Queensland

Is Stradbroke Island the Gold Coast's finest beachbreak? Probably. This barrier island regularly summons top-shelf pros like Jack Freestone and Mitch Crews and fast-track come-ups like Sheldon Simkus and Riley Laing. When it's on, it just seems like the best guys from the whole coast flock there. It's like the Australian Hatteras.

For the full feature click here

Apparently, Cyclone Winston is up for an El Nino award, we just don't know what to name it: "Swell of the Season"... Set of the Decade"... "Crowd of the Century"...? We'll figure it out sooner or later. Probably later, we're gonna watch this a few more times first.

But his friends call him Dingo. And he rips!

The thing about Snapper Rocks is... even if you don't get the tube of your life or do the turn of your life, the wave is forgiving enough to let you make it around the section that just gave you trouble... and try it again. And again. And again and again... Josh Pomer (of The Kill fame) came back on the radar to offer one of the more revealing Snapper Rocks edits we've seen in quite some time.

If you were anxious to see what the 2015 Tour's rookies were packing at the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast, you might've been disappointed, 'cause the waves struggled. Luckily, with the comp window sandwiched between two mighty swells, fresh meat like Keanu Asing and Italo Ferreira got to cook themselves in some powerful ovens for our viewing pleasure.

On Monday the 23rd of February, Kirra roared to life for the Gold Coast and its thousands of surfers.
(Make sure to watch it in 1080P for the best picture.)

A documentary of the history of surfing in Queensland through the perspective of the ASAQ and Surfing Queensland.

All due respect to Rifles and Skeleton Bay, there's just something special about a wave that's been on surfers' bucket lists for half a century -- perpetuating hope for generations that follow, hope for a wave this perfect. Here's what longtime Gold Coast photographer Andrew Shield had to say about this last crazy run of surf at the most celebrated and perfect wave in the area, if not the world:

"Friday, September 29th was the sixth consecutive day of pumping waves on the Gold Coast. We've had maybe a couple of bigger swells this year but nothing that's lasted more than a day or so. To get the best swell of the year in August is pretty rare.

"The bank at Kirra has been groomed to perfection. Not every wave is makeable, but get the right one and you're locked in for at least 10 seconds. Mick Fanning, Joel Parkinson and Dean Morrison have clocked more time in the barrel the last few days than a normal person would get in a lifetime."

Highlights from a stellar season of waves on the Gold Coast ("One of the best in years," according to the locals) featuring Fanning, Kerr, Dingo and more.

Dreamy water footage from one perfect day at Kirra.

We can't just assume you've ever seen 110/240 or Sons Of Fun or Morning Of The Earth or On The Road With Spike. Those classics were all recorded on these antiquated things called videotapes.

In the age of the Internet and the Superbank, we can't assume you've even heard of Kirra Point. So if you've ever wondered how good a wave this place really is, here's how good it is: Slater didn't claim a single winning ride in the 2013 Quik Pro final against Parko. But he claimed a so-so tube in a Kirra freesurf the day after. That's how good it feels to tuberide here. Seabass obsessed over making the World Tour just so he could ride waves like this. That's how alluring the spot is. And Dingo, Bede, Kerr? Well, they live really close so to watch them perform in their natural environment is as beautiful a thing as you will ever see in surfing.

This is truly a surfer's paradise. This is Kirra. MP would've dug this footage.

The Gold Coast has been pumping the last few days, much to the delight of returning WCT pros.

World champion Mick Fanning shares a couple waves with Californian Nate Yeomans at his local break Snapper Rocks.

Kirra gets magical for Mick Fanning, Asher Pacey + more on Jan 16th, 2011.

Mick Fanning, Nick Rozsa and friends share a bite to eat and score a super fun exchange of beach breaks in Australia.

Six years ago, the Tweed Sand Bypass started pumping sand on the beach at Kirra, and destroyed the break. And while the outcry was minimal at first, 'cause the sand created the Superbank up the beach at Snapper Rocks, the momentum to bring Kirra back has been steadily increasing.

Mick eats a healthy dose of Duranbah for brekkie.

Quarterfinalists decided after marathon day at Snapper Rocks

Seabass earns 9.00, but it's not enough to take the win against Kolohe Andino in round 4. Seabass will face wildcard Stu Kennedy in R5.

Just in case you didn't stay up till 1am watching the webcast, here's the best of R3.

Toledo goes berzerk on a Snapper wall to post the first perfect ten of 2016.

-

Rookies, wildcards and replacements dominated the loser's round.

Toledo takes the win over rookie Ryan Callinan in round three.

