Zigzag

Zigzag is one of South Africa's oldest niche titles, and the third longest running surf magazine in the world. For more than four decades we've been delivering surf journalism of the highest quality, stunning surf imagery and world class magazine production values.

Zigzag • ISSUE 50.1 SUMMER 2025/26

50 YEARS GREG EWING

THE FOUNDERS • ANY BUSINESS THAT MAKES IT TO 50 YEARS HAS DONE SOMETHING RIGHT. BUT A SURF MAG STILL STANDING STRONG IN 2025? THAT’S ALMOST UNHEARD OF.

BIG PICTURE

ICONS • AS ZIGZAG MARKS 50 YEARS OF SURF STORYTELLING, WE HONOUR FIVE EXTRAORDINARY INDIVIDUALS, EACH OF WHOM REWROTE THE RULES.

THE GODFATHER JOHN WHIT MORE • John Whitmore (1921-2001) took to the Cape Atlantic like salt to the sea. From the age of five he splashed about in the old Sea Point promenade pool; but he soon began to play in the ocean proper at Boat Bay, just beneath the pavilion.

TRAILBLAZER THE SHAUN TOMSON • AS FIRST LIGHT REVEALS DURBAN’S BAY OF PLENTY, THE SAND AND SEA BEGIN THEIR DAILY DANCE. OFFSHORE, SHIFTING SANDBARS SHAPE WAVES, AND FOR A FEW MAGICAL HOURS, THE OCEAN BECOMES A LIVING TAPESTRY. SHAUN TOMSON LEARNED TO READ THAT PUZZLE AS A BOY, LATER CHANNELLING HIS SKILLS AND PASSION INTO A MOVEMENT THAT RESHAPED THE IMAGE OF SURFING.

THE BIG WAVE SURFER GRANT ‘TWIGGY’ BAKER

THE FREE SUREER FRANKIE OBERHOLZER

THE COMPETITOR JORDY SMITH • THERE’S A PHOTO BURIED DEEP IN THE ZIGZAG ARCHIVES – NOT A COVER, JUST A BACK-OF-THE-ISSUE FILLER FROM 2001 – OF A GANGLY 13-YEAR-OLD AT DAIRY BEACH, ALL ELBOWS, KNEES AND SUN-BLEACHED HAIR. THE CAPTION: “YOUNG GUN JORDY SMITH – ONE TO WATCH.”

A FRONT ROW SEAT TO THE REVOLUTION • FROM FROM CLOUDBREAK TO PIPELINE, TODAY’S FEMALE SURFERS ARE REDEFINING THE SPORT.

A-FRAMES • A CELEBRATION OF THE PLACES, PEOPLE AND MOMENTS THAT SHAPE SURFING IN SOUTH AFRICA AND ACROSS THE CONTINENT. FROM MOZAMBIQUE’S SUNLIT POINTS TO MOROCCO’S RAW ATLANTIC ENERGY, OUR GALLERY THREADS TOGETHER STORIES OF COASTLINES NEAR AND FAR, CAPTURING THE ESSENCE OF WHAT IT MEANS TO LIVE AND BREATHE BY THE OCEAN.

Castles IN THE Sand • A mission across time zones, a hidden sandbar that barely exists on maps, and one life-changing wave. This is the story of a fleeting strike to a secret right.

SHOWCASE

OLIVER PASCOE

AVUYILE SIYAVUYA NDAMASE

OUR WORLD

OFF THE Leash • The Ben Trovato Column

PAT FLANAGAN • A tribute to the man who taught us that surfing could look like it felt.

ZAG COVER FACTS • AFTER FIVE DECADES AND 300 REGULAR ISSUES, ZIGZAG’S COVERS HAVE BECOME THE DEFINITIVE VISUAL RECORD OF SOUTH AFRICAN SURFING’S GREATEST MOMENTS AND PERSONALITIES.

A TESTAMENT TO LONGEVITY