A List Of Airs You’ll (Probably) See At Stab High
Straighties and backflips and ‘oops, oh my!
STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!STABHIGH!
Did you know Stab High is this weekend? In Waco, Texas? At the BSR Cable Park?
Have we drilled that into your skulls? Are you excited?
I am. It’s gonna be fucking rad. So much so that I’m paying out-of-pocket to fly from Kauai to Houston, then driving to Waco, for the event. Stab isn’t footing the bill because I’ve had, almost literally, no involvement in the event’s planning. And I plan to be of absolutely no use onsite.
I’ll be drinking and cheering, peeing in the lazy river, and hucking my fat carcass off their massive slip ‘n’ slide launch ramp thing. Maybe I’ll buy a cowboy hat. And a lasso. And a gun!
The Second Amendment is first in Texas’ heart.
Mainly, though, I’m going to watch some killers risk their knees/ankles/backs while chasing dough above the lip.
Big Mikey C drew up a cool little reference sheet for trick names, something that’s fairly necessary for most surfers since they don’t seem to know them.
I volunteered to add some words and clips of uncommon and/or iconic pops from within. If I write about the trip its cost is tax deductible!
Straight air
This one hardly needs to be identified, but there’s nothing better than a clean, lofty, stylish frontside punt. To this day I’ve yet to see one better than Medina’s boost in Portugal.
Judo Air
Obviously Christian Fletcher owns the first, and definitely most iconic, judo.
It’s a killer by modern standards, despite being nearly thirty years old.
I can’t find video of it online anywhere, though. So here’s Albee Layer doing a massive frontside number a few years back.
Gorkin Flip
The Gorkin flip was a big deal when Aaron Cormican first started doing them back in the early oughts. Unstrapped flips on surfboards where still, more or less, a fantasy.
Cormican double grabbed and rolled down to the flats. They weren’t high, but they were damn cool.
Here’s the inventor sticking an example of his own invention.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HknIrmy4UxM
And here’s Stab High competitor Mason Ho’s personal approach.
Alley-Oop
The first really good alley ‘oop I can remember seeing was done by aerial pioneer Shawn ‘Barney’ Barron.
They’ve come a long way in the years since.
Superman Air
The Superman is surfing’s benihana. They were hot for a minute, then blessedly disappeared.
If you’re gonna pull this one out it’s gotta be done ironically, or so big it blows minds.
Backflip
This one is self explanatory, I hope.
Flynn Novak was the first person to really go after them, unstrapped. He tried to call it the Flynnstone Flip, but the name didn’t take.
Seth Moniz recently dropped a huge number at the Waco site. He told Stab:
“… [T]hat section is crazy – kind of like Cobbles in West Oz. And it feels like a real ocean wave with wedges, different sections, and plenty of power. I got worked sending it to the flats on my first wave, but it’s cool how quickly you can learn out there. People are gonna do some messed up stuff on that section.”
Kerrupt flip
I’m not a fan of the ‘make up a name’ naming convention for tricks. Which is why I’ve never loved the named Kerrupt Flip. It’s a backwards-double grab alley oop, basically.
They can look totally spastic, or ridiculously slick. Like the Gorkin flip they were kinda a big deal when Kerrzy first landed one, but have declined in the decade or so since.
Medina did a clean example at a recent wave pool event. It was okay.
Shuv-it/varial/big spin
Push the tail forward with your back foot? Shuv-it. Spin it with your hand? Varial.
Spin the board 360 while turning your body 180? Big spin.
Joe Crimo was years ahead of his time when he first started landing varials back in the 90’s.
But nowadays no one has the ol’ pop-and-spin on-lock better than Stab High surfer, Chippa Wilson.
Indy Grab
An indy grab is a toeside grab with your back hand while doing a backside air. That’s it. You can’t do them frontside.
It’s the most commonly misnamed trick in all of XTREME sports and while I can’t find a video of a surfer doing one, god damn it, get it right.
Shifty
I once saw Nathan Fletcher do a massive frontside shifty at stormy overhead Log Cabins. He was surfing alone and I was trying to find motivation to paddle out at a spot that scares me, on a not-very-good day.
No grab, torque your body like you’re gonna do a 180, but pull that sucker back around at the last second. They’re classic, clean, and not very easy to land.
Once again I can’t find a surf clip, so here’s a skateboarder showing you how it’s done.
540/720
In surfing no one can tell the difference between a 540 and a 720. It’s a mystery, like sasquatch or the loch ness monster.
I’d rather not reignite the debate, so here’s a bunch of dudes trying to do a 540/720.
Mute/Slob
Both are toeside grabs with your leading hand. Slob is done frontside, Mute is done backside.
Here’s Mason Ho, again, doing in a not great video of an excellent example of a slob.
Stalefish
Back hand grabbing heelside, the stalefish is an awkard reach that can make any air into something special.
Here’s Kolohe Andino appending a lightning quick example onto a frontside reverse.
Boned straight air
Boned, tweaked, whatever. Tossing a little steez on top is a great way to earn a few more points.
Here’s Kai Lenny showing a picture perfect, though strapped, example.
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