a rail. Finals qualifiers were all experts on long and short with Matt Cuddihy, Jared Mell, Zye Norris and Harrison Roach battling for number one with classic faded scoops and sweeping wraps in nostalgic form.

Jared Mell back in the pocket.

Shorter or longer, Harrison Roach lays rail just as well.

One banging presentation party: Winners were announced along with a solo acoustic performance by competitor and MC, Lewie Dunn before Sydney Folk-blues band, Sons Of The East took to the stage to make the hangover really worth while. The Temple of Enthusiasm heaved with partygoers pretending that Monday didn’t exist and gave it one last nudge.

Full house, uh… Temple. Photo: @kelibow

Sydney band Sons of the East dialling the vibes one last time. Photo: @kelibow