The Travel Issue
Free in Hawai‘i
V7#8 • FREESURFMAGAZINE.COM
The Perfect Point
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The most dangerous waves in the world
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oil disaster in the gulf
Jeffrey’s Bay Photo: Grant Ellis
YADIN NICOL/PHOTO STRUNTZ
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Rock
Ever evolving, we’ve watched as different modes of photography crept their way into surfing. But it’s Senior Photographer Eric Baeseman’s latest work that has us doing a double take. “I’ve been trying to revive the whole pole cam thing a bit lately,” says Baeseman. “The rig was popular in the ’90s, but it’s really fun to mess around with and I’ve been getting some interesting shots, for sure.”
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Full Court Boardshort
Michel•Dusty•Kolohe•Nat•Ian•Evan•Koa Carissa•Coco•Malia•Monyca•Laura
Costa Rica - Frontside Air
Contents V7#8 August 2010
Heading South Life in the city p.42 Clandestine Travels Surfing's nuclear family blows up in Indonesia p.58
The perfect wave can take on a number of faces and a host of definitions. For some, 20 foot is the ideal. For others, serenity is found in 2-foot beachbreaks. But here, photographer Tony Heff proves that sometimes when you aim for perfection, you discover that it's actually a moving target.
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Heff
The Bobby Schutz Portfolio Shadowy images from far away lands p.68
Contents V7#8 August 2010
12 Free Parking Kekoa Cazimero, Eric Baeseman, and the search for a new perspective. 22 Masthead The people behind the words, photos, and design that created this magazine. 24 Ed Note The siren’s song of travel is calling. Do you answer or hit silent? 26 H owzit A photographic menagerie of surfers outside the water. 28 Inside Section A design-inspired way of ingesting the BP oil spill; a first look at Keala Naihe, the next big thing from the Big Island; a chance to win a free pair of headphones from Kicker Audio; Reef’s new film, Cancer to Capricorn; ten surf haunts you’ll probably never go; and a whole lot more. 80 News and Events The Oakley Surf Shop Challenge pits your favorite surf shops against one another; the search for Hawaii’s next top grom, and the Arnette All-Day Antics. 86 Pau Hana Whitey Harrison, a true surfing pioneer.
T&C Surf Designs Locations:
Ala Moana Center Pearlridge Center Kahala Mall Ward Warehouse Windward Mall International Marketplace
88 Free Plugs We’re living in Hurley’s new Phantom trunks, and we suggest you do to. A N A R C H Y E Y E W E A R . C O M
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Editor Jeff Mull Photo Editor Tony Heff Art Director Richard Hutter
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Free Thinkers Bernie Baker, Kaylenn Fitzgerald, Noa Emberson, Beau Flemister,
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Staff Photographers Eric Baeseman, Bernie Baker, Tony Heff, Mike Latronic, Rima Rackauskas, Tyler Rock
Contributing Photographers Nathan Adams, Eric Aeder, Kirk Lee Aeder, Jamie Ballenger, Brian Bielmann, John Bilderback, Holt Blanchard, Tom Carey, Vince Cavataio, Mike Coots, Kanoa Dahlin, Hilton Dawe, Patrick Devault, Willi Edwards, Grant Ellis, Brandon Ells, Beau Flemister, Isaac Frazer, Pete Frieden, Ryan Gamma, Noah Hamilton, Chris Hagan, John Helper, Rick Hurst, Ehitu Keeling, Kin Kimoto, Ric Larsen, Bruno Lemos, Mana, Mike McGinnis, Ikaika Michaels, Justin Morizono, Allen Mozo, Dave Nelson, Carol Oliva, Manny Pangilinan, Christian Peralta, Pake Solomon, Epes Sargent, Bobby Schutz, Vince Street, Spencer Suitt, Bill Taylor, JP VanSwae, Jimmy Wilson
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One-way correspondence can be sent to P.O. Box 1161, Hale‘iwa, HI 96712 E-mail editorial inquiries to info@freesurfmagazine.com Catch Billabong Surf TV Mondays at 1:30pm, Tuesdays at 2pm and 7:30pm, Wednesdays at 1:30am, Thursdays at 4:30am and 4:30pm, Fridays at 12:30pm and Saturdays at 3:30am and 9am and Sundays at 7:30am. And don’t forget Board Stories on Mondays at 2pm, Tuesdays at 5pm and 8:30pm, Wednesdays at 2:30am and 9:30am, Thursdays at 5:30am and 5:30pm and Saturdays at 2:30am and 7:30am and Sundays at 9:30am and 4pm.
Editor’s note
Pioneers. O Pioneers!
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Indonesian jungles to uncover G-Land. We’ve sweltered through the saunas of Mexico to unlock Barra. And most recently, with a little help from some high-def maps courtesy of Google Earth, one of the longest and perhaps most enticing left-hand barrels has been unveiled to the surfing populace off the coast of Africa. We’ve come a long way indeed.
Wide-eyed and slack-jawed, the pair sewed the seeds of travel lust with every minute-long wave they slipped across. But it’s still not enough. We are pointbreak-hungry gluttons and A-frame-savoring adventurers. There’s still so much more out there, the siren’s song tagging on our dreams. For every time we think we’ve found it all, we see a new J-Bay, an empty lineup Papa Nui Guinea, or the promise of untapped solitude in the Solomon Islands. In this issue we’re putting forth a challenge to you: Pack your bags, get vaccinated, kiss your wife goodbye, and set out on an undertaking of the unknown. Who knows, with any luck, you may just stumble upon the 21st century Cape St. Francis. Happy hunting. —Jeff Mull
Wilson
For nearly half a century, the surf media has been spinning us yarns of discovery. With azimuths pointed east, west, north, and south, we’ve devoured tales of the unknown. We’ve salivated over the prospect of the new and of the undiscovered. Our thirst for the hard-to-reach and out-ofsight has become a fundamental fiber in the shaping of the surfer’s cloth, an undeniable trait that’s forged the steel of our collective character. And for many of us, this unquenchable desire for discovery can be traced back to a single moment in our celluloid version of the Old Testament, Bruce Browne’s Endless Summer. Although the search for glassier pastures began well before the 1966 debut of the movie, there’s an unforgettable scene in the film that we can point to and confidently say, “This changed everything.” At the film’s apex, the stars of the movie, Mike Hynson and Robert August, famously cross over an arid dune and stumble upon the perfect lines of Cape St. Francis, Africa. Wide-eyed and slack-jawed, the pair sewed the seeds of travel lust with every minute-long wave they slipped across. And at that moment, drooling over the endless, unblemished African lines, we began to realize our infatuation with the unknown, our curiosity peaking with potential. We’ve come along way since the now-reclusive Cape St. Francis danced for us in ’66. Since then, we’ve hacked through malaria-infested
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Baeseman
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1. “All I need is a sail and I’m gonna win this thing.”—Jun Jo
