He Forgot to Mention ...

Bodysurfers, Handplaners, bodyboarders, matt riders, etc.  in his pecking order.  Personally, I think they fit right after surfers, may even at the same level if they really know what they are doing, know the line-up well, and know positioning.  By this picture that I posted over at Handplane Goodness, probably not the case though.  NO FUCKING RESPECT.

The Pecking Order

This was written in a post on Stand Up Zone BB by Tom English. He is one of my friends that has gone the way of the SUP. He's is a a really good surfer, but, now pretty much only rides an SUP. Out of all the SUP guys I have ever met, he is by far the nicest and most courteous. Still a stoked grom. Plus, he was doing it for 2-3 years before the craze started. He's taken a lot of the photo's that I post on this blog.  Always takes photo's of everyone when he's not surfing, then posts em on his website for everyone to download. He's a good guy, and he's got it right when it comes to the whole SUP thing. Here is his list of the pecking order:


The pecking order is (in order of who get's the waves they want:

1 - Duke K

2 - Phil Edwards

3 - Micky Dora

4 - Gerry Lopez (and Ron House)

5 - Your shaper

6 - Oldest local

7 - Oldest Local who still pulls into barrels

8 - Any shortboarder

9 - Any Longboarder

10- Tourist

11 - SUP

13- Costco SUP



The Link to Stand Up Zone, where he posted it:

The Stand-up Zone - Pecking Order


And a link to check out his site and some of the photos:

Aloha Wealth Management Photos

Here is a previously posted pic of him and I ready for a fiver:

so you wanna be a surfer

so you wanna be a surfer
by troy dockins
SMOKEBOX

So you wanna be a surfer...

Lessons are stupid...here's what you do...

It's February...so it's warming up soon, that's good...

As soon as it does, sell everything...leave your wife, abandon the kids...they'll be fine, kids are adaptable and your wife will hook up with someone...

Go find an isolated cove...ideally somewhere near a good sized river mouth...you'll need to go to the Washington Coast or even better BC or Alaska...Oregon is too developed... bring a jacket...

Either find a nice little cave or build a driftwood structure...or a split level type deal, whatever works...I advise set up to be well above the high tide line or...you know what!

Anyway, once you’re settled in...start looking for a suitable driftwood log from which to hand fashion your logger board...a huge plank is acceptable, but an actual huge ass log is harder and, therefore, better...

You may have to weather a few spring storms before you find the right piece of wood...be patient...pray for heavy rains and high winds...also kill any sea lions or other wildlife you come across...do not admire their majestic beauty...kill them and dry their meat...you will also want to fashion a sea lion wetsuit...this is risky as it will attract sharks, but that's better than freezing your gonads off...

Once you have selected your timber you will need to transport it beyond high tide...this will be hard as it probably will weigh alot...a system of levers and pulleys fashioned from seal gut may help...if you aren't handy, you are screwed...if you get stuck, think "What would McGyver do?"...that usually works...

You will need to fashion tools for shaping your board...if you have never made stone tools before you may be surprised at how difficult it is...however, if a caveman could do it, so can you...anyway it will require much chipping and probably a smashed digit or two...but once you have that cutting edge you are practically home free...

Sidebar: If you happen to produce an axe head...you could lash it to a stout piece of wood and make a hatchet...cut that log down a bit and it may be easier to move...if you weren't reading ahead and have already moved the log I apologize for not mentioning it earlier ...again, animal parts are good for rope and stuff...if some flotsam floats in, like nylon rope or something? I suppose you could use it but it kinda affects the purity and achievement of becoming a surfer...y'know?

Anyway, once you have the log in place start chipping away...don't worry about the shape too much right now...you have weeks, probably months, of shaping ahead of you... remember, kill all animals...curious chipmunks, annoying seagull, unsuspecting dogs and their owners...don't eat the owners, that's cannibalism...but human skulls do make nice mugs...

Depending on how quickly you work, you could potentially have a roughed out shape sometime in the fall...you'll want to fashion a hand plane at this point, and in true surfer fashion, I can't in good conscience tell you how to do that...you'll need to figure it out on your own...remember to kill animals...you can eat seabirds and other sea life that washes up too...you'll get used to the smell...

Sidebar: You can use fire to speed your wood removal...char the log and remove the burnt material as you go...be careful not to burn too much away...this will also serve to temper, dry and harden your "stick"...get it? Stick, as in log? Anyway, hopefully you read ahead and got this tip before you stupidly chipped all the wood away by hand...

Once you have your planer you are ready for final shaping...go for volume and function over style...you don't need a swallow tail or channels or a kick tail...you just want a straight plank...a hull...that will float and you can paddle...although symmetry and style do count for something...you want people to know you're a surfer, right?

