Dancing Amongst the Sunshine Coast

Photos: Keoki

For the past few years, Rosie Jaffurs, Sierra LerBack and Keoki Saguibo have ventured to Australia’s wave rich Sunshine Coast for the Noosa Festival of Surfing, taking advantage of the area’s world class righthand pointbreaks atop longboards and twin fins, from Noosa to Byron and everything in between.

“This year, my boards of choice were a 9’9 log and a 5’2 twin fin keel fish, both shaped by Noosa local Thomas Bexon, along with a 5’9” Chaz Kinoshita,” Sierra said.

“We got so much rain on this trip,” Rosie said. “Quaking thunder, lightning exploding across the night sky… It was the craziest thing I have ever seen, and staying in a van through it all was quite exciting!”

“Noosa reminds me of those runners at Ehukai, but it’s a point break instead of a sandbar,” Rosie said. “It’s a perfect right hand runner, ideal for nose riding.”

“Perfect point breaks surrounded by a forest is pretty different than anything I’ve ever experienced at home in Hawaii,” Sierra said. “But like Hawaii, Noosa has a tightly knit surf community where everyone knows everyone in the lineup.”

“I brought two boards: a 9’4” Two Crows Yardstick, and a J Boards 5’6” fish,” Rosie said.

“It’s nice and easy to stay in your comfort zone, but traveling helps you grow,” Rosie said. “It opens our eyes to what else is out there in the world, as well as new perspectives and different ways of doing things. You can take things you enjoyed from your trip and things you didn’t enjoy and grow from there.”

“Who you travel with makes your trip,” Sierra said. “When planning out trips, I like to connect with like-minded, low stress people. Rosie and Keoki made this trip great because we were all on the same page. We simply wanted to surf.”

“During this trip, we rallied together a group of friends and did a strike mission to a secret spot in hopes of good waves,” Sierra said. “We drove across miles of open beach to come to a perfect peeling wave traveling nearly a mile down the sand… it was a dream! We almost missed Keoki’s heat at the Noosa Festival of Surfing, but I’d say we all thought it was worth it.”

“It’s nice and easy to stay in your comfort zone, but traveling helps you grow,” Rosie said. “It opens our eyes to what else is out there in the world, as well as new perspectives and different ways of doing things. You can take things you enjoyed from your trip and things you didn’t enjoy and grow from there.”

“First point Noosa is one of those waves where there isn’t a drop of water out of place,” Sierra said. “Every wave, peeling all the way into the beach along glowing white sand bars. It’s a surreal place, everyone is stoked and totally consumed by the beauty of it.”