Moose FM Morning Show!

THIS morning I was featured on Moose FM's morning show here in Timmins to promote our wakeboard school that is coming to town next week.  It was pretty cool to be broadcasting live, and as always been a dream of mine to be on the radio.  Thanks to Barb at the Moose FM for hooking it up!

Bienvenue au Québec!

THIS past weekend marked my triumphed return to Quebec.  Having lived in Ottawa for the past few summers, I forgot how spoiled I was to be so close to one of Canada's wakeboard meccas.  My trip started in Timmins on the 16th with a 12 hr red eye bus ride to Ottawa.  On Friday, I headed up to WOW plaza for a cable shred with Charlie, Zenan, and Kelsey. We spent most of the day loungin', ridin', and just enjoying the sunshine.  All was good till my last set, and last hit that I totally shot a blank and slipped out on a backlip; landing flat back onto the rail.  I was lucky to escape with nothing more than a sore back, and a bruised forearm.  Besides that, I noticed a lot of new and young faces hanging out at Wow shredding the cable. The future is bright for sure, and my congrats to Julien Derome for providing such a sick facility to encourage the next generation of Quebec wake talent.

The next day had me on a train headed to Drummondville for the season's first Wake Dans Rue (urban winch jam).  Let me just say that rail is the way to travel.  They have FREE wireless internet service, and so I was able to catch a little FIFA action while travelling. So COOL!  Once I got to Drummond, turns out the venue site was just across from the train station, it was perfect.  So I walked over, said what's up to Phil Joyal, and started helping with setup right away.  

The setup was pretty sick, and Phil made sure it looked good.  He even put a little extra landscaping work into it with some real sawed, and flowers.    We were running a bit late, but that's standard when it's the first one of the year.  Nonetheless, the rain held off, and we had a beautiful evening.  All the boys were in town to participate, and it was Yan Tibo who came out with 500$ and the win!

Finally on Sunday it was the Beach Club (Pointe-Calumet/Montreal) for the infamous best trick contest Ca$h and Crash!  3 obstacles (a-frame, wall ride, and kicker) and 100$ per obstacle was up for grabs.  I was able to stay in the mix on the a-frame with a front lip to switch nose back 180 out, and a frontside heel 7 off the kicker, but it just wasn't enough.  Nevertheless, I was happy with what I did, and props to my boy Alex Savoie for pulling out a toeside 9 off the kicker for best trick!  And with that, the weekend was over and we had a nice 10 hr drive home ahead of us...but it was all worth it, can't wait to go back! Merci!!


Stay tuned for some footage from the weekend...

A Day in Major Hill's Park.

                                                                                  (photo: Piquette)

Thought I'd take an extra day with my lovely gf Danielle, who lives in Ottawa, before heading to WOW Plaza (a.k.a. the Derome compound) tomorrow, Drummondville on Satruday for Wake Dans Rue, and finally the Beach Club on Sunday for Canada's ONLY and BEST cable contest: Ca$h and Crash!!  Lots of riding coming up this weekend, and the first couple contests of the season...it's always a good time in Quebec!  I'll do my best to have some photos throughout the weekend, and stay tuned for a  little video edit to be coming soon fo sho.  

Live at the Vic.

Head Down LIVE at the VIC .28.05.10. (Timmins ON) from Johny Bonney on Vimeo.

On May 28th 2010, I had the privilege to check out some of my hometown boys rocking out their new album.  Here's a little taste for those who were unable to attend.  Enjoy the show!

Roadtrip!!

Who wants to have some FUN?

LEGIT...the movie!

THANKS to my friend Craig McCallion for posting the full video.  For all those who missed it, Legit premiered last June (2009) in Ottawa, and features various riders from the Nation's Capital.  Justin, and I shared a part in this film.  It seems that Craig is planning to follow up this video, follow him at www.halfcab.ca Enjoy!

LEGIT - THE MOVIE from Craig McCallion on Vimeo.

