Bonzer Write Up

The Bonzer Sequence archive - From my second Surfing feature film Harmony Lane. 
In 2003 Alan Stokes and myself shaped a 5 fin board in my shaping bay. Pictures of it where published somewhere claiming it to be a bonzer (not of our doing) and it drew the attention of Guy Pendwarden, a UK patron of the original Bonzers and friend of Malcolm Campbell. Our board had a sticker from our local vintage surfboard shop Revolver owned by John Isaac . Guy tracked the shop down turned up one day and said something like “that aint a faking bonzer , I’ll show you a faking Bonzer” . So by default we were somewhere down the line introduced to Guy . Later that year Malcolm came to the UK to shape some Bonzers. Alan and Myself put in Our orders for the infamous “Shelter” model and went down to see Malcolm shape them and see what it was all about.
Well what can I say They went like smoke… Unbelievable.
Next year when Malcom came back I got another, I also took the opportunity to sit with him and investigate something I felt noone was documenting , everyone asking seemed to be concerned with how they work but while I watched people come and go and as I sat in the bay with Malcom a pattern in the conversation appeared to me . Malcom would talk about the Bonzer as a lifestyle or a Way of life to him. It seemed to be going over peoples heads, as if he hadnt even said it. 
I’m not sure if Malclom had been waiting for someone to ask him to elaborate but when I did his eyes seemed to light up and I sat with him for about an hour in the back of my old Peugeot estate while he explained to me what he meant. 
To him the Idea of the Bonzer seemed to come from a certain mental space maybe ethereal I dont know , a free-er Creative Realm . I recognised a thankfulness for the Bonzer design/Idea . Malclom’s genuine gratitude for what the Bonzer had bought in his life , a living and people that thought the same way , the magnetism of the design seemed to draw like minded people into his space, people he could relate to and enjoy the company of. I feel lucky to be one of those and also enjoyed the company of Malcolm and other Bonzer riders. There is definitely something going on !
My regards to all the Bonzer Lovers out there , and a small plea to the non believers… for fork sake give one a go!! You might just like it.

Tony Plant

I don’t know where they dug Tony Plant up but i know he’s fookin gorgeous!! Everyone that knows him loves him and everyone that knows him probably thinks he’s slightly nuts. Mad about art I’d say  , absolutely into what he’s doing 100% committed to the moment . He seems to think he’s gambling with the moment but personally i think he see’s the need to trust exactly whats happening now so that the process he belives in, is all there is. Watching him work is like going back in time to the days of alchemy , when people in dark caves knew exactly what they where trying to prove , they could see it but they just needed the magic recipe. Trying to get Tony to explain what he’s doing is no easy task , “i cant be arsed with all that” he’ll tell you. So maybe I’ve been lucky , here and there , he’s taken pity on me and I’ve learnt alot .  Classically Trained in fine art Tony’s process is anything but classic in fact its a direct act to totally work against any premeditation , hence letting circumstance be the master of all .  Like some crazed chef looking for just the right ingredient Tony will snatch what ever is available at the time , bush tucker cordonbleu.  We love his Stuff. Big Stuff. 

Tony sails very much under his own flag, (probably like a pirate one but with more colour) but we like to think he’s a big part of the lorien creative.