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Baeseman
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Heff
3. We instantly regretted betting this grom that he couldn’t fit the whole slice in his mouth.
Latronic
2. Town & Country’s heavy hitter Dustin Cuizon throws a smile just minutes before he tore the living hell out of Ala Moana Bowls at the Surf Shop Challenge. You just can’t tell by looking…
4. Which way is the gym? 5. The 2020 Kewalo Basin pit crew. 6. “This guy right here.”
8. Is Malia Manuel the happiest female surfer alive? Yes. She is. 9. Shoes are for kooks.
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8
Baeseman
7. Our feathered friend here helps us redefine a “bird’s eye view.”
inside section
Off The Map: Mexico
Wilson
Red Eyes and Point Breaks
The ticket in my hand read 17 B. An aisle seat. Looking down the dimly lit gut of the aircraft, soaking in that uniquely stale scent of jet fuel and sour coffee, I took stock of the other passengers and relished at the prospect of a little leg room and some much-needed sleep. A crooked grin split itself across my tanned and bearded face, the dry skin along my lower lip cracking into raw crevices. “Seventeen B,” I mumbled to myself as I slithered into the musky seat and sealed my bloodshot eyes. It was the first time I had been able to completely relax in more than a week. Eight days earlier, with a bloated boardbag and a crumpled, foodstained passport in tow, I had touched down in Mexico with a few old friends. We were ripe with excitement at the thought of leaving deadlines and emails by their lonesome for a week. We were in a country with the sole purpose of unearthing a slice of solitude in a remote corner of the world supposedly plump with right-hand points. Disembarking from the plane and into the warm Mexican sunlight, we forged our way through the baggage claim and exhaustedly stumbled into the SUV that our surf camp had sent to pick us up. Travling down the windy, dry roads deep inside Mainland Mex, we whipped past the local villagers selling ears of corn in plastic bags. The day began to take on a very surreal aura. Less than 18 hours earlier, I had been staring down a deadline at the magazine. Now, I’m 3,000 miles away in a foreign country, basking in the peculiar differences that make traveling so special. The feats of modern travel will never cease to amaze me. Back in the car bearing down on the coast, we opted towards the promise of a late-afternoon session over the pleasures of a clean bed and a hot meal. As the SUV shifted into 4-wheel drive and moved into the sand dunes, my first visions of the point came into focus. One hundred yards later, and I could make out a lunar-like cliff pockmarked by bits of dead vegetation rising from the ocean. At the base of the cliff raced an overhead, unblemished right as perfect as any wave I’d ever seen. And then another one. And another. Like a team of a firefighters alerted by an alarm, we ripped through our boardbags, put on our trunks with one hand and waxed our
boards with the other. Half dressed and sprinting down the point, we furiously paddled to the lineup and into the best session of my life. The wave was better than it looked from the shore. A small lump on the horizon would morph into a head-high open sleeve where 10-plus turns became the norm. My thighs ached and my knees trembled after the third or fourth wave. Blisters began developing on the outside of my big toe from all the rail work. It was perfection defined. For the most part, paddling back out was out of the question. It was infinitely quicker to run back up the beach to the mouth of the point and start over than risk burning out your shoulders. After two hours of the most mind-numbing session of my life, I made it back to the SUV, exhausted but beaming a smile at my first day in Mexico. For the next week, we repeated this process at various-but-equally perfect points in the area. At the most crowded of days, there were no more than five other people out and for the most part we surfed alone. On average, we were spending up to eight hours either in the lineup or covering ourselves in what shade we could find while we recharged for the day’s third, fourth, or fifth session. At night, we collapsed, but none of us truly slept. Perhaps we were too tired, excited, or full of adrenaline to unwind, but the idea of a new point unveiling itself the next day kept our minds electric. After eight days and a session that never seemed to truly end, we looked and felt like a motley lot. Our faces were browned to the point of peeling and our eyes became so red from staring at the sun and sodden in the saltwater that they would randomly tear up and well over. Our muscles ached and our hair grew crisp from being drenched in the sea. It was a marathon of a trip and one that I’ll never forget. Back at the airport in seat 17B, I looked near comatose as the plane lurched its way into Los Angeles. I slept so deeply and soundly that I would have sworn we never even left Mexico. Wiping the crust from my eyes, I had to remind myself that the trip was over. I was on my way back home. Back to my wife, my dog, and my job. And I was happy. —Jeff Mull
The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that did not align themselves with the United
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inside section
spotlight
Keala Naihe
The reason I travel: To score good waves. The best thing about being short: That I can get a stand-up barrel on a 3-foot wave. San Clemente: The place to be in the summer. Hawai‘i is: Home. If I pulled Andy in a heat, it would most likely end with me: Sitting on the shoulder taking notes. The worst session of my life: Any day that it’s flat and I can’t surf at all. The best session of my life: At home. Dear Airlines: Thank you so much for charging a fortune to take my boards. The most off the map place I’ve ever been: Wyoming. The best person to travel with: Seabass Zietz. The last person I’d want to go on a trip with: The Grinch.
SEVEN-HUNDRED FIFTY BRANDS
FOUR SHOWS.
Heff
Keala Naihe jumped into the collective mind of the surf industry this summer when he claimed a national title and left more than a few of us wondering just who this kid is. With the arid, lavariddled landscapes of Kona shaping Keala into one of the most talented and progressive youths of late, Keala is taking the first steps of a potentially lucrative surfing career. With that in mind, we thought we’d set you wise with a fill-in-the blank discussion with the Big Isle upstart.
ONE LOCATION.
Stuff We Like Firewire’s Spiftire With an army of concepts behind board design these days, we decided it time to put a few new-fangled shapes to the test. In this installment, we’re riding Firewire’s Spitfire. Upon first impressions the board looked floaty and forgiving with the potential for a lot of speed and fun late-season sessions. Although it offers a 4/3 convertible fin setup, I opted for the quad with visions of flying down the line and laying down some quick carves. After a handful of sessions under my belt, I fell in love with flow of the Spitfire. While an occasional bog is to be expected in my surfing—Hey, there’s a reason I’m an editor and not a pro—I was able to hold tons of speed and drive down the line and through my turns as the board seemed to really lock in with the right line. In 1-to 4-foot surf, whether it be tiny Chun’s or hollow Backyards, the board prevailed through spring and summer, Thruster and quad. This board’s definitely gonna be in my quiver for some time. —Tyler Rock
Gringo Nightmare: A Young American Framed for Murder in Nicaragua Eric Volz came to Nicaragua with the hopes of starting a magazine and getting a few waves on the side. Although initially successful in both pursuits, Volz’s life quickly takes a turn towards the surreal when he is arrested and convicted of murdering his ex girlfriend. Initially, Volz was sentenced to a 30-year term in prison, but after an international outcry and an army of evidence supporting his innocence, Volz was released from prison. Following his ordeal, he penned this book, Gringo Nightmare, that recounts the entire ordeal in surly detail. Perhaps the scariest thing about this whole story is the fact that it’s all true.
