Adaptive Surfing Magazine: Vol. 1

Vol. 1 | DEC. 2016

SURFING + INNOVATION Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 1

pg.05

pg.19

S owi ng the s eeds of s toke

What Does n’t Kill yo u makes you Gn arly

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pg.37

Al ana Ni c hol s and the c u p Hal f Fu l l

s hap i ng the fut ure

- Mark “Mono” Stewart. Photo: Seabour ne Charters

LETTER F ROM TH E E D ITOR

The ultimate party wave. Photo: Rose

“a th a n k Yo u to th e Aqu a ti c A s t ro n a u t s ”

Adaptive Surfing Magazine: Vol. 1 is complete, all except for the “Letter from the Editor”, which I am currently writing from the Emergency Room. The plan was to go to print tomorrow, the first of December, but at this point I am not so sure we are going to meet that deadline. But that’s ok; there are more important things to focus on at the moment. This is the second time in as many months that we have rushed to the Emergency Room for loved ones, and it is always gut-wrenching to see your loved ones in distress.

The dull, persistent “beep” of the monitors is simultaneously annoying and reassuring.

Anxiously watching as the medical staff scour for a tiny vein to insert an IV is just part of the routine. The best nurses nail it on the first try, but that seems to be a rarity, and each subsequent attempt is a bit tougher to watch than the previous. It is bittersweet when you come to know the ER staff on a first name basis. Samples are sent off to the lab. “We’ll let you know what we find out,” they tell you sympathetically, and then you wait.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep…

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For many members of the Adaptive Surfing

curve balls that are thrown your way. My family

community- including athletes, friends, and family

and friends are forever grateful to be welcomed to

alike- the inside of the emergency room is not an

this one-of-a-kind community with open arms and

unfamiliar place. Therapy visits and doctors’ offices

hearts.

of all varieties are part of the weekly routine. Your local pharmacy is on speed dial and your ability to make plans for the future may be subject to preexisting conditions.

This publication is dedicated to all of the adaptive surfers out there who have been paving the way and inspiring the next generation- dragging yourselves across the sand, rocks, or anything in your way

I have always been passionate about getting

to get back into the waves. You are aquatic

individuals from all walks of life into the water and

astronauts, going where no one has gone before and

enjoying the positive benefits of surfing and the

“Impossible” is not in your vocabulary.

ocean. In 2015, it was a true honor for me to work alongside a dream-team of experts to help breathe life into the concept of the first ever ISA World Adaptive Surfing Championship. After months of sleepless nights and meticulous planning, and with the event only a few weeks away, my passion for helping to further develop adaptive surfing quickly transitioned into a responsibility, as the reality of “adapting and overcoming” struck particularly close to home, as we learned a loved one would also have to adapt and overcome.

We would also like to thank the individuals, organizations, and brands that volunteer your time and prosperity to support adaptive surfing programs, and the Adaptive Surfing Community as a whole. The momentum created by the Adaptive Surfing Community today will make it that much easier for the adaptive surfers of tomorrow to experience the joys of our beloved sport of surfing.

Taxing and challenging moments, like now- sitting

A Pandora’s box of possibilities rained down on us, as we were instantly immersed into a new world of ambiguity and unknowns. At a time that could have been incredibly scary and unnerving, we found ourselves surrounded by inspiration and positivity.

Adaptive surfers from across the world were all beginning their pilgrimage to San Diego for the first true congregation of the Adaptive Surfing

here in the ER, will inevitably continue to present themselves in each of our lives, but belonging to the Adaptive Surfing community provides a network of support and inspiration that invigorates the human spirit in ways no other group or club ever could.

Without further ado, it comes with great pleasure to bring you Adaptive Surfing Magazine: Vol. 1.

community. Each new arrival brought a wave of enthusiasm, motivation, and their own unique

Here’s to one big step for “Surfing”, and one giant

brand of expertise on how to thrive, no matter the

leap for “Adaptive Surfing”.

- Sean Brody Editor-in-Chief

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adap ti v e s u rfi ng m agazin e E D ITOR-IN -CH IEF Sean Brody Cre ative D I R E C TOR & DES IGN Daniel Hopkins I l lustr ations Steve Romero C ON T R I BUT IN G AU TH ORS Christiaan Bailey

Jon Richards Joe Frazer Thomas Leitch Spike Kane

Images Mike Coots

Jason Rose/ Access Surf Val Reynolds/ CAF Ana Catarina Chris Grant Anthony Vela Seabourne Charters Spike Kane Jeremy Condamine Felix Chen Llene Tapuch Sydney Prather

ADV ERT IS IN G S AL ES advertise@adaptivesurfing.com PUB L IS H ER Surf Education Academy

Š 2016 Surf Education Academy. All trademarks belong to their respective owners. All rights reserved.

Some materials used under license, with all rights reserved by licensor.

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GOLD PARTNER:

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Sowing the

Seeds of Stoke Adaptive Surfing & the Cultivation of Community B y : C h r i s t i a a n B a i l e y P h o t o s : Va l R e y n o l d s / C A F

Illustration: Steve Romero

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There are moments in everyone’s lives where

and inspire each other and, in that, a platform in

the concept of what they previously thought was

which we could grow together as a community.

possible was shattered and a new bar was raised.

In Adaptive Surfing, these achievements often have their origins based in something as simple as getting back on one’s board by yourself, or can be as monumental as the desire to surf the world’s most dangerous waves. However, in the end, the unifying feeling we all share is the same... Stoke.

This bright new future would manifest itself in a multitude of ways, from the progression of adaptive surfing technology (i.e. surfing specific prosthetics, adaptive surfboard design & development) to competitions and adaptive surfing programs driven to introduce the sport to an ever-widening population within the disabled

For many, the roots of adaptive surfing history

community. These initiatives quickly began

have always been based on the individual struggle.

to accelerate around 2006 and the growth of

It really was not until the advent of social media

the sport and the number of participants and

that we were all fundamentally drawn together

programs started springing up all over the world.

under a common banner, a common objective.

Over the ensuing years, the world of adaptive surfing would be profoundly changed. This is largely due to the fact, that for the first time in our history as adaptive surfers, both novice and expert alike were given the opportunity to connect and exchange ideas, technology, experiences, as well as collectively share hopes and dreams for the future.

No longer were we relegated to a shadowy corner of the surfing world to fight our individual battles;

In 2006, the flame had already been lit and there was a plethora of programs in the U.S. and Hawaii, everything was starting to snowball hard and it was only getting bigger. This was also when we started Ocean Healing Group in Costa Rica.

So at that point, there was a phenomenal amount of support developing for the sport and the community as a whole.

we now had a forum in which to share, encourage,

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With that being said, when it came to

I knew at that moment, that our time

us resolute in what our goals are as a

the competitive aspects of adaptive

had finally come.

whole and what our priorities should

surfing, there wasn’t much.

be for the future.

When the ISA got involved, I

But, there has always been one

understood immediately what that

For me, the real moment of

person who had faith and ushered

meant. After a phone call to a couple

revelation came when I was a speaker

in the new era for us as athletes,

connections at the IOC, I learned

at the Adaptive Surfing Symposium

and that was Greg Cruse at Surfing

that surfing was on the short list

during the 2015 ISA World Adaptive

America. When Ryan Levinson

to be included as a future sport in

Surfing Championship. As I rolled

contacted us all to establish the first

the Olympic games and was being

onto the stage and looked over the

“US Team” in 2007 for the Surfing

proposed for Tokyo 2020. I knew if

crowd, I was taken back by the myriad

America National Championships at

that happened, the next step for the

of familiar faces, faces I knew all too

Huntington Beach, it was definitely a

ISA was to have an equal mechanism

well, as they were the same ones I

game changer and even though it was

in place for the eventual inclusion

had been engaging with through a

just an expression session at the time,

of adaptive surfing into the IPC

computer screen for the better part

it really served to bring our sport into

curriculum as well. It was all just a

of the last decade. The fundamental

the light.

matter of time at that point.

difference now being, that for the first time in adaptive surfing history, we

From that point on, Greg has

These initiatives all culminated into

always been a constant fixture in

the first ever ISA World Adaptive

the promotion and progression of

Surfing Championships, held in

competitive adaptive surfing, going so

September 2015 in San Diego,

far as to include adaptive divisions in

California. For the first time in our

all Western Surfing Association (WSA)

sport’s history, the entire breadth

contests for us.

of the adaptive surfing community

were all together in the same room.

That was a game changer. It was at that moment, that I realized adaptive surfing went far beyond just myself or any one person’s goals or aspirations.

