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Surfing is the focus of this blog by Herb Torrens and the PaddleAir crew.Teahupoo Meat Grinders!
I just saw the video "Biggest Teahupoo Ever," (see below) and I'm still in shock. It was filmed August 27, 2011 by Chris Bryan using a "Phantom Camera," whatever that is. Anyway, it features big, gnarly virtually unrideable waves, that of course guys are riding now days.
What is it with these guys? Seriously, this is beyond comprehension. A friend of mine said it was the most "interesting, but boring video" he'd ever seen. In some ways, I agree. This is like watching someone grind meat on a hand-cranked meat grinder!
Bryan did an incredible job shooting and editing this piece of work, but to me--an old school guy--I have to wonder: "Did anybody make any of these waves?" Not in this video. I don't know, I think there's a mentality today that just wants to take it as far as they can until they get killed. Yikes!
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Sean Collins R.I.P.
This was a guy who founded and ran a mega surf company, Surfline, yet would always return calls and e-mails personally. We got to know him when he contacted us about our original PaddleAir and told us he liked it. Needless to say we got right back to him and kept him supplied with the latest greatest through the years. He was very personable, and you just can't help admiring his accomplishments.
Let's face it. Nobody knew what was happening with surf forecasting before Sean came along. Not the US Weather Service, not the stupid TV weather casters, not the wily old surf guy who told us "there's a swell coming next week." Not anybody. Then Sean started putting the puzzle of wind, currents, lengths between swells and all the rest together and bam: he changed the world.
Today the world, and especially the surfing world, is not a better place. Damn it! We need people like Sean Collins! (I could certainly rant here about the people we sure as hell don't need.) He was a good guy, and will be missed for so many things. Our deepest sympathies to his family and friends. Yes, Sean, you will be missed.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Del Custom Surfboards in New Zealand Is New PaddleAir Dealer
California-based PaddleAir Products Inc. is excited to announce that the Ergo is now available at Del Custom Surfboards in New Plymouth, New Zealand.
Del Surfboards joins our-ever growing list of international PaddleAir dealers. Del was founded in 1965 by Nigel Dwyer and Dave Littlejohn. Nigel and his right-hand man Robert Walsh (who has shaped for Del since the 1970s) manufacture the finest hand-crafted surfboards around.
Stop by and check them out the next time your in New Plymouth at 454 Devon Street, Strandon, New Plymouth, New Zealand and visit their website anytime to see them in action and get full contact information (and see a live Fitzroy Beach webcam of surf conditions). See a full sized view of the map and get directions.
New PaddleAir Dealer on Australia's Central Coast
Located in Toukley on the Central Coast of Australia, Beachin Surf joins our ever-growing group of surf shops that carry PaddleAir Ergo, our innovative product that elevates the chest area, relieves repetitive stress injury, acts as a rash guard, and looks really cool. It allows you to paddle stronger so that you can surf longer and stronger.
Beachin Surf features not only surfboards and wetsuits, but also a complement of accessories from clothes to watches. Check out their website or visit them if your in the area.
Reflections of an Old Kook
I saw an old friend, Roger Yates, at the Sacred Craft Surf Expo and he gave me a copy of his film, The Forgotten Island of Santosha. I hadn’t seen the movie in decades and it brought back a lot of good memories. And, it got me thinking about my life.
As surfers we are all part of some era, or evolution, in surfing. I started in the “new foam” age of long board surfing (1960), and went strong into the short board revolution. I basically quit surfing seriously in ’72. I’ve often reflected on why I chose to move on to other things.
Anyway, watching Santosha gave me some insight on what was probably going on in my mind sub-conscientiously. It was a time-- early ‘70s--when most, if not all, the upper-tier of surfers came out of the long board era. The movie featured great surfers of the day including Joey Cabell and Gerry Lopez ripping Pipeline, Sunset and the “Forgotten Isle of Santosha,” which was really Tamarin Bay in Mauritius.
The guys in the film were at the top of their game. They were riding the latest in equipment. They were surfing great, but something kept bugging me as I watched: “What’s wrong with this film?
And then it hit me.
Surfing, and the guys in the movie, had peaked out. This long-board generation of surfers had taken it as far as they could go. In the movie, every wave and every ride started looking the same. No surprises. No thrills. No “wow!”