Sidebar: Rough stones work pretty good as grinder/sandpaper because you'll want the wood to be as smooth as possible...don't get me wrong you'll probably get some hellacious slivers...but, that's part of the price you pay...you knew the risks...

Once your board is finished it'll still probably be so frickin' heavy you can't even move it...although you'll probably be pretty burly by now from all of the hard work...although, if you haven't been taking regular swims and running underwater with heavy stones for a few months now, you might want to start...practice holding your breath as you walk around until you pass out...that's good practice...

Seal your board by rubbing it with fat from all the animals you caught...you'll probably need to rub it alot...probably to the point where you skin is raw and you have open wounds...surfing is not for the weak of heart...you'll get calluses eventually...

Well, if you can get your board into the water that is a big plus...however, it is winter now and the surf is likely to be pretty big...you need to practice paddling...you probably won't make it out until spring or if you have an unusually small day...but this is an excellent opportunity for conditioning...be careful, getting hit with a board that weighs several hundred pounds in the surf is no picnic...but don't be a kook, hang on to your board at all times...ditching your plank is unacceptable...take your lumps, be a man...a surfer man...

Sidebar: You should have been working on your sealskin wetsuit this whole time...if you haven't, you have really blown it...I almost would recommend bagging it and heading back to society...you've certainly lost my respect...if you have been working on it, kudos to you!

Once you are able to get your board outside the surf line I suggest several long distance conditioning paddles...if there are any offshore islands I recommend paddling out to them...any animals living there are unfamiliar with surfers and you can kill them all...eat lunch there...pile as much as you can onto the board and return to the beach...if, by the offhand chance, you catch a wave...do not stand up...you are not ready...

By summer the waves will have gotten a bit smaller and you are ready to work on 'surfing' your board...paddle out...turn your board and see if you can catch a wave...I would belly ride, knee ride and then attempt to stand...in that order...Pretty much just ride the whitewater straight in...I know it's the mark of a rank beginner...but you're not a surfer yet, anyway...

Once you can catch waves and have figured out how stand up and avoid losing your board...because, remember...under no circumstances is it acceptable for you to lose your board except in the heaviest of circumstances...and no kook cord either...there's a reason I haven't mentioned making one...a) your leg would be dislocated or ripped from your body b) they're gay...

So anyway, your almost there...I forgot...there's also knee paddling, if you didn't figure this out and have been paddling on your belly this whole time...I am laughing at you!...sorry, but I am...

There are many subtleties that you will develop as you progress over the next few years in your cove...you can drag a foot and turn your board...to stay in the 'curl'...you can 'walk the nose'...or perform the 'drop knee turn'...you may even score a 'tube ride'...and since you are learning in complete isolation...you may develop tricks unknown to even ancient
Polynesia...pretty cool, huh?

In closing, a few tips...it is alright to be stoked, just don't overdo it...don't hoot on every wave, only the ones that warrant it...don't surf with your legs all spread out, or with your butt sticking out...don't wave your arms for balance, that just looks kooky...you've mastered the basic, now it's time to work on your style...it should be smooth, soulful and
unforced...

Finally, the plank works best on a select type of wave...the slow roller...you'll probably want to work on a variety of boards...a short board, a gun, maybe even a swallowtail or a twin keeled fish!...you've got alot of work ahead of you...start shaping and you're a surfer now...welcome

Just stay far away from my home break...

MATUSE HOODLESS TUMO FRONTZIP

It has been a long time coming. The first prototypes are now on the streets being tested for a release next fall. The first offering will be 4/3/2 with plans on a 3/2/2 later in the season or the following winter. A new zipper, made specially for these suits in Germany, is prophesized to become the standard for wetsuits in the future. Only time will tell. I'm hoping to get my hands on one of these in the near future, if god loves me, with a full report to follow. Here are some pics of Bret Howard putting it throught it's very first testing.

Photos courtesy of Doug Moranville.

See more here: Matuse Hoodless Tumo Frontzip

[180° SOUTH]

[180° SOUTH]

Heading to Hawaii

These three Handplanes are heading to Hawaii for "Da Hui/Hawaii State Bodysurfing Association Shorebreak Slam at Waimea Bay" next week-end and/or the following. Hopefully they will get some good use out of them. More pics at Handplane Goodness

It's the End

Well, it actually depends on which way you look at it. My prediction is that, if you thought last summer was a mess dealing with SUP's, this summer is going to be a catastrophe. With Costco now offering these things up for $429, including paddle and leash, it is now not a sport that people get sticker shock when they want to start up. I would say that, although the surf has been incredibly fun over the last 6 weeks or so, the SUP's have been increasingly frustrating. Hopefully the expected onslaught of SUK's will spur a definitive push to have these things moved into restricted zones and out of surf zones. There is now a Petition being started by Joel Tudor and Justin Phillips (The Justin) to have SUP's permenently removed from the line-up at Cardiff Reef. While I feel bad for the few good guys that I consider my friends that SUP, overall I am all for this. I will be updating the progress of this movement and let you know where to sign, if interested.