What happens when you cross one of the most dynamic surf teams in the world with some footstomping beats and a seamless edit? Reef’s film Cancer to Capricorn, that’s what. Although there are a number of standout segments in the movie, it’s hard to top Steph Koehne’s ball’s out performance at P-Pass. If that session doesn’t make you want to rush, then perhaps it’s time to consider another sport. Definitely watch this flick before a surf.
Sounds Want a free pair of headphones from Kicker Audio? Go to our facebook page and tell us why you should win. Best answer goes home with new sounds.
States or the Soviet Union // Each year, there are an estimated 300-500 million cases of malaria reported in the world //
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A REVOLUTIONARY WAY TO BUY
Cancer to Capricorn
AUGUST 13-15, 2010 • SAN DIEGO, CA REGISTER TODAY: WWW.ASRBIZ.COM
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shoots
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p h o t o:
kanoa Dahlin
As a means to display the wealth of talented photographers in the industry, we’re devoting a page in each issue to showcase unique lensmen. To kickstart the program, we’re portraying Kanoa Dahlin’s photo entitled, “Yamilla.” If Kanoa’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he was a one-time pro who just so happens to be damn sharp with f-stops and shutter speeds. To boot, he names all of his photos after women. Isn’t that sweet?
“ Often, shooting reminds me of my childhood when I used to get a candy grab bag. You never knew what you were gonna get! And when shooting places with low probabilities, it’s always nice finding the diamond in the rough.”—Kanoa Dahlin
According to a new decree from the Fijian government, Tavarua is now open for surfing to the public // You can sleep in a
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JESSE HEILMAN & N-1 BOARDIES
inside section
XX
Jason Shibata Kai Barger
Power Balance Bracelets and necklace Gives you
For surFers, athletes, and yoGa enthusiasts. You may have noticed the colorful Power Balance bands that a number of athletes are wearing these days. While they do make a statement, the bands are about functionality. According to Power Balance, the bands feature a performance technology using holograms embedded with frequencies that react positively with the body’s natural energy field to improve balance, strength and flexibility. Hundreds of athletes in various sports are using Power Balance and the company is proud, stressing the athletes wouldn’t be wearing the product unless they firmly believed in its benefits. There are numerous testimonials from professional athletes on the Power Balance site and you can check out the balance tests on hawaiiansouthshore.com/shop/powerbalance or come down and take the balance test challenge at Hawaiian South Shore. Power Balance’s success and incredible viral growth with very little marketing and promotion has been impressive. Power Balance chief operating officer Josh Rodarmel a former quarterback at Mission Viejo High, his brother Troy founded the company in 2007. “My dad was into this technology that was similar to Power Balance, but it was like $500-600. We knew there was a benefit, so Troy actually started messing with computer memory components. He started trying to put these frequencies into the computer components and actually got lucky that one of the computer components was in a Mylar bag. After researching what Mylar bags were made of and figured out that it was basically a hologram. That’s how we became able to mass produce it at an affordable rate.”
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Photos: Willi Edwards
Power Balance FlexiBility
A Lot of Shibata Jason Shibata Scalps a Win at the Sponsor Me Hawai‘i
Jason Shibata isn’t one for giving up. Admittedly, he acknowledges that he’s on the tail end of his career as a full-time pro, having taken a job for Billabong, but nevertheless, when Shibata finds himself in a jersey he’s as committed as ever to winning. And this year, at the 2-star Sponsor Me Hawaii at Ala Moana Bowls, that’s exactly what he did. Win. As the only summertime ’QS event in Hawai‘i, the Sponsor Me contest draws a litany of Hawai‘i’s most talented surfers to the lights of Honolulu and Ala Moana Bowls. Between Sunny Garcia, Kai Barger, Dusty Payne, Flynn Novak and others all suiting up for their heats, the surfing was nothing short of electric. But of all the heavy hitters, it all came back to Shibata whose surfing remained seamless and powerful for every heat he surfed, with his performance pinnacling with a tube in the final that earned him a number of hoots from the channel. “I was tripping because I wasn’t really in the spot (for the tube),” said Shibata. “I was really deep and it swung wide. I just paddled... got in, it started off really tight and almondy and I’m going for it. But it let me out and from then on I had a huge smile on my face and thought, maybe today is the day, and I just went with it.” For his win, Shibata pocketed a cool $5,000 and bragging rights throughout the summer. As we head into winter, we’re looking to Shibata to uphold his winning streak.
Results 1st. Jason Shibata 2nd. Kai Barger 3rd. Pancho Sullivan 4th. Casey Brown board bag // In an uneasy situation abroad, a smile helps.
Photos: McGinnis
inside section
BAG OF SLICKS After nearly three months of enduring the most horrific natural disaster in American history, containment efforts that will signal and end to the BP oil spill are beginning to show promise. Now the real work begins. Thousands of Gulf Coast residents have had their lives
Hawaii’s Biggest and
For a full list of sources used to make this infographic, please go to Freesurfmagazine.com.
Best Selection of Surf Gear
turned around as a direct result of the spill. With their jobs lost and coasts sodden in crude, it’s our turn to lend a hand. For information on what you can do to help the Gulf, please go to Surfrider.org.
INTERESTING STATISTICS
GULF FISHING INDUSTRY
1,000 Original Estimate 35,000 Best Case 60,000 Worst Case
1x 15x
In late May the federal government declared a fisheries disaster for the states of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Initial cost estimates to the fishing industry were $2.5 billion.
Exxon Valdez Deepwater Horizon
73%
Of all U.S. shrimp fishing in 2008 was in the Gulf.
Barrels of Crude Oil Flowing Per Day
Exxon Valdez Vs. The Deep Water Horizon
Initial estimates from BP and the U.S. Coast Guard indicated that the gushing well was leaking an estimated 1,000 barrels per day. This claim was quickly rebuked by independent and government scientists who estimated that the leak was more likely close to 60,000 barrels per day.