I don’t want to be critical here. It was a definitive film of the time, but it was at a time when one era of surfing, and surfers, were coming to an end. I was part of that generation, and my realization after all these years is I went as far as I could go in surfing. I was never going to get any better!
It never occurred to me at the time, but now I realize that I had reached my personal limitation. This is a hard thing to grapple with, but it is a reality. There are individual limits, and you really don’t know you’ve reached them until after the fact.
Looking back, I think surfing itself sort of hit the wall in the early 1970s. It took a new generation of short boarders to kick it back up, and they certainly did. Thrusters and Fish boards came along. Leashes became prevalent and, much to my chagrin, pushed surfing into a new era of charging big barrels and un-ride able breaks. New guys took over and turned the world of surfing on its ear again.
Today, I am amazed at what they are doing in the water. Surfing continues to evolve and I can’t see it slowing down anytime soon.
The good news for me is it is all new again, and I personally feel a new chapter in my surfing life coming on. I’m a kook. I’m a gremmie. I’m a straight off Adolf! I’ll never be a “good” surfer again, but I don’t care.
I don’t even care if I was ever considered good.
That’s not what it’s all about. It is about the feeling of the ocean under your board, seeing the spark in the eyes of friends, talking about the movement of the sand, and the next swell. Surfing is good in-and-of-itself, and it’s good enough for me.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Moms Make it Real
With all that great interaction with the guys, it was one little older lady that left a most lasting impression on me. I saw her looking at the photos, and reading our testimonials so I walked up and asked if I could explain the product to her. She was rather quiet and unassuming, not what I'd call a surfer-looking type of person, but she seemed interested so I showed her ERGO and told her about how it helps with rib-cage pain, and how it relieves muscle tension in the lower back and in the neck.
She just listened and nodded and continued to read the testimonials while I talked. She seemed somber, but asked me about how it could put less strain on the neck. I showed her some illustrations showing how it relieves the strain of looking upward. She was interested and finally she said that her son is recovering from a severe neck injury and how this may help him get back in the water. The way she said it moved me. I gave her a card and said we'd help get her one for her son. She thanked me, and said "I just want to get him back in the water."
Man, that stays with me. With all the stuff going on in the world and in our lives, the one thing that makes it all real...just get me back in the water. Moms make it real.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Australian Testimonial
Enthusiastic testimonials from surfers around the world about how PaddleAir products have helped them keep enjoying the sport are great. One recent testimonial, which (with her permission) we have quoted in full here, shows just how helpful PaddleAir has been to keep one Australian surfer riding the waves after a serious spinal injury.
Six years ago I was sadly diagnosed with two ruptured discs (L4-L5, and L5-S1). The injury occurred from a long time spent in martial arts which I had to cease immediately and permanently. I did everything in my power to rehabilitate my injury. I was in pain for 24 hours a day for all of those 6 years, and eventually under the care of a pain specialist and medicated 24 hours a day.The two most powerful things that helped my loss of 4 cm in height due to a collapsed spine were the The PaddleAir and yoga.
PaddleAir kept me off the operating table for 6 years, and at times was the only way I could get into the ocean and continue surfing. I had a radical hybrid double level spinal rebuild by a world leading surgeon Dr. Matthew Scott Young from Gold Coast Spine 3 months and 8 days ago using the 'in motion' Total Disc Replacement procedure and TODAY!!!! I surfed in solid 3-foot swell with the PaddleAir.
My days now rate a 10/10 and I'm excited. I'm mostly pain free now YAY. Just now I've purchased the new ERGO vest which looks a lot more streamlined than my older one.
The things I love about the PaddleAir are: paddling with longer strokes, and its just way easier, significantly reduced back arch via air bag torso support, and the easy adjustment to unlimited positions at any point in the ocean.
I thought above all that I'd include some photos of the hardware inside my spine, and me with the paddle air as I want to let you all know there is a lot of hope if you have a spinal injury.
Keep surfing surf buddies!!Sincerely, Tania
Ocean Grove Main Beach, Victoria, Australia
Wednesdays With Rusty
I went to see an old friend Wednesday and it was well worth the trip to Oceanside. Rusty Miller gave a presentation at The California Surf Museum. He basically just talked story and showed a few slides but the energy of the evening bore straight to my heart.
