Donate them to kids.

South Africa seems to have the cheapest surfboards. For around 1400 Rand which is about $275 Aussie dollars or 8500 pesos you can get a good stick and some of them will send it to you. I dont know the freight costs but I wouldnt think it would be all that expensive. There are a few web sites you can check out. My mate is going over next month so I will be getting my new stick when he gets back. Beats paying between 550 - 750 Aussie dollars. I dont know about the Thai surfboards but you really need to buy surfboards from countries that have a long history in surfing otherwise you will be limited in the shapes available and the expertise of the shapers although before anyone spins out there are always execptions to the rule. I cant believe there are no shapers in the cloud nine area. Lack of electricity maybe I dont know. I have never been there. Maybe Millie could get one of her industry friends to sponsor a Pinoy or Pinay for a short apprenticeship in Australia in board shaping then you guys can start your own industry. Probably wouldnt work though because the materials required are probably beyond the means of most Filipino surfers and the yuppie ones would not have the ability or the energy to do it.
Cheers

Millie you are very noble. If anyone is opposed to your idea then I think they have a problem.
Cheers

I wouldnt be kicking if I was you guys only leads to unstableness.

The pros do a lot of things us mere mortals are unable to do.

You need to be an experienced surfer to surf Catanduanes the waves are way too heavy for beginners.
Cheers

If your going to wait for peace and order to be restored you are going to be waiting a long time. It hasnt happened in the 20 years I have been ascociated with the country so I cant see it improving now. Keep your wits about you and enjoy it otherwise dont go. Everywhere in the world is dangerous at some time or other. Mind your business and just go surfing and I am sure you will be OK.

Spend the money on deck grip then you will never need wax again.

Good luck on your quest. If they are not being made around the Cloud Nine area then the materials required must be too expensive to acquire so I doubt whether anyone would be making them for a living in the PI. Remember Siargo is the capital of surfing in the PI (sorry to you guys in La Union)so if they are not making them you are probably correct about it being an urban myth.
Batangas would be a good spot for manufacturing boards considering it is so close to the PI's best surf breaks (brand me a cynic) dont you think. Maybe they are making them somewhere near the hidden Marcos gold, find that and you will find the board manufacturers. Good luck.

I wouldnt say that Batangas is in the Daet area. It could be plausible that someone was attempting to make boards around the Bicol region considering it possibly has some of the best surf in the country. Some of you guys from Daet maybe can enlighten everyone here. There was talk of it happening in the Daet region but I dont know if this is true.
Hey Sponj get Millie to teach you when she's over there in December and you can be the one.
Before considering buying a locally made board think about this. Anyone can make a board but only a select crew can make a board that works. You will usually find the best and most experienced board shapers in the countries that have established surfing communities. Surfing is relatively new to the Philippines in the sense that it has only been the last 5 or 6 years that there have been a growing number of Filipino surfers. Unfortunately the experience has not yet matured in the Philippines to the extent that is required for board shaping. Remember the best board shapers are usually (not always) very good surfers and their experience comes out in their design. What I am trying to say is that if you want to invest 15-20000 pesos on a stick then wouldnt it be better to buy one from someone who has the experience vision and expertise to manufacture something that will work. I am not condeming Pinoy shapers as only through trial and error will they achieve that experience. The best option would be for someone with talent to be sponsored by a board shaper in Australia or the States so they can learn the trade as was done with a few Balinese surfers during the 80's and 90's. Someone with the talent should beg Millie for help. She has the contacts the energy and the lust to help out Pinoy surfers. (sorry to drop you into it Millie)  
Surf report 1 foot crap great conditions but no swell. Saw on the tele the Gold coast pumping that sandbank stretching from Greenmount to Kirra looks insane. Hows the swell in you neck of the woods Millie hope its better than ours.

My sentiments exactly. Thats the way most of us in Australia feel as well. I would personally like regime change to start at home.
Cheers

Tell them who you really are Jerry and let them know your feelings about Bush and his cronies. The American, British and Australian governments are hypocryticle in the way they accuse Saddam of all these so called crimes against humanity and his weapons of mass destruction. Firstly America and Britain both have weapons of mass destruction and pride themselves in having them. America used chemical weapons on its own troops and its allies during the Vietnam war in the form of defoliants and argue the point that it was necessary. Both these nations in their history have been aggressors and colonisers against smaller nations unable to defend themselves and they call this bringing democracy to the world. In the case of Australia we dont have a history of being an aggressor or a colonialist power but we have been guilty of dealing with the so called brutal regime of Saddam to the tune of more than a billion dollars a year in trade while maintaining the moral stance that sanctions should be enforced against Iraq. The reason Iraq is an impoverished nation is not entirely because Saddam has taken all the money for himself or his cronies but because of 12 years of UN sanctions militarily backed by the so called Coalition of the willing. The images I am seeing on the TV make me ashamed to be Australian. It is illegal to wage war on any nation that is not a threat to your country and by allowing this to happen now we are opening up a pandoras box giving free reign to America and its good friends to do whatever they like wherever and whenever they like in the world. The events of september 11 were disgraceful and should not be condoned by anyone but America, Britain and Australia have been supporting brutal regimes throughout the world who combined kill more people on a daily basis than unfortunately died in September 2001. Anyone who agrees with the stance the coalition of the willing is right and just will have the blood of millions on their conciense. I take my hat off to France, Germany, Russia and China for openly condemning the current acts of aggression and I hope they are not harassed or intimidated by others to change their stances. If Iraq did not have oil then we would not be invading them at the moment. There are far more brutal regimes in the world than Iraq and we are not doing anything to them in the way of freeing their peoples from the oppression we are only aiding that oppression by enforcing sanctions upon some or openly allying ourselves with others. This world is in a f@#@ed up mess and it is the doing of the so called democratic countries. Spend the money we waste trying to bomb the crap out of Iraq, Afganistanon and other lesser known countries on humanitarian aide throughout the world and we may find the world would be a much safer place.
Cheers

