Friday, May 29, 2009

The Results Are In.


It looks like most people can agree that ESM IS a bunch of p^ssies with an overwhelming 70% of the vote. Another 12% of you also think ESM is a bunch of pussies... but not as much as Ian. 18% of you think ESM is not a bunch of p^ssies leading me to believe you love soft boards and gentle evening cruises down the line up on your SUP. Oh yeah, Mark heard what you guys said about his photoshop work... and he knows where you live.

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Ad #2

Even though Tim had to ask for his money back, the issue of the upcoming ad deadline still approached and we had to submit something. So, we sent them this.


I'm sure they won't have any problem publishing this one... right?

Friday, May 22, 2009

ESM: Eastern Surftek Magazine

If you have seen the last few issues of ESM then you may have noticed a few black and white quarter page ads, usually in the "blah blah" section that advertise the shop. Tim bought a years worth of ads... but sadly we had to ask for our money back. Why? Well ESM is a business, a business that makes money off of advertising. One large company they advertise with is surftek. When we showed ESM our ad for the most recent deadline they sent it back saying they couldn't print it. They were a little worried some of their other (much bigger) advertisement patrons (surftek) may get offended and withdraw their business. What do you think, is ESM right to censor us or are they just a bunch of p^ssies. Take a look at the add and then take a vote. Polls close on the 27th at 12:00pm.


Monday, May 18, 2009

contest is on...

http://www.billabongpro.com/tahiti09/live.php

I thought it was May...

...But With these waves and 55 degree temperatures I don't know if I can be sure.



I guess the only logical explanation (for the waves) must be my old friend Breaky McLegg.

Enjoy it while you can, only one more month until I can get back in the water and the waves stop.

Friday, May 15, 2009

Picaresque Premier

Monday the 18th the new movie Picaresque will premier at the terrace theater at 8pm.

Not familiar with the film? Here is a link to an interview with the filmmaker Mikey Detemple as well as the trailer. I am not to sure what the price is. When I asked I was told "I don't know, I think like five bucks." See you there.

bacon forces chopes contest to remain on hold...

Get the breaking news here!

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Secular Surf

If you have been by the shop lately you may have seen that we picked up a new clothing brand, Ando and Friends.


They have some good stuff. Some of it leans a little too far toward the hippie end of the clothing spectrum but it provides a nice contrast to some of the weird RVCA stuff.



Taking a closer look at their logo I couldn't help but to feel a sense of familiarity, like I have seen this before...


...oh yeah I have seen this. I am sure you are all familiar with the original version of this popular little fish design. Well, not this exact one but take a look on your CI's dimensions or your Island inspired Dimensions or your JC Hawaii dimensions or your HIC dimensions or...






...well you get the idea. I guess it is time for surfing to get a little taste of secularity. And why not, it's only fair.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

nopes on chopes...



...another lay day at Teahupo'o. The waves have been very Folly-esque, and Cardiff-esque for that matter, with bad winds and no swell seeping in from the right direction. Round 2 of this contest could basically decide the outcome of this year's champ. Parko has a huge lead going into this event and is seeded to come up against local wildcard Heiarii Williams in round 2. The judges have a tendency to push people through heats, whether or not they deserve to win. Examples: Fred Patacchia, Bede Durbidge, Adriano DeSouza...

Regardless, the local boy Heiarii (Harry?) will have to have the judges on his side to get past Parko, the current judge favorite. I'm not discrediting Parko's surfing, I'm just saying...

And then there's the Slater factor, who's up against Aritz Aranburu. He might as well be up against Jordy Smith. If Slater gets another free 17th with a loss in round 2, it may be deflating enough to where he starts surfing his heats standing on a boogie board for the rest of the season. Contest should be on tomorrow (Wednesday) with swell filling in tonight.

It's something to watch, and one of the few times you get to see pros eat sh!t on waves, just like you. Contest site here.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Tuesday, May 05, 2009

one fowl rooster tail...

According to many fitness magazines, I have what is known as "chicken leg syndrome". This is laughable...no, go ahead and laugh, it's funny. My bodily resemblance to this caged, practically flightless fowl explains my ability to launch massive credit card airs. But did you know that the chicken is the closest living relative to the Tyrannosaurus Rex? It's true, and it explains why these skinny little chicken legs have been crushing fiberglass tails for days, and also why I have to take a few extra paddles to get into a wave. (i.e. the short arms)

Basically, I needed to combat these limbs of Tyrannosaurus dynasty or risk losing another good surfboard to tail cancer. Since money is an object, that wasn't an option. I needed some high-tech carbon fiber materials and a little dash of the Colonel's secret recipe to spice up my daily driver...

...well, not this daily driver, but why not? Add a little carbon fiber to your diet, use this toilet seat and next thing you know you'll be crapping out stealth bombers for Obama faster than you can say "It's socialism!"

This right here is one 5'7" performance twin, which after 2 surfs already required repair in the heel and toe regions of the tail. I first cut a piece of carbon fiber, or Chicken Skin as I've trademarked it, and laminated it to the deck over the damaged areas and into the foot wells.

Here I've laid out Chicken Stripz™, which will add overlap on the carbon fiber which allowing for a smoother blend into the existing glass job. We want to keep weight down so we only use the leanest, all white meat Chicken Stripz™ instead of glassing over the entire dark meat Chicken Skin™.

We'll also get a better bond with the deck using 4oz Chicken Stripz™ because they saturate better than carbon fiber due to it fibrous density. I'm using a polyester sauce for laminations, my own Hott 'n' Swankyflavor, and hot coating with Straight Butta™.


And there you have it, the CHICKEN WIREor ROOSTER TAIL™, the world's first specifically built chicken-proof surfboard. Go ahead Nev, try and top that.

Would the guys on Swaylocks be impressed? No, but who cares about them. Shaper of the Year award, I wouldn't be surprised. I just hope the surfer(ing) magazines are still in business in time for that issue.

Friday, May 01, 2009

my shred stick...

...wavecam, camera, text messaging, email and phone capabilities all in the palm of my hand. I check the Cardiff Wavewatch cam from the Cardiff Reef parking lot just to double check and make sure its worth going out. Then I take a pic and email it to my friend who live 2 blocks from the beach. We then text back and forth about what board to ride, describing the waves as "nuggets" "wedges" or "creamy lines"... sometimes even "dogsh*t taco". I NEVER CALL though, because if someone sees you on a cell phone in the parking lot and your not screaming "SELL, SELL, SELL!!!!" into it, your going to get the stink eye from a bunch of SUPers, and you don't want to get on their bad side.

Safety in numbers, I won't paddle out alone. They're may be 40 guys out already, but you never paddle out by yourself. These guys from Florida taught me that. They roll 6 deep to a peak that can only hold 4-5 comfortably, that way they're never out numbered and nobody gets too many waves so they won't be all tired before they go back to work. So I sit and play Bobble Surfer until my friend gets there. Heck, there's even a break named after me on this game.

This usually is the final factor as to whether I'm going to surf or not. If I get a couple good barrels with my bobble guy, and the waves are only 3 foot and glassy out front, I might just go back to the house and get back on the Interweb and look at the surf forecast. While my surfboards are starting to last longer now, I have pressure dents in my iPhone from perfecting my frontside gouges. Maybe they'll come out with a stronger, more durable popout iPhone soon. I just hope they get the flex pattern right.