January 12, 2026. Ocean Beach, San Francisco. The kind of day that reminds you why NorCal’s most notorious beach break has earned every ounce of its reputation.
DG Films captured the chaos—and the glory—in a seven-minute highlight reel that’s already making the rounds. Northwest swell energy stacked into the bay, conditions aligned, and OB turned on.
But who can argue that waves like this aren’t 100 percent worth it all?
Here’s what the clips don’t show you: the conveyor belt. OB’s lineup is relentless. You’re not sitting out there waiting for waves. You’re grinding. Paddling. Getting worked. Sometimes you’re rewarded with one ride every half hour. Your shoulders are screaming before you even catch your first barrel.
The surfers in this edit make it look effortless—wrapping around peaks, threading pits, outrunning closeouts that would swallow most of us whole. Behind every three-second clip is an hour of punishment in a fullsuit, fighting currents and duck-diving endless walls of Pacific whitewater.
That’s the tax. This footage is the payoff.
Watch the full DG Films edit above. Seven minutes of heavy NorCal beach break at its finest—raw, unforgiving, and absolutely worth every frozen, exhausted minute in the water. Ocean Beach Surf: Epic Winter Wall at NorCal’s Heavy Break
A surfer drops into a heaving wall of whitewater, disappears behind the curtain, and somehow threads the needle out the other side. That’s just the first thirty seconds.
January 12, 2026. Ocean Beach, San Francisco. The kind of day that reminds you why NorCal’s most notorious beach break has earned every ounce of its reputation.
DG Films captured the chaos—and the glory—in a seven-minute highlight reel that’s already making the rounds. Northwest swell energy stacked into the bay, conditions aligned, and OB turned on.
But who can argue that waves like this aren’t 100 percent worth it all?
Here’s what the clips don’t show you: the conveyor belt. OB’s lineup is relentless. You’re not sitting out there waiting for waves. You’re grinding. Paddling. Getting worked. Sometimes you’re rewarded with one ride every half hour. Your shoulders are screaming before you even catch your first barrel.
The surfers in this edit make it look effortless—wrapping around peaks, threading pits, outrunning closeouts that would swallow most of us whole. Behind every three-second clip is an hour of punishment in a fullsuit, fighting currents and duck-diving endless walls of Pacific whitewater.
That’s the tax. This footage is the payoff.
Watch the full DG Films edit above. Seven minutes of heavy NorCal beach break at its finest—raw, unforgiving, and absolutely worth every frozen, exhausted minute in the water.
January 12, 2026. Ocean Beach, San Francisco. The kind of day that reminds you why NorCal’s most notorious beach break has earned every ounce of its reputation.
DG Films captured the chaos—and the glory—in a seven-minute highlight reel that’s already making the rounds. Northwest swell energy stacked into the bay, conditions aligned, and OB turned on.
But who can argue that waves like this aren’t 100 percent worth it all?
Here’s what the clips don’t show you: the conveyor belt. OB’s lineup is relentless. You’re not sitting out there waiting for waves. You’re grinding. Paddling. Getting worked. Sometimes you’re rewarded with one ride every half hour. Your shoulders are screaming before you even catch your first barrel.
The surfers in this edit make it look effortless—wrapping around peaks, threading pits, outrunning closeouts that would swallow most of us whole. Behind every three-second clip is an hour of punishment in a fullsuit, fighting currents and duck-diving endless walls of Pacific whitewater.
That’s the tax. This footage is the payoff.
Watch the full DG Films edit above. Seven minutes of heavy NorCal beach break at its finest—raw, unforgiving, and absolutely worth every frozen, exhausted minute in the water. Mason Ho Teams Up With Dylan Graves to Tackle Puerto Rico Slab
The lip pitches. Mason Ho disappears. For a moment, there’s nothing but whitewater detonating over a shallow Caribbean reef.
Then he exits clean, grinning like a man who just got away with something.
From weird to wonderful. Photo: Mason Ho // YouTube
The footage, posted to Ho’s BarrelKilla channel, captures the duo threading tropical tubes that look more like Tahitian mutants than anything you’d expect in the Caribbean. Ho’s signature style—part controlled chaos, part jazz improvisation—is on full display as he backdoors sections that seem to offer zero margin for error.