I am aghast to find there is theft in the Philippines. Can this be really true. Come on everyone you need to have commonsense when you are outside of your own home. You wouldn't leave your valuables on the beach when your in the water would you. Don't leave your valuables lying around in your room. Have your own lock with you and basically don't trust anyone you don't really know. It doesn't matter what country your in or what hotel, surfcamp or house your staying in. If you leave valuables within the reach of thieves then they will take them.
Cheers

I had no worries when I stayed at Hacienda except like Jim says watch out for the geese

Kumusta gang just got home from a short trip to a foreign destination. Waves were OK. Glad to be greeted by a nice 4-5ft NE swell at the local. Got a few good ones today only myself one other guy on a board and 3 lids in the water. Sunny 25 degrees and the water is still warm enough for a springy.
Looks like surf season has officially opened in the Pines with a N NE swell heading down the east coast.
Al sorry to hear about your problem as now would be a good time to start re exploring Quezon province and beyond. I will send you some more wax in the near future as I am sure someone I know will be heading off to Manila in the not to distant future.
Myself I have a full on 8 weeks of 12 hours a day 7 days a week work so with a little luck I will be in the Pines around the beginning of August.
How long are you going for Millie?
Anyone out there not contemplating travel because of terrorists or SARS dont worry. It is all a hoax from your local tourist board trying to get you to holiday at home.
You probably have more chance to be involved in a car accident at home than you are at being involved in a terrorist attack. They happen and my condolences go out to the families of the victims but hey life has to go on. We cant stay cocooned in our own homes forever.
That bra thing you were all talking about seems fascinating.
Does that stop SARS or is it just another of those youth fashion things.
Have a good fruitful wave filled trip Millie and if things get out of control dont panic just look the other way.
One other thing before I go my 10 year old daughter yesterday won the New South Wales Karate Kumite open so she is now officially the New South Wales open champion not bad going after only a year of training and my 12 year old daughter came 4th in her age group.
Cheers to everyone hope you have a fantastic uncrowded season of waves.
Paalam kaibigan.

Thanks gang my daughter appreciates the support.
Millie have a good safe trip and Sponj glad to hear your alive.
Cheers everyone hope its pumping.

We have had those nasty things cruising around Aussie waters for centuries. Makes a Corrigedor surf a little more spooky.

I prefer Lapu Lapu myself Sponj.

If you didnt get waves on the weekend Millie then you robbed yourself. I noticed a few waves may have been happening on the east side but obviously I cant confirm that except to say the season has started. Hope your having a good time girl and those nasty  gin drinking pinoys havent been hassling you.
Surf over here about 1 foot and not very inspiring.
Cheers

You should have seen us in 1984 when we first travelled there. Some people thought we had weapons in our board bags. Hardly anyone had ever seen a surfboard no one could figure out what it was for. We had some funny experiences trying to get them onto planes and buses.

He did a good thing for you Al. If he had helped you in you probably would have given up surfing.
I,ve had far too many heavy moments to single out one. One funny moment that could have turned nasty was one sunday we went to the cockfights by banca from Majestics to Gigmoto and on the way back the motor stopped and Rudy being the lazy bugger he is started to panick. Anyway it was getting dark and we were roughly a kilometer away so my mate and I start paddling using a piece of wood we had in the boat and our arms. We only had the small light at the restaurant to guide us in and we had to come across the reef. The surf was only 3 or 4 foot but trying to bring a boat in through the gap in the dark at Majestics can be daunting. It took us about an hour and a half to get it in but we made it. The funny thing was when we checked the engine the following morning the fuel lead had come off something we could have easily fixed in about a minute.

Hey Sponj hope you and your brothers are getting plenty of use with the board.
Hope its pumping.
Cheers

Hey Kat what are you into it for?

Its been popular for me since 1984.(surfing in the PI that is)Anyway if your a real surfer then you are not going to be bothered how anyone else can surf. Im sure it doesnt bother me. Remember a kook is someone who cant accept others for what they are. Cheers

Hey Al you forgot that your plane could crash your ferry could sink or your bus could career down an embankment.
Hope the backs healing.
Cheers