It was all about us coming together as a community.

would come together as one and be Fast forward to 2014, at that point

represented on the global stage.

hope to see moving forward is an

I had been traveling on various legs of the ASP/WSL (“WCT” &

69 athletes from 18 countries traveled

“WQS”), putting on expression

to San Diego, not only to engage in

sessions with the boys and rallying

head-to-head competition, but to

as much support for adaptive surfing

come together and solidify the fact

programs/competitions as I could,

that now we were no longer crawling

when one day I received an interesting

across the sand by ourselves- speaking

call from the International Surfing

as individuals, we were speaking with

Association (ISA). They were reaching

a unified voice.

out to certain key members of the community, to establish a board dedicated to bringing the sport to the international competitive level.

With the tone set, what I would really

The headway our sport made that week went far beyond competition, it served to galvanize our resolve and focus as a community and left

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international delegation of surfers sent to Tokyo in 2020 to promote adaptive surfing into the Paralympic games. As a community and a movement, we’re almost to the point where inclusion into the games is almost certain. I’d just really like to do my part, along with many others, to help make that happen.

The next generation of kids have already started progressing at a supersonic pace. Then again, this

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has really only came about in the last two years, as

You know, I’ve had a thought stuck in the back of

programs have gone beyond “just getting them into

my head for awhile now, but I really do think it’s

the water”, to focusing more on the progression of

important to say:

skills.

We’re all on the verge of jumping off this cliff I think that any program that “ditches the training

together and in my 27 years of experience in the

wheels” and focuses on the sheer performance

professional surf/skate community, I’ve come to

aspects of adaptive surfing are going to be

learn one immutable, universal fact that I’d like to

instrumental in the growth of the sport over time. I

share. At the end of the day, never let the competitive

know it’s easier to just let kids ride the foam to the

aspect of what we’re doing take away from the

shore and everyone clap around them. It’s a feel

fundamental joy that we ALL share together through

good moment for sure, but personally, I think it’s

surfing.

critical that you allow them to push their limits out the back, on waves with shoulders, steep drops and occasionally getting wrecked, because it’s only then that they get a real picture of what surfing can be.

It becomes easy to allow the pressure of competition and the allegiance to one’s country to influence your outlook and attitude, especially in the rose tinted glasses of simply wanting to win. But we must always

It allows them to challenge their preconceptions and

remember that the mutual stoke we share for the

know what surfing is all about. From that point one

sport is the glue that binds the adaptive surfing

of two things will happen, either they will take a step

community together.

back and return to the foam, or it will ignite a drive and passion in them that requires them to push their limits. And that’s what it’s all about.

Be true to yourselves and our community first. Never allow the pressure and politics of competition steal away the love and respect we all have for each other.

Programs like the Junior Seau Foundation’s Adaptive Surfing Program presented by the Challenged Athletes Foundation understand this need and mindset of progression better than anyone.

Share the stoke friends.

This was said to by me by one of my best friends, Jay

This progression certainly a push in the right direction, as it gives people a one stop resource to not just athletes, but also that vast wealth of knowledge, experience and connections, that would normally take one years to cultivate on their own. It has the opportunity to galvanize our community in a way that has never happened before and I am really

Moriarity, shortly before he passed away. While at the time it didn’t hold heavy meaning, a few years later when I got hurt, his words rung true and served to be the mantra in which I choose to live.

“It’s how a person chooses to face challenges, that defines them as who they are.”

looking forward to seeing how that manifests itself.

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STANCE ISA WORLD ADAPTIVE SURFING CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS TO LA JOLLA By: Jon Richards

Photos: Val Reynolds/CAF

In 2015 mainstream surfing was introduced to competitive adaptive surfing and the masses from across the globe tuned in to witness the historic event live via webcast. The International Surfing Association World Adaptive Surfing Championship (WASC) was born. Although the concept of the WASC began in late 2014, it propelled forward in early 2015 when the International Surfing Association (ISA) developed its Adaptive Surfing Advisory Board. ISA meant business when a panel of ten experts, which consisted of ISA staff, professionals, and adaptive surfers, joined forces to create an event that truly inspired the world. The Challenged Athletes Foundation and the City of San Diego collaborated with the ISA, each with their own efforts to help make a successful event and experience for athletes and spectators alike.

In its inaugural year, the WASC faced a plethora of unique challenges. One of the biggest was to develop a classification system to equalize the competition, announce it to the 100 National Surfing Federations across the globe, have the federations find athletes to compete, and classify each surfer for their division, all within a nine month period. The adaptive surfing community was up for the task and the stage was set for an epic showdown in La Jolla, CA. The main event was nothing short of a dream come true for many in attendance. Although it was a brief period of time for the federations to learn about and register for this first time event, it was widely welcomed and many surfers jumped at the opportunity to compete and represent their nations. In the end there were

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69 adaptive surfers representing 18 National Surfing

sport of surfing we all love so deeply.

Federations across the globe. Impressive. And after a one day adaptive surfing clinic, opening ceremony, an Adaptive Surfing Symposium, and two days of competition, the champions in each division were proclaimed, representing four different continents: Stand division: Mark “Mono” Stewart (Australia); Upright division: Fellipe Lima (Brazil); Prone division: Bruno Hansen (Denmark); and, Assist

Another change for this year is the addition of one more day of competition, making a total of three days in the water, December 9th – 11th. This is needed to accommodate for two additional divisions and up to twenty more athletes registering for the event. In total there will be approximately twenty federations represented with eighty

division: Jesse Billauer (USA).

surfers competing. It aims to be bigger and more global than year one. A reason for this is that the development

The WASC was about more than just crowning champions;

pathway has been improved, as 2016 is a year that brought

it was the sparks of a movement that was ready to catch

national championships into the mix. Several National

fire. It ignited an adaptive surfing craze that represented

Surfing Federations added an adaptive surfing component

accessibility and opportunity. It brought together a

into their national competitions. This is how surfers were

community who once only dreamed of meeting each other.

chosen to compete at WASC, and this is another example

It announced to the world, “we are here, and although we

of the exponential growth of the sport. Duke would be

may have a disability, we surf better than you!”

proud to see surfing’s development and inclusion across the continents, as he knew that there is a place for accessibility in the sport of surfing.

Fast forward to 2016 and Stance Socks steps up by becoming the 2016 title sponsor of the event, showing their continued commitment to the growth of adaptive

This year we are getting an updated and expanded version

surfing. 2016 has much to offer, again with the help of

of classification. This will allow for surfers to compete at

the Challenged Athletes Foundation and the City of San

more of an equal level, based on ability. Surfers will now

Diego. The second annual Adaptive Surfing Symposium

compete in 6 divisions: AS-1 (standing/kneeling), AS-2

will take place on December 7th to discuss the future

(standing/kneeling), AS-3 (upright/waveski), AS-4 (prone),

development of adaptive surfing. December 8th will be

AS-5 (assist), and AS-VI (visually impaired). Another

a busy day at La Jolla Shores, with an adaptive surfing

addition is the process of how each athlete has become

clinic, “Parade of Nations”, and the opening ceremony.

classified. ISA has created a formalized classification

The opening ceremony will commence with a parade of

review protocol and a panel of reviewers to conduct the

athletes proudly bearing their nation’s flag, a “Sands of the

classifications.

World” ceremony, and welcoming speeches from honorary dignitaries. It will be a grand spectacle and will showcase the talent of the athletes, the cultural diversities of the many nations in attendance, and the common bond for

The second installment of WASC will bring a new team format to the competition. Each federation will have the

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opportunity to fill divisions by fielding a team of eight surfers, similar to other ISA World Championships.

When competition is complete, individual champions will be crowned for each division, along with a team champion that produces the most combined points. A second addendum to the team format is the requirement of one team member to be a female. This has been welcomed to advance the sport through both genders.

It also adds to the appeal of the sport and promotes overall opportunity and accessibility in which surfing will continue to grow.

As any sport progresses, so does the skill level, and as more people get involved, the competition and skill level both progress. The second year of the WASC will see the progression of the sport with an increased level of skill and more surfers wanting to compete for the coveted opportunity to surf for their nation. It has been a little over a year since the first WASC and now the word is out. People know about the event and are attracted to its prestige, thus wanting to showcase their abilities while proving to other surfers that they are the champion. It is all fun and games, but at the end of the day there will be a champion crowned in each division.

In 2016’s event, look for past champions to come back to defend their titles and witness two new divisions being crowned for the first time. Look for more surfers to compete, dreaming to become a world champion, and for more countries to attend, that are excited to see their national champions compete. Competitive adaptive surfing will be on center stage once again for all to see and the forward momentum of adaptive surfing will continue to grow.