Weird Waves, Perfect Partners
When Ho needs a guide to Puerto Rico’s gnarliest corners, there’s only one call to make. Dylan Graves grew up on these islands—raised by two surfing parents, one of whom ran a legendary surf shop in the ’80s. He knows every reef, every takeoff zone, every slab that most maps don’t bother naming.
From weird to wonderful. Photo: Mason Ho // YouTube
The footage, posted to Ho’s BarrelKilla channel, captures the duo threading tropical tubes that look more like Tahitian mutants than anything you’d expect in the Caribbean. Ho’s signature style—part controlled chaos, part jazz improvisation—is on full display as he backdoors sections that seem to offer zero margin for error.
The Mason Ho Effect
This is what Ho does. While most pros chase point breaks and competition circuits, he hunts the freaks—the wedges, the slabs, the waves that don’t make sense on paper but deliver absolute magic on film. Puerto Rico clearly delivered. Watch the full session on Ho & Pringle Productions and try not to plan a trip south immediately.Volcom House Gate Incident: Jamie O’Brien and Kaimana Henry
Guests were given merch and beer to leave, then came back and broke the gate, according to Jamie O’Brien and long-time custodian Kaimana Henry.
A group of ejected partygoers returned to the iconic Volcom House on Oahu’s North Shore and kicked down the property’s gate after being asked to leave, according to an account shared on a recent episode of “The Jamie O & Mason Ho Show.”
Photo: Jamie O’Brien // YouTube
Photo: Jamie O’Brien // YouTube
Key Facts
- Location: The Volcom House, a three-story property situated directly in front of Pipeline
- Source: Podcast episode featuring Kaimana Henry, the property’s custodian for roughly two decades
- Incident: Guests ejected after a party returned and destroyed the gate
- Peace offering: Staff attempted to disperse guests with merchandise and cases of beer before the damage occurred
The Incident
During the podcast segment titled “THE TRUTH ABOUT THE VOLCOM HOUSE – KAIMANA HENRY,” O’Brien and co-host Mason Ho sat down with Henry to discuss life at the legendary surf property. The conversation turned to the wilder side of hosting events at one of surfing’s most famous addresses. O’Brien described the chaotic scene that unfolded when parties wound down at the house. “I remember there’d be like crazy parties and we would be like, ‘All right, party’s over. Party’s over,’ and people would get all bummed and just sit out there and hang out inside the fence,” O’Brien recalled. “They get super mad that they can’t get in the Volcom house.” The situation escalated quickly once certain guests refused to leave the fenced perimeter. “Then they would run up and just kick the freaking Volcom gate. Boom,” O’Brien continued. “Volcom gate freaking blows out. And then they just turn on the path and they just start running.” O’Brien expressed disbelief at the reaction: “We were like, ‘Wait, what?’ Like are you just bummed cause we kicked you out of the party? Like go home, bro.”Attempted Peace Offering
Henry, who has managed the property for approximately twenty years, revealed that staff had actually tried to appease the disgruntled guests before the destruction occurred. “People were so bummed, we just started giving them cases of beer, just to leave,” Henry explained. “We were just like, ‘Bro, please, here’s a donation. Just please get out of here.’ And they came back and kicked the door down.” The Volcom House has long served as a hub for professional surfers competing at Pipeline and has been the site of numerous gatherings over the years. Its location directly in front of one of surfing’s most famous waves makes it prime real estate—and apparently, a tough place to get kicked out of. It remains unclear whether any police reports were filed or if formal property damage charges were pursued following the incident.Surf Theft Ring Leader Sentenced in $1 Million Surfer Scam
Moundir Kamil, 56, was sentenced this week to three years and eight months in federal prison for his role in a Southern California theft ring that used surf forecasts to time break-ins and drained nearly $1 million from victims’ bank accounts, authorities said.
