Melissa Hardcastle, 27, was surfing out in front of the Jupiter Reef Club in Jupiter, Florida on Friday, November 13, 2009 when she felt something chomp down on her foot, according to a story on wptv.com.
Her mother says she never saw the shark but knew what it was immediately. . . “She’s got some marks. She’s lucky to have her foot, but she’s good, very good,” says Hardcastle. . . Melissa never saw the shark, only felt it. Her mother says she grabbed the board and rode the waves to shore.
Hardcastle spent the night at Jupiter Medical Center and will be having surgery this morning. Spooky. . .
We’ve occasionally followed the story of surfing physicist Garrett Lisi and the unification theory he calls The Theory of Everything. Some say it is genius, others claim that it is purely junk science from a surfer who is good at math. We have no idea. . . but it looks pretty cool. Doesn’t it?
An unnamed 18-year-old surfer was hit by a 4-foot shark while surfing near News Journal this afternoon according to a story in the News Journal.
The 18-year-old man, who was not identified by the Volusia County Beach Patrol, suffered only minor injuries, including a bump on the shin where the shark hit him and lacerations to the back of the calf and the front of the shin.
He was one of 300 surfers in the water. This is the eighth shark attack of the year.
The Vans Triple Crown of Surfing will this year award a prize purse of $1 million. But don’t get too excited. It’s not a winner take all. It’s just the total prize money of the six contests (three mens, three womens) all added up, according to a story in the Honolulu Advertiser.
The men’s Triple Crown will feature events at Hale’iwa Ali’i Beach, Sunset Beach and the Banzai Pipeline. The women’s Triple Crown will feature events at Hale’iwa Ali’i Beach, Sunset Beach and Honolua Bay, Maui. . . The six contests will award a total of $875,000 in prize money.
But then Vans threw in another $175,000 to knock it right over the top. Triple Crown organizer Randy Rarick is apparently amazed:
“It really is amazing, considering we don’t have a gate for paid attendance to help bring in money,” Rarick said. “It’s one of the better shows on earth and people get to watch for free. That’s why it’s nice to see the surfers get rewarded like this.”
Maybe someday the winner of Pipeline will take home a cool million all by themselves. We can hope. Stay tuned to Triplecrownofsurfing.com for all the action. It all starts tomorrow with the Reef Hawaiian Pro 2009 from Haleiwa.
San Diego’s Clairemont High School class of 1979, the students immortalized by writer Cameron Crowe in his book (and movie) Fast Times At Ridgemont High, had its 30 year reunion this weekend and San Diego Union-Tribune writer Helen Gao says the class didn’t turn out all that bad.
At its 30-year-reunion celebrations this weekend, the crowd is filled with firefighters, teachers,professors, businessmen, engineers, mechanics and many others who are gainfully employed and contributing to society. . . “I am actually depressed no one is smoking a joint right now,” quipped Mike Ghareeb of Ramona as he surveyed a roomful of his former classmates at the Skybox bar in Clairemont, where they also gathered Friday night.
It’s nice to know that the kids responsible for the world’s most iconic surf archtype are alright. Original copies of Crowe’s book are now selling for upwards of $100 and yet we still rarely feel tardy.
When the Mavericks contest window is open it seems there is never a more compelling story than that of Santa Cruz’s Darryl “Flea” Virostko. His tale of glory (he won the contest the first three years), collapse, and rebirth is nearly a cliché hero’s journey, yet few have played it more intensely and lived.
“If I can do it, anyone can do it,” the 37-year-old said of quitting drugs. “Because I went to the edge of the earth.”. . If Virostko wins, he’ll own four of seven titles. He could also use the $50,000 check. He recently had to sell his house to pay off $150,000 in back taxes and stay out of bankruptcy.
We all know the story, but it’s good to read it again.
How would you react after a shark bit your board in half while you were sitting on it? This is how Eric Geiselman handled his interaction with what may have been a Great White while surfing near Santa Cruz, California on November 5, 2009.
Eric was out the back all-alone after his brother, Evan Geiselman, caught a wave in. Amidst the commotion, his foot hit the creature as he began paddling the remnants of his board toward shore. “It’s nuts to think how helpless you are,” said a rattled Geiselman to TransWorld SURF’sAaron Checkwood.
Nothing like kicking a shark while paddling half a surfboard back to shore. . .click here to hear Eric tell the whole story.
G-stringed ass lover? Poet? World’s best surfer? Enigma? Hawai’ian Idol to the sycophant Twitterer Charlie Smith? Rule breaker? The mind-bendingly amazing teaser up on Surfline.com suggests Jamie O’Brien may be all of this and more. Let’s just say we’re looking forward to seeing the final product, when ever it is released.
Looks like not all is well in surfing’s amateur ranks. The Eastern Surfing Association has decided that they and their 10,000 members are no longer interested in being a part of Surfing America.
“Surfing America’s refusal to create an amateur surfing committee that included the ESA, which is in direct opposition to their stated organizational founding, created an unprecedented event that resulted in the rescinding of our inclusion in Surfing America,” stated Debbie Hodges, executive director of the Eastern Surfing Association.
Follow the jump for the rest of the story ESA’s side of the story. . . [click to continue…]
We like Rob Machado and his big, burly, curly locks, but from what we’ve heard we’re going to absolutely love him after we finally see The Drifter with a theater full of civilians. You probably will, too. Then we’ll all buy up an bunch of Hurley product and Nixon watches and feel satisfied and complete.
So just as a reminder: the tour kicks on at the world famous La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas, California on Wednesday, November 4, 2009. For for the rest of the dates and places click the link.
Melissa Hardcastle, 27, was surfing out in front of the Jupiter Reef Club in Jupiter, Florida on Friday, November 13, 2009 when she felt something chomp down on her foot, according to a story on wptv.com.
