Balaram Stack, Stalefish at Long Beach, NY

This is the last photograph Jimmy Wilson shot before jumping in a cab for JFK airport and jetting back to Cali. Balaram Stack (pictured here) was surfing with Craig Anderson, who’s still hanging around NY. It was a little lake-esque in the morn, but right before Jimmy left a few head-high sets started kicking in from tropical storm Maria. Jimmy says that the conditions were basically identical to the final day of the Quik Pro, just a little smaller and with only a coupla dozen peeps on the beach (as opposed to a coupla thousand). “After staying with Balaram for the past two weeks,” says Jimmy, “I have to say he’s one of my favourite of the young crop coming out of the US. He’s maybe the best at airs out of any of his peers and personality wise, he’s just a classic. He literally knows everyone. Normally I’m in the loop and finding out what’s going on at night and who to go hang with, but on this trip I just sat back and waited for Bal to tell me where we were going. He’s a hero in the town of Long Beach. A full-on celebrity. I’ve never seen someone get asked for so many autographs, and like most popular people, he even has a small slate of haters who are clearly jealous of his success. Today some people from the city council came up and had him sign posters while we were eating breakfast.”