Feature Archives - APPROACHING LINES

COLD WATER SURFERS – EDITORIAL FEATURE – CHRIS NELSON

ICE BREAKERS

> COLD WATER SURFING <

“That degree of cold carries with it an inherent threat, a quiet, ever-present menace. It waits for that one mistake when responses are slowed, when coordination and judgment are slipping, when the cloak of hypothermia clouds the senses. Just one broken zip during a mid-winter duck dive or a heavy wipeout can trigger a fight for survival.”
Ice Breakers, Chris Nelson

THE IDEA

Chris Nelson was commissioned to bring to life the untold story of cold water surf pioneers for a main editorial feature for The Telegraph Magazine.

THE RESULT

Written by Chris Nelson the 6 page feature brings together interviews and anecdotes in a compelling read. Published by The Telegraph Magazine.

Accompanied by photography sourced by Demi Taylor.

THE APPROACH

Chris was commissioned by Telegraph Magazine to write an in-depth yet accessible feature about those surfers who shun warmer climes to ride waves. The 1700 word article drew on the stories of pioneering surfers from Alaska, Nova Scotia and Scotland, bringing to life their adventures and the spirit that drove them to break trail in these frigid waters. The article ran as one of two main feature pieces in the weekend Telegraph Magazine, with images sourced by Demi Taylor from leading photographers.

Ice Breakers: The untold story of cold water surf pioneers by Chris Nelson for The Telegraph Magazine.

Ice Breakers, The Cold Water Surfers (an excerpt)

Charlie Skultka frantically scanned the frozen shoreline, the dark fringes where the raging Pacific collides with the forest-shrouded Mount Edgcombe volcano. Waves pounded the razor-sharp lava reefs, offering no safe haven for him to scramble ashore. He’d been drifting in the icy waters for about six miles and was beginning to run out of island.
For most people ‘do or die’ is a slogan, a mantra to stoke the fire or push them out of their comfort zone. Here in Alaska it is a very real possibility. Having wiped out and lost his surfboard, Skultka was locked in a fight for his life. Without the extra buoyancy afforded by his board, he was like a leaf in a river, helpless against the torrent.

ICE BREAKERS
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BRACING BREAKS IN THE NORTH – TRAVEL FEATURE – DEMI TAYLOR

BRACING BREAKS IN THE NORTH

> SURFING NORWAY <

The white noise intensified into a roar as a thousand black boulders were marshalled in and out of formation by the sea, each movement serving to sculpt the rocks into ever-more precise globes.

THE IDEA

To explore the previously unheralded surf potential of the Stavanger region of Norway for a main travel feature.

THE RESULT

Written by Demi Taylor the surfing Norway article featured in The Independent accompanied by photography by herself and Chris Nelson.

THE APPROACH

Demi was commissioned by the Independent newspaper to write a main travel feature about a surf destination that was off the beaten track. Supported by the Norwegian Tourist Board, Demi travelled to Stavanger to explore the region. Timing her visit to coincide with one of best swells to hit the region in decades, Demi’s reputation as a surf writer meant she was taken to some of the region’s closely guarded surf spots and given unrivalled access to the community. The resulting feature exploring the potential of Surfing Norway weaves together interviews, anecdotes and first hand travel insights.

Bracing Breaks in the North. Demi Taylor catches some extremely cool waves Surfing in Norway

For more than an hour, six of us traded waves. The party included Norway’s first surfer, Roar Berge, who spent the 1980’s pioneering these shores. ‘Well, that was a religious experience,’ he exclaimed as he walked back to the car park, grinning ear-to-ear. His face said it all, while his background put it into context; this really was a special day.

bracing breaks
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