Mick Fanning put the finishing touches on his remarkable Championship Tour career at the 2018 Rip Curl Pro 17 years after winning the event as a wildcard. In the process, he cemented his legacy as one of Australia’s greatest surfing heroes. He emerged from a deep pool of talent based out of Coolangatta, on Australia’s famed Gold Coast of Queensland. He was a top prospect there, and earned his 2001 wildcard entry into the Bells event as a star Rip Curl team rider. He qualified for the tour that same year and has spent the better part of two decades as one of the biggest gravitational forces on the Tour, racking up 22 Tour wins, 11 Top 5 finishes and three World Titles. In 2018, Fanning announced he’ll be retiring from full-time competition at the Bells to bookend his journey. While his stats point to a storied career, his glabal allure comes from things that don’t show in his box score. His razor sharp brand of high-speed surfing has long been the benchmark for the timeless pillars of speed, power and flow. But Fanning’s personal journey to the top was anything but smooth. In 1998, when he was already one of Australia’s hot up-and-coming amateur prospects, Fanning’s older brother Sean, his best friend and hero, was killed in an auto accident. In 2004, he tore his entire hamstring muscle off of his pelvic bone, ripping the ligaments that attached to his buttocks. And in 2015, a great white shark attacked Fanning during the Final of the J-Bay Open in South Africa, which was being aired on live television back home. Later that year, in the middle of another World Title race at Pipeline, Fanning’s brother Peter passed away. Through every horrible episode Fanning rebounded with bravery, grace and conviction. While he’s taught many of his fans how to surf, his biggest gift has been teaching them how to live.
From the Gold Coast of Australia, Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew was one of the first Aussie’s to burst into world prominence in the 1970s while pioneering professional surfing as we know it today. Along with Peter Townend and Shaun Tomson, Rabbit busted down the door in the late ‘70s to help legitimize the sport.
His ferocious attack on Hawaii’s North Shore and all over the world lead to his IPS/ASP World Championship in 1978. He continued to be one of the world’s leading professionals deep into the ’80s, earning six years in the top five. He won a total of eight world tour contests and made the finals of the Pipeline Masters in 1981, 1984 and 1985.
After retiring from professional surfing, Rabbit was hired as a surf contests announcer, ran a surf school and penned articles for surf magazines. In 1999, he took the helm as President of the ASP. He also won the ASP World Masters Championship in France that same year.
Luke Altschwager, founder of Palm Valley, is a driving force behind one of Australia’s most innovative surf, golf, and lifestyle destinations. With a background as a former PGA professional and two decades of experience in golf and hospitality management, Luke has redefined recreational spaces by integrating world-class surf technology with sustainable golf design, eco-tourism, and vibrant community hubs.
His vision for Palm Valley is to create an iconic destination that brings together adventure, wellness, and environmental stewardship, setting a new standard for active, lifestyle-focused resorts. Luke’s dedication to innovation and his passion for creating lasting community impact are at the heart of the Palm Valley experience.