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O RG A N I Z AT I O N F E AT U R E :

Challenged Athletes Foundation Photos by: Val Reynolds/CAF PRO GR AM : Junior Seau Foundation Adaptive Surfing Program MI SSI O N:

MI L ESTO NES & ACCO MPL I SHMENT S:

It is the mission of the Challenged Athletes

In 2016, CAF awarded a record number of grants

Foundation (CAF) to provide opportunities and

with 2,098 grants to people from ages 3-72, for

support to people with physical challenges, so they

adaptive equipment, competition expenses and

can pursue active lifestyles through physical fitness

training worth over $3.7 million. 44% (approx.

and competitive athletics. The Challenged Athletes

124 athletes) of Team USA represented challenged

Foundation believes that involvement in sports at any

athletes competing in the Paralympics were funded

level increases self-esteem, encourages independence

by CAF.

and enhances quality of life.

UPCO MI NG EV ENT S: PO PUL ATI ON SE RV E D : Over the past 23 years, the Challenged Athletes

June 13, 2017 -

Foundation has raised in excess of $80 million and

A Celebration of Heroes, Heart and Hope Gala

satisfied over 13,000 funding requests from physically

in New York City. This year’s record-breaking, A

challenged athletes in all 50 states and more than 32

Celebration of Heroes, Heart and Hope Gala (HHH)

countries. Additionally, CAF’s outreach efforts reach

raised over $2.9 million and still counting. Over the

another 60,000 individuals each year.

past 10 years, HHH has raised over $14 million to support the individuals with physical challenges, who

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will break down barriers and find confidence, independence and hope through living an active lifestyle.

O c t o b er 1 4 -2 0 , 2017Mazda Foundation Million Dollar Challenge - A seven-day, 620-mile journey down the California coastline from San Francisco to San Diego. This epic experience is an exclusive and fully supported ride that includes stops in California’s most stunning coastal towns. CAF’s Mazda Foundation Million Dollar Challenge combines first-class cycling support with a heart-pounding route, all while riding alongside the inspiring challenge athletes conquering the same miles as you.

O c t o b er 2 2 , 2 017 – YMCA of San Diego County Tour de CoveJoin CAF for a fun and sweat-drenching 4.5 hour stationary cycling marathon with 100 riders and over 50 challenged athletes. There will be over 100 stationary bikes on the lawn overlooking the Pacific Ocean at the center of the Aspen Medical Products San Diego Triathlon Challenge. Participate in the fourand-a-half-hour ride as an individual or share a bike as part of a 3-person relay team.

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Oc t o b er 22, 2017-

H O W TO GET I NVO LVED :

Aspen Medical Products San Diego Triathlon

- Participate in CAF events, like the Aspen Medical

Challenge - The 24th Annual Aspen Medical Products

Products San Diego Triathlon Challenge and Million

San Diego Triathlon Challenge (SDTC) is an event unlike

Dollar Challenge 620mil bike ride- from San Francisco to

any other in the world. Some call it uplifting. Many call it

San Diego in October.

life-changing. Everyone calls it the #BestDayInTri.

- Get your company to sponsor - Race in an event of your choice and fundraise for CAF

Join 200 physically challenged athletes, 550 able-bodied

- Volunteer

athletes, celebrities, and sports legends as they complete a 1 mile ocean swim, 44 mile bike ride and 10 mile run on

 NOTEWORTH Y:

one of the most breathtaking courses in the country, all in

The Challenged Athletes Foundation funds the purchase

support of Team CAF.

of expensive adaptive sports equipment (like running prosthetics, which can cost as much as $30,000, as well as

CAF hosts a variety of free camps and clinics including

racing chairs and handcycles). More often than not, these

Ă–ssur Running and Mobility Clinics presented by

costs are not covered by conventional medical insurance.

Challenged Athletes Foundation across the country, plus the Jr. Seau Foundation Adaptive Surf Program presented by CAF. For a full schedule please visit www. challengedathletes.org/programs

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The Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) is committed to the Adaptive Surfing movement by supporting athletes, providing opportunity and global inclusion. CAF funds grants for adaptive surf equipment, coaching and competition travel expenses and through the launch of our Junior Seau Foundation Adaptive Surf Program, presented by CAF, we are investing in the next wave of Adaptive Surfers. These efforts have been made possible by through the lives of special people like these three who we want to remember always.

To learn more, visit: challengedathletes.org/adaptivesurf

SAM DAY “As soon as Sam could crawl he was in search of adventure.

Always exploring the world, he felt basic rules restricted him from getting the most out of life. He was a compassionate leader with a creative and absorbent mind, soaking in information about world history and politics while movies like Lord of the Rings gave him deep ideas to ponder. With a competitive spirit, he loved football at recess and watching NBA basketball at home. If asked what was on his mind, he might have disclosed his latest business scheme or thoughts on how to turn Star Wars into a middle school drama production. Close friends and family have all heard him say, “I want to change the world.”

Diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma at age 9 caused him to lose his left leg and part of his right foot but not his pursuit of adventure. He lived with cancer for six years, engaging in life-giving activities in between treatments or whenever the disease was stable. While cancer slowly grew in his lungs, Sam found a way to forget the bad stuff while he pursued the thrill of riding waves.

Sam was surfing just a few weeks before he passed away. It was the last time he experienced that crazy kind of passion for life.”

JUNIOR SEAU

“Many people remember Junior Seau as an All-Pro NFL linebacker, but he had interests outside of football. Junior loved being with people, whether it was on a golf course, participating in a business venture, or helping raise money for worthy causes. But two things that he was most passionate about were surfing and his charitable foundation.

Junior grew up beside the Pacific Ocean and loved the time that he could spend on the waves. He was one of the first professional athletes to establish a non-profit charitable foundation, with his favorite beneficiaries being kids, particularly those that have faced adversity. The partnership to form this Adaptive Surf Program combines his passions and is something that he would be proud for his foundation to support.”

- Lorna Day

- Mike Kinklear + Ted Roth

Sam’s mother

Longtime friends and JSF Board Members

KEN WHALEN “Besides his family, surfing was the most important part of Ken’s life. Combining these two loves by surfing with his children was the ultimate joy in his life. While an exceptionally gifted businessman, a real “board meeting” to Ken meant neoprene and wax rather than a suit and a laptop. Surfing provided him with a sense of well-being that nothing else could… in short, it made him “stoked”.

One of Ken’s favorite quotes was “Take care of your surfing and your surfing will take care of you”. He lived this principal and knew that there was no problem too great that a good surf session with loved one’s couldn’t fix.”

- Kevin Flynn Best friend of Ken Whalen

What Doesn’t

Kill You Ma kes You Gna r ly Pioneers of Big Wave Adaptive Surfing By: Joe Frazer & Sean Brody Photos: Courtesy of Athletes

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The piercing scream of the alarm brings the night

murky wave sucks up half the sea as you stare down the

silence to an abrupt halt at 2am, but only for a moment.

face of a liquid Everest, your existence literally hanging

You have been lying wide-eyed in anticipation of the

in the balance.

alarm, of the morning, of the swell. This inhumane hour is reserved strictly for the crazies and the addicts, and you can’t help but snicker as you realize that you are one of them. Although you are not wandering aimlessly or craving drugs, some other unruly force compels you.

“Just like last time,” you wishfully reassure yourself, before being pitched with the lip as it unloads like Niagara Falls. You fill your lungs with as much air as possible before smacking the water’s surface like wet concrete. Hoping to escape the lion’s share of the wrath

You’ve trained all year for this day. Surfed your local break at its biggest, put in the hours with your jetski driver, who you trust with your life. You’ve double and triple checked everything is ready so you can be on the water by daybreak. Now it’s time to perform.

you take two solid strokes down, but just as you think you are deep enough to be in the clear you get sucked backwards into the belly of the beast. A thorough thrashing ensues. You start seeing stars as your lungs begin to spasm for the air they so desperately crave. You are under water for longer than you had ever prepared,

As you approach the line-up, the waves sound like booming cannons being fired in the distance, with plumes of offshore winds lingering as ghosts of waves unridden. The taste of salt is heavy on the air as water collides with coast and the first of many knots begins to form in your stomach.

your limbs are rattling in their sockets, and you are forced to surrender to pressures you’ve never known, eventually washing up through the boneyard of rocks everybody knows to avoid.