In 1989, the Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound, Alaska. The area was a refuge for natural beauty when the tanker dumped nearly 25 million gallon of oil into the sea and onto the surrounding wildlife. Official documents from BP state that up to 2.5 million gallons of oil were releases per day into the Gulf.
59%
Of all U.S. oyster fishing in 2008 was in the Gulf.
320 Promising 92,000 Categorized 17,680 Uncategorized
2.4% 18% 16.8% 14.4% 48.4%
Bird Species | 200 Crustaceans Species | 1,500 Mollusks Species | 1,400
14%
Fish Species | 1,200
Of all U.S. commercial fishing is in the gulf
Other Species | 4,000
Ideas Submitted by Citizens & Countries
8,332 Species In Area of Oil Spill
After a bevy of failed attempts to plug the leaking well, BP opened itself to the public, asking for ideas. Of the most interesting propsals, Kevin Costner announced that he had invested 15 years and $24 million dollars developing centrifugal oil separators that could be used to clean up the spill. The Russians suggested setting off a nuclear bomb.
Although the direct number of species affected by the BP oil spill in the Gulf is currently unknown, the area has proven to be a tremendous habitat. As of mid July, in a report by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, more than 2,500 dead animals have been killed in a presumed connection to the spill.
4 Hours, 24 Minutes MEGAN ABUBO
Top 10 Worst Oil Spills Time To Take U.S. To Use Spilled Oil As the largest consumers of fossil fuel in the world, the average American goes through an estimated 2.8 barrels (not gallons) of oil per month. Americans currently use between 13 and 14 times the amount of oil as the Chinese.
10. 9. 8.
THE ODYSSEY | 1988 Novascotia | 132,000 Tons THE HAVEN | 1991 Italy | 145,000 Tons THE AMOCO CADIZ | 1978 France | 223,000 Tons
7. 6. 5.
CASTILLO DE BELLVER | 1983 South Africa | 252,000 Tons ABT SUMMER | 1991 Angolia | 260,000 Tons NOWRUZ OIL FIELD | 1983 Persian Gulf | 260,000 Tons
4. 3.
FERGANA VALLEY | 1992 Cen. Asia | 285,000 Tons ATLANTIC EMPRESS/AEGEAN CAPTAIN | 1979 Caribbean | 287,000 Tons
2. 1.
IXTOC I OIL WELL | 1979 Gulf of Mexico | 454,000 Tons GULF WAR OIL SPILL | 1988 Persian Gulf | 1,360,000 1,500,000 Tons
Element Model by Eric Arakawa: 5’8” X 18” X 2 1/16”
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808-483-6700 www.hicsurf.com
At Home In TheWorld
Sri Lanka
1 Regardless of a two-decade long civil war relentlessly fought across this tear drop of an island, Sri Lanka awaits with baited breath. It waits with the silent saffron and crimson-painted Buddha’s as tall as office buildings, their palms pressed in prayer in humid jungles. Blindingly white pagodas sit patiently in countless forests, faded and ratty prayer flags frozen in protest to man’s silliness. Wild herds of elephants still lumber though lush rice paddies and cross military checkpoints without interrogation. Wiley-eyed dog packs crazed off rotten fish scraps still guard their masters’ fishing boats, while the fishermen untangle the miles of net and wait for the sun to drop before disembarking again. A population of people still wait in seats on wobbling trains and sputtering buses, wait to get to their various destinations. Unscathed and unbombed. It’s been a long and grueling wait, and one that is hopefully at an end.
Unearthing the Lesser Known Coasts of the World By Beau Flemister
I’ve heard the adage that “we travel to return home again,” but I’m not so sure I agree with it. I know we travel to see something new, and furthermore, to feel something new. Some kind of novel experience, something different from our lives at home, that in the process, whether within the journey or upon arrival, ultimately enlivens us beyond our state at departure. But what is it that enlivens us? Is it the unknown and never-been-there that travel leads us to, out from the numbness of our daily routine? Beyond our doorstep, beyond the end of the street or shores of our islands there is so much to feel in this world. Traveling gets us to that feeling.
Perhaps one of the best questions you could ever have the pleasure to ask yourself in life is, “What the hell am I doing here?” Which, when asked, sometimes, is not necessarily a bad thing. If you could capture that place, its sentiment or feel, in a portrait or postcard, what would it look like? We took a shot at it. And hopefully you have the time to one day experience that even in the following 10 locales, the adage might not be “we travel to return home again,” but rather, “we travel to know home…anywhere on earth.”
Chile
2 Chile, the sweeping spine of an entire continent, is a land of raw elements: water, air, fire, and earth. In the southern badlands of Patagonia the sky virtually swirls above your head and the trees are petrified in hunching windswept poses of distress. Glaciers crack and drop like detonated buildings into lakes of icy blues and grays. In the north, congested volcanoes gurgle and burp looking like snow-capped pyramids rising above deserts that stretch a thousand miles. It’s misty vineyards between thick forests that hug the central coastline, trees practically jumping into the silvery seas. Again, it is a land of elements, of poetry fodder for men drunk on rebellion and longing. It is the harsher, primordial prelude to a continent known for tropical heat and steam.
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India
3 India is what the world looks like if there were no such thing as “privacy.” Life itself in India is in your face and out in the open. In most Indian cities, you’re practically walking arm in arm with strangers. It’s kind of like dancing, but not. It is women washing clothes and dishes, children bathing and swimming, corpses just burned and ashes thrown, all into the same river. Orderly lines do not exist there, nor do traffic rules or vending laws. It is an extremely spiritual place that takes some searching to uncover any amount of reverence. Communication is all haggle and trickery, deception and jest, that somehow translates into a grinning “Hello, how are you?”
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Iceland 1
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4 This former Viking outpost that kisses the rim of the Artic circle is as bizarre of an island as any. It is the epitome of wintry exoticism, full of unpronounceable place names like Neskaupstaur or Hvannadalshnukur; even the capitol, Reykjavik, is a toughy. The language sounds like elves whispering. And not that this misnamed island doesn’t have its share of ice and snow, it’s glacier fields that creep up and meet the seaside, but it’s also a place of mossy canyons, waterfalls, and greenery. Wild Icelandic horses race each other in lush pastures. Centuries-old sod-roofed stone huts sit mythical and vacant by the roadside. Public hot springs bubble and steam upon parts of the earth lurching with growing pains. In the winter, when there is but a few hours of sunlight in a day, life is lived, bundled in a half-lit lucid dream.