The scheme exploited a common but risky habit among surfers: hiding car keys in wheel wells. The crime ring monitored Surfline ratings and tide charts to identify optimal windows when lineups would be crowded and parking lots full of unattended vehicles. They operated across a sprawling stretch of coastline from Malibu to San Diego, photographing hundreds of credit and debit cards and rapidly draining accounts while victims were in the water.
A Victim’s Investigation Breaks the Case
The prosecution owes a debt to Logan “Chucky” Dulien, a surf filmmaker who lost $150,000 in a single afternoon. Dulien had paddled out for a grief-management session at the River Jetties before a meeting to plan his mother’s cremation. While he surfed, someone watched him stash his keys, then systematically broke into his house, car, phone, and finally his bank accounts. Rather than wait for authorities, Dulien launched his own investigation. Surveillance footage, social media posts, and messages from other targeted surfers revealed a pattern law enforcement hadn’t previously connected. His persistence kept pressure on investigators and helped identify suspects. The story was first reported by Stab and later picked up by CNN, which broadcast surveillance footage of the thefts in action. Investigators compared the common practice of hiding keys in wheel hubs to leaving a wallet on a car bonnet with a note saying “please don’t.”
A Repeat Offender
Kamil is no stranger to federal prison. According to The Coast News, he previously “duped an East West Bank in Cerritos into believing he was 78-year-old billionaire Donald Bren and stole a tax-refund check for more than $1 million in 2011.” Before that, he served 30 months for a string of Orange County bank robberies that earned him the nickname “Give Me More Bandit.” At sentencing, Kamil expressed remorse and cited family circumstances. He is expected to be deported to Morocco after completing his sentence.Quick Facts
- Victim highlight: Logan “Chucky” Dulien — $150,000 stolen
- Total scheme losses: Nearly $1,000,000
- Cards compromised: Hundreds photographed and misused
- Geographic scope: Malibu to San Diego
- Sentence: 3 years, 8 months federal prison; deportation likely
- Victim remediation: Insurers will begin reimbursing victims following prosecutions
Advisory for Surfers
Law enforcement urges surfers and beachgoers to abandon the wheel-well key stash. Consider waterproof key pouches worn on your person, lockboxes secured to your vehicle’s frame, or simply leaving valuables at home. Enable real-time banking alerts—those few hours in the water are all a thief needs to empty your accounts. The waves will always be there. Your life savings shouldn’t have to be the price of admission.Bobby Oldsman, 72, dies after wipeout at Tres Palmas reef
Bobby Oldsman, 72, dies after wipeout at Tres Palmas
RINCON — Bobby Oldsman, a 72-year-old seasonal resident from Massachusetts who spent winters in Rincón for roughly 15 years, died following a wipeout at Tres Palmas on October 22, 2025, local witnesses and photographer Darren Muschett confirmed.
According to accounts from surfers on the scene and photos posted by Muschett, Oldsman lost consciousness after an impact — either with his board or the reef during a session in heavy swell. Fellow surfers pulled him from the water and he was taken to a hospital, where his death was later confirmed.
A photo of Oldsman in the Tres Palmas line-up was posted by local surf photographer Darren Muschett.
Photo credit: Darren Muschett / Instagram
Community and context
Oldsman was described in local accounts as a long-time winter resident who owned a home in the area and surfed Tres Palmas regularly during recent seasons. Local photographers and surfers were the primary sources for early information.
No further details about next of kin, an official cause of death, or an autopsy have been released publicly. Steepline News will update this report as more official information becomes available.
Surf Abu Dhabi Longboard Classic 2025: KSWC Wave, Finals Change
Surf Abu Dhabi Longboard Classic 2025 — The KSWC Wave, New Finals Format and a Tour in Flux
Dates: 24–26 October 2025 | Stop No. 3, WSL Longboard Tour
Surf Abu Dhabi returns as one of the most consequential stops on the 2025 WSL Longboard Tour. The combination of Kelly Slater Wave Company (KSWC) technology and a tweaked Finals format has turned the event into a high-stakes chess match where style, strategy and repeatable perfection matter as much as raw nose-time.
