Photo of the Day

Surfer Mag Blog

time to surf, made by yours truly

Keep Calm, made by yours truly

Red Tide Surfing

Okay this video takes the cake today. I am not a fan of night surfing 

but this is the coolest thing I have ever seen!

GOLDEN

The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Perfection.

 =]

GoPro camera view.

This guy is totally boogie boarding, but MAN do I wish I was in the water. SUMMER HERE I COME!
This guy has great footage. It really feels like you're in the pipe.

PROTEST WAR, surf style

Kelly Slater, art activist.

Piranhas and snakes and waves OH MY!

I don't know if i could handle those critters.  I guess the endless wave makes up for it.

Check out this totally odd ball spot to surf! Who knew?!

Nice view though.. =]

How-to Be a Good Surfer

Reblogged from Surfer Mag's Site. Contributed by Brad Melkian Mar. 16, 2011.

Pay attention. A good surfer pays attention. Small children, newcomers, and people wearing denim sprint unknowingly into the surf. A good surfer pays attention. Don’t operate by guesswork. Check the surf. Know where the waves will be breaking, where they will not be breaking, where you’ll catch waves before you ever become wet, then paddle out.

Surf cameras, surf apps on your phone (cell phones in general), websites, blogs: If you must. But check the surf. Everyday. In person. Surfing is a practice, and it is to be treated as such.

Take care of your equipment. Fix your dings. Change your wax. Learn what works for you, and learn how to ride it. Learn when to ride it. Know how you want to ride a wave before you do it, and choose your board accordingly.

Think. About your waves, about your boards, about your place in the lineup. A good surfer thinks.
If you’re not a kid, let the kids be. Kids are shitheads many times, but they are kids, so don’t get mad at them for being kids.

To that end, a good surfer is a good steward. Of the break. Of the spot.

Shut up. Realize that there’s not a whole lot to say. Yes, the weather’s fine, and yes, the waves are good, and yes, we all hope the wind stays off of it, and yes, it’s really crowded. We all get it. So let it be. A good surfer shuts up.

Let a few go. As much for yourself as for the rest of the people who eventually catch them. Duke said it first: “Wave come, wave go.” The sooner you learn that, the better off you’ll be.

Oh, and this: There’ll always be a better wave. Than the one you missed, the one you just rode, whatever. There’ll be a better wave. The sooner you learn this, the better off you’ll be.

Know how to deliver a good stinkeye, but don’t do it unless necessary. Let your surfing do the talking, operate with the understanding that you are going to get waves because you can.

On this point: Surf at a spot that suits your skill level. A good surfer does not get in the way, does not insert himself into a lineup where he does not belong. Instead, he surfs at a spot where he can get waves, because he can.

Pro tour, competition, surf celebrities, star-studded movie premieres: Okay. But don’t get too excited by any of it. Know that the great aim of all of these entities is to promote “industry” and that the great aim of industry is to get you to buy things. This is truth.

If you have allowed the purchasing of products to become a major part of your surf experience, put this magazine down, sit in a quiet place, reflect.

That said, don’t be overzealous. People try to make money. Understand this, come to terms with it, participate in it where appropriate, but mostly ignore it. Realize it has nothing to do with your experience of surfing, and move on.

Buy surfboards. Know what’s involved in making a board, even if you don’t make the board yourself. Know that it’s a product of craftsmanship, a skill that requires precision to a sixteenth of an inch, a skill that is honed over time. Appreciate this. Also appreciate that you likely don’t have these skills, and find the best person who does that you can have a relationship with.

Pay full price for you board. Because it’s worth it, and because shapers are surfers who don’t get paid enough for what they do. Bring a six-pack when you pick up the board, discuss its making.

Claiming waves is for kids and pro surfers who have been taught to believe that the rest of us are impressed when they grab their genitals after pulling into a tube. We are not.

On that note, insert tube, exit tube. Arms below the shoulders. You are not a wide receiver, you did not score a touchdown, and this is not the Super Bowl.

