.: News

„The Sydney Morning Herald“ reports about the eisbach and pipelinepictures producing a film about it.
Read the article

German Newspaper „Sueddeutsche Zeitung“ reports about the eisbach in an interview with our producer and director “Bjoern Richie Lob”.
Read the article

Bavarian Television reports about the Eisbach and the danger of it being closed. Melanie Schoenthier, Andy Jobst and Bjoern Richie Lob are invited to a live interview and try to help saving the Eisbach. www.rettet-die-eisbachwelle.de

Focus Magazine reports about our famous riversurfer Gerry Schlegel. photos in the article by pipelinepictures.
Read the article

SURFERS PATH article is out now.
Read the article

BLUE YEARBOOK reports about the history of riversurfing and more…
Read the article

SLACK MAGAZINE reports about our riversurf trip to Canada.
Read the article

French Magazine “SURF SESSION” publishes an article about surfing in rivers and features our roadtrip to the French highwaterwaves. 
Read the article

A very special event took place in november in canada. Elijah mack and his friends from the Alberta Riversurfing Association ARSA www.riversurfing.ca invited the most passioned riversurfers from around the world to surf the most spectacular riverwave in Northern America. Gerry Schlegel and our filmteam managed to go there and got it in a special mystic mood.

Skookumchuck is an old term of the native americans language and means somthing like “fast-flowing-water” the legend says that the natives used this chute to escape from their enemies who did not know how to handle this extra fast flowing watermasses. Discovered as a wave for riversurfers was this rapid by the host of the event and most famous riversurfer “Elijah Mack” who had visited us in april (have a look below at the april-news).

The very spezial thing about this wave: Skookumchuck occurs by the tides. Its located in a fjord direct at a narrow inlet to the ocean and when the water masses are flowing back at lowtide the stream that appears is so fast that we get a stationary wave you elsewise only find in rivers. (not a tidal wave that moves up the river)

When its big the only way to get into the wave is to tow-in with a jetski like in ocean big wave surfing. Here the surfer holds a line that is fixed to the watercraft on the other end like in waterskiing. When he is pulled into the right position he lets the rope go and goes on surfing with the speed and power of the wave. A very important thing is that the jetskidriver is very skillfull and experienced because the watermasses are very rough and uncontrollable. Elijah organised some top professionals for that. Steve Fagan who usually takes care of Ocean-Surf-Professionals like Laird Hamilton or Kelly Slater, and James Mole who used to be a kajak-professional with his favourite spot skookumchuck and who is a famous Coast Guard in Vancouver.

The very best about the trip was that we met so many new nice people who share our passion for riversurfing. Jean Louis and Sam from Montreal, Corey from Oregon and Negs from Alberta just to mention a few. We all became friends and planned to meet again somewhere around the world, probably close to a river or an ocean or an other phenomena that we can ride. Thanks to Elijah Mack and Victor Maher to whom we owe this exceptionally experience.

Tim Mckenna visits in Munich.
Star Photographer Tim Mckenna presented his new book „Teahupoo Tahitis mythic wave“ (192 pages in colour – Brand White Star Publishers) in the rooms of  the Planet-Sports in the Albert-Roßhaupterstrasse and took his time for a signing session and answering questions.

Björn after the interview: „ i was faszinated the most about what his point of view what he wants to show with his photography. He said he is more interested in nature phenomenas in his pictures than in the sports or the athlete. If  he manages to shoot a picture where you can take out only the athlete and the picture is still as faszinating as before it is a good picture. If you have a second look at his pictures after knowing this aspect you will be amazed how pwerfull his work is.
When he signed my book that I bought as present for my best surfer friend simon he added a wise sentence of nietzsche: 
“The world can only be explained and can only be justified by aesthetic phenomena.”

You find a few pics here on the right and you find heaps more at his homepage: www.tim-mckenna.com from where you can also order his book.

„Holy shit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!“
„Awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!“
„Unbelievable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!“

…were the words i heard the most during this trip from the surfers who were permanently pumped up with adrenaline.

