Watch: Vintage Jordy Smith in ‘Just Now’

Don’t let the title fool you – this Jordy Smith film ‘Just Now’ was shot in 2017 – a year in which the leadfooted South African finished fourth in the world, in the tenth year of his tour tenure. You’ll notice he’s still riding CIs in this clip, not SMTH Shapes, the surfboard label he co-owns with his father, Graham ‘G Force’ Smith.

Wild to think he’s now embarking on his 17th season, and still waxing rookies on tour, in wavepools in the middle of the Arabian Gulf, no less. 

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After the Middle East contest—which coincided with Jordy’s 37th birthday—Doug Silva tried to make sense of Smith’s thinking at his present age and stage: “Now that he’s a bit older, I think he’s just going ‘Fuck it, I’m just going to milk this thing as long as I’m here.”

Silva added, “He’s so funny – they had really great food at the facility, and Jordy was just parked there for 12 hours, not moving. I just loved how he was laughing at the pool but was still able to turn it on. He was the first male to go excellent, and one of the last you’d expect, being a larger surfer.”

For the full scoop on the Abu Dhabi Aura Rankings, see Doug’s complete breakdown.

Bursting onto the scene at the 2006 JBay Pro—snagging his first CT wildcard and finishing third after a semi against Taj Burrow—Jordy has built one of the longest, most consistent careers on tour. He’s racked up six CT wins, finished World Champ runner-up twice, notched six perfect 10’s (four at JBay), and secured top-five finishes on six other occasions.

The never-ending gag? This could very well be Jordy’s year.

Off the competitive circuit, he’s also made his mark in film—starring in cult classics like Kai Neville’s Modern Collective and Bending Colors, Taylor Steele’s Stranger than Fiction, and his own projects Shaping Jordy and Plus 27, along with two editions of Stab in the Dark. It’s almost baffling that he continues to compete, but as Doug explains, he’s squeezing every last drop from the proverbial surf industry udder.

And the quips! Whether it’s his deadpan critique of a Haydenshapes board—“I never knew it was possible to bog two rails at once… what a waste of a grip”—or his unapologetic jab at Gabriel Medina’s rail game (“I wouldn’t pay the guy a cent”), Jordy may be the only modern pro with a sense of humor as sharp as his rail game.