Pakistan
5 In the twilight of dawn, a distorted, cracking song wails from every piercing minaret. Allaahu Akbar, Ash Hadu Allah ilaha illalLah. It echoes like a twisted lullaby, inversely awakening the country. Pakistan is a stan (land) of many stans, but all unified in creed. From the turbaned nomads of Balochistan in the south to the sprawling cities of Punjab at the center, the fiercely traditional Pashtun of the Khyber Pass to the land of walnuts, apricots, and valleys of the northern Hunza—they are widely diverse and at the same time religiously uniform. Now more increasingly publicized (negatively) for its role in a decade-long war bifurcating its own borders, to see another traveler in any of the stans is rare to futile.
Traveling, By the Numbers Inter-island freighter ride (Melanesia): $12 for a 24 hour trip // Nepalese body massage: $3 // Poster of Khan (the most famous Bollywood movie star): $2 >>>
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on the street in India // Fresh Water showers in New Zealand: Free from any river // Camping in Iceland: Free in any public property in Iceland // Italian FREESU RFM AGAZI N E. COM
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At Home In TheWorld Solomon Islands
6 On the streets of Honiara, betel nut spit coats every dusty store step like congealed blood. In villages that yawn by the sea, singing children with crowns of golden Afros dance with machetes and homemade kites in hand. Men dive from primitive dugout canoes into azure lagoons and spearfish next to curious sharks. Inland, the women hike up malarial trails to tend gardens bulging with papaya, cassava, bananas, and yams. And even further up the mountains to the shrines that hide a cannibal-past; the rows of fleshless heads and hollow eyes with cracked skulls smiling dumbly into nothingness. Not a place "forgotten by time" but a place where its people have forgotten exactly what time is. Distances and age are for the most part speculative, even trivial.
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Italy
7 Everything about Italy oozes romance. From the lyrical song and rhythm of the language to the high-fashion (boots are in any season) shape of the country itself. The premier cities alone—Rome, Florence, Venice, Milan—harbor enough culture and intrigue to fill a million volumes of history books. Beyond the thick cream of the gelato stands, beyond the marble statues frozen in battle at the gates of museums, beyond the bells of the Vatican, beyond this present nation that sits at the center of a fallen empire, Italy transcends memory and slips into the mythic. It’s not hard to envision titans clashing upon the cliffs of Amalfi, or to conjure the recreation of a thriving city from the ruins still standing millennia later. It’s hard to watch the sun drip into the sighing Mediterranean and not think that this place still isn’t touched by the Gods.
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Vanuatu
8 In the islands of Vanuatu, you might find yourself in the precarious position of attending a tri-village circumcision ceremony. You might have hiked all morning up the side of a rain-misted mountain and had no idea what you were in for when your guide said “a custom experience.” But you get to a clearing in the forest where the villagers and some men, only wearing strange loin cloths most commonly referred to as “sheathes,” are stacking “gifts” (sugar cane stalks, fabric, lauhala matting, unrecognizable foods) in four piles on the ground. And shortly after the ground begins to shake, you hear voices sing-chanting in the distance. You realize that the rumble is the stomping of feet from a snaking line of adolescents just arrived from the forest post-circumcision, all adorned in colorful tribal regalia. And sheathes. Which is also coincidentally the same time some men bring in fattened squealing boars hanging upside down from poles on their shoulders. Where shortly after, in unison with the stomps of the freshly circumcised, they beat the heads of the boars in to death; the final “gift” of the four piles. I dunno, you just might find yourself at one of these things, that’s all.
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Mozambique
9 Due to a 25-year-long bloody civil war, Mozambique has been under the radar for some time. The fact that the national flag contains an AK-47 assault rifle crisscrossing a workers hoe, both upon the star of Marxism, may also detour visitors to this spacious nation that encompasses the entire eastern coast of southern Africa. Little, but far from unknown, Mozambique has so much to explore and experience. There are vast reserves home to lions, giraffes, elephants, and zebras, and all without the crowds of its over publicized neighbor. Rustic colonial outposts and cities of stone stand sentry to countless coastal bays and coves. Massive spotted whale sharks cruise the tepid coastal waters. On the beach fishermen join the children in an impromptu low-tide soccer match. Though the country’s banner is still a bit militant, travelers now can clearly see how peace has come to prevail.
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If Allah, Jesus, God, and Buddha teamed up to create the most beautiful place on Earth, they’d have to go to New Zealand, rent a camper—you know just really bro it up—to gain some kind of valid inspiration. Basically they’d use the country like CliffsNotes. That’s how gorgeous New Zealand is. It is a nation of every shade and hue of the color green. On either island, North or South, all is growing, all is breathing. The scent of the air, a blend of earthy ferns and crisp wind, is untainted and forever new. There just aren’t enough adjectives to describe the beauty of the place. The sight of it reduces you from words to speechless forms of awe. Your eyes ache from the constant strain of staring, your tongue dries like an old sponge from a slackened, hanging jaw. Your neck hurts from craning as you try to comprehend the angles and curves of the landscape your driving through.
Traveling, By the Numbers Gelato (the world’s best ice cream): $5 Euros // Bribe to get through Mozambique/South Africa border quickly: $12 // Overnight stay in a Sri Lankan tree
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house: $3.50 // Average bribe for Mozambique policeman: $10 or jail time.
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Derek Lyons-Wolfe, strutting his stuff for the crowd at Ala Moana Bowls.
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Clockwise from left: It’s been said that backside tuberiding is one of the more difficult elements to master in surfing. Apparently, no one told Davey Boy Gonzales; A new perspective on an old staple; An unmistakable sunrise in Honolulu.
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PHOTO: ERIK AEDER Baeseman
Kekoa Cazimero, painting a summer’s day pink.
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Poipu Shopping Village Anchor Cove
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Whether it’s Second Reef Pipe or a murky ledge at Bowls, Randall Paulson manages to make the most treacherous of waves seem tame.
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Alessa Quizon, cutting through old stereotypes.
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Surf Art from the North Shore of Oahu Heatherbrown.com Nick Mita, throwing the tail around at Kewalos.
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Honolulu frontman Jun Jo begins working on his own rail system for Town.