Encouraged of Elijah Macks pioneering spirit and because he had told us so much about his riversurf-adventures, we hit the road with a petit crew of riversurfers to explore the French highwaters.

What we found overshot everything we had expected by far!!!

Gerry, Flo and Andy, the worlds best riversurfers surfed French highwaterwaves that eclipsed every other wave surfed before that day!!!

Not only the speed, the watermasses and the dimensions but allthough the dangerous whirlpools behind the wave, pushed the surf-cracks to their limits.
Hold-Downs lasting over 10 seconds, in whirlpools that spit you out, sometimes not until 200-300m further down the river, were not seldom.

At this point we warn everybody, who is not a professionell watersport freak, to try it out!!! You need special training and equipment to do it.
Without you will drown!!!
Moreover we were guided and very much supported by the two kajak professionals Arnd and Simon.

Thanks so much my friends and also very much respect for the outstanding performance with your kajaks!!!
Arnd even  trumped it when he showed up with his surfboard and ripped it like he had grown up with it.

Good News!!! We move with our editing suite to the new postproduction studio „DIE BASISberlin“ in our capital city.

We had to wait long but finally and to the luck of us all, it happend.
The Riversurf Legend “Elijah Mack” from Oregon visits Munich to surf the Eisbach and to get to know Munichs surf-community.
He comes with a lot of amazing storys to tell.
For example about his adventures of his Surf-Trips to Zambesi-River or about his Tow-In experiences in Canada, were he was the first who ever had the balls at “Shookumchuck Narrows” and showed everybody that “impossible is nothing”.
 
Right from the beginning we fell in love with this extraordinary personality.
He himself is permanently stoked, becomes friend of almost everybody he meets and tells us in the end that it was his “best surf trip he ever had”.

In the final interview on a roof above all of munich city(thanks to Mike who invited us to his penthouse apartment) he tells us more about his wild life as a gangster and than about the 180degree transition from what he calls “the bad guy” to “the good guy”.
We all were very affected and honoured to have him with us because he is so faithfull and calls a spade a spade.
“Eli is a contemporary poet full of  worldly wisdoms!”

Endless morning, evening and nightsurf-sessions and countless Augustiner beers later he unfortunately has to leave to take care of his family.

On the way to the airport its raining and it seems to me that Munich is crying because Eli has to leave.

We have a new intern ;-)

From today we are supported by Lissi Weber. She is studying Media- and Cultural Science in Regenburg and will work with us in our Pool-Editing-Studio on the completion of „Keep Surfing” during her spring break. Managing our Internet portals, sponsor acquisition and cleaning belong to her scope of duties.

The „Keep Surfing“-Team is supplemented by Clemens Becker who just released his first own snowboardvideo “Brettspiel”. He is working for us as cutter assistant and together with Pit Kuhlmann he is also doing the sounddesign. The foto shows him presenting his video with the Reef Girls at the ISPO.

Good news!!! Avid Technology GmbH is supporting our feature film project „Keep Surfing” with a sponsorship. Now we are able to edit the project on technically highest level. We work with Avid Media Composer & Mojo SDI on a Dell Precision 390 workstation.

Beside our experienced cutter Benjamin Quabeck we get supported by commercial and feature film cutter Tobias Haas, who is predominantly giving expert advice.

25. November

The new DVD about the ADH Open (German Association of Sportuniversitys) is available and can be ordered here. On the Premiere night that took place at the Wavetours-Party “Local Surf Dance Night” in Darmstadt on the 25^th of November the Video got very positive feedback already.

We shoot Mathias Ramoser, Mark Suchanek and Steffen Dietrich during a “poolskate-session” in ???(top secret). The passionated “Eisbach” – riversurfers show off under the motto: “it´s all about style”.

As it gets dark, we meet Oliver Gorden www.innszene.at, a friend of Mark, who leads us to a secret “indoor-pool” and here we have another unexpected session with Oliver kickin incredible new school moves.

www.innszene.at

„keep surfing“ goes „myspace“ The official „myspace“(www.myspace.com) site is online:

http://www.myspace.com/keep_surfing

In golden October we are shooting with our protagonist Dieter Deventer impressively fallpictures.

