Micky Clarke's Surfing Is Frickin Fricked (x2)

Micky Clarke isn't a name that your mother, uncle from Ojai, or other non-obsessive surf fan might know, but with the performance he delivered in his most recent clip, Fricked II, Micky's on a mission to change that fact.

The Ventura local has power, flair, and legs so bendy that they knock his deck on most maneuvers. In playful California conditions, it's hard to find a flaw in his approach.

Micky jumped onto the Haydenshapes bandwagon recently, which has led to palpable increase in his speed and pop through maneuvers. He's stomping full rotes on the reg and carrying more speed (=power) into his mid-face hacks.

Watch the big boy soar in the video above – which was expertly manipulated by Hunter Martinez – and learn something about Micky below. 

Stab: You recently switched from a lengthy relationship with a local shaper (J7) over to Haydenshapes surfboards. What was the deal there?
Micky Clarke: Switching over to Haydenshapes helped my surfing in some pretty unique ways. I think riding for a company like that just pushes you way more in general, especially seeing the other well-accomplished guys that ride his boards like Dion, Creed, Craig, Nate Tyler, Dylan Graves, etc.

I find Hayden’s boards to be some of the fastest most responsive boards I’ve ridden, so it's as if my boards are never fighting back with me. I’m just really excited and motivated to be working with a really awesome crew. Hayden, Kokoro, and Logan are amazing humans.  

You're part of a sick little surf squad in the Ventura zone. How do kids like Eithan Osborne, Shane Borland, etc. push you? 
The crew up here is pretty tight I guess. Shaner cruises up here when the season starts, and I think the aspect of skating that Shane throws into his grabs and tweaks definitely pushes me. I don’t know where Eithan gets it from – he’s just fuckin gnarly and he catches like 30 waves in the first 10 minutes of surfing so he’s always got me on my toes [laughs]. We've been surfing together since Day 1, so it’s kinda like we’re sparring partners.

There are other guys up here, like Matt McCabe, who throw down some mind-boggling airs and definitely get me psyched. Then, of course, there's Dane Reynolds. He’s good at all of it – big turns, big airs, big combos and big tubes. That’s something every surfer should strive to be like.

You doing some comps this year or flying free in 2019?
Yeah, I’m doing some contests this year. I don’t know how many but I’m just gonna take it event by event. I definitely wanna have room in my budget for more videos and pushing myself on that end of surfing as well. But some extra cash and hopefully a good result always feels good 

What's one thing you want to achieve this year?
Oof that’s a hard one. Honestly, I’d say fixing my mind. Positive outlooks on shitty situations, accepting that no one is happy 24/7, relaxation methods, healthier habits. I think achieving a better state of mind will help me accomplish way more as life goes.