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Flynn Novak and the view from the upside. n
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Clandestine Travels Surfing’s nuclear family blows up in Indonesia
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All photos Brad Masters
ome families go to the Grand Canyon for Spring Break. Others to Lake Tahoe. The Jones family (John, Mikala, Daniel, and Keoni) well, they go to the Mentawais. As a job-well-done reward to Keoni, the youngest son in the family, for graduating high school, the good Dr. Jones decided that he’d rally the crew, pack them onto a small fishing boat in a place riddled with perfect waves, and let the family bond together in the Indian Ocean. Is there a better way to spend the off-season on the North Shore? We think not. “Yeah, some families will go on a road trip for a vacation. But we went on a boat trip. That’s pretty rad, huh?” says Keoni. “I don’t know too many other people that get to do that kind of stuff as a family. It’s great, we all surf, but we don’t always get to surf together. You know, because of work, school, other stuff. But this was an unreal trip for me. I’ll never forget it.” For nearly 10 days at sea, surfing’s version of the nuclear family managed to stay tightly shacked in Indo. They hollered, cheered, and hooted each other into waves and stayed in the lineup until their arms became the consistency of wet noodles. “Yeah, we all surfed a lot that trip. But you know what? No body surfed more than my Dad,” Daniel says. “I hope that one day, when I have a family of my own, I can take them on a trip like this.”
Mikala Jones isn’t necessarily a shady character, but photos like this make us think otherwise.
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“Yeah, some families will go on a road trip for a vacation. But we went on a boat trip…I don’t know too many other people that get to do that kind of stuff as a family.”
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“We didn’t even have a boat setup for the trip while we were flying over there. Mikala was pulling it all together in the airport on the way to Indo. But we made it happen and we scored.” F R E E S U RFM AG A ZIN E.CO M
Clockwise from main: Daniel Jones has lofty ambitions for the future; Daniel Jones again at Macaronis, proving the wave is best served al dente; families that surf together, stay together; it’s images like this that make us believe that Indo truly is a surfer’s dream come true. FREESU RFM AGAZI N E. COM
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“This was a trip my dad set up as a graduation present for Daniel. We wanted to take him on a trip, make sure he got some waves, and just have a good time as a family.”
This trip to the Mentawais was a graduation present for Keoni Jones. Imagine the trip they’ll go on if Keoni decides to go to college.
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With the North Shore going dormant, the whole family was yearning for some warm water tubes. Daniel Jones, basking in Indo’s bounty.
“I’d been hearing about the Mentawais forever, and I’ve always wanted to surf all those waves. After this trip, I know for certain that it’s everything that they say it is.” “I think our dad actually ended up surfing the most on the trip. It was epic seeing him out there all day. Most sessions, he was usually the last one out of the water.”
It’s images like this that have sold the allure of Indonesia to hundreds of thousands of surfers. Mikala Jones, a poster boy for travel.
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HAWA I I S U R F I N G AS S O C I AT I O N
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“I hope that one day, when I have a family of my own, I can take them on a trip like this.” n
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Clockwise from top left: As a dentist, Dr. Jones spends plenty of time in the office. But out of his white coat, the good doctor was reportedly the most surf-stoked person on the trip. Here’s the good doctor, giving the lineup a quick examination; even for well-traveled surfer like Keoni, setups like this never cease to amaze; here’s Keoni again, living up to the Jones family legacy.
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B o bb y S c h u t z P ortfolio
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obby Schutz keeps the faith. His words are soft and slow and you can pick up on just a hint of his Florida upbringing when he speaks. It was there, in Florida, that Schutz first picked up a lens, pointed it at a wave, and captured his first surf shot. Fast forward a decade and a half and you’d find a 31-year-old with a camera seemingly welded to his hand. He credits his current occupation as a shooter to an act of divine inspiration. According to Schutz, who now calls Hawaii home, a bit of prayer and a generous donation from a friend helped him by his camera equipment and set the groundwork for his career, a move that has paid off in spades. Not a bad end for a guy that failed his first photography class. “For me, I just want to be a good influence to other people through photography,” says Schutz. “I hope that I when I walk away from surf photography, I could have done some good for others and hopefully, capture a few special moments, too.” The following pages represent frozen moments in the eyes of one of Hawai‘i’s most adept and undercover lensmen. For more on Bobby Schutz’s photography and projects, check out BobbySchutzphotography.com
I actually shoot a lot with Kaimana Jaquias. We're pretty close and I can say that he's a really good guy and a really talented surfer. He's had a good summer winning Nationals and I think that this is the beginning of a lot of things for Kaimana.
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Left: Kyle Ramey is seriously one of the most underground rippers from Hawaii. He surfs so well in so many different types of conditions. He's also super easy to shoot with and I'm stoked when we're able to get a shot that comes together like this. Top: I found this tree sort of in the brush away from everything. I think it’s actually an invasive species to Hawaii, but it’s a beautiful tree. To me, it almost feels like it could be in Africa somewhere. Above: To me, this photo symbolizes how powerful the ocean can be. I’m not sure how surfable it is, just because it’s so shallow. But nevertheless, you can’t help but get a feeling for the ocean’s strength when you look at this wave.
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Sometimes it can be tough to motivate people to get up and shoot early in the morning. This photo is of one of my friends, Masaijah Lani, who’s always down to go shoot, no matter the time. This photo was actually during a really junk day, but the lighting was perfect and Masaijah is a great surfer so the photo came out pretty cool. I’m stoked we were able to connect for this one.
Kamalei is one of the most stylish surfers around. A lot of people don’t realize just how adept he is. He’s amazing at riding big barrels but he’s also super impressive to watch in smaller stuff. He’s another guy that’s always stoked to surf. I think he really lives to surf. He’s a true waterman.
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I shot this image really early one morning. It’s really moody and shadowy and sort of speaks to me. The thing I love the most about this shot, other than the mist, is the guy in the center of the photo. He’s another photographer and his name is Brav Ellis. He’s just sort of lurking in the shadows.
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Below: This is probably the only photo I’ve ever shot in a shaping bay. But what’s so special about this image to me is the story behind it. The guy shaping is Steve Rex and he’s a close friend of mine and one of the best people I know. He’s an intense waterman, but he’s still super humble and caring. If you can see that board in the background with the cross on it, he actually shaped that board for free for a kid who needed a board. I can’t say enough good things about him and his family.
I was so stoked to capture this moment of Bruce. I really love this image because of the color, the style, the speed. It’s also cool because you’ve got both ends of surfing going on here. You’ve got Bruce doing this insane floater in a really critical part of the wave and you’ve got this other guy ditching his board on the bottom left in the worst part of the wave. All in all, this photo says a lot to me.
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Right: Seabass Zietz’s surfing speaks for itself. He’s so pumped and so diverse in his surfing. I always love shooting with him. It seems like every time I see him surfing, he’s gotten way better. If I go two weeks and then see him out in the water, I’m amazed. He’s definitely got a big future.
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All I can say about this photo is that the surfer, Robert Hennessy, is always amped. He’s a really multifaceted surfer. He’s amazing at doing these Alley-Oops and makes them look so easy. He’s really graceful in the water. This photo feels like it’s a statement about an athlete in the moment that anyone—surfer or not—can relate to.