In September we are spending time with collecting, archiving, filming and scanning film and photo footage of the old days.

We free our director from the hospital and shoot at the "Munich Surf Open"

The contest is cranking and the vibe and the surfaperformance is on top level.

3. July –
28. July:

Unfortunately our director Björn Richie Lob has to stay in hospital because of a serious infection of his knee and we have to do a break.

22. June –
1. July:

Interviews and Minishooting.

17. June -
21. June:

After a few days back in town that we mostly spend on intensiv organisation work our dream comes true and we are finally allowed to shoot the main action surf part at the „Eisbach“. Especially our director Björn Richie Lob is unbelievably happy that his dream is realised after 6 years of fighting and working.

Luck is with us and everything goes well. All the very best surfers are there, the film crew is completed, finally with some of the best professionals like our chief electrician Tobi Vogel with his team from Berlin and to the luck of us all, Clemens Bachmann one of Germanys best Camera Grippers and crane operators, cancells his holidays at the “lago di garda” to help us with the film.

Thats why the “Eisbach” is cooking by the time we are shooting and everybody is ripping hot

Watch new Trailer!

Here again: “Thank you very much!!!” to everybody!!!

And not to forget to mention: The cooperation with our partners “Panther”, “Fuji”, “Arri”, “Mini” and “Mistral” works perfektly and that is why we were able to shoot everything we intended to shoot.

3. June -
10. June:

After the DM we move directly to the ADH-Cup which starts with really small swell that turns to flat like a tag for the rest of the contest so that the competition unfortunately can not be finished. But Uli Scherb the founder and organisation manager of the event manages with the help of his great team to keep everybody of the 350 guests in good mood. He improvises the first German skim – board contest, starts a paddle – race and a beach volleyball competition and over all invites to several legendary appocalyptycall beach and bungalow partes with live bands etc...

That is why we from the “Keep Surfing” team are able to get enough good footage for the “Keep Surfing” feature film as well as for the ADH-Cup Video(soon to order here on this webpage)

And what is also a good side effect, our before the contest not surfing part of the team including  D.o.P. Lars R. Liebold is now addicted Surf freak.

Right away after Tahiti we drive with our sponsored Mini Cooper to the offical german championship in surfing that is taking place at the south west coast of france every year and after that to the german chapionship of the universities ADH-Cup, taking place only 20 miles further south and starting one day after the other contest finishes.

The German Championship Contest starts with ok conditiones and especially the girls are rippin hot. Sonja Hönscheid wins as the first girl ever not only the womens title open and longboard but although enterst he mens open final and gets a sensational fourth place.

But never the less the boys are rocking to and the not unexpected sensation here takes really place when 15 year old Nicolau von Rupp wins the open class and the juniors and enters like Sonja his third, the mens longboard final and gets third even though its his first longboarding year.

Our munich super-star from the “eisbach”, Gerry”the cat” Schlegel gets fifth and is herefore the only really in Germany(not at the ocean) living under the first ten and beats a lot of the guys who grew up at well surfable coast.

4. Mai –
15. Mai:

At the fouth of May our „Keep Surfing“ team landed in the french polynesian home island of surfing Tahiti.

We meet our friend Quirin Rohleder who is working there as a comentator of the ASP Professional Contest for Billabong in Teahopoo and follow him with the camera.

Because this is the international surf event of the year, like Wimbeldon in Tennis or the play offs of the NBA we meet the world elite of surfing and shoot photos, filmfootage and do interviews with almost every of the stars.

Moreover we get the opportunity to explore the beautyfull island with its beautyfull people.

• Now it´s offical. Tobias N. Siebert is joining “Keep Surfing” as a producer.. He specialised in documentaries and was able to be successful with films lie “The story of the weeping camel.

• The FFA (Filmförderanstalt) is supporting “Keep Surfing”

• Eva Stadler, our former producer, who pushed the projekt so far, now takes her time to finish her promotion but still supports us her knowledge

Our last Camera-Tests are successfully finished (at www.cinemathography.com you can read about the results with the new JVC HD 100 and the new Canon XL H1) Now we are ready to shoot!!!