Good Morning! 06.01.10

(The standard morning wake up at Ice Chest Lake.)

Party? yes, please.

TONIGHT is the much anticipated CD release party for HEAD DOWN's new album. Songs from How it All Breaks Down will be rocking the Vic tonight in Timmins.  Fuck yeah.  Give it a listen at Head Down's myspace page. 

Home for the summer.

THIS will be home for Justin, and I for the next couple months.  Ice Chest Lake, just a 30 minute drive from Timmins.  Normally it's still pretty chilly up here this time of the year (snow is always a real possibility) but the weather this past weekend was unreal with 30+ temperatures and sunny skies!! I swear that if I had shut my eyes, I could still think I was in the Phillies.  Hopefully it's a small taste of what is to come this summer...

Made in the U.S.A

(Gonna have to get used to North American portion sizes again.)

Japan...Ayoooooo!!

JAPAN AIRLINES (JAL) is king!  After checking in for our flights in Manila, they informed us that they had accommodations at no charge for us in Tokyo because we had to overnight.  Don't ask me why the airline put us up in their own hotel, but it sure was a nice surprise.  The Nikko Narita Hotel was a classic Japanese business hotel; efficient and clean.  After we checked into our rooms, we decided to hit up the lounge and drop some serious Yen for some Asahi beer, and sushi.  We flew out the next morning; clean, and well rested for our next 2 flights, AMAZING! If ever you have a chance to fly with JAL, I say take it!!

I told you!

(Photo: Unleashed Wake Magazine)

CONGRATULATIONS to Raph Derome for winning this past weekend's Nokia FISE contest in Montpellier, France.  This kid is on a roll; in the last 2 weeks, Raph won the Jr. Pro Men's division at Wake Games in Orlando, and placed 2nd at Wake N' Beach (France).  Also worth mentioning is that Canada was well represented at FISE with 3 of the top 4 spots going to Canadians with Kevin Henshaw in 3rd, and Oli Derome in 4th.  Félicitations les p'tits castors!!

Phillies Retrospect 4.0

ANOTHER year, and another trip to the Phillies is just about done.  Actually it is over, I'm writing to you from Tokyo right now.  

Each visit to the CWC has always comes with a different experience, and purpose.  Last year's mission was getting footage for my part in Craig McCallion's movie Legit; while the year before's headline was partying it up in Cabana 44, and me jumping into some shallow water, and breaking my ankle.  Anyways, this year's trip was all about living the dream, and living it to the fullest. While we may have been forced to cancel our plans for Thailand; chilling with Byerly, swimming with whale sharks, having the opportunity to film early mornings alone on the cable, and hitting up the system 2.0 staircase setup have all made this year's trip one that is pretty hard to beat.  

The weather was absolutely phenomenal; I mean, we honestly had 31 days of pure sunshine!  Soooo HOT!  And as always, the food was great: simple and cheap.  While my riding may not had been as hot as I would of liked, it was still good all in all.  Needless to say that I was nursing a sore knee, and a strained hip flexor which had set me back about a week.  Luckily tho it wasn't anything too serious, and we still managed to get some decent footage. 

Finally, I would just like to finish by saying THANK YOU to the people of the Philippines.  Never have I met such genuine, and selfless people.  May their way of life serve as an example to us all through their great deal of patience, sense of community, and pure content for everyday life.  These people have nothing, but yet they seem to have it all.  Hopefully I will have taken some of that great spirit with me, and appreciate just how easy I have it.  

Thanks to everyone for keeping up with the blog...and stay tuned as we still have a whole summer ahead of us, looking forward to it.  Cheers!

Manila Ink

THANKS to our good friend Paul Henry Familiaran from Republic, for showing us a great time in Manila.  Not only did we get a tour of Republic headquarters, but Paul also took us to Manila's best Thai restaurant called Som's, it was amazing!!  We also got to enjoy a last bottle of Tanduay rum with our wakeskater friends from the CWC, Tynna and Diana.  Thanks for having us over, gonna miss you girls!

