by The Editors on January 13, 2008
Photographer Bob Barbour’s classic images of Jay Moriarity at Mavericks will be on display until January 31, 2008 at The Mill Gallery at 131 Front St., in Santa Cruz. The images are part of the Surf City, Santa Cruz exhibit.
At Maverick’s, the fabled surf break near Half Moon Bay, surf stories take on a dimension of the epic and that 16-year-old’s wipeout at Mav’s on a December day in 1994 ranks as one of the most talked about single incidents in the history of California surfing, thanks to two people: the hero, young Santa Cruzan Jay Moriarity, and the witness, veteran surf photographer Bob Barbour.
The show also features photos of Jay since the time he was a 13-year-old nose riding at Pleasure Point.
[Link: Santa Cruz Sentinel]
by The Editors on January 11, 2008
As if the story of big wave surfer Peter Davi, 47, drowning at Ghost Trees could get any sadder, the Monterey County Herald is reporting that after an autopsy it was discovered that Davi was high on meth when he drowned.
Sheriff’s Sgt. Mike Richards said toxicology results show that Davi had a methamphetamine level of 0.75 milligrams per liter in his system at the time of his death. The level for potential toxicity is between 0.2 to 0.5 milligrams per liter. . . “That is a lot,” said Richards. . . . Richards said the primary cause of death was asphyxiation from drowning, but that acute methamphetamine intoxication and blunt force head and chest trauma were “contributing factors” in his death.
Sadly, it seems Davi thought he needed a little extra boost.
[Link: Monterey Herald]
by The Editors on January 7, 2008
The ASP 2007 World Champ Mick Fannning, 26, was doing a little snowboarding in Japan during his time off and apparently fell causing what his mother Liz referred to as a “minor fracture that would not affect his preparations for this years ASP World Tour” which kicks off at Snapper Rocks on February 23.
“I love snowboarding, it’s so much fun, it’s like surfing but it does hurt more,” he recently told Japanese magazine Powderlife. “I’ve been doing one week snowboarding holidays every year since 2003 – California, Whistler, Colorado and Australia.”
Water, it appears is softer than snow.
[Link: The Age]
by The Editors on January 7, 2008
Shares of Zumiez fell 13 percent to a new year low when the retailer “slashed its fiscal 2007 outlook after it posted holiday sales below its expectations.
Shares of the online and mall-based retailer have slumped nearly 65 percent since their October 2007 highs, as concerns about warm weather hurting winter sales worried investors. . . “Although holiday sales were positive, we did not experience the across the board strength that we had planned for,” Zumiez Chief Executive Officer Rick Brooks said in a statement.
[Link: Reuters]
by The Editors on January 5, 2008
First they start a site that hopes to get kids to pay them money for the possibility of “getting sponsored” and now they say they’re launching an action sports version of Myspace and facebook. It appears that Sponsorhouse.com Scott Tilton and RJ Kraus have found a new way to talk action sports companies out of their money. It’s called Loop’d. They’ve even rallied Oakley’s Pat Mac (which isn’t all that difficult to do).
Patrick McIlvain, global sports marketing director for Oakley, said the promotion it’s running on the Loop’d Network is one way for the company to tap into the grass roots of the action-sports market.
Hey, with a name like Loop’d you know the kids are going to be down.
[Link: San Diego Union-Tribune]
by The Editors on January 3, 2008
Former world longboarding champion Joel Tudor, 31, placed second in his division at the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu No-Gi World Championships in November, and now the San Diego Union Tribune is telling the story of Joel’s new sport.
The San Diego-born surfer began practicing jiu-jitsu five years ago, but said he’s seen it throughout his life, especially when living on Oahu’s North Shore and watching Hawaiian and Brazilian surfers there. Accustomed to the ocean’s physical beatings that sometimes accompany serious surfing, the prospect of jiu-jitsu’s bumps and bruises didn’t faze him.
This will certainly help Joel get along better with some of his Hawai’ian longboarding acquaintances.
[Link: San Diego Union-Tribune]
by The Editors on January 1, 2008
In a 10b5-1 prearranged stock sale Richard “Wooly” Woolcott reported that he sold 11,104 shares of Volcom stock at about $25 a piece netting him a $277,000 after Christmas bonus. He squeaked that in under the 2007 tax year.
[Link: Forbes]
by The Editors on December 29, 2007
The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that thanks to some new findings the legendary Duke Kahanamoku may not have been the first person to ride the wild surf on the beaches of Australia.
The story of the Duke being the first to surf in Australia is a romantic myth,” Mr Maddox said. “I think it is time that Manly Council acknowledged the true birthplace of surfing and put up a monument outside the club on Manly Beach to rival the bronze statue of the Duke.” . . . Mr Maddox’s research, contained in a new book, 100 Years – A Celebration Of Surf Life Saving At North Steyne, has caused a stir in the surfing community.
Historian Mark Maddox claims that Charles Paterson, the first president of the North Steyne lifesaving club, brought a surfboard back from Hawaii several years before Duke’s widely celebrated ride.
[Link: Sydney Morning Herald]
by The Editors on December 22, 2007
For couples who surf, having children can really get in the way of time in the water. This is especially true for moms. That’s why Vanessa Thompson, an Australian woman, co-founded “Surfing Mums.”
“Surfing Mums started with two mums who just wanted to go for a surf,” she said. “Mums are committed to a 24-hour-a-day, seven-days-a-week job. There is no time to surf before a job or after. They can’t jump in for a quick surf while the baby is asleep or sneak off while they are playing contentedly on the sand. . . . “They need other surfing mums who understand their needs as a surfer and as a mum.”
Now the moms trade up watching the kids and get much more time in the water. It’s probably time for a similar set up in SoCal. Anyone want to get this started?
[Link: Sydney Morning Herald]
by The Editors on December 22, 2007
Chris Harazda, 54, of Melbourne, Florida died Sunday December 16, 2007 of a heart attack while surfing in Jupiter.
He began paddling toward the beach after suffering chest pains. He died shortly after. . . About 200 family members and friends paid tribute to Melbourne surfer Chris Harazda in a ceremony this morning at the beach across from Patrick Air Force Base.
Our thoughts are with his family and friends.
[Link: Florida Today]
