Hurley is pretty excited about the coverage they got recently from “the print mags.”
Because as much media we now consume in this ever-exploding digital age, a cover shot still trumps it all. . . There’s something about the permanence of a cover. How it will sit on coffee tables and stocked in library shelves for decades to come. How — no matter what happens — it can never be deleted, “crash” or be taken back. . . .The Hurley team still knows the value of a good cover shot, which is why they worked extra hard this spring and hit the jackpot: gracing the front page of the four major American surf magazines in one month.
Gee, wonder how that could all happen in one month?
When Australian surfer Bob Aitkin ended up with two slashed arteries after a new surfer fired his rental board right back into Bob he ended up with huge medical bills and a few idea about people learning to surf and rental boards in general.
“I think all hire boards should carry large identification stickers so it’s easy to see where they were hired from should there be an incident. . . And maybe people hiring boards should pay a couple of dollars extra for some sort of insurance – just like you do when you hire a car.’’
Great ideas, but wouldn’t it be simpler to just require that all new surfers wear one of these?
Clarke Brogger, the pastor of Church by the Sea in Laguna Beach, California thought it would be cool to try to catch a tiny wave while surfing at Thalia Street. Moments later he had a cracked open head and a broken neck, according to a story in the OC Register.
Helplessly paralyzed, Brogger agonized with the realization that he couldn’t swim, scream or even thrash in panic.
“I was absolutely frightened, completely out of my mind,” he said. “I just kept picturing my wife and two daughters looking down on me, in the grave.” . . . Then, just as suddenly as his fall, came Brogger’s “miracle”: another wave, splashing over his immobile body, provided just enough tidal force to flip him on his back. Overwhelmed, Brogger screamed for help. . .At first, his friends thought it was part of the joke. Then, fellow surfer Austin Cooper noticed blood gushing from his friend’s forehead. . . “It looked like (Cooper) wanted to barf but didn’t want me to know he was afraid,” Brogger said with a laugh.
In the tweet Ian Cairns says he will fully recover, but it is one more reminder for all of us to be careful out there.
[Link: OC Register via @KangaCairns]
When Waterlines Unlimited owner Ernie Higgins signed up for a church mission trip to New Guinea he had had no idea he would stumble into a tribal surf community that still actively surfs hand-carved wooden planks, according to a story on My Local Lineup.
While focused on the mission at hand, Higgins suddenly noticed a little boy, in his pre-puberty years, holding a plank, awfully similar to a surfboard. Upon close scrutiny, he was surprised to learn that not only was the lad holding a surfboard, but also that he was participating in a longstanding tradition of riding waves in the island. When Higgins asked for how long they’ve been riding waves, a native said, “For as long as the oldest person in the tribe can remember.”
Of course they have. And we feel all colonial for even linking this up.
I thought that would be romantic and somehow Zen-like. But after a few months, the holding tank, no matter how many times I emptied it, reeked of sewage. And the little bed, the one tucked into the bow, the one I compared to ‘being in the womb,’ was right next to the holding tank; so, obviously, it no longer lulled me to sleep. It just smelled. I guess even the prettiest things eventually end up stinking.”
Hopefully, that is not the case with his book, something that Surf Nationauthor Alex Wade says has “cult classic stamped all over it.” We haven’t read Saltwater Buddha yet, but are looking forward to Yogis summer book tour. For all the dates click here.
Loop’d’s platform is a social network for athletes to promote themselves and and participate in a network of online communities based around action sports. Loop’d lets also members connect with brands, including Monster, Oakley and PacSun, for sponsorship.
The company apparently plans to use the money to stay in business.
For aging weekend warriors who idolize Laird Hamilton, Dave Kalama, or Jeremy Jones and dream of spending some quality man-time with them, former heil-guide Mike Overcast may have just what they need. It’s called EpicQuest and according to a story in Fortune Small Business this high end travel company may have the perfect vacation.
EpicQuest plans a calendar’s worth of seasonal trips for the wealthy, adventurous travelers. . . These trips will run in the range of $1,000 to $1,500 a day. For a little extra, clients can get what Pattee calls the “backstage pass” – going surfing (or snowboarding) with professional athletes like Hamilton, or skiing with Olympic gold medal winner Tommy Moe.
While it seems kind of weird to pay pro surfers and snowboarders to hang out with you, we guess rich people are used to that of thing. . .