Now imagine enduring this experience, pushing the capabilities of the human body and living to tell about

Again, you check your equipment before positioning

it, but without the use of your legs.

yourself behind the jetski, no going back now. Within 15 minutes, your driver is signaling you as waves start to

There is a unique breed of individuals, part watermen/

roll through. On the third one, you’re whipped in just as

part hellmen, who not only tolerate putting themselves

you had rehearsed and you find yourself giving Sir Isaac

in harms way by chasing unthinkable swells, they

Newton a solid run for his money, fighting the laws

live for it. Amongst this narrow and elite crew of big

of gravity as you bottom turn on an ominous 35-foot

wave surfers exists a microcosm of Big Wave Adaptive

bomb. You set your line across this seemingly endless

Surfers, utilizing extreme abilities in extreme conditions.

mountain, aiming for the safety of the channel, while being chased by a runaway train.

Professional adaptive surfer and Wheel Chair Moto

With adrenaline pumping, you catch your breath and head back out to position yourself for another. The sky darkens as a violent wall of water blankets the horizon, promising to reign terror on anything in its path. With your ass in the hot seat and your heart in your throat, you get the signal and turn around to face your assassin with a frantic, yet calculated determination. The thick,

Cross rider, Christiaan Bailey, did the impossible in 2008, becoming the first adaptive surfer to tow-in surf Mavericks, inspiring a whole community of adaptive athletes to Go Big. After growing up in Santa Cruz and catching the eyes of some major brands by the early age of 11 in both

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surfing and skateboarding, Bailey was

“He wanted to ride hotshot boards,

Training with long-time friend and

carving out a promising career in

he wanted to ride a 6’6”. Nothing

surf partner Sean “Barney” Barron

extreme sports. While being filmed at

changed in his mind when he got

in the Santa Cruz Harbor, the biggest

a local Santa Cruz skatepark in 2006,

injured,” reminisces Eric Roush,

obstacle was figuring out the proper

Bailey crashed, fracturing multiple

Bailey’s surfboard shaper.

way to tow Bailey in without knocking

vertebras and damaging his spinal cord, paralyzing him from the waist down.

him off the board.

With a newfound surfer/shaper relationship and an encouraging crew

“Since I can’t use my legs as shock

of friends, Bailey found himself on the

absorbers, when you hit choppy

Surfing and skateboarding are not

boat at Mavericks just a year after his

waters the board wants to bounce you,

just sports or hobbies to Bailey- they

injury with one goal in mind, to surf

so it requires a lot different weight

are a way of life- and he was quickly

the beast once again.

distribution,” Bailey said. “More

finding ways to get back to the level of

importantly, is an incredibly skilled

performance that he craved.

driver on your ski, because I can’t sling

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The low resolution image that inspired many. Christiaan Bailey

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the traditional way, he had to do a very quick snap sling to get me into it.”

Bailey’s dedication and determination inspired many, and even sparked a friendly rivalry when fellow big wave aficionado, Bruno Hansen, was able to overtake him in their respective prone division to become one of the first ISA World Adaptive Surfing Champions in San Diego, California in 2015.

Bruno Hansen, 45, is surfing’s Jacques Cousteau; he was born in Denmark, grew up in South Africa, and currently lives in a tree house in Bali, thriving on a lifetime of maritime adventure. After surviving a brutal car jacking, provoked in South Africa, Hansen was left without the use of his legs. However, with a life devoted to the sea, it was only a matter of time before he was back in the water and on a board. Hansen has been surfing and sailing around Bali, Indonesia for the last 12 years and continues to push boundaries in and out of the water.

Hansen has figured out how to continue riding a regular shortboard design by tying his legs to the board, emphasizing that his extensive knowledge of the ocean and brute strength are what he relies on when the waves get big.

“I was experimenting alone for years,” Hansen explained. “I’ve learned to swim deep and keep my eyes open looking for the pockets of cleaner water under the foam and try to swim between them. I have an extra-long paddleboard leash so I can be free of the board completely.”

Surfing Nusa Dua in Indonesia when it is 20 feet or bigger can have its consequences. “Nusa has claimed it’s victims. It took me 10 years to learn the wave and be comfortable when it gets big,” Hansen said. “I have found myself

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fighting for my life quite a few times

December 2016 and Indonesia in April

alone out on a reef on a big day.”

2017, Lima says big wave surfing comes naturally to him because his love for

Bailey and Hansen will be competing against one another once again at the second ISA World Adaptive Surfing Championship, December 8-11, 2016, in San Diego, California.

While Bailey and Hansen chase waves and break barriers in the prone position, athletes like Fellipe Lima from Brazil, are taking to big waves in a different craft, the waveski.

Lima is experimenting with the more upright approach to surfing big waves.

After falling from a balcony and losing the use of his legs, Lima caught his first wave with a kayak. He tried the prone position, but found his preference to be the waveski, which became his new found passion, being lighter, faster and more maneuverable for the type of high-performance surfing he wanted to achieve.

Lima is a master of his craft, creating his own unique technique to flip over his waveski without having to unstrap from his equipment.

adrenaline, “I just drop it and have big fun, now a days I am trying to break new ground and surf really big waves, training tow-in techniques with big wave riders Carlos Burle and Alemao de Maresias.”

Each decade, there are a handful of surfers pushing the progression of our beloved sport further into the realms of what was previously deemed impossible.

From Greg Noll and Eddie Aikau cheating death by pioneering Waimea in the 50s and 60s, Laird Hamilton’s gravity defying displays at Teahopoo at the turn of the century, Shane Dorian’s outlandish paddle-in waves at Jaws, or Garrett McNamara’s recent cartoon-like heroics at Nazare, only a fistful of names will forever be associated with milestones in big wave surfing.

It’s time Christiaan Bailey, Bruno Hansen and Fellipe Lima join that list. By putting mind over matter and overcoming obstacles that most people would never think twice about, they laugh in the face of adversity, reject the notion of “impossible”, and charge serious waves of consequence at the crack of dawn

“I spent a long part of my learning

with the rest of the crazies.

process getting use to the roll, and doing breathing exercises, so I don’t lose the board and can get back out as fast as possible,” Lima said.

With the dream of one day surfing Jaws and plans to head to Hawaii in

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Btuno’s last wave before his injury. Bawa Island, Sumatra. 1998

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Th e La n gu ag e o f S t o k e : Inspirational Images that need no translation

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Athletes:

Fellipe Lima. ph: Catarina, Geneveive Halle. ph: courtesy, Quinn Waitley. ph: courtesy, Mike Coots. ph:

Coots, Laurent Marouf. ph: courtesy, Dan Riley. ph: Reynolds, Ryan Gambrell. ph: courtesy, Dani Burt. ph: Grant, Davi Taxierra. ph: Catarina, Jeff Munson. ph: Rose, Dian Whitcomb. ph: Rose, Charles Webb. ph: Rose, Darien Haynes. ph: Rose, Patrick Ivision. ph: courtesy, Fubio Secci. ph: courtesy, Henrique Saraiva. ph: Catarina, Bruno Hansen. ph: courtesy, Rodney Roller. ph: courtesy, Angelo Sanchez. ph: Reynolds, Ismael Vagdespoir. ph: courtesy, Dries Millard,. ph: Tapuch, C.C. Roberts. ph: courtesy

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A New Frontier in S urfboard S haping In 2 0 0 6 , C hri st i aan B ai l e y an d E ri c R o u sh we re introduc ed in a sm all Santa C r uz sha ping bay. W hat w as su ppo se d t o be a f i v e -m i n u t e i n t ro duc tion tur ned into an e xiting three-hour di sc ussi o n o n ada pt i v e su rf bo ard de si g n .

Now ten years later, these two are the best of

Because of his success with Bailey and others,

friends and one of the most progressive surfer/

Roush was approached by the Challenged

shaper relationships in our sport, helping

Athletes Foundation to shape multiple boards

design boards for all types of surfers, no matter

for their adaptive surfing programs put on in

the challenges they face.

partner with the Junior Seau Foundation.

“Inspiration stimulating innovation,” Roush

Roush shaped three surfboards, a 6’10”,

says, “It’s really a story of having extreme

7’2”, and a 9’0”, applying different designs

commitment to surfboard design, innovation

and techniques to benefit the most high

and a positive attitude.”

performance adaptive surfers, as well as those trying surfing for the first time.

Wanting to surf just as he did before his injury, Bailey came to Roush with the challenge of

“We gave them three really different boards

creating a high-performance surfboard that

that spanned from hotshot shortboard to cruiser

would allow him to surf waves of consequence

longboard,” Roush explained. “When I see all

with the same speed and maneuverability in

their prosthetics and I see all this ingenuity,

the prone position.

it excites me and I know for a fact that the surfboard can match that type of level.”

“Christiaan Bailey has his mind wrapped around fantasy, he wants ride high technology,”

With opportunities like this, Roush has found

Eric Roush exclaimed and continued, “This

a passion in the challenge that is adaptive

sounded like a good challenge because I like

surfboard design, pushing the boundaries

to make the highest performance boards

and causing ripples in the mainstream

possible.”

design, as well.