This photo of Stephen Koehne is a really powerful image to me. Just pure power. Stephen is such a hard-charging guy and this wave is so heavy. You can see how he’s just in sync with the power of the wave and he’s totally committed to his line.
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Dustin Barca has proven that he’s easily one of the best surfers in the world. He’s been on tour and has shown that he can compete with the very best. This turn’s super impressive to me. He was going so fast down the line and he just tore this wave apart. This is just straight-up hardcore surfing. This photo of Kaipo Jaquias feels really genuine to me. Smiling. Happy. This is Kaipo. He’s seriously one of the nicest guys I know. They should make a documentary movie about him. He basically turned away from his surfing career to raise a family. He’s now a lifeguard in Hawai‘i and one of my favorite people. n
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The Search is Over Zeke Lau Scalps Rip Curl GromSearch
Expires September 31, 2010
Expires September 31, 2010
The future face of Hawaiian surfing comes equipped with a shaved head, a bad back, and a knack for winning contests. At 16, Zeke Lau, with his signature Jordan-like dome, has slithered his way into the junior scene, quietly garnering national titles and wins with his please-and-thank-you demeanor and infectious smile. While the world praised Evan and Kolohe, Zeke went to work, sharpening his game and polishing his act with a number of monumental wins. And of the handful of victories the summer of 2010 has bestowed upon the young Honolulu native, his latest scalp at the Rip Curl GromSearch event at Kewalo Basin was particularly inspiring. Held at pitch-perfect Kewalos, the best young phenoms Hawai‘i has on offer coagulated at the playground of Honolulu. In the past years, Kewalos has become a gathering place for those without licenses to strut their stuff and hone their acts, making it the ideal location for the event. And as was to be expected, the youthful phenoms did not disappoint. But at the front of that pack dripping talent, no one could hold a candle to Zeke and he would post a blistering heat score complete with a 9.5 and a 10, which was more than enough to secure his win in the Under 16 division and a few other honors. “I am so stoked to win this comp at my home break,” Ezekiel Lau announced to the spectators at the awards. “We couldn’t have asked for much better surf out there and I can’t wait to go to the Pro Search in Puerto Rico.” As Zeke alluded, his win at the GromSearch Honolulu will see him seeded into the international GromSearch event in Puerto Rico, where he’s sure to make his presence felt. Pint-sized but lethal in a heat, Seth Moniz also stood out at Kewalos with a pair of wins in the event in the under 14 and under 12 divisions. As the latest in a long line of heavy-hitters from the Moniz clan, Seth has shown that he’s planning on keeping the family name strong in the islands for years to come. For more on Rip Curl’s GromSearch, go to RipCurl.com/Gromsearch.
BOYS 16/under Ezekiel Lau BOYS 14/under: Seth Moniz
BOYS 12/under: Seth Moniz GIRLS 16/under: Makani Adric
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Four Times a Victor Town & Country Claims Hawai‘i Regional In Oakley Surf Shop Challenge
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Town and Country founder Craig Sugihara is a happy man these days. It’s a few minutes past 1’o clock on a Friday in Honolulu and the founder of Town & Country is nearly waltzing along an open grass field near Ala Moana Bowls, a grin on his face and a pop in his gait. His crew from Town & Country have just won their fourth Surf Shop Challenge title in the islands, giving them the aura of an unbeatable dynasty and another year’s worth of bragging rights. And when it comes to street cred in Hawaii, a Surf Shop Challenge title speaks pretty damn loudly in your favor. All of this makes for a very happy Craig Sugihara and team T&C. “We’re a smart team. That’s what I think we do best. We know that high-tide Bowls with small swell means less waves, and less chances for our Whammy Rider to double his score,” said Sugihara after the final. “We thought about those kind of things and put our team out when they could do the most good.” Although the team from T&C may have their heads on straight, it doesn’t hurt to boast a lineup with the likes of Dustin Cuizon and Alessa Quizon. Both surfers were straight-up lethal in their heats today, with Dustin acting as one of the most competent Whammy Surfers I’ve ever seen. On two occasions, Dustin would paddle out to his heat, catch one wave, murder it until the inside buoy, claim it, and paddle in. Business done. Take a ringer like that and add in another three heavy hitters and you’re looking at the best team in the islands. Again. “Yeah, it does feel like we’re doing pretty well. That was actually a pretty close final between us and the North Shore Boardriders in the end, but I think we’re looking good. I’m stoked on the event; I love doing it every year. It’s always super fun,” said the team captain for T&C, Travis Hashimoto, as he packed up his gear and made his way back to work to close up shop. A working-man’s surfer if there ever was one, Hashimoto handles the day-to-day operations at the company’s factory on the North Shore, and Surf Shop Challenge or not, someone’s got to close up the factory. Back at the tent-strewn grounds overlooking Bowls, you won’t find a slice of bitterness among the losers. Just a trash can pull of Styrofoam plate-lunch boxes, a stable of fresh boards, and a lot of aloha among competitors. The other finalists—HIC, Quik’s North Shore Boardriders, and Hi Tech—could all be seen talking story and laughing throughout the day. Beaming at the prospect of having surfed Bowls with just a few friends. They relished in the amicable nature that surrounds the Shop Challenge in Hawaii. And although the surf was nowhere near stellar Bowls, the talk at the event was already about next year.
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2010 NSSA Nationals Results Open Men's Champion: Kaimana Jaquias Open Women's Champion: Lakey Peterson Open Junior Champion: Keala Naihe Open Boy's Champion: Kanoa Igarashi Open Longboard Champion: Shaun Thompson Open Mini Grom Champion: John Mel Explorer Men's Champion: Ezekiel Lau Explorer Women's Champion: Leila Hurst Explorer Junior's Champion: Parker Coffin Explorer Boy's Champion: Taylor Clark HS Varsity Men's Champion: Ezekiel Lau HS Varsity Women's Champion: Kaleigh Gilchrist HS Varsity Longboard Champion: Jeff Newell HS JV Men's Champion: Jonah Carter HS JV Women's Champion: Lani Doherty HS JV Longboard Champion: Eli Gillis NSSA Air Show Champion: Sam Orosc
National Pride
Interview with Open Men’s Champ: Kaimana Jaquias Kaimana Jaquias had been picturing this moment for as long as he could remember. Standing on the winner’s podium at the NSSA Nationals with the Open Men’s title proudly bearing his name, Kaimana took a moment and tried to take it all in. The cheers, the endless pats on the shoulder, the hefty congratulations—it was all pretty damn close to how his dad had described it. See, twenty-four years earlier, Kaimana’s father, Kaipo Jaquias, had claimed the same title; it was a win that catapulted him into a successful career as a pro, and a win that he had described to his son time and again. And now, on the podium at Huntington Beach following a hard-fought final, the title Kaimana had been hearing about for so long was finally his own. In the wake of his victory, we caught up with the freshly minted Open Men’s champ to get the skinny on being part of a surfing dynasty, winning a national title, and how he thinks this win will change his career. Freesurf: So your dad won an Open Men’s national title in 86 and now you’ve won your own. Can you talk about that a bit? Kaimana Jaquias: Yeah, my dad’s been telling me what it’s like to win a national title for a while. There’s a little bit of a rivalry there, but it’s more like we’re just competitive with each other. I’m just really stoked. The whole event was about me getting on board and winning a title. My dad couldn’t be at the event, but he was watching it all on the webcast from our home on Kaua‘i. He’s stoked. FS: I know a lot of people have different ways they prepare for a big heat.