(Justin getting a little touch up on his sleeve at P&P Tattoo in Manila on Sunday night)

Ollie Ross' Double S-bend...

Ross's Double S Bend from Jamie Colvin on Vimeo.

WHILE we were in Manila, Ollie Ross continued to throw down at the CWC.

CWC Send off...PARTY!!

BEER PONG is truly an international game, well at least at the CWC it is.  On Friday night, everyone decided we would be in for a good party since us, the Aussies, and the Germans will be leaving this weekend. The night started off with a few innocent drinking games, and quickly turned into a full blown disco party. The San Miguel's were flowing, and the Tanduay rhum was a shootin'!!  Needless to say things got pretty messy by night's end.  While these pictures may not entirely do the night justice, they will surely give you an idea of where we going...Cheers to good times with good people!

New Video!

OUR FOUR WEEKS have nearly come to an end at the CWC.  Yesterday I skimmed through Kelsey's USB key, and found a shit load of videos from our trip.  Thanks again to Jamie Colvin, Ross, and Harvey for sharing their videos with us.  Hope you have as much fun watching it as I did making it.  The song comes from a sick band, Greater than Giants, out of Edmonton, and who played in Timmins the week before we came out here.  

Names and Faces. (feat. Greater than Giants) from Johny Bonney on Vimeo.

Morning Project 05.13.10

EARLY MORNING set on one of the world's sickest, and about the only permanent, unique urban style rail setup for wakeboarding.  Justin, Charlie Sirois, and myself had the pleasure of hitting this thing, and it did not disappoint.  Great f"cking time!!  Big thanks to Leigh for waking up early to snap a few photos, cheers brotha!

Riding Days/Nights.

(Johny pressin' the evening 05.12.10)

4 more years! 4 more years!!

CONGRATULATIONS to Governor L-Ray Villafuerte for securing his third consecutive mandate as Governor of the Province of Camsur.  For those who don't know, the Gov is responsible for creating the CWC, and making it one of the best places in the world to wakeboard.  Better yet, he has managed to generate a sizable boost for the local Camsur economy by creating hundreds of jobs and attracting boat and cable wakeboarders from every corner of the globe.  Yeah, it's party time!

"That's not Snowflake! That's not Snowflake!!"

THE WHALE SHARK, Rhincodon typus, is a slow moving filter feeding shark, the largest living fish species. The largest confirmed individual had a length of 12.65 metres (41.50 ft) and a weight of more than 21.5 tonnes (47,000 lb), but unconfirmed claims report considerably larger whale sharks.  The shark is found in tropical and warm oceans, lives in the open sea with a lifespan of about 70 years.^[2] The species originated about 60 million years ago.  (wikipedia)


Swimming with the "Butanding" from Johny Bonney on Vimeo.

"Butanding" is the local name for the whale shark.  I cannot describe the feeling of swimming alongside these giant fish.  It was intense, peaceful, and surreal all at the same time.  After four trips to the Philippines, this was my first time experiencing the whale sharks, and I am very happy that I didn't pass it up. We had a lot of fun, with a great group of people (Aussies, English, German, and Spanish).  I will never forget the sight of that massive fish...all I could think of was Ace Ventura when he's swimming in the shark tank, and yelling: "That's not snowflake! That's not snowflake!!" haha 

New edit! 05.06.10

HAD some camera troubles the last few days.  Finally sorted it out with a little help from my English friend Jamie Colvin (www.jamiecolvin.com), cheers mate!!  Enjoy.

@ the CWC: vol. 3 from Johny Bonney on Vimeo.

A Good Morning!

TODAY was a good day for filming.  We had them open the cable for us at 7:30 am, and enjoyed a private session while filming.  Justin stuck three frontside toe 7's for the first time on film, and I stomped a heel front 7 among other things.  Gonna take the rest of the day to work on a new edit that's been on the shelve for the last week! haha I'm on island time here...stay tuned.

