The opportunity to go to Bali was too inviting. From my first trip to the Islands of Gods in 1971 right up till today I love going back. Sure, the many changes that have taken place in those 30 years have been radical to say the least, however the waves and the people are still the same. The fact that Kuta has changed from a sleepy fishing village in a coconut grove to what today can only be described as a Fellini movie is very strange, but I still love the place and people.

The opportunity to go shoot some surfing for a new Honda television commercial was very tempting. Sure I'd be working most of the time, but the just the thought of being back in Bali and maybe getting a wave or two sucked me in.

The commercial was for a new car being released by Honda in Asia. This sleek little van looked a bit like a small version of a Toyota Tarago. It carries 7 people. The storyboard looked interesting. A guy would paddle out, take off and get tubed, and then 6 other guys would come out of the tube with him. They would all then drive off in the new car.

The director was an award winning gentleman named Kent Allen of Micronite Productions. Kent proved to be an absolute classic. I was wondering how he was going to do this magic trick of getting all these guys out of the tube, nothing short of pulling a rabbit out of a hat with all the things that we had going against us.

The worst was the weather that gave us about 30 minutes of sunlight in the week my assistant Sinclair Black and I were there. The tide, the light, and the wind always seemed to be against us. Kent was having his difficulties also. Finally after waiting 3 days, we started shooting in the overcast conditions to get something in the can.

My talent was a cool young man Hamish Whyle. His faithful sidekick was great Bali surfer and Quiksilver rider, Tip Jabrik. We also had the services of Steve who provided jet ski support. We did our very best to try and come up with a tube shot, but as ready as we were to shoot it, the surf never gave us the chance.

We did score some great waves at Nusa Dua where we shot what we could, but it's a big playing field out there on that long reef and almost impossible to hook up for a tube shot on what little tube moments there were. However we did get some fantastic surfing action and beautiful underwater shots that Kent assured me will do just fine.

And what about the shot of the 7 guys coming out of the tube on one board? Well in the film and commercial world, it's all done with smoke and mirrors. I believe Kent will make a cracker of a commercial. We may try and put it on this site when it's done. We'll keep you posted.

Till then I'd like to thank Debe, Shinto, Gerald and most of all Kent, and the rest of the gang for a great week, and to Sinclair for making it all happen with the gear. I love a challenge!