Shaping anything from small carbon fiber

Roush has patented a fin design called the

skimboards to 10’ nose riders, Roush was ready

“Tri-quad butterfly”, which he believes has

to dive into the next frontier.

sparked a revolution.

With Roush’s skill and Bailey’s ability to

“Christiaan Bailey and I went surfing at

communicate the necessary components down

Pleasure Point for like five years together

to the smallest intricacies, allowed them to

where we would have to put towels over the

have success with shaping custom surfboards

tail of the board because I was trying to

for other adaptive surfers with a variety of

patent it,” Roush remembered, “turns out,

different injuries.

everybody’s doing it now.”

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 37

For adaptive surfers, this compressed

What started with Christiaan Bailey’s

Adaptive surfboard shaping is still in

four fin concept that Roush and

dream to continue his passion after a

it’s infancy and we are fortunate that

Bailey came up with allows them

life-changing injury has evolved into

craftsman like Eric are dedicated to

to escape the constraints of the

a constantly developing surfer/shaper

helping people from all walks of life

traditional design to leverage their

relationship that has sent ripples across

get in the water by modifying surf

body weight and use more of the

the sport as a whole.

crafts for individual specific needs.

surfboard for better maneuverability.

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EYES ON:

FuTURe WORlD CHAMpIONS HUNTER & KUMAKA “EAT MY WAKE KUMAKA!” bellows

90s. The Andy Irons vs. Kelly Slater

Hunter at the top of his lungs as the air

saga mesmerized us through the early

horn blasts and the heat begins. It is the

2000s. Enter Hunter and Kumaka, some

start of the Adaptive Surfing Division

of the greatest rivals the surfing world

at the Ken Whalen Surfing Challenge

will come to know and, with more than

presented by CAF and young competitors

a hint of prodigy, we at Adaptive Surfing

Hunter Pochop and Kumaka Jenson are all

Magazine predict that one, if not both, of

business.

these young athletes will be future World Champions of Adaptive Surfing in a not

Hunter and Kumaka are fearless Adaptive

so distant future.

Surfing phenoms who are the best of

NAME:

Both boys were born with spinabifida

Luk e Kumak al ehua J ensen

in the slightest. They shred in the water

DOB: 12/20/2006 Hu nter P ochop

excel at Adaptive Surfing and wheelchair

DOB: 05/06/2005

have matching sponsors, matching wheelchairs, matching wetsuits, and matching daredevil attitudes.

though, they love surfing together, but whether it is a free surf or a competition, all these two want to do is one up each other. This is the healthy sort of rivalry that pushes the sport to new extremes.

The Mark “Occy” Ochiluppo vs. Tom Curren rivalry enthralled the global surf

BEST WAVE: H : I have two “best waves”. The first was the last wave of the Junior Seau Surf Clinic in July of this year. There was a competition at the end of the clinic

year I participated in the Ken Whalen Surfing Challenge and caught the BIGGEST wave of my life while surfing with Alex Reynolds. I won first place with both of these waves!

K : The time I was surfing in La Jolla and YE ARS SUR F I N G: H: I have been surfing for 6 years now.

I first started surfing with Life Rolls

Don’t let their competitiveness fool you

K : My favorite waves are the big rights.

received a 10.0 for that wave. Also this

and also in the half pipe, as they both motocross. These young up and comers

H : I like to surf big waves!

and I had the coolest wave ever. I even

friends, but can be archrivals in the water. and have not let that slow them down

FAVORITE WAVE:

On in La Jolla, California. I had a tracheotomy and my parents talked to some of the girls that worked for LRO and they said I would be safe and I was.

I had so much fun that day and love to surf whenever I can.

K: I have been surfing for three years. I started with Life Rolls On.

rode right over a shark.

WORS T W IPEOUT: H : At the Junior Seau Surf Clinic, I was super excited to surf with one of my mentors and friend Alana Nichols. We were out in the water and Alana got on the board with me. We waited for a good wave and when it finally came we were pitched into it. I slid forward to the nose of the board then we both went flying off. It was my first big wipeout so it was the first time I had to

community through the 80s and early

flip myself over without any help.

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K: When I was paddling out going over a wave and it caught me and made me flip upside down and my board was on top of me.

FAVORITE SURF ER: H: My favorite able-bodied surfer is Rob Machado. He is super cool and friendly and of course an awesome surfer. My favorite adaptive surfer is Christiaan “Otter” Bailey.

He is an awesome coach, mentor and friend and pushes me to be better and do more than I think that I can both in and out of the water.

K: My favorite adaptive surfer is of course Christiaan “Otter” Bailey and my favorite WSL surfer is John John.

DRE AM SURF S ESSION: H: I would love to surf off the Gold Coast with all my surfing buddies - Kumaka Jensen, Josh Brass, Luzi Castillo, Alex Reynolds, Cory Staley, Patrick Ivason, Christiaan Bailey, and Dani Burt.

K: Going back to Costa Rica with Hunter and all my other friends and my family.

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FAVORITE PRE S UR F SO N G: H: I don’t really listen to music before I go surfing.

K: Happy by Pharrell Williams.

FAVORITE AFTER SUR F MEA L : H: Whatever my mom gives me to eat!

K: Macaroni and cheese SUR F ING GOALS: H: I really, really, really want to get barreled! I also hope that surfing is added to the Paralympics so I can compete for the US.

K: I want to surf in the Paralympics and win a gold medal.

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I

ALANA NICHOLS N TERVIE W :

T he Cu p H al f Fu l l

Alana Nichols is known for her prowess as a multisport athlete, with a decorated career earning her gold medals in both the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. A few years back the surfing bug bit her hard, and it was not long before she was turning heads in the lineup as well. Adaptive Surfing Magazine had the chance to catch up with Alana the day before the 17year anniversary of her injury, marking half of her life in a wheelchair. Over a cup of coffee Alana did some reflecting and forward-thinking, and her cup was definitely half full.

Photo: Prather

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AS M: Can you tell us how you came

ASM: But then you said you

to be a surfer and what sports you

injured yourself doing a backflip

did prior?

snowboarding? So you were snowboarding at a pretty high

AN: So, 17 years ago tomorrow I injured myself. Tomorrow actually is my 17 year anniversary of my accident,

level as well. Did you have

snow, so I ended up over-rotating the backflip, doing a one and a half, and I landed directly on a big boulder. The density of that impact is what broke my back.

ambitions in the snowboard realm as well?

A S M : So that was your first attempt?

and its actually my half-life, so I will-as of tomorrow- have been in a wheelchair

AN: When I found snowboarding, it

as long as I was able bodied, which

was my first experience with expressing

A N : Yeah, I know. 17 years old,

is kind of a significant day for me.

myself in an extreme way. I’d always

chomping at the bit, like I’m ready, but

Seventeen years ago, I broke my back

been part of these linear sports, and I

the conditions just weren’t right.

in a snowboarding accident. I over-

loved the adrenaline of getting up to

rotated on a backflip, landed on a pretty

bat and the pressure that was put on

substantial sized boulder beneath the

me to perform, and things like that, but

snow, broke my back in three places,

with snowboarding I was really able to

and became paralyzed on impact.

express myself on the mountain unlike anything I’d done before. When I first

I was a three sport athlete before my injury, and naturally thought my identity as an athlete and my goals as an athlete were no longer, and kind of

started I was just like…woah. I got to be creative and express my own style and push my limits in a way I’d never done before.

sat in a two year funk where I didn’t have any outlets for being athletic,

I was snowboarding on the side, but

and in that two year period I’ve never

fast-pitch softball was my goal, my plan

been lower and more without purpose

really, to move forward in life and go to

and hope. I was completely lost and it

college, but I really loved snowboarding

was at my lowest point when, I think it

and part of what I think led up to the

was a God moment, I cruised through

moment when I broke my back was

the gym at the University of New

the fact that I was really competitive

Mexico and found out about wheelchair

and I found myself surrounded by the

basketball. So long story short, I was

guys, the best skiers on the mountain

hesitant, got into the sport and found

in Durango, Colorado. I knew that I

myself again as an athlete, and I never

needed to stay within my limits and the

looked back.

day that I decided to flip my backflip I felt prepared to do it. I’d been planning

AS M: What sports were you involved in prior to your accident?

AN: I actually played basketball, volleyball, and softball, but put most of my focus on fast pitch softball with the hopes of going to college on an athletic scholarship and also I had dreams of playing in the Olympic Games for softball as well.

to do it that season, I could do a flat ground backflip, I was practicing on a trampoline, and I was really focused on completing this goal, this task of flipping a backflip on a snowboard. It just turns out, it was November 19th of 2000, so that’s really early in the season, but there wasn’t a base on the mountain and there was a lot of snow, we had just got five feet of early snowfall. One of the things that I wasn’t prepared for, we didn’t probe for rocks underneath the

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 45

A S M : And did you know you were badly injured instantly?

