Biggest Wave Ever Surfed

Noa Deane might be the Gold Coast’s most captivating freesurfer right now, but he’s far from the first Deane to establish the family name. Wayne Deane, Noa’s father, was a fixture at Kirra in the late ’60s, refining his style at the fabled right-hand point when he wasn’t working under his own father as an apprentice carpenter. In 1970, after the Merrin Surfboard Factory burned down, Wayne decided to take try his hand at shaping his own boards, which would later absorb the experimental design qualities of mentor Terry Fitzgerald’s ‘Hot Buttered’ line. Fast-forward to now, and Wayne is just as passionate about board design as when he first picked up the planer over 50 years ago.

And so began the informal education for Noa in the shaping bay. Wayne noticed early on that Noa was eager to watch the board-making process, and to test out the concepts himself.

“Being a carpenter, I’d be at work, and when I’d get home, Noa had found a broken board or found some foam, [and] had a little 2’6” thing hacked out,” Wayne says. “He was always interested in doing it. He started making really little surfboards — putting logos and decals on them, drawing them out by hand. He’s always been creative with that sort of thing. I guess it’s always been there with him.”

We spent some time with Wayne and Noa at the Deane family compound on the Goldy, asking the father and son about their shared love of surfboard design. Filmed by Mikey Mallalieu, “Influential Contours” goes behind the scenes of Noa’s quiver, revealing an intricate board knowledge gained from a lifetime at Wayne’s side. You may even see Noa riding one of his dad’s shapes on the North Shore this winter, driving a RAGE-gripped template down the line for an impossible air into the flats. Two generations of Deanes, flying higher, flying the family flag.

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