Think Wilko's taken his foot off the gas since safely re-qualifying for the CT and winning a QS before Snapper? Nope, dude hasn't even gotten warmed up yet. He beat two Americans to start off his Quik Pro campaign.

Brother checks all the boxes on his first wave but fails to advance past Mikey Wright in R1 of the Quiksilver Pro

Seriously, did you expect anything less? Even if this weren't a contest, even if he weren't facing two less-experienced guys, Fanning still would've owned Snapper today. He kinda always owns Snapper.

Jeremy Flores did a lot on this wave to get the score he needed to advance. But we're thinking it was that last turn, that climactic layback, that really did it for him. It's not too early in the season to finish a ride and then eyeball the judges for the score, is it?

Johanne Defay slashes her way to the highest single wave score of the heat in round 2 at Snapper Rocks.

John John, Medina, Payne blaze straight through to round three in head-high waves at Snapper Rocks

Jack Freestone and Bronte Macauley earn wildcard spots for the QuikPro and Roxy Pro.

Kelly Slater defeats a red hot Taj Burrow at the 2011 Quiksilver Pro at Snapper Rock's.

Round 5 - Heat 3: Red 2 18.94 Adriano de Souza White 1 19.06 Taj Burrow

Payne, Muniz, Simpson +Wilkinson secure their spot in the quarterfinals

Dusty defeats Fanning; Slater crushes 16-year old wildcard Matt Banting.

Banting takes down Bede; Brett Simpson flares up earning highest combined score of the day.

Julian Wilson, Alejo Muniz + more put on an impressive display high-performance surfing.

The first day of the 2011 ASP World Tour kicks off in head high waves at Snapper Rocks on the Gold Coast of Australia.

Day three and four video highlights held in high-performance waves.

An all Brazilian final for the 2011 OPJ at North Stradbroke Island.

2011 OPJ at North Stradbrook Island got underway in fun rippable peaks.

Watch the best moments from the 2010 Quiksilver Pro at Snapper rocks in slow motion.

Taj Burrow takes down Jordy Smith in the first ASP World Tour event of the year at Snapper.

Jordy, Dane, Bobby and Taj on fire at Snapper Rocks.

Kelly Slater, Jordy Smith, Mick Fanning and more at Snapper Rocks.

Dean Morrison, Kai Otton, Andy Irons and more at Snapper Rocks.

Dane Reynolds, Taj Burrow, Jordy Smith and more at Snapper Rocks.

Round One action from Snapper Rocks on the Gold Coast.

Taj Burrow holds his own in the exhilarating four-man final and takes the title. Full story and photos here

The ASP grade 5 Oakley Pro Junior is only a day away from crowning a new champion, with quarter-finalists decided in improving 3-4ft beach break waves at North Stradbroke Island today.

The ASP grade 5 Oakley Pro Junior is only a day away from crowning a new champion, with quarter-finalists decided in improving 3-4ft beach break waves at North Stradbroke Island today.

The surfing action was hotter than ever at Straddie today, with day three of the ASP grade 5 Oakley Pro Junior being run in 2-3ft beach break waves at Main Beach. The world's best teenagers went toe-to-toe in the race for the final 24 spots in the draw, tubing, boosting and hacking their way across round three of competition. Aussie Owen Wright (Lennox Head) is on track for back-to-back pro junior victories after eliminating fellow Australian Mitch Crews (Currumbin) and highly rated Frenchman Marc Lacomare (Hossegor) from the $30,000 tournament.

Not even bumpy 2-3ft Main Beach peaks could deter a swag of the world's top juniors aged 20-years and under as they threw out some big moves across day two of competition.

International surfers continued to ruffle the feathers of the Australian contingent, with Brazilian powerhouse Alejo Muniz top scoring with a 17.90 two-wave combined total.

Australia's richest domestic junior surfing event exploded to life at North Stradbroke Island today, with round one of the prestigious Oakley Pro Junior being run in punchy 3-4ft beach break waves.

The Oakley State Challenge is an invite only ASP Australasia sanctioned specialty event comprising a unique state of origin teams format. NSW and QLD battle for honours at Coolum Beach in this exciting competitive format.

Slater defeated Fanning 17.94 to 15.23 to claim his second Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast title and position himself atop the ratings for the first time since claiming his last ASP World Crown in 2006.

Video highlights from the final day of the 2008 Quiksilver Pro presented by LG at Snapper Rocks

Kelly Slater proved he is still the man to beat, blasting Brazilian newcomer Heitor Alves out of the water to advance through to round four of men's world tour event.