Some Perspective.

CHECK out my friend Olivia Wycech's "The Thai Red Shirts" blog entry.  It offers an unfiltered, first hand experience of what's really happening on  the streets of Bangkok, Thailand.  -->Read The Thai Red Shirts

(Photo: Olivia Wycech www.simplyolivia.com)

No pain, no gain.

(after his first four days, Charlie Sirois is left burnt, sore, and blistered)

Insurance? Check.

"Do we get our money back?"-Justin

"Yes sir. The full amount"- travel agent

                                
                         "but, it will take four to six months to process"

 "...I beg your pardon?"- Justin

NEVER leave home without travel insurance eh, because it's for bullshit like this you may need it (unless of course you decide to jump into some really shallow water and brake an ankle, travel insurance would also be good).  Anyways, we called our travel insurance today, and filed a claim that will ensure me a full refund for all "pre-paid arrangements made before departure". Beautiful! haha  But on the other hand,  it also cost us 3,020 pesos (about 75$ CDN) to extend our filipino visas, and another 150$ to extend our stay here at the CWC. So, it kinda evens out in the end I guess.  Finally, I asked the travel insurance rep what would happen if we did go to Thailand, and he basically explained that if anything would happen as a result of the political crisis (i.e. missed flights, injuries, hotel bookings), we would not be covered because we knowingly "ignored the potential for trouble".  So yeah, no gimmicks here; travel insurance is pretty sweet. 

Thailand is a no go...

IT'S OFFICIAL, we will NOT be going to Thai Wake Park in Bangkok, Thailand.  The travel advisory remains in effect, as the situation continues to deteriorate there.  We're pretty bummed out about the whole thing, we've been hearing nothing but good things about Thai Wake Park.  These sorta things are unpredictable, and comes with the territory when travelling; you gotta be flexible, and ready to change with things on the fly. I guess it just wasn't meant to be this time around.  At least it will serve as motivation to try again next year; I mean, it's gotta be done.  Thailand is too sick to pass up.  As for now, I'll just keep enjoying the ride at the 'ol c-dub. Tomorrow morning we will need to go to a Philippines Airlines sales office in Naga to officially cancel our flight to Bangkok, and after that we'll need to visit the Immigration Bureau to extend our tourist visas. To think, we are at the midway mark of our trip with only 2 weeks to go, WOW! Time to shred...

Take Notice...

RAPH DEROME.  This video comes from my friend Yan Roy at wake2wake.ca.  It features Quebec's prodigy that is Raph Derome, the younger brother of fellow ripper Oli Derome.  They are absolutely killing it right now...Together with Yan Thibault, they will be competing in next week's infamous Nokia FISE all rail contest in Montpellier, France...t'entend.  Best of luck les boys!!

The Government of Canada says...

WE HAVE BEEN keeping a close eye on Thailand ever since we booked our tickets last month. In case you didn't know, there is an escalating political standoff between the people of Thailand and their government. For months now, Thai Red Shirts, as they are called, have been taking to the streets of Bangkok in protest of the current Prime Minister, who they claim as illegitimate; they are calling for his immediate resignation, and want new elections. Only recently (past 6 weeks or so) have these demonstrations turned violent with police, which has led the Thai Government to call in the military and to start cracking down on the wide spread demonstrations across Bangkok; they have even declared Marshall Law, and restricted civil liberties. So with that said, the Government of Canada has issued an official travel warning of "avoid all non-essential travel" to Thailand. Obviously we have been forced to rethink our plans for Thailand, and contemplate extending our stay here in the Phillies. I know. It's a win win situation, but a decision needs to be made non the less. Good news is that we can have our tickets to Thailand refunded if we decide not to go. My only concern about Thailand is not being able to live the full experience. I rather dislike restrictions, and distractions. What do you think?

Thailand Travel Advisory from the Government of Canada

New Video! 04.28.10

Russian Games, and Scott Byerly @ the CWC from Johny Bonney on Vimeo.