But: experience some joy. If you feel like you can’t contain that self-congratulatory hoot, don’t. Hoot. Holler. Laugh. Smile. That’s why you’re out here.

Whatever you do, you do not flip off the wave. You do not stick your tongue out. You do not look back to the lineup like an excited puppy dog waiting to see who saw you get pitted. You’re happy. You’ve done well. Good for you. That’s enough, now. Paddle back out, try again.

Speaking of which, stay humble. If surfing hasn’t taught you this by now, keep paddling back out. It will.

Helmets, unless surfing a treacherous slab reef: no.

Clean lines. Know what you can do, but more importantly, know what you cannot do. Surf top-to-bottom, cleanly. That is the aim.

Airs, unless you can do them in a manner seamless with the riding of a wave, are ill-advised. Airs, that is, are ill-advised for 99 percent of us.

That doesn’t mean, by the way, that we shouldn’t try. It’s okay—good, even—to do things that are ill-advised sometimes.

Always pull in, even if you cannot make it, even if you do not know how to ride the barrel. A good surfer pulls in.

There are women in the lineup. Let them be surfers. They do not want to be hit on when they’re going surfing, and they do not find this attractive. They want to go surfing, same as you. Respect this.
That said, if you want to sneak a peek, go for it.

There is a pecking order, and it is to be respected. Know where you fit in the lineup, and respect this. Wait your turn, because it will come. When it comes, when somebody tells you to go, go. If you don’t make this wave, know that you will be waiting a lot longer for your next one.

A good surfer knows he doesn’t need to fight, but he also knows he doesn’t need to move aside for anybody. Respect, sure, but not fear.

Paddle out to crowded alpha-surf spots with the understanding that it will be crowded, that you will not get waves. Expect this, deal with this, participate in this. Do not complain.

On travel: Put in work. Find a spot. Score it. Be quiet. No Tweets, no Facebook, no pictures, no blogs, no braggadocio. Surfing can teach you how to experience joy and excitement, and how to keep that joy and excitement to yourself. Allow it to do so.

Sometimes you mess up. Sometimes you fall. Sometimes you fail. Don’t punch the water. Don’t scream. Get back on your board, paddle back out.
Always paddle back out.

Surfing is not golf. It is not tennis. It is not to be pursued on the weekends, or in the summer. It is a lifetime commitment. A good surfer knows this.

Want to read this in its home location? 

Should surfing be an Olympic Sport?!

 

Many say yes!

Check out this Transbusiness World Article,

Share your thoughts below.

Surfing an Olympic Sport?

Andy Irons (1978 – 2010) | SURFING Magazine

Remembering Andy Irons</3
A perfectly awesome lightbox


Andy Irons (1978 – 2010) | SURFING Magazine

So, after talking to a new... acquaintance... I guess you could say, he mentioned a sick surf photographer named Art Brewer.  I looked up his stuff and to start off, he works a lot for Surfer Magazine--so there's a hint right there.  But anyway, as Blake had mentioned to me, he's pretty spectacular:

Art Brewer

     Liquid Salt Mag

According to Made Man Blog for those of us stuck in the Northeast this winter, here are the ten closest and BEST surfing beaches.  Hang ten!

10 Best Surf Spots on the East Coast

By: Ryan Curtin

Break Studios Contributing Writer

The Right Coast isn’t always known for surf, but on the right day the following 10 best East Coast surf spots can rival any of the best waves in North America.

1. Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, NC.  It is impossible to think of the Outer Banks without picturing the towering black and white lighthouse that has become synonymous with the Cape. The grinding beach break barrels that peel of the lighthouse jetty have always been one of the best east coast surf spots and will always be one of the right coast surfing’s most precious commodities.
2. S Turns, NC. This OBX gem takes its name from the S shaped curve in the beach road. S Turns is one of the best places to get barreled on the East Coast. Big, hollow, sand dredging tubes make North Carolina look like mainland Mexico.
3. Sebastian Inlet, FL. When the big inlet jetty works its refractory magic a sloppy two-foot mush-burger suddenly morphs into a rippable four-foot bowl.  This, coupled with the fact that Sebastian Inlet is the epicenter of East Coast aerial surfing, and the fact this place turned Slater from super-groom into World Champ clearly marks the Inlet as one of the 10 best East Coast surf spots.
4. Ruggles, RI. There are not many big wave spots on the East Coast, but Ruggles in Rhode Island can legitimately make the claim. This reef break can hold almost anything that the Atlantic can throw at it. When a macking hurricane swell is closing out the entire North East, Ruggles is one of the few places that can consistently hold the juice. For sheer size and form, Ruggles is most certainly one of the 10 best East Coast surf spots.
5. Montauk, NY. Montauk is the point where the mostly featureless sandy coastline of the mid-Atlantic and lower-Northeast finally gives way to the reefs and points of New England. For its exposure to swell and the addition of a bit of variety to the New York/New Jersey surf scene, Montauk is definitely one of the best East Coast surf spots. Montauk offers a smorgasbord of great reef waves and is one of the coolest places in NY to get barreled.
6. Manasquan Inlet, NJ. Would you believe that one of the 10 best East Coast surf spots in New Jersey? Actually the Garden State has some of the best surf around, and Manasquan Inlet is Jersey’s Crown Jewel. Able to hold more size than most of the surrounding beach breaks, ‘Squan is often the go to break when a big swell is pumping. The place does get crowded though, so bring your Jersey attitude. Only the strong survive.
7. Rye On The Rocks, NH.  Could they have chosen a more New England sounding name? Probably, but only if it combined lobster, Red Sox, and Tom Brady. Rye is a great New England point break that can hold some decent size with good form.  If you’re into clam chowder, barrels, and rubber then Rye might be your cup of tea.
8. Folly Beach Washout, SC. Although not really known for great surf, the washout gets the nod for bringing a glimmer of quality surf to one of the most wave-starved regions on the Eastern seaboard. The washout makes the most of any bump thrown its way. Hey, even if the surf goes flat, Charleston is a great city with plenty of swell Southern Belles.
9. Point Judith, RI. This tiny corner of land is home to some of the best point breaks on the East Coast. Although plentiful in New England, point breaks are pretty scarce on the right coast. The concentration of quality points is how Point Judith lays its claim as one of the best East Coast surf spots.
10. Reef Road, FL. Undoubtedly the least consistent wave on this list of the 10 best East Coast surf spots, Reef Road needs a huge North or Northeast swell to start working. What it lacks in consistency, Reef Road makes up for in form, offering lefts of over 300 yards on the right day. Reef Road is also capable of handling almost any swell the Atlantic can produce, and it is generally regarded as one of Florida’s best big wave spots.

Original source

Blind Surfer, no way? YES WAY.

So, I found this video on Surfer Mag's website, Week in Review.  It is totally awesome and reminds me that anything is possible!  Good for this kid! Derek Rebelo, you're the man.

Watch--

NJ Surfing (and Long Beach)

Mahwah, NJ: Sunny, breezy and 68 degrees 

 Wildwood, NJ: Sunny, breezy and 64 degrees

Ocean City, NJ: Sunny, breezy and 62 degrees

Long Beach, NY:  Sunny, breezy and 51 degrees

       Unfortunately, most of us are stuck in classrooms and offices on this unusually beautiful March day.  If feels more like April or May.  Thankfully though, for you surfers out there, you aren't missing much on the waves.  In Wildwood and Ocean City, the southern half of New Jersey is experiencing a mere knee height waves at the moment.  Not much aof a difference as you drive up the coast to the northern half.  In the wee hours of tomorrow morning, however, swells could hit 7 feet! If you are up for some night/early morning surfing, the winter blues can be lifted.  In Long Beach, NY peak wave height climbs as high as 8.2 ft.  Grab your fishtail board, your hooded wetsuits, and a flashlight because this will be the highest swells this week, surf is headed down hill for the weekend.  Surf season is fast approaching!

p.s. Here's a pick-you-up: the waves in Malibu are only 2-3 feet and staying that way all week. Go Jersey!