As surprised as we were to discover that there is a World Championships of Kneeboarding, the story of 49-year-old photojournalist Michael Fernandez was even better. According to a story in the Taranaki Daily News, Fernandez was the 1981 American Kneeboard Champion until school, a trip through the armed forces, and a career as a photojournalist ended that for a while.
Now, 25 years later Michael is in New Zealand competing for the American team at the World Championships and hoping to travel to Afghanistan for his next assignment.
He got back into the waves four years ago and is now part of the nearly 20-strong team of Americans competing at the World Kneeboard Surfing Champs in Opunake this week. . . .A resident of the landlocked state of Pennsylvania, achieving happiness is as simple as surfing twice a month, though that is easier said than done. . . .”It takes me three hours to get to the coast. Depending on the weather I surf at New York, New Jersey or Maryland.”
Apparently, the depth of talent in kneeboarding is such that someone can take 25 years off and still be competitive. Either than or Fernandez is one savage kneeler.
[Link: Taranaki Daily News]