THE LAST 2 DAYS have been truly surreal.  The like, godfather of wakeboarding, Scott Byerly, unexpectedly payed a visit to the CWC; the Gov didn't even know that he was coming. Turns out he was brought here by Nautiques and a Russian wakeboard clinic, currently going on here, to chill and ride for 2 days.  Whatever the reason, it was a definite treat to ride and chill with this true legend of the sport.  He is everything wakeboarding is, and should be.  But I cannot go without mentioning these crazy Russians who had invited Scott to come out in the first place.  They have been riding/partying non-stop for the last 2 days...check out this game they had us play last night, Russia vs. Team CWC. Shit got weird haha

Filming in progress...

(C-box session, bird's eye view.)

Kelsey's Tiki Hut

TIKI HUTS are the CWC's cheapest accommodation at less than 20$ CDN/night.  They come with daily maid service, air conditioning, and a detached shared bathroom with multiple showers.  Everything you need really, and beats the average hostel without a doubt. Not to mention that you are just steps away from the lakeside; not exactly roughing it I'd say.

And check out the the back yard...(notice the mango tree to the right)

Don't go chasing waterfalls...

TODAY we decided to take a break from riding, and explore our surroundings a little.  We knew we wanted to visit Consosep falls, but we just had to figure how to get there.  Renting a jeepney is the most economical way of doing this sort of day trip, and will run you about 2,000 pesos as a standard tourist price (50$ CDN).  So the more people you get chippin' in, the cheaper it is for everyone.  After rounding up two rather enthusiastic Enlgish boys (Luc and Dave), we approached a group of filipinos who Kelsey had made friends with earlier this morning.  This proved to be very convenient because when it came to negotiating a price for the jeepney, our filipinos friends got us a bargain at 1,500 pesos! haha  And with that settled, we were all on our way up and around Mount Isarog...

New Video!

SO WE FINALLY got around to filming something.  Unfortunately the light, nor the video quality really up to my standards, but I figured it's better than nothing.  The video is of Justin taking a quick set on one of CWC's newest obstacles...the step up.  Check it out "Justin and the CWC's Republic Step up"

Justin and the CWC's Republic Step UP from Johny Bonney on Vimeo.

The FLX: new possibilities.

MY NEW BOARD, the Liquid Force FLX 142, is breathing new life into my riding.  Although this board has NOT given me any jedi superpowers, riding the FLX has definitely changed the way I approach rail riding.  For the last three years, flex boards (like a snowboard) have made huge strides in becoming something legit, and worth riding.  My friend Didier was right: "les wakeboard dures s'ont finis" (translation: "flex is the shit"), and after seen him rip last summer, I couldn't agree more.  I just hope I will be able to do the board justice haha...OH! and thanks to Hubert @ Fokus, and Liquid Force for hookin' it up!


check it out at liquidforce.com

Riding footy coming soon...

THIS EVENING we are gonna test Kelsey's waterproof HD camera.  We will do some follow shots, and see just how good the quality is...I'll be posting the results tonight. Stay tuned.

Bon appétit!

(grilled talapia, and pork w/veggies)

IF YOU'RE GONNA attempt to live like a local, you gotta be ready to eat like a local.  Filipino food may not look very appetizing, but man does it have flavour.  One way to stretch your budget here is to eat locally as much as possible.  Granted the CWC has some good food, it is expensive compared to what you can eat outside the complex. But when it comes to lunch, you don't have to venture far to have a cheap, authentic, and nutritious meal.  The Capitol is where the complex's workers go have lunch.  A meal here will run you no more than 2$ CDN, and comes with rice and your choice of two meat and/or fish dishes.  Open your mind, and open your mouth cause this food is damn good! Bon appétit!

(left: rice w/pork and sauce, right: chicken curry)

My philly hood.

Just follow the stone brick road...

Chapter IV: Welcome back to the CWC!