Why Abu Dhabi matters this year
– The event is confirmed as Stop No. 3 on the 2025 WSL Longboard Tour calendar (24–26 Oct). The facility’s KSWC wave delivers long, reproducible 500‑metre faces that favour classic longboard maneuvers sustained noserides, long trims and multiple scoring sections.
– The Department of Culture & Tourism of Abu Dhabi is a confirmed event partner, increasing the event’s profile and the city’s cultural programming around the stop.
– The 2025 Finals format has a confirmed change: seed No. 1 receives a priority advantage, a tweak WSL announced that rewards top seeding and reshapes end‑of‑tour strategy.
The field: new leaders, seasoned kings and the women to watch
- Kai Ellice‑Flint (AUS) arrives with a major win at Huntington Beach 2025 and is one of the form surfers on tour.
- Max Weston (AUS) is riding momentum after a win at Bells Beach 2025 and sits near the top of the rankings.
- Taylor Jensen remains the yardstick in longboarding, a four‑time WSL longboard world champion (2018, 2019, 2022, 2023) whose contest craft and traditional style are still benchmark references.
- Steven Sawyer (RSA) is the 2024 men’s winner at Surf Abu Dhabi and a former world champion (2018).
- Alice Lemoigne (FRA) won the women’s event in 2024 and will be a rider to beat on the KSWC face.
- Among the other decorated names on tour, Soleil Errico is a three‑time longboard world champion Rachael Tilly is a two‑time world champion — both are important figures in the women’s division and alter the competitive landscape whenever they’re on the start list.
For full, up‑to‑date rankings and the official athlete list, consult the WSL Longboard Tour page.
WSL — Surf Abu Dhabi Longboard Classic:
https://www.worldsurfleague.com/athletes/tour/longboard
What the KSWC wave changes for longboarders
The Kelly Slater Wave Company’s engineered face at Surf Abu Dhabi delivers long, reliable walls and sections that can be dialled in heat after heat. That affects longboard competition in clear ways:
- Repeatability: Riders can game multiple approaches to the same sections (nose, trim, cross‑step combos) across heats — a contrast with ocean variability.
- Section count: A 500‑metre face creates multiple scoring opportunities per wave; strategic line choice becomes a scoreboard weapon.
- Training transfer: Surfers who train on long, predictable faces — focusing on nose time and flowing combos — gain a measurable advantage in consistency.
See official facility visuals and behind‑the‑scenes on the wave tech below.
Kelly Slater Wave Co — technology overview (video):
New Finals format: why seed #1 now matters more
WSL confirmed a modification to the Finals format for 2025 that gives an in‑heat priority advantage to the No. 1 seed. The practical implications:
– Tour strategy: Securing top seed heading into Finals is now tactically more valuable — riders will chase heat wins and high placings earlier in the season to lock that edge.
– Heat management: The priority advantage should reduce variance in single‑heat Finals, favouring surfers who can earn and keep clean, high‑scoring waves.
Expect changes in how athletes pace themselves through the tour calendar, especially with Abu Dhabi’s reproducible waves offering targeted point hauls.
The qualification picture: El Salvador and the Top 8 battle
The Surf City El Salvador Longboard Championships window (5–9 November 2025) is the next confirmed stop where the Top 8 qualification picture will sharpen. With only a few stops left after Abu Dhabi, positions — especially places 3–10 — are likely to be hotly contested. Every heat in Abu Dhabi will carry qualification significance.
Surf City El Salvador Longboard Championships — window:
5–9 November 2025 (confirmed)
Plastic-to-gear fins: turning beach trash into surf hardware
Turning Beach Trash into Fins — a practical update on Ryan Harris’ plastic-to-gear project
A small-but-growing movement in surf circles is turning beach-collected plastic into surfboard fins. The idea isn’t new — groups like Precious Plastic have been open-sourcing the techniques and machines for years — but a wave of surfers and makers now want to close the loop between cleanup and gear. One of the people pushing that idea publicly is Ryan Harris; his Instagram is among the places sharing process footage and project updates.
Why this matters to surfers
- Plastic in the lineup is a problem beyond aesthetics: microplastics and debris harm marine life and the spots we love. See Ocean Conservancy for recent data on plastics in the ocean.
