Do You Like To Surf?

Ed note: the following is the third installment of our new weekly email chain called the Stab Fwd. If you’re into it, subscribe here. 

Jamie Brisick, I believe, once said, “I don’t like surfing. I like having surfed.” 

Maybe he wasn’t being entirely sincere. Or maybe he was. I first heard it through a friend (Hi, Taylor) a few years ago and have thought about it somewhat regularly since. At times, I wholeheartedly agree. 

Awful waves, bad winds, wet wetsuits, dirty water, etc. There are many enemies of the idyllic. At some point, you’ve certainly looked at the ocean, or a camera pointed towards it, or a report based on meteorology’s best guesses, and felt nothing but apprehension.  

You don’t want to surf. But you know you’ll feel better for having done it. (You do know that, right?)

There’s a flip side to that coin though, and it’s awesome. It’s the giddiness you feel when you look at a forecast and everything appears to be aligning, or when you pull up to check it and see a wave spit, or while you pack your boards for a surf trip with friends. It’s one of the best feelings in surfing. 

After eight weeks out of the water, Monday looks like it could mark my legal return to surfing and I’m fucking thrilled. However, the forecast looks appalling. Overheard swell, 30 mph onshore winds, sideways rain. The exact type of waves you don’t actually want to surf. 

I can’t remember a time in my life in which the forces of anticipatory excitement and sheer apprehension have so perfectly balanced each other out. Maybe we are going back to normal after all? 

For now, let’s get into it. 

We were under the impression that France looked like this every day…

Yago, Filipe, and Adriano Rain Cash Over Their Unsponsored Countrymen

What a core strengthening exercise. These guys create an Instagram contest with a prize purse of over $10k — not exactly a pouring rain but certainly enough to get a little wet. It’s called Bico Branco, which translates to white beak, alluding to the stickerless noses of the competitors (also a historically proven way to keep energy levels high throughout difficult times). 

Podcast: What Is The WSL’s Core Identity, And Do They Care About Public Scrutiny?

Remember Sam McIntosh’s vid chat with Erik Logan about the WSL’s proposed changes? Seems like most people had one key takeaway: Elo’s garage is a nightmare of noseguards and endless SUPs. Now, would you like to hear from a WSL man whose garage is presumably filled with a finely curated selection of boards that have both historical and performance value? Two surf obsessors spoke with the people’s CEO, Dave Prodan, for this episode of the CUSP. 

Dane Reynolds Told A Kid There’s No Such Thing As Pro Surfers 

Ten years ago, Dane Reynolds referred to Stab as “Sensationalistic Scummy Journalism” and so this title is my homage to a time-honored tradition. I’m supposed to link to our third most-viewed story of the week — but Coronavirus stories are tiring so I’m linking to a new post and clip on Dane’s site, Chapter 11 TV, instead. 

Should we get our bells rung? 

Have you watched For Whom The Atolls? If I were to carry on with Hemingway puns, I’d say there are no old men in this sea or call it a farewell to flailing arms. But I won’t, so please erase those attacks on the English language from your memory. Instead, I’ll say these three things. 1) The avoidance of the top-secret location, we can’t give you any hints narrative was refreshing. 2) The water cinematography by Tom Jennings is some of the best I’ve ever seen. 3) I watched it alone in my living room and still stood up to applaud the surfing at the end. 

Where are we going with this? 

I originally wanted to include a travel section in every Fwd. And, yes, I am aware of the fact that very few people would have such an abnormal combination of time and money that they would book a last-minute trip at the recommendation of a Stab newsletter. Realistically, I wanted to help you feel more tuned into global surf patterns so that you’d get the itch or want to mix things up on your next trip. Many of us fall into the trap of marrying our first lover when it comes to surf travel. 

Needless to say, that’s on hold for a bit. The TLDR of this article: Get used to your local. 

Ok, let’s bring the mood back up. 

Ever think you’d consciously realize a need to watch a two and a half minute black and white edit of Chippa Wilson doing airs in a wave pool cut to a Lambchop song? Neither did I, but I’m sure glad I did. 

One last thing: 

I don’t think style can be defined by a specific set of arm movements or the angle at which you bend your knee. Or by riding a certain board and electing to spend a disproportionate amount of time near the lip while going straight. Those things can be stylish, of course, but I think real style is the way in which an individual’s personality seeps into their surfing. 

This clip of Italo is real style.

Subscribe here to the Stab Fwd.