Video highlights from the remaining heats of Round Three.

2008 tour rookie, Jordy Smith produced fireworks in his round three heat, sending top ranked Bobby Martinez packing from their round three heat of the season-opening Quiksilver Pro.

Video highlights from Round 3.

Top scoring rides of Round Two.
Round Two Full Story

Munro scored the highest wave (9.50 out of 10.00) and heat total (17.50 out of 20.00) of the round to take out ASP World Tour rookie Dane Reynolds (USA) and Damien Hobgood (USA) in three foot waves at the Snapper Rocks back-up venue.

1st Luke Munro (Aus) 17.50 2nd Dane Reynolds (USA) 16.20 3rd Damien Hobgood (USA) 8.83

Nineteen-year-old Jesse Adam captures his first ever pro junior victory at the Billabong Pro Junior Series- Coffs Harbour, at Diggers Beach.
Full Story

Jai Lee, Alex Knost, Joel Tudor, Jared Mell, Tom Bexon, Josh Constable, Dane Peterson, Harrison Roach and other hot loggers surfing Noosa and Bali.

Asher scores fun D'Bah with offshore wind.

Nick Rozsa journeyed to Oz for the trip of a lifetime. Video footage from all over Australia, Gold Coast to Sydney, with Nick tearing the roof off fun waves.

Carissa Moore defeats Tyler Wright in a explosive and tactical final

18yr old Australian Brittani Nicholl blows up in Australia at Snapper, Cabarita, and D'bah in the early months of 2009.

Peru's Sofia Mulanovich defeats Aussie Samantha Cornish to win the Roxy Pro Gold Coast.

Sixty seconds. That's how long Instagram is allowing a video clip to last now. Is it any coincidence that that's exactly how long this edit is?

Quiksilver's performance on the Gold Coast this month has been nothing short of fantastic. And that's not even factoring in their CT event. From their Juniors to their freesurfers to their QS grinders to their grommets to their... hell, skateboarders, this team is more stacked than an off-the-grid pizza boy's coin jar.

What happens when the contest ends? Everyone goes around the corner to Duranbah, the most dependable wedge on the coast. Here's Kelly Slater, Eric Geiselman, Jeremy Flores, Michel Bourez and more. (And hey, doesn't Kelly's board look good?)

Everything always looks easier from far away. In this case, you can mindsurf the heck out of the Superbank.

The subtitles are in Portuguese, but the action is in Martian. Because Filipe Toledo's gotta be from another planet, right? How else can one explain his anti-gravitational footwork and warp speed at the 2015 CT season opener?

Mick Fanning, Asher Pacey, Jack Freestone and the rest of the Coolie Kids (i.e. the ones that are pro surfers) have been getting their due fruits at Snapper Rocks lately. Some, like Mick and Jack, are using the recent swells as a warmup to their '16 debut. Others, like Asher, are just getting it while the getting's good before the entire CT shows up. Either way, how fun does this look? Do you think you could snag a set wave here? Are you even listening?

The Gold Coast celebrated the New Year the best way possible -- with a solid swell at Snapper Rocks. The boys embraced 2016 with open arms, as they hope it foreshadows the rest of the year.

During a fun day at Snapper, Jack Freestone gave Alex Crews' (ACSOD) summer surfboard model, The Monster, a solid little demo. It's a step-down fish with a little added volume, and the recipe for some truly monstrous fun.

There are so many stupidly talented surfers these days doing their thing all over the world, it's really, really hard to stand out from the rest of the pack. So if you're not one of the Top-34, you'd better be putting out crazy edits on the regular like Jack Freestone is. Or else you'll be doomed to becoming 'ol' whatshisname from back in the day' quicker than you can say "CLIP!"

Meet Brett Levingston. Gold Coast lifeguard, tube pig, fish slayer, beer drinking Mad Huey.

90 seconds of John John Florence flaring up at Snapper Rocks

Featuring Jordy Smith, Josh Kerr, Jack Freestone and more during a solid run of swell delivered by Cyclone Pam.

Relive everything (well, not everything... it was a long event) from Brett Simpson and John John Florence's practice heats, to some exotic animal park visits, to Filipe Toledo and Carissa Moore's victories on the Gold Coast.

Cyclone Marcia delivers deep tubes on the Gold Coast for Adam Bennetts and friends.

Cyclone Marcia produces freight train barrels at the Super Bank days before the Quik Pro.

The usual suspects put on a show during an action-packed week on the Gold Coast.

The new year delivers playful righthanders for Mick Fanning, Asher Pacey, Mitch Parko and more to enjoy.