- Turning collected plastic into durable gear gives cleanups an immediate, tangible payoff: a fin forged from the same rubbish pulled off the sand.
How it works (the practical, proven bits)
The workflow being used by projects like this follows established, documented steps used by Precious Plastic and similar initiatives:
- 1. Collection: coordinated beach cleanups or community drives bring in mixed plastics.
- 2. Sorting & washing: plastics are separated by resin type and cleaned.
- 3. Shredding/grinding: a shredder reduces pieces to flakes for consistent melting.
- 4. Melting & forming: the plastic is melted and either compression- or injection-molded into fin blanks, then trimmed and finished.
Precious Plastic (the organisation) provides open-source machine designs and guides for shredders and small-scale injectors — see preciousplastic.com and their YouTube demonstrations for the techniques.
Real-world precedents
Commercial projects have already proven the basic concept: Bureo (recycled fishing nets into skateboard decks and other goods) and many other brands have incorporated ocean plastic into accessories.
What remains to be proven (and what to watch for)
– Performance parity: recycled fins need testing in the water against conventional blanks. Expect surfers and shapers to focus on flex, hold and longevity before widespread adoption.
– Material consistency: mixed beach plastic varies — reliable resin sourcing and sorting are crucial to make reproducible fins.
– Metrics & footprint: precise figures (for example, kilograms of plastic per fin or a product-level carbon comparison) are not yet published by this project and should be requested from the team.
– Funding & timeline: a crowdfunding push is mentioned in community posts, but any specific launch date or campaign goal should be confirmed on the official campaign page before publishing as fact.
How you can we help right now
- Join a cleanup locally and ask organisers how collected plastics will be handled.
- Follow Precious Plastic to understand small-scale recycling workflows and to see machine demo.
- Track the project lead’s updates for launch/crowdfunding announcements and test results.
Insider tips for surfers curious about recycled fins
– Ask for material specs and test data (flex/durometer, expected lifespan).
– Look for transparency: brands that publish kg-of-plastic-per-product and an LCA (life-cycle analysis) are more credible.
– If you’re a shaper or tech-minded surfer, study the Precious Plastic injection/compression guides before promising scale.
Ryan Harris’s Crowfunding campaing : https://www.indiegogo.com/en/projects/ryanharris-31111211/the-reup-fin-surfboard-fins-made-from-trash
Siletz Bay sneaker waves drowned woman off Oregon coast
Woman swept into ocean at Siletz Bay; body recovered after two-hour search
Caroline Moses, 43, died after being swept into the ocean by a large wave at Siletz Bay on the Oregon coast on Sunday, October 20, 2025. Local authorities say she was pulled into the water and lost despite immediate search efforts.
What happened
North Lincoln Fire & Rescue and other first responders were called to Siletz Bay after witnesses reported a person swept into the surf. Crews searched for roughly two hours before recovering Moses’ body about four miles south of the incident site, according to official statements.
Cody Heidt of North Lincoln Fire & Rescue provided updates to media during the response. Authorities treated the event as a tragic sneaker-wave drowning during a period of unusually large tides and surf along the central Oregon coast.
Video showing the conditions
Below is footage from the Tillamook Coast Instagram account that captures the size and power of the waves on the coast around the same time. The clip helps explain how quickly sneaker waves and king-tide conditions can become deadly.
Context — sneaker waves and king tides
State and federal agencies had issued warnings for unusually large surf and king tides along the Oregon coast at the time of the incident. Sneaker waves are unusually large, unexpected waves that can surge far up beach faces and tidal areas, knock people off their feet, and sweep them into heavy surf. The National Weather Service and Oregon State Parks regularly warn visitors to stay off rocks and avoid low-lying coastal areas during these events.
Rescue challenges
Rescuing someone swept into surf on the Oregon coast is hazardous: cold water, strong rip currents, and large, unpredictable waves complicate operations. North Lincoln Fire & Rescue and other local agencies responded quickly but faced these exact challenges during the search for Moses.
