Assembling an epic adventure group: teens wanted

by **BigBlueBear** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 4:07 pm

Whats up guys and girls.

I'm Alex 16, UK.

I'v thought about it for an absolute age, since I was 8 and rode my first wave, what it would be like to try and build a little shack, provide food and fire and shred waves at the same spot for a year.

Well, iv decided the 1 year challenge is on.

I'm looking for a team of young people between the ages of 15 and 25 to share in the adventure. This is not going to be holiday camp and it's not going to be all fun, it will be hard work and the chance of success will be absolutely minimal, but if it works out, it will be awesome.

The vision
The vision is to locate a brand new surf spot, a secret spot a long way from any major towns and cities, and build some small temporary shacks (we're talking tiny). To source our own food and water (fishing ect) and to spend free time as total beach bums, just rocking out on the surf.

The type of person you need to be
As I said, this wont be all fun, it will require immense planning, commitment and general logical thinking to achieve, its going to take intelligent people to make it work, so if you want in you need to make sure your head is screwed on.

This project also involves massive issolation, no communication with home and the company of the same few people, if that would drive you crazy, this isnt for you.

We may well not eat well ect, again, you need to be prepared to rough it. (The closest settlement wont be too far away but it will be a fair trek, we wont die, but hunger and thirst are distinct possibilities on a regular basis).

You also need a real passion for surfing, because we're going to be doing A LOT of shredding.

If you're interested
Hit me a message. This is of course not a sure thing, it may well not happen, but its been my dream and iv decided that chasing dreams is all that's worth doing. We will have to all bond as a group and plan this thoroughly if it is to go ahead, so be prepared to do some work.

Here is the sort of thing we're talking about, I saw the film at the BANNF film festival and it gave me the faith that this can be achieved!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb_YFd2GzhM

Cheers
Alex

by **jaffa1949** » Sun Sep 28, 2014 11:11 pm

Nice, dare to dream, and then dare to live the dream!

by **CARBr6** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 10:48 am

Good luck Alex.

by **drowningbitbybit** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 11:04 am

What could possibly go wrong?

by **BaNZ** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 2:44 pm

Lots of sex <3

by **drowningbitbybit** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 9:18 pm

BaNZ wrote:Lots of sex <3

...but no STD clinic...

by **BigBlueBear** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 10:19 pm

Hahaha, it's always been the dream, who wants to be normal man, get a job pay in through the good years so you can live the worst years in comfort untill you die... I refuse to take that path

by **oldmansurfer** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 11:00 pm

Yeah much better to spend your worst years in a jail arrested for vagrancy

Hey well do it while you are young. When you get older you may appreciate the comforts of home more. Adventure is where you find it. Some people need to travel to find it. It always seemed like adventure came to me. Have fun while you are young.

by **waikikikichan** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 11:13 pm

"team of young people between the ages of 15 and 25 to share in the adventure" = isn't the legal age 18. Here in Japan legal age is 20. Who or what parent is going to sign off their child to another young adult ? Who's the legal guardian in a medical situation ?

" chance of success will be absolutely minimal, but if it works out, it will be awesome. = odds don't look so good, but should I allow my child to do this ?

" brand new surf spot, a secret spot a long way from any major towns and cities" = what spots or remote deserted island are you considering ?

it will require immense planning, commitment and general logical thinking to achieve, its going to take intelligent people to make it work = intelligent logical people weigh the pros and cons. Is the risk worth the pay off ?

This project also involves massive issolation, no communication with home and the company of the same few people. = so if some one lacerates their leg with a fin or kisses the reef, what you gonna do ? what if they get stung by a jelly fish and goes into anaphylactic shock ?

You asked for guys and girls that are interested. You do know that girls have special needs. What you going to do if one of them gets pregnant ?

You looking at a full year in isolation. What if the surf break you found is seasonal ? Only breaking a few months out of the year.

As the saying goes, " to be old and wise, you first must be young and foolish ". Yea man, we gonna get on our bikes and ride to the wheels fall off !!

You better wake up and smell the strawberry scented sex-wax, but you'll probably run out of wax in the first 2 months. Bee's wax anyone ?

by **jaffa1949** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 11:46 pm

Missed it by that much! 40+ years ago.
Morning of the Earth even parts of the east Coast of Australia were undiscovered, Byron bay and Noosa were backwaters and old farm houses were available.
Indonesia was barely opened up where there are now multiple hotels were rice paddies and the restaurants were the cholera cart men.
It was joyous and exciting but a number of my friends died or were incapacitated by everything from malaria, dengue fever to snake bite.
Tristan De Cunha , Pitcairn Island and various volcanic tips in the Pacific Ocean spring to mind.
Blue Bear do a few surf trips yourself and see the reality of what you are planning.
The other thought, almost all the islands etc are part of a sovereign nation, I wonder what their stance on your idea would be.
I believe it is possible, what are your first aid capabilities? Are you Bear Gryliss's son?
Have you any survival skills?
I can understand a UK surfer thinking of this, as winter is coming
Recommended reading and a link
http://www.theage.com.au/interactive/2014/waverider/ about the innocence of surfing travel and other stuff of the sixties. Peter Troy's story is worth reading.
The other book to read is "Lord of the Flies".
Just think in the 60s you could drive overland from the UK to Australia through any of the countries of the middle east ( many did it) and it was only the road worthiness of your vehicle that caused problems.
Sadly the world has changed.

