Above photo proof that I grab the rails.

It's day 5 of solid rain in Byron Bay. Crazy to think that just two years ago Australia was at the tail end of a had a 10 year draught. Now, there are flood warning everywhere. It makes me think Vancouver Island might not be the rainiest place on earth.

I made the best of the weather today and went to the Spa http://www.byron-bay.com/kiva/
They had a crazy wood burning aboriginal sauna. It was a low round building and you had to crawl through two small doors to get inside. The room was a perfect large circle with a fire place against one wall and only enough head room to sit. After sitting in the intense heat you had a beautiful cold bath outside. I stopped noticing the rain after a while even thought most of the spa was outdoors because your already soaking wet and it's warm.

I went to check the surf later today and it was big gnarly storm surf. Fingers crossed that it will clean up for tomorrow.

Merry Christmas from rainy Byron Bay. We are having a monsoon. It's been raining very hard for two days strait but it hasn't dampened our Christmas Spirit. We decorated a dead branch with popcorn and gummy bears and we even cooked a turkey. The Christmas traditions of your family tend to follow you wherever you go. I still remember the first year I was away from my family for Christmas. I was at school in France and desperately wanted to come home for Christmas but our family's budget was already stretched to it's max. On Christmas day my whole family, all 24, wrote me a 13 page fax and I cried like a baby when I read it. Have a wonderful day and enjoy all the love that's out there for the taking. Love Josie

What an amazing day. It started slow with a trip to the Byron Sunday market for fruits and vegetables. Than off to check the surf. Still flat in Byron so we went around to Tallows. Nice clean waves but crazy rain storm. Not feeling burly I thought I would wait for the rain to slow. My family arrived for there Christmas beach rental around mid-day and I moved in. Nice beach house just outside of Byron Bay. Then off to Brunswick Heads for a surf. The rain is still coming down hard and I'm feeling like I'm back in Tofino as I pull on my wetsuit. The waves are small but clean and I got lots of nice long rides. We are sitting out in the line-up when someone points out a pod of dolphins about 15 feet away. There must have been school of fish nearby because all of a sudden the dolphins were all around us. Two swam right under my board and others seem to be riding the waves. It was a little scary but very exciting. I felt so alive. There were also a couple less friendly guests that showed up. Two huge sting rays kept swimming right under us. I asked the locals if there was anything to worry about and they said there was probably sharks around as well. Maybe the locals just wanted the waves and were trying to scare us off. We stayed until I could no longer ignore my hunger pains. Then back to the beach house for a big glass of wine and a hot bath. A B.B.Q and Zoolander ended a perfect day.

I'm writing this entry from Organika in Noosa, Australia. It's day two of no swell, so time to move on. Up the Gold Coast towards Byron. My cousin lives in Byron Bay so I might be sleeping on her couch tonight. I've been trying out a longboard to see if I would like to purchase. Hard to know because I've only been able to surf it once. Boards shaped in Australia don't come cheap and this used board will set me back 700. It seems like everything is a little more money here than in Canada but taxes are included in the prices. I've also been told people are payed well here and unemployment is only around 5%. Nice!

I'm off to check out the zoo and hopefully have my picture taken with a koala bear.

ENJOYING THE HEAT! Restless Josie

My trip to Australia has been fantastic!

The Vancouver airport was particularly entertaining. I tried to web-check for my United trip and it kept coming up that I was MR. Josie Boulding. I went to the United representative who assured me that they could clearly see I was female but pointed out that my passport had sex marked as M. Interesting that in the last 4 years no one including myself had caught this error.

Ashley Tisdale was going thru security with her tiny dog in full Louis Vuitton, giving us a nice distraction from the tedious security checks. The 16 hour flight from San Francisco wasn't too painful and we arrived to a rainy, humid morning in Sydney.
My step sister Jackie picked us up and quickly perked us up with a great seafood lunch at Coochie beach. Then on to Bondi for a surf.

I lucked out surfing because after asking the lifeguard where to rent he sent me to Everything wet. They not only rented me a board and wetsuit but also introduced me to Jack Johnson. Amazing! I even got to share a few waves with him. Unfortunately I did almost take him out at one point when we both almost collided but after catching my board before it hit him he was still very gracious. He really seemed very down to earth and after talking to him you felt instantly comfortable. Jack, as he introduces himself, is a very grounded man. Nice!

I have surfed everyday that I've been here, and today will be no exception so I'll write the rest of my trip update later and add some photos. Promise.
Good Waves, Restless Josie

It is with a happy heart that I write this entry. I'm off to Australia today and my thoughts are inspired! We are creatures that are compelled to travel, explore, experience. Yet, there are always times of required patience and the constant fight against the mundane existence we are all force to endure at times. These times will progressively get shorter and shorter for me as I realize my true potential. When I strive to be different there is always resistance but I never walked away from a good challenge. What's all this psycho babel about? Well, I can tell you it's going to translate into the best Restless Josie episode yet. Watch out Australia because I'm off leash. The Restless Josie crew is coming and it's going to be huge!

"Don't endure a mundane existence. Unleash your wild mind. Think original thoughts.Act on them exuberantly. Be an iconoclast and celebrate it." -Craig Copeland

http://www.surfingmagazine.com/blogs/business-culture-of-surfing-third-jewel-no-jules/

Julian Wilson's exclusion from Pipe is causing some reaction to the old rules. Is it time for a change?

Julian Wilson just came second at Sunset to Brazilian Raoni Monteiro.
Raoni beat Julian by a slim margin of 0.17 points. After a third and a second in the first two stops of the Vans Triple Crown he is very close to qualifying for the World tour next year. He's sitting in 31st and that means he could easily be bumped out by two guys who place well at Pipe. Why isn't Julian competing at Pipe?

Even after reviewing the qualifications, I'm still not sure. It was established in 1970 and attracts the top 45 surfers from the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) as well as 16 surfers who compete in walk on trials.
The wild cards this year are all from Hawaii. Oahu’s Jon-Jon Florence, Maui’s Ian Walsh, all-time Pipeline favorite Bruce Irons and Kauai’s Kamalei Alexander and Danny Fuller.
It seems there is a little wiggle room to include men who seem worthy. My vote is for Julian. After his results in the last two triple crown events he has proven himself. Allowing Julian to compete would level the playing field so he could earn enough point to qualify for the world tour and compete for a share of $400,000 prize money.


This year, the Billabong Pipe Masters celebrates its 40th year. The last ten years of winners are an impressive bunch

2009- Taj Burrow, Australia
2008- Kelly Slater, USA
2007- Bede Durbidge, Australia
2006- Andy Irons, Hawaii
2005- Andy Irons, Hawaii
2004- Jamie O’Brien, Hawaii
2003- Andy Irons, Hawaii
2002- Andy Irons, Hawaii
2001- Bruce Irons, Hawaii
2000- Rob Machado, USA

Who will join this list and become the 2010 Pipeline Master? It's anyone's game.

I look forward to watching the live web-cast http://triplecrownofsurfing.com/billabongpipemasters