A Thomas Woods compilation from 2014 along the Gold Coast.

Wade Carmichael finding some solid barrels along the Goldy this year.

The bank at Snapper is as good as it gets and the Mad Hueys are cashing in barrels all the way home.

The Mad Hueys score GoPro tunnel vision on the Goldie.

Melling demonstrates perfect technique while surfing Super Banks + more during the summer months in Australia.

The newly crowned three-time world lights up the Gold Coast.

An in-depth look into one of the world's top surf breaks.

A short featuring John John Florence on the Gold Coast of Australia.

Crewsy turning heads at D-Bah, Snapper and North NSW.

Hippo, Brenno and the boys having a grand time shredding from South Straddie to Snapper.

Burleigh-bred natural footer Jay "Bottle" Thompson currently resides in landlocked Melbourne, Australia. City living doesn't mean he'll be missing too many waves on his beloved Queensland point-breaks though, as he launches a 24 hour hit-and-run mission to the Gold Coast.

Matt Wilkinson surfs rights better than most regular-footed surfers, as shown here.

Highlights from round three and four of competition at the Quik Pro Gold Coast 2013.

Watch more videos at www.quiksilverlive.com

Highlights from round three and four of competition at the Quik Pro Gold Coast 2013.

Watch more videos at www.quiksilverlive.com

Highlights from the second round of competition at the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast 2013.

Watch more videos at www.quiksilverlive.com

A snapshot of the Quiksilver Pro's local wildcard winner Brent Dorrington.

The 2013 ASP World Tour starts with a bang at the Superbank.

Brent 'Brenno' Dorrington wins the wildcard spot into the Quiksilver Pro.

World's best let loose at the Superbank.

2013 Women's World Tour gets underway at the Superbank.

Mick Fanning lighting up the Gold Coast.

Matt Banting finds a few lined up points during three sessions on the Gold Coast.

A collection of wipeouts from the Superbank and beyond.

The Gudauskas brothers get deep in thought while roaming the Gold Coast.

Slater, Knox, Parko and friends take to the water with the Gudauskas brothers in some epic Dbah.

The Gudauskas brothers drag the camera into the water while on the Gold Coast.

The Gudauskas brothers sing you a song while showing you some highlights from the Goldy.

Wade Goodall joins Lee Wilson surfing around his hometown of Caloundra before the floods.

24 hours on the Gold Coast of Australia with the Gudauskas brothers.

Jordy Smith, Bobby Martinez and Roy Powers during the Quiksilver Pro at the Superbank.

Episode 1 of a new video blog featuring Aussie Gold Coast kid Mitch Crews, surfing around home, hanging out with the boys and competing on the OZ Junior Series. Keep up to date on what sort of shenanigans he is finding during his travels.

Jordy, Timmy and Roy Powers blow up on their off days during the contest at Snapper Rocks. Check out the Gold Coast shredfest up the beach at Duranbah!

Sunny-Coaster Thom Pringle, Americano Warren Smith, new-kid-on-the-block Otis Carey and Kiwi Rangi Ormond, head to Australia's east coast with a coupla photogs and filmers, and they score no waves. So epic we decided to make a vid on it!

After winning the O'Neill Coldwater Classic Torrey Meister has been grinding out the WQS (World Qualifying Series) of the ASP Tour in pursuit of gaining enough points to make the ASP WCT (World Championship Tour). He recently traveled to the East Coast of Australia to compete in two ASP 6 Star events. Unfortunately he did not get the results that he was looking for in Australia, but he made the most of his trip, by meeting up with a fellow O'Neill Team Rider, Soli Baily. They toured the Sydney area filming and free-surfing, to prepare for the rest of the year.

One Session with Mick Fanning. Technically, it's two sessions: a dawny at detonating D-Bah followed by streamlined Snapper in the arvo. And technically, it's not just Mick. There's a few cameos, too -- Ed Fanning, a couple doggies, a spongy snake, the Harrington bros... no Eugene, though. But "technically" is a rather suspect way to break down a great surfing clip, unless you're talking about Mick Fanning's technique: which is so bloody refined he seems downright relaxed about epic waves gracing the Gold Coast. He just goes about his daily business -- which is joking with his mates and high-fiving little kids before doing some truly world-class shredding.

Catching up with Jordy as he approaches the first event of the year at Snapper Rocks and the 2013 season.

Mick Fanning preparing himself for the battle at the Quiksilver Pro at Snapper.

Taylor Knox doing a pre-contest warm up for the Quik Pro at Snapper.