A N : Yeah, the second that my back broke and the bone shards from T11 flew through my spinal cord, I felt this electric sprong, and like, it’s hard to describe. It’s basically like that nerve feeling but it sounded…it was so strong, it like sent this sound throughout my body. It started at my waist and that sprong just took that feeling from my waist down to my toes. I think that the most pivotal moment was when my friend JC ran over to me and I asked him where my board and my boots were, I was just so confused by what had taken place. Just that electrical sprong and I didn’t know where my board and my boots were, and he said they were on my feet. I was like, this is bad, because I can’t feel that at all.

So that happened 17 years ago, tomorrow, and like I said I was just in a space where I had put all my eggs in that athletic basket. That was my college plan, my future plan. I was academically ok, I was average, I was gonna get through school, I always had, but it wasn’t what I was putting my focus on. When I broke my back it was like everything that I had planned at 17 was gone, and it was in the year 2000

balls stationary at the three point line and making them,

weren’t any real resources online or magazines or anything

and I’m like, “ok”. The hoop heights the same, the court

of adaptive sports that I knew of at the time. So it took a

lengths the same, and for the first time in my life after my

good two years for me to even know what my options were

accident for two years, I’d always been treated for those

as an athlete with a disability and I think it was pretty

two years like I was so breakable and delicate because now

serendipitous that I came across a whole team of people

I’m in a wheelchair. For me to see these guys full contact,

playing wheelchair basketball in an auxiliary gym at the

falling over, it made me feel alive again, and I needed that,

University of New Mexico.

I needed to just hit something and feel again and not have

Photo: Catarina

so adaptive sports were pretty underdeveloped. There

people tiptoeing around me as a person, because that’s not The other thing about it was, I was a pretty prideful softball player. I needed a legit sport to make me feel like an athlete again. I had heard there was this thing called

who I was just because I looked so different. So wheelchair basketball changed my perspective and from that point it just projected me towards the adaptive sports life.

adaptive softball, and I was like “no”. I’m not doing it.

It doesn’t relate, it will never compare, but the day that

A S M : So then you wound up competing in

I saw and came across wheelchair basketball, I mean,

wheelchair basketball and that was your first

the sport itself is violent in nature, so these guys are all

sport that you really got competitive in. What

in chairs that are specifically designed for wheelchair

year did you go to the Paralympics for wheelchair

basketball, they’re aggressive, they’ve got straps, they’re

basketball?

attached to the chair, and they’re hitting each other like full on. They’re falling over, getting up, shooting three

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 46

AN: I got named to the 2004 team as an alternate, which was a big turning point for me, because while

do alpine skiing as well, and you competed in the games in which years for alpine skiing?

I didn’t go to games in 2004, I got

AN: So right after Beijing, I had

women’s basketball team from the

already planned on that being my

years 2004-2008. It really stepped

next move. I had just graduated

up my game being surrounded

from the University of Alabama

by the best, most elite women’s

with my Masters in Kinesiology and

basketball players in the world,

I knew I was ready to embark on the

and I really rose to the occasion. I

next challenge, and I wanted to get

trained from 2004-2008 for Beijing

back on the mountain.

in wheelchair basketball and that

ASM: And then you won?

A S M : And that’s what happened, right? And you got another gold?

to train with the US Paralympic

was my first Paralympic games.

it went.

A N : Yeah, in 2010. First of all, for me to embark on a new sport with only two years, I had skied some prior to becoming a ski racer. I had like three days a season for like three years. So I was getting into it, but my focus was wheelchair basketball.

When I moved up to Winter Park

ASM: So you did that while you

I wasn’t getting on and off the lift

were training for the Olympics?

independently yet, so I had a lot of work to do to get to 2010. But being

AN: Right, so there’s actually

the adrenaline type, and someone

AN: Yeah! Like a Cinderella story,

an intercollegiate division for

who was into taking risks, one of

we went into the tournament

wheelchair basketball, and I was

the things that really gave a little bit

undefeated and left with gold

able to do my undergrad and

of an edge was a lot of the women

medals around our necks. It was the

graduate degree on a wheelchair

I was competing against had to

most amazing, you know for four

basketball scholarship, which is

get over this fear factor. Like, their

years, actually more like five years, I

pretty phenomenal. So I did my

internal governor slowing them

trained for that one moment to take

undergrad at Arizona, got recruited

down, and for me, I was ready to go.

place, and I just feel so fortunate

to play at the University of Alabama

that you know there’s so many other

and did my masters there. I had a

athletes that wanted to have that

pretty epic 2008! I graduated with

for them, and for me to have this

my masters and won a gold medal

A S M : And that’s why it probably translates to surfing so well.

A N : Absolutely. It’s not that I’m fearless, by any means, but I guess I have this higher pain tolerance, or threshold of some kind that just puts me at a little bit of a different level

A S M : So in 2010 you had gold, and then you won a third gold medal, correct?

A N : In 2010, I won two golds, a relatively new injury. There’s a lot

in the same year. So 2008 finished,

silver and a bronze. So I had the

of folks that have been training for

went to Beijing won the gold, and

most epic year!

that moment for a lot longer than I

I knew I wanted to get back on the

had, and five years of dedication all

mountain. That’s when I moved to

came into fruition as a gold medal,

Winter Park, Colorado and started

and it was an incredible experience.

pursuing alpine skiing, and my goal was to make it to the 2010 games as

ASM: And then you went on to

a ski racer, and that’s basically how

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A S M : Two golds, a silver, and a bronze. So that was all in different categories of the alpine skiing?

Photo: Felix Chen

than a lot of women.

AN: Yeah, so there’s five events altogether

a program called AccesSurf Hawaii, and

in my head I thought ok, I gotta surf.

and I medaled in four.

Cara Troy went out of her way to get me

How can I make this happen and still

into the water on her day off, and with

make a living, and with that I decided to

that I learned about wave skiing, and she

pursue my third sport at a Paralympic

got me on my first wave. Before going

level and that was sprint kayak, which

into Hawaii, I had a couple of pretty

brought me to Southern California.

AS M: So altogether…

substantial injuries as an alpine skier. I dislocated my shoulder posteriorly, blew

I trained with a program called the San

it up, had to have surgery and everything

Diego Canoe and Kayak team. I trained

Photo: Catarina

AN: I have six medals

AS M: So you’ve got three golds, a silver…

going into 2014. Then at the 2014 games, I slid out, the snow was really terrible and I landed directly on my face. I dislocated

AN: I ended up winning a silver at the

my jaw and I busted open my chin and

2014 winter Paralympic games as well. In

got knocked out, like in a ski race. So

downhill.

naturally, I’m just having second thoughts about my career going forward as an

AS M: We could talk Paralympics all day, so let’s talk about surfing a little bit. How did you find surfing?

What is it that’s so unique about surfing compared to the other sports you’ve done?

AN: I got into surfing after the 2014 winter Paralympic games, I was in Hawaii, taking my grandma on vacation there. While I was there, I learned about

alpine skier. I find myself in Hawaii, I learn how to surf, and it all comes together for me. I was out in the water, I was substantially, sort of traumatized you know? And when I was in the lineup and I caught my first wave… obviously I’m in Hawaii so the water there is just so welcoming and inviting and everything, but there’s also some healing properties.

On a soul level, on a spiritual level, I felt better about my life at that point, after I caught my first wave. Putting it together

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for two years for Rio and surfed as a cross trainer, all the while wanting to be surfing much more. I had to stay focused on sprint kayak to get to the games, which I did. I was happy with my performance making it into the final and finishing seventh in the world in 2016. Now I’m done with that, and now I’m pursuing surfing with all of my heart. One thing that’s different about surfing from my other sports is again, it’s sort of nonlinear in that you can express yourself creatively, and I really love the fact that every wave is different and you get to make decisions. Every break is different, and being able to read the ocean is a never-ending learning process. I’m fully intrigued, I’m still learning so much every

time I go out. That’s what I love most about being an athlete is the reach. It’s not about getting to the top, it’s not about winning the medal or mastering the sport. It’s about learning it and reaching and growing.

AS M : As far as Paralympics, would you

ASM: What’s next for you?

AN: What’s next for me, I’m not retired formally, but I am transitioning formally into my more professional career as a speaker. One thing that I’ve found I’m really interested in is broadcasting, and

of your injury and also the serendipitous date which you have now spent exactly half of your life in a wheelchair. This must be an emotional and unique perspective, what is going through your mind?

