Cry, baby...

Guess who got a surf this morning.

Guess who missed it.

Breakfast Of Champions and Movie Legends?

So far as I'm concerned, you can't call it a Sunday morning without it involving some form of spicy food. A big bowl of Chilli, congealed scrapings from the Madras tub lingering after last nights Indian takeaway.... An acquired taste, perhaps, but one that I've long stood on my soapbox and evangelised about. It beats wimpy cornflakes.

My friend James shares my fetish for hot food, and he too is known to indulge in things fiery of a Sunday morning. He cooks a mean Chilli Omelette (since renamed the 'Chomelette') Soaked in chilli oil, loaded with cheese... I defy anyone to bolt one of these bad boys and not believe that chickens were put on this planet explicitly for the purpose of banging out eggs fit for a hard whisking.

Tenuous, granted, but I like to think that maybe the late, great Dennis Hopper would approve of this kind of breakfast. So todays tasty omelette was for Dennis.

Grrrrrrrrrrr

Bears are double hard nutters.

Black Bears, Grizzley Bears, Polar Bears, Bear Grills "born survivour" not to mention Super Ted.
You wouldn't want to spill your pint on anyone of them!

But this one could have them all in a bank holiday scuffle......

Good old days........

The Fear

It's still quite quiet here in Bude so I've decided it's a good day for a field trip to see Gul Newquay and Gul Padstow in action. Now, this would actually be quite fun were it not for my dread of driving in towns and cities. Being a proud yokel, used to trolling the quiet North Cornish byways, the idea of putting myself into the maelstrom of a busy town centre is the stuff of which, for me, terrifying nightmares are made of. All the signs! All the traffic lights! All the bikinis...

Luckily, though, I have some sympathy in a fellow manager based a little further South. She (who shall remain nameless) suffers the cold sweats of autophobia just like me. But she's had a breakthrough. She suggested I buy a satnav system, to make my life a lot easier: She swears it's revolutionised her ability to not break down and cry in large conurbations.

But as I am a product of the Blue Peter generation, quite prepared to make stuff out of what I already have lying around doing nothing (and, frankly, I'm tight) I came up with a much better idea that would cost far, far less.

A home-made TomTom.

Let's hit the road!

The Camper Van Man

A good friend of the shop and contributor to our recent photo competition, Mr Martin Dorey has just released his first book. It's called The Camper Van Cookbook, and it's really very very good. (I'll be honest, I don't have a copy yet, although I did see a small sample copy. But off the back of this blatant plug I'm hoping a free one will mysteriously turn up on the doorstep... You know where I am Martin.)

Of course, it's full of tasty recipes that are easy to make and although aimed at those cooking on 4 wheels, there is no reason the same recipes can't be knocked up when back at base. It's also got plenty in there on beach life and beach concerns, and photography that will bring a warm Summer back to mind throughout the deepest Winter.

Keep your eyes on the TV too - the BBC have commissioned a series based on the book. Martin starts filming next month.

You can purchase a copy of the book here, read Martins frequently updated blog here, or join him on twitter here.

You can also watch him out worrying mussels on local North Cornish beaches, just here.

The Komornicki Posts #2

Some more shots from our man Nick, on the ground in Utah.

"The new Gul shop, Utah?" - Nick.

The Opulency of Spring

It's been a pretty special weekend.
Whilst we've been running our Spring Sale here in store, which continues today and onward, the weather and surf colluded to bring us the sweetest weekend yet this year. With the ethereal greens bursting from the treetops and hedgerows, the 3-4ft rumbling lefthanders, the simmering sun at sunrise and the evening afterglow - we had it real good.
Here's some shots from the last 72 hours:

Another Komornicki Dispatch tomorrow.

Sundaze

I was going to do a photo blog today, laying bare how amazing it's been up in Northern Kernowfornia this weekend. But then I figured, it's still on, there's plenty of this sunny Sunday left.

So it waits until tomorrow, bar this little teaser shot...

Down-Time

Babies, surfing, serving lots of customers...

Poor Tom's had a long morning... so he's having a well-earned snooze through lunch.

The Komornicki Posts

We know this guy called Nick.

Nick Komornicki.

Nick is a really good friend of the shop here, a spirited surfer, a father to twins and he works on some very big Hollywood movies.

He's currently out filming in Utah (the US State where Jon Bon Jovi filmed the hair-tingling video to his hit tune 'Blaze Of Glory'). We've just received the first of several (we hope) photo dispatches.

So continuing our touch of Americana this week, here's a few shots he took whilst out on the lonely road.

Just don't ask how to pronounce his second name.

"I still can't find the sea, just a lot of sand."

SPRING SALE

What's that you say?

It's the perfect day for shopping in Bude?

Well, we agree totally. And to convince you that your hard-earned pennies are best spent on top quality fashion in the Bude Gul store, we've got many discounts on many, many pieces.

Just for you.

Yes, you.

