We haven’t seen the movie yet but already the reviews are coming in for Chasing Mavericks, and not surprising, they’re not good. Here’s a piece of one from The Wrap.
[Chasing Mavericks is] a biopic that features not enough stirringly gorgeous surfing footage and way too many clunky biopic clichés in telling the story of surf legend Jay Moriarity. With a storyline as by-the-numbers as a square dance, the movie’s one surprise comes with the closing credits — namely, that this trite “inspirational” movie is the product of two world-class filmmakers, Curtis Hanson and Michael Apted.
“Chasing Mavericks” breaks through the cliches associated with surfer movies – the carefree beach party fantasies, the fake mysticism – and offers a portrait that has a lot more integrity. In this telling, the really serious surfers, the big wave guys, are anything but happy-go-lucky airheads.
Plus, Abigail Spencer is in it, according to the NY Daily News. So we still might have a hard time waiting for the iTunes version.
Surf journalist Steve Barilotti is working on a documentary on the life and times of seminal 60s psychedelic artist Rick Griffin (creator of the surf comic Murphy) and he needs your help on Kickstarter.
The Film: “Griffin” is a feature-length documentary that explores the art, life and eccentric spark of one of the world’s least known and most influential 20th Century surrealists. Over the time-warped span of the 1960’s, one-time teen cartoonist Rick Griffin created defining icons for three pillars of west coast counterculture: surfing, psychedelic rock and underground comix.
Barilotti has reach is original Kickstarter goal of $20,000 but there are three days left so you can still help him out with getting this project completed. Click the link for more info.
From the marks on his surfboard shark experts are saying that Francisco Javier Solorio Jr., 39, the surfer who died October 23, 2012, was hit by a 15-16 foot great white shark, according to a story in the LA Times.
Ralph S. Collier, a shark expert from the Shark Research Committee of Chatsworth, made the determination about the shark Wednesday after examining Solorio’s body and the board he was using when the shark attacked, according to a statement from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office. . . Collier said he estimated the size of the shark based on the distance between teeth marks on the board.
Dawn patrol on the streets of New York City. You know, as viral video from the movie Chasing Mavericks. And yes, it got our attention so apparently it worked. The movie opens in theaters Friday, October 26, 2012.
Surfer Francisco Javier Solorio Jr, 36, of Orcutt, California died Tuesday, October 23, 2012 after being bitten by a shark while surfing Surf Beach in Lompoc, California at about 11 AM, according to a story in the Greenfield Reporter.
He was bitten by the shark in his upper torso. . . Solorio “had a friend who he was surfing with who saw the shark bite or hit the man,” said sheriff’s Sgt. Mark A. Williams. “His friend ended up swimming over and pulling him from the water where he received first aid.” . . .The friend started first aid while another surfer called for help, but Solorio was pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene.
According to Scripps Institute of Oceanography’sAndrew Nosal quoted in the LA Times, “it was probably a great white,” Nosal said. “There is no other species swimming off of the coast regularly that could possibly do that kind of damage.”
Master surfboard shaper Donald Takayama has died on Monday, October 22, 2012, according to a story on Surfline.com. He was 68.
Hailing from Waikiki but raised in Honolulu, Takayama placed 2nd to Corky Carroll in the 1966 and 1967 U.S. Surfboard Championships and enjoyed other competitive accolades, however, his main contributions to the sport and culture occurred in the board building realm . . . Takayama founded Hawaiian Pro Designs, where he shaped for budding World Tour professional and eventual Pipeline Master Joey Buran. By the mid ’80s, with labels popping up everywhere and boards getting shorter and weirder, Takayama responded by producing longboards almost exclusively, two of the most popular being signature models for David Nuuhiwa and Dale Dobson.
Our thoughts are with Takayama’s family and friends and we’re honored to have one of his longboards in our quiver. Thanks, Donald.
Here’s the short version: Analog is going snow and moving back to Burlington. The snow team will stay, but the skate and surf teams will be “transitioned out of the brand”. Gravis is moving to Tokyo and going Asia only as a lifestyle brand. The team will be “restructured to accommodate” that market. Helmet’s and optics will be combined under the Anon brand (with some Red still being produced). Burton will “exit out of” The Program brands (Special Blend, Forum, and Four Square) by 2014 (good-bye). Burton has operated the brands for eight years yet, “the businesses have failed to be viable.” In the surf world Channel Islands and it’s team remain unaffected.
Here’s what founder Jake Burton Carpenter has to say about it:
“Burton has experienced several years of income growth since the recession and paid out bonuses to employees over the last two years,” said Jake. “That said, the economy has a voice of its own that we all have to listen to, and the message is clear: do what you do best and focus purely on it. In our case, that means to narrow our focus to the sport and lifestyle that got us here – snowboarding. We will continue to support Channel Islands in its endeavor to make the best surfboards in the world and Gravis in its new home in Japan, but when you walk through the front door here in Burlington, Vermont, it will be all snowboarding and snowboarding lifestyle all the time – driven by the Burton, Analog and anon brands.”
Sound like a good plan all around and honestly, we can’t believe it took them so long with Gravis and the Program. Burton went far beyond a reasonable investment in many of their brands and should be commended for trying to make them work in spite of market response.
Follow the jump for the official word an complete breakdown of the changes. [click to continue…]
With less than two minutes left in the Rip Curl Pro Portugal final and Gabriel Medina in the lead, Julian Wilson knew he needed to work some magic. Up popped a wave, Julian pulled into a barrel, busted out, threw a claim, threw down some turns and then had to walk up a quiet beach as the judges tried to sort things out. When they did it was an 8.43 for Wilson and that wave served as was payback for last time Wilson and Medina were in a final:
He beat me in a buzzer beater last year in France. To beat him back again on the buzzer was amazing,” Wilson said. “I don’t even know how to describe the feeling. He was trying to hold on to the lead there in the end. He was too busy worrying about me and that wave came behind it.”
Medina, after thinking maybe he had won the contest, was overcome with emotion on the podium. And, wiping tear away said, “That was a tough heat against Julian (Wilson),” Medina said. “Unfortunately he got the score on that last wave. I had a fun run through this event and the waves were really really good.”
There are who felt that Medina was getting underscored the entire final. Freddy Patacchia was one of them. “7.47 for @gabrielmedinaaa that is just wrong,” he said via Twitter. “That was the best barrel & wave of the heat. Should have been an 8.5 plus in my opinion.”
But no one will dispute the fact that Wilson played it well and earned his first WCT title. Follow the jump for the official word from the ASP including full results and ASP World Title standings after Portugal. [click to continue…]
Yes, it was big. And, true, Shane Dorian and the boys are raring to go for another winter season as evidenced by this ACL Digital edit titled Seared Peahi.
We haven’t seen the movie yet but already the reviews are coming in for Chasing Mavericks, and not surprising, they’re not good. Here’s a piece of one from The Wrap.