I’m thankful to have the opportunity to

A N : It’s an emotional day for me to think

commentate the ISA event. So I’ll be on

about my 17-year-old self having to go

the mic there, and I’m in contact with NBC

through the trauma of breaking her back,

Universal to do the commentary for the next

and how confusing and painful that was for

AN: My Paralympic aspirations now are

four Paralympic games, so I’ll do basketball

her. If I focus on that I will be in tears all

focused on getting Adaptive Surfing into

and alpine skiing.

day tomorrow, but one thing I choose to

say you’re done with the Paralympic games or do you have more

Paralympic aspirations?

put my energy into is what I’ve done since.

the 2024 Games. I am on the athlete commission board for the LA bid. LA is obviously bidding on 2024, and as an athlete in Southern California, they have invited me onto the board. My angle is one, to get the Games to LA, but very short thereafter, almost equal importance, is to get Adaptive Surfing into those Games.

ASM: For the next four! That’s very cool. Are you competing in the (ISA) worlds or just commenting?

AN: Just commentary! I didn’t qualify, there’s only a few spots for wave ski, and there’s not a woman’s division, so I would have had to beat the best wave skier in the

It’s super exciting, I have every intention

country, Jeff Munson who is a legend, and I

of doing the Kelly Slater 48 year old surfer

didn’t do that. So I am not competing, but I

thing. I’m 33 now I won’t be that old,

hope to compete in the third annual.

but I’d love to compete in those games as well. So to answer your question, I’m not currently competing as a Paralympic athlete, but working towards it.

I have just this heart full of gratitude for the opportunities I’ve been given. I’ve been really fortunate to travel the world, and I’ve been to third world countries where people with disabilities and equal amounts of athletic talent as myself don’t have the opportunities I’ve been given, and they don’t get to express themselves as athletes or reach their fullest potential or represent their country, and I’ve been able to do that in three sports. Possibly four, if surfing develops the way I hope it does. Tomorrow is just a day of gratitude for me, and I hope

ASM: Tomorrow is your “half-life”,

to surf K38 for the first time, because I’m

as you called it, the anniversary

headed to Mexico.

Photo: Jereme Condamine

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A DROP IN THE OCEAN: MARK ‘MONO’ STEWART By: Thomas Leitch A dv er si ty i s r el ati v e.

When we are toddlers an afternoon nap is Armageddon. In high school double-homework on a Friday afternoon is a catastrophe. In adult life, hardship mans up, expands exponentially and kicks into fifth gear, but still, when compared to almost anyone else on the planet, we get it easy.

When Mark ‘Mono’ Stewart was fifteen and he was told he had osteosarcoma, (bone cancer) he could have crumbled; during the year and a half of chemotherapy he could have wallowed in selfpity; when the doctors removed his right leg above the knee, he could have given up. But to this day, Mark has not for one moment thought of himself as unfortunate, a victim or a martyr. Hell, he didn’t even get a disabled parking permit until he hit fifty.

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The hardships of the average citizen, those things that draw

hospital I’d be straight back into the surf. After about six

tears from our eyes and steal sleep from our nights, dwindle

months I started working on how I could surf again.”

to distant horizons.

Born on a dairy farm behind Mullumbimby and raised in Mark Stewart has an infectious positivity, inspiring to say

a Nimbin fish and chip shop, where Old Man Stewart grew

the least, and more than a little humbling. My world ends

potatoes to accompany the fish caught on the Brunswick

with a bad migraine, but Mark has laughed and surfed his

River, Mark is a dyed-in-the-wool local. From a young age,

way through more than I could possibly imagine, all with an

surfing was in his blood and, he admits today, this passion

unwavering smile.

was his strength and inspiration.

“I used to surf on weekends,” Mark recalls of his bipedal

“One of the hardest parts was coming home from Sydney.

youth. “Dad would drive us down from the farm. Then I

It would take me a few days to get over the illness and

lost my leg when I was fifteen and spent eighteen months

then I’d feel good for a couple of days and surf, but then,

having chemotherapy in Sydney. Whenever I was out of the

a couple of days before I went back, I’d be physically sick

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 52

knowing I was about to get the treatment

up. I went around and met him and it all

Mark began competing in the mid-1980s

again. I was in what they called a “Special

started from there.”

against able-bodied surfers, some of

Unit” and there were about ten people in the ward. I was there for three weeks at a time and we all became good friends.

Each time I went back, somebody would be missing – they’d died while I was away. That was one of the hardest bits,

whom even had the gall to suggest that Starting out on the boogie board, Mark soon progressed to a kneeboard, getting shapers like Bob McTavish to hollow out

Mark’s lack of leg and necessary board refinements gave him an unfair advantage in competition.

a shallow well for his good left leg. Always finding the bright side of every situation,

About seven years ago, Mark tried snow

he soon found that his lack of limb

skiing for the first time and took to

allowed him to pull in far further and

the sport immediately. Somewhat of a

“I never once thought I was going to die.

deeper to the North Coast’s barrelling

natural, he was invited to try out for the

It wasn’t until sometime later, when I was

right-hand point breaks than his upright

development squad for the Australian

on a trip to Hawaii, that my mum pulled

counterparts.

Paralympics team. Flying to Canada

especially doing it for eighteen months.”

me aside and told me that the doctors had said not to make any plans past two years. I couldn’t speak to her for a while, I was so pissed off. And then I realised that it was probably the best thing that had ever happened because, had I known that I was going to die, I don’t know where I would have been mentally. Even though I was sick, all I wanted to do was surf again. That’s what kept me going, just wanting to get out and surf.”

It hadn’t occurred to Mark that perhaps his surfing days were over, and his love of the ocean combined with the support and camaraderie of the local surfing community got him back onto his foot.

He didn’t view himself as disabled, and never has, but he did need to reassess the way he did things, especially in the waves.

“I got on a boogie board and surfed Main Beach and the Pass for a few years. In about 1976, I wrote a letter to Tracks Magazine asking if there was anyone on the North Coast who could help me out or suggest how I could surf again. A bloke now living in Byron - an amputee from Cronulla – gave me a shout. He surfed and had developed a kind of knee well in one side of his board to level him

for the training, he met a large array of Nothing had changed. Sure, he was surfing three feet lower than he had been used to, but he was throwing himself over the ledge, tearing it up and charging just

individuals just like him from all over the world – disabled in body, perhaps, but every bit as capable, athletic and talented as any able-bodied sportsperson.

as hard as ever. He didn’t see himself as different and nothing was going to hold

This sparked something of an awakening

him back.

in Mark. He had never thought of himself as physically incapable, never

Five years after Mark’s right leg hopped it, Peter Ware, co-founder of Friar Tuck Kneeboards, migrated north from his factory in Brookvale, Sydney. The move could not have been more fortuitous for Mark and the longstanding partnership began.

begged sympathy or special treatment for his hindrance and never allowed his loss of limb to shape the way he lived. But the trip to Canada showed him something different, a whole world of positive motivation, accepting of his disability and empowering him to make even more of his talents.

Bought out by David Parkes in 1983, Friar Tuck and Parkes Kneeboards had not only been employing Mark as sprayer and airbrusher, but also custom shaping his boards for the last twenty plus years.

“Parkesy knows exactly what I want. My boards nowadays, eacy one oets better than the last. Dave shapes the board and then I shape the knee well that way, if it’s wrong it’s my fault! We’ve got it down to a fine art now… they’re certainly a lot different to what they were in the late ‘70s.”

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“That [going to Canada] just opened my eyes right up. I was in this international camp over there with people from all over the world that had all sorts of disabilities and it made me realise that, compared to these amazing people – unbelievable, strong-willed – losing a leg is nothing. It made me really want to help people.”

This brought a new perspective to Mark’s life. While he still refused to pigeonhole himself as ‘disabled’, he realised that his handicap could be the start of something

great. His years of surfing in able-bodied events had given him the competitive spirit, but now he realised that he could compete on an equally high level against surfers more akin to his situation.

When the International Surfing Association’s (ISA) World Adaptive Surfing Championship was suggested to him by a friend, Mark leapt at the opportunity. The championship catered to people with a range of physical disabilities, from missing hands to multiple amputations, and featured four divisions: stand-up, upright, prone and prone assist. Mark’s disability placed him in the stand division for the World Adaptive Surfing Championship. But it nearly wasn’t to be: “I only found out about the event through a friend who coached me in Canada,” he recalls. “Scott contacted me and said, ‘are you going to the World Titles?’ ‘What World Titles’, I said! I then did some research, sent the organisers some photos and liaised with the Australian Surfing Association.