Craig Anderson Returns with Samudra Spirit Glitters Timeless Surf
Craig Anderson: Samudra Spirit Glitters and a quiet, timeless return
Craig Anderson hasn’t chased headlines for a long time, but his new full-length film Samudra Spirit Glitters quietly reminds the surf world why his approach still matters. Shot in Indonesia and released on Craig’s channel, the edit is less about personality and more about the fundamentals: barrels, wave reading, and the kind of pacing that lets a session breathe.
The film: what to watch for
Samudra Spirit Glitters runs like a classic Craig edit: long takes in barrels, smart positioning, and a low-key celebration of feel over flash. The footage leans heavily on Indo reef barrels — the places where Craig’s timing and calm in the pocket show up best. For anyone chasing technique, study the entries to the pocket and the way he manages speed without over-committing.
Watch the full film (official upload):
Who’s behind the camera
The edit credits Dave Fox, a director known within surf film circles for work like Motel Hell with Harry Bryant. Fox’s style here favors clean, atmospheric coverage that complements Craig’s understated surfing rather than trying to upstage it. The result feels cohesive — surf footage that breathes.
Context — Craig’s place in the scene
Craig Anderson, born in 1987 and originally from Newcastle, Australia, has built a career on timing and subtlety rather than constant headline-making moves. He left Quiksilver in 2016 and cofounded the brand Former with Dane Reynolds, Austyn Gillette and the late Dylan Rieder a move that reflected a desire for creative control and a different aesthetic in surf lifestyle.
At the same time, Craig has kept productive brand relationships, notably with Haydenshapes, and continues to surface in well-made independent films and brand projects rather than nonstop media churn.
Gear and style notes
The film underscores why Craig remains a reference for tube riding: board choice and wave reading. While the edit doesn’t turn into a gear breakdown, you can pick up recurring silhouettes and paddling/entry patterns that suit critical Indo reef waves, useful watching for surfers who want to translate that pocket awareness to their own local reefs.
Final take
Samudra Spirit Glitters is not a firework show, it’s a measured, expert reminder that great freesurfing often speaks in whispers: precise timing, patience in the shoulder, and an eye for the barrel when it opens. For surfers and film fans who follow Craig’s quieter arc since Former and his ongoing collaborations, the film is a welcome, authentic piece of surf storytelling.
Nusantara: Waveriders of Indonesia — Local Surfers Spotlight
Nusantara: Waveriders of Indonesia — a short film that puts local surfers front and center
Milo Inglis’s short film Nusantara: Waveriders of Indonesia (produced by Drifter Surf) is a compact, cinematic visit to the world’s largest archipelago — not as a postcard for visiting surfers, but as a portrait of the people who live and ride there. The title nods to an old Javanese word meaning “archipelago,” and the film uses that scope to stitch together scenes from Indonesia’s famously perfect reefs and the riders who call them home.
Why this film matters
The movie runs about 27 minutes and features a group of active Indonesian surfers: Arip Mencos, Teddi Kurniadi, Komang Yudha Kopral, Dhea Natasya and Usman Trioko. Rather than centering foreign stars, Nusantara highlights local talent and the coastal communities that shape their surf. For readers who follow the regional surf scene, the film is a focused reminder that the best archive of Indonesian surf stories often lives with local riders and filmmakers.
Watch the full film (official upload):
The cast and the spots
– Usman Trioko: Widely recognized in coverage and interviews as one of Desert Point’s best barrel riders. Often called the “barrel king” of Desert Point and a local who grew up in the region.
– Dhea Natasya: The film’s primary female rider and a visible part of Indonesia’s emerging women’s surf scene.
– Arip Mencos, Komang Yudha Kopral, Teddi Kurniadi: Local riders featured throughout the film, representing surf cultures across Lombok, Bali and nearby islands.
Desert Point (Lombok) appears as one of the film’s visual anchors. The spot is internationally recognized as one of the world’s best left-hand barrels, and footage in the film showcases why that reputation sticks.
Behind the scenes and rider profiles
Drifter Surf’s Instagram contains behind-the-scenes images and short clips from the Nusantara shoot:
If you want closer looks at the riders themselves, these are their official Instagram profiles (visuals and session clips):