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Going into the Open Men’s final, how do you get your head on straight and get focused? KJ: For me, I just try and get some time to myself and focus. I like to go down the beach and think about what I have to do and how I need to do it. I usually just put on some headphones and just think about what I need to do to win. FS: What do you listen to? KJ: Umm, it was Kid Cudi actually and the song was “The Soundtrack to my Life.” FS: Can you describe what the vibe was like between you and the other guys in the final? I know you guys are all friends, but what changes happen when the horn blows? KJ: Yeah, we’re all good friends. But when the heat starts, it becomes pretty professional pretty quick. No one is talking, there’s no joking around at all. We all kind of know what we have to do and we’re all trying to get it done. To be honest, it feels pretty serious out there. But after it’s over, we’ll start joking around again and having fun. FS: So what does a post-national title summer look like for you? KJ: Well, I’m gonna talk it over with my sponsors, but off the bat, I’m going to J-Bay to watch the World Tour event over there and I’m pretty excited about that. I’ll do some other trips, too. I’m gonna go to Teahupoo and then I’m gonna to the Philippines for that barrel contest at Cloud 9.
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Whitey Harrison The First Wave of Surfing Pioneers There was a time when surfing was an activity defined by rough men with calloused hands, balsa boards, and an innate understanding of the oceans. These men, with bodies forged to steel from carrying 200-pound boards to the sea, were the original pioneers of our sport. A rough and tough equivalent to surfing’s Founding Fathers if you will. With nothing more than a thirst for the unknown, these men ventured west, east, north, and south in search of the undiscovered. And of this handful of early adventurers, Southern California’s Lorrin “Whitey” Harrison was perhaps the burliest of the bunch. Growing up in Southern California in the 1920s and ’30s, Harrison experienced the early days of surfing in what is now the beating heart of the industry. Living just a stone’s throw away from Doheny and San Onofre, “Whitey” as his friends knew him, spent his youth fishing, diving for abalone, and surfing up and down the California coast. Over time, this early group of devoted surfers put down roots in San Onofre. “They were an incredibly healthy lot, spending long days down at the beach, engaging in friendly competition, encouraging their girls to surf, and partying long into the night,” wrote Nat Young of Harrison and his counterparts. “They successfully combined normal working-class lives with the excitement of being the first group of California surfers.” By the 1930s, the lure of Hawai‘i hooked itself deep into Harrison’s conscience and he made multiple attempts to get to the islands stowing away on ships. Eventually, Whitey stepped foot on
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the beige sands that he’d been dreaming of and became a Waikiki Beach Boy and one of the first California surfers to truly embrace surfing in Hawai‘i. “He was really one of the first guys from California to go to Hawaii and surf a lot of those waves. Not just in Queens either, but he would surf Avalanches and a bunch of those waves out on the North Shore, too. He was definitely one of the first guys from California to really make his way into Hawaii.” In addition to being an intrepid and rough traveler, Harrison was also able to make due with the barest of essentials. As a son of the Great Depression, he made due with what he had. “My grandfather was all about doing everything. His whole world was the ocean. If he wanted something, he would make it himself. I think that’s part of the whole depression era mindset. They wouldn’t buy anything. They could build it all themselves,” says JP Van Swae, grandson to Harrison. With a legacy of being one of California’s first surfing pioneers and a reputation as one of the most genuinely amicable men of his time, Harrison became one of surfing’s great figures. And as we continue to step forward in search of the far-flung, it’s important to note that the art of the search existed long before commercial airlines and the Thruster. Back when the only way for a surfer thirsting for a winter on the North Shore meant having to stowaway on a ship. —Jeff Mull
Kalani Vierra photos: Gibber
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Hurley’s new line of Phantom trunks combine space age tech and Hurley’s sense of style to make the most comfy boardshort we’ve ever surfed in and we’re pretty much living in them. We’re throwing a shaka at the Phantom. In4mation and Vans have partnered up to release a collaborative shoe that we’re happy to announce. The Chukka Lows look about as tight as they feel and we’re glad to be seen around in them in Town. Our favorite eco-conscious surfer, Dave Rastovich, has released his own line through Billabong. Featuring Rasta’s style and the comfort we know from Billabong’s threads, this line is sure to make an impact. Plus, we’re stoked to support Rasta, the man does a lot of good. Taylor Steele recently dropped his latest flick, Castles in the Sky. The movie is testament to Steele’s vision of making films as much about the locales as the actual surfing. The soundtrack’s on our iPod and definitely worth a download. Last month, we biffed when we wrote that the Surf into Summer contest was presented by O’Neill when it was actually sponsored by Hurley. It was a great event and we’re stoked to have the industry supporting. Thanks Hurley. As we were going to press, we’re stoked to announce that Jordy Smith, one of our favorite Zaffas, won his first World Tour event at the Billabong Pro J-Bay. To boot, it put Jordy into the number-one position in the ratings. Aussie progressive sensation Josh Kerr has claimed a huge win in online video platform Innersection.tv with his jaw-dropping airs in the summer section. We’re also thrilled to report that Peru will be holding the ISA World Junior Championships next year. Can you say long, perfect waves and the potential for 10-point rides in every heat? Rounding out our list this month, Mexican ripper and tuberiding aficionado Dave Rutherford won the Quiksilver Pro Puerto Escondido in some throaty Mexican tubes.
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Zeke Lau's unmistakable shaved head and slick style in the water have earned him the admiration of the surf industry. But how much do we really know about this young teenage prodigy? In our next issue, we give you an inside look into the making of one of Hawai‘i's most promising young pros as we profile Zeke Lau.
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