Watch: Gabriel Medina, Mick Fanning + Mason Ho In ‘The Kangs’ - Stab Mag

Through The Doggy Door Goes Live Thursday 5pm PT

6461 Views
Gabriel, Kangaroo hop. Photo by Hayden Richards @sa_rips.

Watch: Gabriel Medina, Mick Fanning + Mason Ho In ‘The Kangs’

You don’t often see six World Titles in the wombat capital – with notes from filmmaker Vaughan Blakey.

cinema // Aug 21, 2023
Words by Ethan Davis
Reading Time: 3 minutes

The longest running campaign in surfing is back. 

Rip Curl’s latest installment of The Search features two 3x World Champions, and a multiple time SSOTY and EAST test pilot exploring the rugged and raw coastline of ‘The Kangs’.

This was no luxury trip. The crew stayed in vermin-infested cabins in the middle of nowhere and survived off two-minute noodles and sausages in bread for dinner. Medina ate nothing but cheese sandwiches for most meals. Mason Ho woke up one morning to find his toothbrush had been totally devastated by rats.

For a week they spent up to eight hours a day on the road. “And you know they probably didn’t really score what they were hoping for,” says filmmaker Vaughan Blakey. “That’s what The Search is all about – that thing inside us that just wants to be faraway in the middle of nowhere just surfing and searching for it. Recently, it feels we’re seeing that return to the culture a bit more – just getting in the car and travelling to find uncrowded waves – I reckon that’s a good thing.”

“We sifted through hours and hours of footage from that trip,” Vaughan continues. “They filmed from the moment they got up till the moment they went to bed. The thing I was stoked on was all the fly on the wall stuff. There’s not much to do in the desert and it just means that you’re privy to these real windows of conversation – how and what the surfers actually talk about. The funny thing is it can actually be so boring – like I reckon they spent two hours at that little right going ‘should we or shouldn’t we?’ back and forth, over and over. Like if you weren’t a surfer you’d be going ‘what is wrong with these people?’ but to us it’s normal. Like it’s not funny – but then it goes past a certain point and it’s really funny.”

“I just love the continuing humanisation of Gabby too – everytime you see him out of a contest jersey or a big party in Brazil – you start to tap into what Mick and Mason have been saying for years, which is actually that ‘this guy is coolest cat to hang out with’. At the end of it I just thought the whole thing was super fun to watch and enjoy,” concludes Vaughno. “Like if I was a kid I would’ve stolen money from mum’s purse, run down to the shops, and watched the tape back 3000 times memorising every wave and every word.”

I’ll add: You don’t often see Gabriel freesurfing sharky, cold-water slabs sans jersey so this is pretty refreshing and unexpected. Convincing him to do a trip like this between events while contenting for a World Title is a bit of a testament to Mick’s gravitas too.

Managing to bank two 3x World Champs was big for Mason – who injured himself earlier in the year at The Eddie, then again at Pipe. He’s a lil more gooey than usual – “I just cry when I see Mick and Gab together. It just gets me all choked up finishing a trip like this,” he weeps. 

Cute.

You can read Derek Hynd’s somewhat convoluted explanation of The Search’s origins here.

Comments

Comments are a Stab Premium feature. Gotta join to talk shop.

Already a member? Sign In

Want to join? Sign Up

Advertisement

Most Recent

How To Build A Surfboard Factory 

"If you want to make a million dollars making surfboards, start with 3 million." -Jeff…

Oct 1, 2023

Michel Bourez And Jeremy Flores Win Inaugural Edition Of The Quiksilver Festival in France

Turns out you can have your cake and eat it too.

Oct 1, 2023

“It’s Important Who The Fuck These Surfers Are, Because They Form Who You Are”

Legacy surf journo Matt George speaks on his new book 'In Deep' — the literary…

Oct 1, 2023

Was Mikey Wright’s Parallelograming In ‘Repeater’ The Best Accidental Surfboard Ad Of 2023?  

Watch: Ryan Burch, Kobe Hughes and Derrek Disney on Parallelograms, Pickleforks and Keels. 

Oct 1, 2023

Why Jason Momoa Had A 26-Year Old Kauaian Surfer Write His United Nations Speech

Maluhia Kinimaka reminds us that professional surfing, science, and helping the planet are not mutually…

Sep 30, 2023

Maxed Out In France

Massive swell provides both ample playing field and entertainment for second day of competition at…

Sep 28, 2023

Is Australia’s Investment In Youth Surfing Working? A HP Coach Breaks Down The Model 

Watch: ‘Limitless’ ft Lennix Smith, Hughie Vaughan, Sierra Kerr and Isi Campbell and decide for…

Sep 28, 2023

Who Makes The Best Surfboards In 2023?

According to our survey of 7000 people, you and Italo might have similar taste. 

Sep 28, 2023

A Tube Festival Within A Festival

Two-for-one deals all day at the Quiksilver Festival.

Sep 27, 2023

Full Frame: “There’s No Lineups, It’s Breaking All Over, You Just Have To Be In The Right Place At The Right Time When A Bomb Comes In”

Brett Barley on Hatteras Island, by Daniel Pullen

Sep 27, 2023

Long Read: Stradbroke In The Subcontinent

Chasing beachbreak bliss in Prohibition-era India.

Sep 27, 2023

Stab Recommends: Xcel Comp X Fullsuit

A suit that increases blood-flow and protects against burglars.

Sep 27, 2023

How Kipp Caddy Got KO’d + Tore His Hamstring Paddling An Outer-Reef Bombie

It involves a friend’s 8'4" spearing him in the head…

Sep 26, 2023

How Surfers Get Paid Season 2, Episode 2

Loyalty and the Royalty of the Performance Surfboard.

Sep 25, 2023

The Surprising Link Between Neoprene And The USA’s ‘Cancer Alley’

A forthcoming documentary called 'The Big Sea' will change how you look at wetsuits.

Sep 25, 2023

Radioactive Wastewater From Fukushima’s Nuclear Power Plant Is Being Dumped In The Pacific Ocean

What does releasing 500 Olympic swimming pools of fission fondue mean for surfing? 

Sep 24, 2023

Meet Aranui 5: The 126m, 103-Cabin Luxury Cruise Ship & Home To Olympic Surfers At Teahupo’o 2024

Who's gonna get the Presidential Suite?

Sep 23, 2023

Here’s How The Surfers Feel About The 2024 Schedule

Kelly Slater, Caroline Marks, and nine other CTers share their thoughts.

Sep 22, 2023
Advertisement