Surfing
Surfing
Inside the rough and tough bluff crew of Durban's Cave Rock
In Episode 2 of Made In South Africa, filmmaker Jason Hearn embeds with Ricky Basnett, Rudy Palmboom, and the rest of Cave Rock's dedicated locals.
15 min
Rough and tough
Surf legends and devotees reminisce about the surf scene at Cave Rock at The Bluff near Durban, South Africa.
If you tuned into Episode 1 of Jason Hearn's Made In South Africa last week – or if you're lucky enough to either be from South Africa or have visited it – you know how wave-rich a country it is. Everyone of course knows about Jeffreys Bay, for good reason, but there are scores of lesser known world-class waves scattered up and down South Africa's nearly 3,000km coastline.
One of these waves is Cave Rock, located up the coast from J-Bay, in the city of Durban. While world-class, Cave Rock is a double-black-diamond kind of wave, with a steep drop and throttling right-hand barrel. It's one of those waves that self regulates, unlike J-Bay, which these days can be one of the most crowded waves in the world when a good swell is running.
The Basnett bank
© Ant Fox
Surf check from the bluff
© Ant Fox
A familiar walk
© Ant Fox
Ricky Basnett in the slot
© Ant Fox
Such surfing conditions will breed a tight-knit group of local surfers. In Episode 2 of Made In South Africa, Hearn explores this talented collective of hard-charging, rough-around-the-edges from 'the bluff'. And no one is more dedicated to Cave Rock than former World Championship Tour surfer Ricky Basnett.
Along with Basnett, Hearn tags along with true original local, Rudy Palmboom, who hasn't missed a good swell at Cave Rock in decades. He also sits down with famed surf photographer Chris Van Lennep, who went on to shoot surfing around the world, but really got his start at Cave Rock. We surfers know the magnetic power of our local breaks – how they can dictate our lives. This is what Hearn explores in Episode 2 – it's one piece of surf cinematography you don't want to miss.
Next week, for the final episode of Made In South Africa, Hearn spends some quality time with Frankie Oberholzer – once and always one of the world's best free surfers.