I eventually was offered a training session at the Hurley Surf training centre in Casuarina with their coaching team. I qualified for the Australian team after meeting their criteria and headed to the USA a month later and took out the Stand division in the inaugural event.”

Mark will return to the USA in December 2016 to defend his world title at the second World Championships in La Jolla.

Mark speaks warmly about all the wonderful athletes he has met from all walks of life over the past 12 months, and the comradery between everyone has been amazing. Competing and winning at the Dukes Ocean Fest in Honolulu in August was more like a family reunion than a contest.

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 54

Mark would be the first person to say he has had some generous support and helpful advice over the years but essentially, he has modified his technique and surf board to adapt and overcome, and to ultimately succeed. Coaching and mentoring other athletes is another goal Mark started on his adaptive journey and has shared his experience and knowledge with athletes from around the world.

Mark’s life hasn’t been easy, but you’d never know that talking to him. Even now as Mark is confronted with multiple Melanoma removals from years of hanging on the beach he will tell you how blessed his life is. “I have a beautiful, intelligent wife and three gorgeous teenage children, I have a fantastic sun and surf filled life in Byron Bay and get to surf with some of the best.

Mark is an inspiration; not for what he has overcome, but for how he lives so completely, filled with a boundless optimism and compassion – a humbling individual we could all learn from.

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 55

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 56

TH E DOG PATCH CReW By: Spike Kane

It’s Sunday morning and I am sitting in my van watching the swells roll in from the Pacific Ocean. It is 6.30 a.m., cold and overcast. My motivation is low. I look to my right and realize I am not the first of the Dog Patch Crew to arrive at this unholy hour. G-off (Geoff) is sitting in his van to my right and unbeknown to me, Zach Tapec, from team Hawaii, is asleep in his van a few cars down, having driven through the night from Las Vegas just to get in the ocean. Yeah, it really is that important and yeah, he really is that motivated.

G-off and I roll down the windows and chat about conditions, wet suit thickness, what the rest of the crew are up to and who will show up. “No, Alana’s in Mexico and I think Chris is up in Santa Cruz”. Two of the regulars are out for today’s session.

Then Freddy Carrillo rolls up and my stoke level redlines. Patient Zero, one of, if not THE, reason we are all here and our little group of hardcore chargers exists. Now I am motivated.

The Dog Patch Crew is a group of surfers who are regulars in the line up at a section of beach aptly named “Dog Patch” in San Onofre State Beach in California. They have been around for the last 16 years thanks to Freddy.

We have paid our dues and we belong here. We are a part of the landscape.

I have been involved since 2014 after meeting some of the crew in Hawaii at the AccesSurf “Duke’s” competition. Most of us compete regularly in the WSA, and three of the gang ended up on the podium at the first ISA World Adaptive Surfing Championship in La Jolla last year taking Silver, Bronze and Copper medals home.

For me, this is ground zero for independent adaptive surfing.

It is the same stoke and formula that surfing had for me before I was injured. Dawn Patrol, hoodies, coffee, bananas, laughter and power bars. A small group all getting ready and B.S-ing by their surf vans then paddling out into the line up, catching up with the regulars and surfing our brains out. This is usually followed by a late breakfast at the SC Cafe in San Clemente, where story time begins and, occasionally, we go drinking. Yes, no doubt about it, this is 100% surfing as I knew it before spinal cord injury. But it’s more, so much more.

Chatting with Freddy, he gave me a brief history of the origins of the Dog Patch Crew. It went like this….

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so Freddy. tell me how it all began:

Infinity Surf Boards in Dana Point were a local

F: Well, I grew up around here in San Juan Capistrano,

institution and I would see their boards everywhere. So

Laguna hills, surfing and skating.

Boehne, the owner and legendary shaper at Infinity by

My local spots were Trestles, Churches all up and down that area. I got injured in 89 and tried to surf prone for a while with my buddies. I have two 10” rods in my back so I couldn’t arch and get a decent ride. I didn’t really surf for about 11 years after that.

after 11 years of not surfing I was introduced to Steve a guy named Eugene Roberts, another local legend. He was like “we can get you surfing, I guarantee it”.

We met up at Dog Patch and Steve got me out on a tandem Wave Ski. It was awesome. The next week I

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 58

came back and Steve loaned me a single wave ski and that

It should be noted that the Dog Patch Crew is not just adaptive

was it, I was hooked man! I came back the next week and

surfers, in fact it would not be possible without the many able bodied

it was epic conditions. 6 foot A-frames just rollong in non

friends that congregate on a regular basis to go surfing. With that

stop. It took me an hour to get out, but when I finally did I

said, I think our dear friend Alana Nichols hit the nail on the head

got some insane rides. That was the day I ordered my first

by stating,

waveski from Steve and never looked back.

“The culture we have at San Onofre and the crew that we So when did other surfers start to show up?

call ‘Dog Patch Crew’ has been instrumental for me and so

F : Steve really got into the fact that waveskis were a great

many others. ‘San’O Sundays’ would not be possible without

platform for disabled surfers. There was a wheelchair tennis tournament going on locally. He went and put flyers up and that’s when Richard Julian showed up Rich helped get Access Surf going in Hawaii. Not long after Rich was John Davis then around 2009 is when Chris Oberle started. Steve is totally selfless and he will help anyone get on the water.

Do you think thats why Dog Patch grew like that, because of Steve?

F ; Yeah, Totally! He is still stoked. I don’t think we would be here without him.

this subculture, this stretch of beach where the microcosm of adaptive surfing is being embraced whole-heartedly, or without Steve Boehne, shaper for Infinity Surfboards, Mr. Infinity. He’s had a vision for adaptive surfing that has been all-inclusive and seamlessly integrated us as adaptive surfers into surfing. One of the things happening at San O is this crew of people that make it possible for us to get in and out of the water; just last Sunday we had eight wave skiers out there. These able-bodied guys are cranking us in and out of the water with a wench. They’ve got a whole set up going with a trolley that gets us in over the rocks and into that break, and there is no separation there. No, ‘you’re adaptive and we’re not’. We are all surfing.”

Yeah, I know what you mean. The whole family are amazing.

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H I S TORIC MOME NTS IN ADAPTIVE S URFING: w / J E S S E B I L L AU E R

S e p t e mbe r 1 1 , 2 0 0 1 The first Life Rolls On Adaptive Surfing Clinic The date September 11, 2001 will forever have a dark shadow cast over it. This was the tragic day that America was attacked and two planes were flown into the World Trade Centers in New York. Simultaneously, across the country, at Topanga State Beach in California, the first Life Rolls On adaptive surfing clinic got under way, in lieu of the tumultuous news unfolding on television screens everywhere. Professional Adaptive Surfer and founder of Life Rolls On, Jesse Billauer, reminisces on the day‌

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“I was not sure if it was even going to happen or if anyone would show up with everything that was going on that day. But everyone showed up and we had an incredible day surfing and getting kids in the water. Kelly Slater and Rob Machado were there and so were Laird Hamilton, Gabriel Reese, Dan Malloy, Tim Curran, and Ross Williams. Despite everything that was happening in the country, the first Life Rolls On clinic was a huge success and a day I will never forget.�

Since this inaugural Life Rolls On adaptive surfing clinic the organization has helped thousands of individuals with spinal cord injuries experience the joys of riding waves all over the country. Additionally, Billauer reveled in a personal milestone after taking home a gold medal in the Assist Division of the first ever ISA World Adaptive Surfing Championships in 2015.

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PA RT I N G S H O T B r u n o H ans e n ada p t i ng t o h i s a q u a t i c e n v i r o n m e n t i n Ind o n e s i a

Adaptive Surfing Magazine | 62

No challenge is too great with the right support.

That’s why the goal of the Challenged Athletes Foundation® is to provide individuals with physical challenges the tools they need to pursue active and healthy lifestyles.

We advocate for all levels of physical activity as a way to enhance quality of life for all. Learn more info at:

CHALLENGEDATHLETES.ORG

Sam Day, CAF grant recipient, catches a wave at a CAF surf clinic. Sam will forever represent the pure essence of a #TeamCAF athlete.

ABOUT CHALLENGED ATHLETES FOUNDATION ® It is the mission of the Challenged Athletes Foundation® (CAF) to provide opportunities and support to people with physical challenges, so they can pursue active lifestyles through physical fitness and competitive athletics. CAF believes that involvement in sports at any level increases self-esteem, encourages independence and enhances quality of life.

CHALLENGEDATHLETES.ORG A d a p t iTax v e SID u r f#33-0739596 ing Magazine | 63 Challenged Athletes Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

@CAFOUNDATION #TEAMCAF ®