Photos: Chumbo Goes Crazy At Psycho Sydney Slab

Soft-spoken, easy-going, and probably the most well-traveled surf photographer on the planet. Renowned for his exotic exploration and work with the likes of the Rip Curl Search and aboard Captain Martin Daly’s NDA trips, when a sizable swell recently popped off the coast of his native Australia, Ted Grambeau beelined it straight to Sydney for a heavy day of slab scoring. The photos below speak for themselves, but to set the mood, here’s Ted’s take on how it all came together:

Dylan Longbottom marked his 52nd birthday in fitting fashion by assembling a strike team of two of the world’s most talented and fearless surfers, and celebrated with his passion for extreme surfing. Lucas “Chumbo” Chianca, one of Dylan’s own team riders, and close friend Lucas Fink made the journey to Australia to sample some serious local energy. It was their first time Down Under, and within 48 hours, they were deep inside eight-foot slabs at Ours, followed by 12- to 15-foot point breaks just a short drive from Sydney. 

The swell was the product of an intense low-pressure system that formed almost on the city’s doorstep, delivering raw, concentrated power to the coast. Dylan is a master craftsman, shaping boards purpose-built for extreme surf, but his skill extends well beyond the bay. He operates with the precision of a tactician, orchestrating fluid, fast-moving strike missions that chase conditions with instinct and intent.

Chumbo stands at the pinnacle of big wave surfing, not only for his composure in consequential surf, but for a level of technical control that sets him apart. Fink, meanwhile, brings something entirely his own, an extraordinary talent, drawing from a skimboard lineage to navigate heavy, technical waves with a style that feels almost untethered from convention.

And this is only the beginning. Dylan and crew remain on the move, their trajectory dictated solely by swell charts and shifting weather systems, a rolling campaign with weeks still to unfold.