Drop by for a good hard perusal.

Gul Bude presents... Lewis Stritch

We're proud to introduce our first shop sponsor here at Gul Bude - Lewis Stritch. Lewis is a bit handy with a longboard and is currently ranked no less than 1st in the UK under-18's. He's been consistently pulling in great contest results and will be heading to the Celtic Games in Spain with Ben Skinner and another Gul lad, James Parry. He's competing at the Gul sponsored (deep breath) Hotdoggers Saunton Epic Longboard Championship in North Devon over the weekend. We proudly handed him his shiny new Summer Red Viper wetsuit this morning...

...but unfortunately for Lewis, nothing in this world is free, so we made him work for it first...

...but he was PUMPED when he left the shop. Good luck Lewis!

Jack Johns....

GUL presents Jack Johns from allan wilson on Vimeo.

Kernowfornia

I'm a big fan of California. With a lot of family in LA, it's a place I have the luxury of being able to visit relatively cheaply and easily. It has heat, sun, flora, fauna, sea, mountains, deserts, tacos and margaritas in abundance. It's also where, arguably, modern surfing came of age, and the heritage of such is to be found up and down the Californian Pacific coast. There is somewhat of a kindred between that and Gul's appearance on the Cornish coast back in '67.
We like to think there's a little bit of California right here in this shop - Kernowfornia, if you will.
Here's some shots of California (predominantly LA) that I took on my last couple of visits:

...and this is Maggie the chihuahua. She lives in Compton, drinks beer and likes to have her belly tickled.

I Pity these fools............

"In 1967 a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit. These individuals promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Bude underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as shop assistants of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire the GUL ... A-Team."

The A-Team are:
"Hannibal" Smith (Emma Gunby)
Templeton "Faceman" Peck (Rachel Pettit)
H.M. Murdock (Tom Barnett)
B.A. Baracus (Cai Wagget)

Now Showing.......

"5 Stars *****" says EMPIRE

"Acting is second to none" Jonathon Ross

"Best film you'll see this summer" Heat magazine

"This film sucks" Vacuum cleaner weekly

" Emma! This is your wake up call, I AM A G....U....L... Agent!"

"I know man isn't it wild?!"

Has anyone seen Tom?

MISSING:

One staff member, last seen heading for the beach. Will respond to the name Tom although you'll need to shout as he'll no doubt have Taio Cruz pumping through his bright red BREO headphones. Is wearing nothing more than a GUL SHORT JOHN and a smile.

LAST KNOWN WHEREABOUTS:

Belle Vue, Bude, outside the GUL STORE. The shot below was taken by a tourist who was taking a photo of his wife and mother-in-law. The visitor maintains that all he saw in the frame at the time was a blur of red, black and slightly pastey white. So please note that Tom is moving at quite a rate towards the beach.

IF SPOTTED:

Tempt him into a big net with an ice-cream and call his mum.

Old Gul Wetties Still Wanted

Help us get back to the old school ..........

Battle Of Stratton

It's Battle Of Stratton day here today. It's a commemoration of the infamous battle of Stamford Hill, a notorious scrap between the Cavaliers and the Roundheads during the English Civil War. Basically, the format is, a bunch of men and women (who have little more in common than facial hair and membership of CAMRA) get all dressed up and shouty and shoot at nothing more threatening than a patch of weary daisies. But despite my cynicism, I'll admit, it is actually quite exciting, and quite the spectacle to behold. I did used to love it as a kid - all the firing cannons, lance charges and smoking muskets. It's so realistic that I even saw a soldier hurt his left thumb once. He went and got a plaster and some aspirin and was fine. No doubt just as he would have in 1643.

No sleep 'til Liliput

Emma is away up country at the moment (what is it with the staff heading North? It's like a shop full of migrating arctic hares...)

With her out of the way, we can upload a shot that we really like but that she takes issue with. We're unsure quite why - we think she looks great hanging out with ickle Billy, our little head-free mini-quin. And if you like the look of the wetsuit Billy has on, you can find it here. Likewise, the very popular hoody that Emma is wearing is available right here.

Her trousers are specially tailored....

Glued in Bude

Not content with having the only exploding toilet in the South West, Gul Plymouth expressed a very real desire to come and steal our beloved swing sign. They're currently having a very beautiful refit and we here in Bude think they may try and half-inch our sign to be the cherry on top of their new decor cake.

Not a chance.

To increase security I duly ordered Tom up our most rickety stepladder (oh don't fret - I was holding it) to superglue the catches. In doing so he does now have a little less skin on his fingers than an hour ago. He whined a bit about this.

Life's tough Thomas. Get a helmet.

Steamers

The word steamer will probably bring to mind many diverse thoughts and images for different people.

Why not try and think of a few?

Here are a few to arouse your grey matter and get you started.......

However, for us here at Gul Bude there is really only one true meaning.......

The full length and opposition crushing Gul wetsuit of course

....... tom