Most good surf camps have started with a single adventurer finding a classic spot and then planning how to settle there, that may be a better path!

by **oldmansurfer** » Tue Sep 30, 2014 12:04 am

When I was 17 I was asked to be a deck hand on a square rigged ship (as in old sail boat). They were headed to Tahiti and said show up at 6:30 in the morning. Me and a friend spent the whole night debating what to do. At like 4:30 am we finally decided to go so we rush home and pack some bags and head down to the dock by 6:15 but the ship had set sail and was leaving already. I asked some one saying goodbye on the docks and they said the wind and tides were good so they left. Missed it by that much but then I was never in need of adventure. It always seemed to find me. I didn't start board surfing till I was 18 so not sure how that would have played out in the scheme of things but life was not boring very often for me.

by **BigBlueBear** » Tue Sep 30, 2014 2:39 pm

To the person asking about medical papers ect, this isnt a legit legal type thing. Was meant to be more of a total adventure. I take all the points on board, but its not going to stop me doing this, ill just adapt my plans to facilitate the problems

by **jaffa1949** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 3:59 am

BigBlueBear wrote:To the person asking about medical papers ect, this isnt a legit legal type t

The law doesn't work that way in any country that I know, you organise this you are the one that will be held responsible and the one that will be targeted in any lawsuit. No amount of disclaimer etc will relieve you of that responsibility.

Let's start with passport, they will be needed, try arriving in any country without a passport, appropriate visas, determining length of stay breach that , jail and/or deportation will follow. You can't even board a plane without a passport. Under age ( parents permission required and in some countries accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Drugs; one bust in your group will probably mean you all get busted ( in some countries death penalty).
Religious laws: Women and modesty , tattoos of religious figures ( ie Buddha ) pornography written or on your computer ( and it can be as simple as a bra ad or a naked face).
Laws elsewhere are not jolly old English laws and do not follow any reasoning you have had up until now in your protected cocoon.
Exotic diseases, does dying unnecessarily count as part of the adventure?
FFS plan what you are going to do, what you are planning is doable, but there is a lot of ground work.
As for adapting your plans to fit the problems, it all needs to be considered before you set off, the resources are just not there for you to make it up as you go!
I have watched guys die because a ferry can't come or there is no medical care within 5 days journey and other stuff.

Think about this, go and have your adventure by yourself at any remote location before you involve anybody else, find out exactly what we are talking about. Then decide about your dream ( called duty of care for anyone else you involve.)and its reality.

At the moment your plan looks about as feasible as going to the north pole wearing only a T shirt.
I do wish you luck but I AM SERIOUSLY CONCERNED about how little you know about the outside world. :shock:

I might also mention the film you mentioned, is set with people in their own country ( no passports or visas needed) so a spot in your own country might be easier. No death penalties either.
tropical islands I can't think of any now that are British territories.
OH go for it it could be Darwinism at its finest or a great adventure (journalise it, make a fortune selling the book). :lol:

What did Jaffa look like when he was having adventures?
New Guinea, Tonga, Fiji, Indonesia, Taiwan, northern New South Wales for this picture.

by **drowningbitbybit** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 4:54 am

I'm slightly disturbed Jaffa by how much you then look like me now! :lol:

by **kitesurfer** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 7:39 am

BigBlueBear wrote: this isnt a legit legal type thing. Was meant to be more of a total adventure. I take all the points on board, but its not going to stop me doing this, ill just adapt my plans to facilitate the problems

Dreams very rarely turn out how you expect them to and the reality can be quite the opposite. Your dream sounds idealistic but the reality is it has so many huge pitfalls and problems and yourself so young seemingly having so little real experience of what could potentially go wrong.
My advice is your are being way too ambitious. Scale down your plans and attempt maybe just a small idea of your dream. Get some real experience and discover what is realistically achievable.

KS

by **oldmansurfer** » Thu Oct 02, 2014 7:58 am

I once had a dream of going to California and working my way down to as far south as I could hopefully South America surfing along the way. I sold my car and quit my job and got a passport and I had several thousand dollars saved up. The last day I was supposed to work I called in sick and went surfing, the only time I ever did that in my entire life but my boss had been recently ragging on me for not taking sick leave. I met a girl at the beach who lived on a commune and she invited me to go with her since I had just cut all my ties I figured why not, I still had everything to go make my trip later. Anyway I ended up staying there and surfing and loaned my money to the head guy on the commune but had him put his car up for collateral. I ended up taking the car and moving out to go to college. Sold the car and made back my money and used it to finance myself through college for four years (and surfed all 4 years) During my time in the commune I met a guy who tried to do what I intended to do and ended up in jail in Central America before getting kicked out penniless and surfboardless so I kind of gave up on that idea.