After 4-Year Hiatus, Jake Paterson’s Infamous “Snaketales” Series Is Back

Originally posted on SURFER | By Zander Morton | Last updated Oct 9, 2024 6:17 PM ET

Let's face it, the WSL's Challenger Series is a grind. Aside from Snapper Rocks, the schedule is filled with average beachbreak waves like Sydney in Oz, Huntington Beach in CA and Ballito in South Africa. It's not exactly a dream tour.

Up until 2020, the best thing coming out of the CS was Jake Paterson's "Snaketales" series, a behind-the-scenes look at each CS stop and starring the athletes he coached. Something about Snake brings out the best in the surfers he works with — and not just in the water, but on land as well. His series was no frills, all fun, and it overflowed with personality.

When Covid made travel in and out of Oz nearly impossible, Snake decided to put his coaching on pause, and thus his series fell to the wayside. Four-years later, Snake (and his series) is back.

The first episode of the new season comes from the recent CS stop in Portugal, and it features a brand new deck of Snake's athletes, including Eithan Osborne, Shion Crawford, Macy Callaghan, Jett Schilling, Kade Matson and more. From Foundation Training to meditation and everything in-between, Snaketales truly is a fun loving look at what it's like to travel and compete as a crew on the CS, and this comment on the brand new episode sums it up best:

"So glad you are back. I'm an older surfer and followed the older guys in the 80s, 90s, and 2000. When my favorites like Taj, Mick, Joel, etc retired, the only person I was interested in watching was Kelly. Then I stumbled onto your videos where I felt like I made a connection with your crew. Hard to explain but they became more than names on a heat sheet. I felt like I knew them even though I had never met them. It rejuvenated my interest in the young up-and-coming surfers. Cuz of your channel, I still follow the WCT and root for the boys. Welcome back. Cheers mate."

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

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