BIENVENUE au 4e session des Philippines!  The beautiful mountain in the background you see is Mt. Isarog, which happens to be an ancient volcanoe now dormant.  

I guess this would be a good time to introduce our travelling partner Kelsey Chiappa (Ottawa, ON).  Back in January she committed to coming with us, and now well, here she is.  It's probably also worth mentioning that we are down two soldiers this time around.  Kent Baltare was unable to attend this year's trip because he is in Vacouver; apperently still suffering the effects of an Olympic hangover; as for our friend Jordan Sien, he had an unfortunate accident while riding in Florida back in February.  The poor kid snapped his femur after doing a heelside front roll.  Our thoughts are with the kid as we wish him a full and speedy recovery.  Stay strong brother.

Chapter III: Manila to Naga and the CWC.

AFTER LANDING in Manila saturday night, we had only 7 hours between our final flight to Naga City at 6:45 am Sunday morning.  So we figured we would save a few pesos, and setup camp in the airport.  After gaining a few hours of sleep, it was finally time to check in.  After 3 flights, it was all but routine: passports, boarding passes, security, gate numbers etc...Right.  After going through security, Justin and I decided to grab a coffee.  Apparently this coffee was so good that we completely loss track of time, and showed up a little late to our departure gate only to found out that the plane was gone. We missed our f*cking flight!! Luckily there was another plane leaving at 9:05.  So another 1,500 pesos, and we would be on our way...finally. 

Chapter II: Ottawa to Chicago to Tokyo to Manila.

SO WE TOOK off from Ottawa at 6:55 am on April 16th, and arrived in Manila Saturday night April 17th at approx 10:30 pm local time.  The flights were good for the most part.  But man it would be hard to imagine travelling without a personal screen on the back of each seat with the ability to control what you wanna watch, when you wanna watch it. (I think I watched 4 movies)  We were pretty fortunate to have these luxuries, cause our next flight reminded us that it wasn't always so cozy.  Thank you to Japan Airlines for getting us to Manila safe, sound, and with ALL our luggage. "Niiiice!!"

And FYI, did you know...The first trans-pacific flight was something like 75 years ago, and took off from San Francisco to the Philippines.  It took 6 and half days to complete the trip. And to think we did it in 16 hours...that's pretty cool.

Mmmm...nothing like some authentic Japanese green tea in Tokyo after a 12 hr and 27 min flight.

Chapter I: Timmins to Ottawa.

ALTHOUGH we have over 30 hrs of flying ahead of us, the longest part will be making it from Timmins ON to Ottawa ON.  8hrs south east by car.  Hopefully the 'ol honda will get us there, and LB didn't sell us a lemon.  Best 300$ Justin has ever spent!  Bon voyage!

Packing on a shoestring.

WAKEBOARD: CHECK. Shorts: check.  Helmet: check.  Life vest: check. Sunscreen: check.  Passport: check! Next stop: Philippines...

CWC Flashback

What keeps me going back to the CWC? This year will be my 4th trip in 4 years to the Philippines; oddly it will be the first time my bro, Justin, and I travel there together. (We once crossed paths there after leaving Australia, and were able to spend a few days riding before he went home.) But I'll be honest, and admit that I'm having some mixed emotions about going. I think it's normal to feel a little "nervously excited". I mean, the place is far and you've gotta be ready for anything, all the while expecting nothing. Just be present, and live the moment. 
Check out these video highlights from last year's trip...http://www.vimeo.com/6156116

Season Opener: Philippines and Thailand.

Philippines
April 18th-May 7th
Camsur Watersports Complex
Naga City, Camarines Sur PHI
www.cwcwake.com 

Thailand
May 8th-May16th
Thai Wake Park (TWP)
Bangkok, Thailand
www.thaiwakepark.com

While I'm always excited to visit the CWC, I love the idea of visiting Thailand's newest and sickest cable park! New terrain, with some pretty unique obstacles like this fresh new wall ride.