WELCOME TO INNERSECTION

This is a surf contest. A worldwide forum for the year’s best individual surf sections.

Through this site, 20 surfers will earn spots on Taylor Steele’s next high-performance surf movie.

You will decide which ones.

Who will be the final section? The decision is in your hands.

That’s the competition. But there’s more to it than that. Innersection is a showcase for surfers and filmmakers; a workshop for the art of the surf section, with interviews, instructional materials and behind the scenes action; a home for the newest maneuvers, the best swells and the latest music.

Sure, you get to sit up in the judges’ tower, but you’re also invited to the after party.

Here’s How It Works:

◦The contest runs in four Cycles.

◦Each cycle is two months long.

◦First Cycle begins March 1st.

◦Second begins May 1st. Third: July 1st. Fourth: Sept. 1st.

◦All sections must be uploaded in the first week of the cycle.

◦All sections approved sections will be open to viewing and rating by Innersetction.tv members.

◦The Top Ten member rated sections will open to Final Rating in the last week of the cycle.

◦Five of the Top Ten sections will qualify for the final DVD.

◦Four cycles, starting March 1st. Five qualifiers advance from each cycle. Twenty sections qualify for the final judging and DVD.

◦Final judging will take place in the first week of December, 2010.

◦Innersection DVD will appear shortly afterwards in surf shops, direct download and iTunes formats.

CHECK IT OUT HERE:    Innersection TV

GOODNESS TEASER

MORE PICS HERE

The White Diamond/Dumpster Diver Conspiracy Video

A fews months ago Surfing Magazine did an article on Dane Reynolds.  They included a video which showed Dane riding a Roberts White Diamond.  Channel Islands forced Surfing Magazine to yank the video within an hour of when it was posted.  They subsequently then developed the Dumpster Diver surfboard which has an incredible resemblance to the Roberts White Diamond.  Along with a contrived story regarding finding some EPS foam in the Dumpster and developing the design.  One fine young gentlemen burned the video that CI didn't want you to see to his hard drive.  Here is said video, and if you want one of these types of boards, Go to Roberts for one:

http://www.robertssurf.com/

Local Slab

I've spoken of the Local Slab quite often in this blog. It's a fun wave. Can get super hectic. Especially when doing its thing. The take off spot is a 10 foot square, and 20+ guys that know the wave well, are all battling for the perfect spot to sit. Two feet off and you're toast. Even if you are in the right spot, you're constantly butting shoulders or arms with others, while angling and air dropping into and hopefully under the lip. There are about 5 guys that surf it regularly that have it truly wired. They grew up surfing it and now it's pretty much second nature for them. I'm blown away at what those guys make. Also, how easy they make it look. Here is a sequence of who I would consider the King. Yea, there are guys who have surfed it better, or more agressively. Day in, Day out, Todd Thornton is always the guy in the spot.

A New Tradition Begins

No tree. Well, not yet. Sounds kinds odd, I know. This year we have yet to put up the Christmas Tree. Yea, we've heard about it. The grems are snapping. No presents wrapped. Yup, none. No wrapped presents to fondle and shake. Sounds kinda Grinch-like. We've got cards and knick-knacks up, but that is about it. This year we've decided to start a new tradition. We start on Christmas Eve. Christmas will be a two day event, starting in about 30 minutes. The tree goes up, all the decorations come out. Still, all the presents will stay out of site until Santa comes tonight. I'm looking forward to all the work that will go into this tradition in the next 36 hours. I can't wait to see the looks on the kids faces tomarrow morning. Hope everyone has a Very Merry Christmas.

This is what it's all about

Call me a dork, but I still feel this song. 25 years later. Yea, I was 16 at the time, so it was my generation. When I hear this song it makes me forget about all the BS that surrounds Christmas. All the Bakugan's, Nintendo DS's, and even the new shiny surfboards sitting under the tree, that us spoiled brats spend so much time pondering. It reminds me how fortunate every one of us is. That fact that we even have a computer, so we can read someone else's mindless blog babble. So, give a dollar to that guy selling oranges on the offramp (just this one time), drop a toy off at the toy drive, or volunteer at the local homeless kitchen. Have a Merry Christmas and thanks for visiting over the last year.

High Performance Hand Alaia's

Well, not really. Thats just what "The Justin" calls em. He thinks it would get the Alaia Community all riled up if we call em that. These are all ready for shipping and I rarely have this many at the same time, so I figured I'd take the opportunity for some photo's. On another note, but not really, remember to take your fins out of your truck and put them in the family cruiser whenever you've got to drop the gremlins off at school, prior to sliding. Today, I forgot. Surf was pretty fun, but so fucking perfect for High Performance Hand Alaia'ing. Left Wanting once again.