The stories were about old times. Rusty started surfing in the '50s. This is pre-Gidget stuff back when surfboards were shaped on the beach under palm fronds by guys who could swim miles, spear fish and ride any type of wave with or without a board. He was from Encinitas and talked about about Diffenderfer, LJ Richards and Phil Edwards showing him the ropes. Great stories too about Hynson and Skip Frye. And told with such eloquence!
The best part was that Skip and LJ were there and told their stories about Rusty as a rambunctious little freckle faced Grem. There were other legends in the audience including Rusty's old rival Malcome Macassy (did I get that right?), Peter Townend and Tom Morey. John Dahl, of Sticky Bumps and Wax Research, also had some great Rusty stories. All in all, It was just great that the true spirit of surfing is still alive.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
New PaddleAir Demo
Well, we went down to the beach and did a little PaddleAir ERGO demo to show how well our new product works. Dave is front of the camera, and I'm behind it. He does a great job of explaining how it helps with rib-cage pain, soreness in the neck, and repetitive paddling injuries. We had fun with the ProCam Hero too.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
"The Dame [sic] Thing Worked!"
One of the best things about working with PaddleAir is to hear from those who have been helped by our product. When Dave (founder Dave Hilts) was working with inner tubes and glue in his garage, he had one thing in mind: relieve the body strain and pain from paddling. And despite my personal skepticism, he pulled it off. PaddleAir and ERGO do relieve the lower back pain and ribcage pain from paddling. Here's a nice letter from a user in Ireland.
My new Ergo crossed a continent and an ocean to get to me. Its voyage was not in vain. I was contemplating surfing retirement at 47. My lower ribs were saying no more and go sit by the fire and bore people with tales of waves and what might have been.
The dame thing worked. The pain was localised in the lower ribs, a classic surfer injury of the intercostal muscle, the Ergo solved it and reoccurrence of injury will not occur.
It meant a lot to me because I have 2 kids whom I could not accompany into the waves without a solution. Now I get to see them surf rings around me as I decline and they advance.
Thank you Mister Hilts and best regards from the west coast of Ireland where we get some of the most powerful waves breaking anywhere on the planet."
Mick Kelly on the West Coast of Ireland
Thanks Mick.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
They've Gone Beyond
Well, I knew my "day" was over a long time ago but watching this video really slammed the door. As a side note, these tow in guys really don't need PaddleAir unless.....hmmmm....
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Word from the East Coast
Here's more from our friend in North Carolina. Good info on ERGO.
Dave,
Rib Cage Pain Relief with ERGO
Rib Cage Pain is Part of the Game
…but not if you have ERGO!
It’s summertime up here north of the Equator and that means south swells, sunshine and surf for the masses. Yeah, I know, the surf really is better in the winter, but hell how can you argue with warm water and chest-high dinkers?
Truth is…most of us surf more in the summer and that means more interaction with sore muscles, rash problems and for a lot of us…rib cage problems. That’s where PaddleAir ERGO comes to the rescue. There’s nothing like a shout-out from the front lines to prove our point; like the one here from young Cliff McKittrick.
Dear Paddleair,
I just want to thank you for such a tremendous product. I recently purchased the ergo model for Father’s Day. I injured my Xiphoid process (part of the lower ribs) while surfing about two years ago. After a session I would re-injure the old wound and suffer pain for up to five days after. My doctor said basically to live with it and lay off surfing. I could not drop the sport that I grew up loving though. I looked around the internet and found you guys on a surfing forum. Apparently other guys share my problem. Thank God! After two long sessions on my fish I have experienced no pain, plus I can paddle into a wave like I'm 18 again. I am one happy customer.
Cliff McKittrick
Camden, SC
Age 36
Thanks Cliff, we’ll keep cranking them out so folks like you (and me!) can surf longer and paddle stronger.
Cheers,
Herb Torrens
James Arness the Surfer
One of our beloved folk heroes died last week. James Arness, known for his epic portrayal of Matt Dillion in Gun Smoke and father of World Champion Surfer Rolf Arness, passed away at his home. He was 88. One thing all the Hollywood obits missed, is that Arness was a surfer, and a pretty good one at that!
He was a regular in the '60s at Sano, and he could be spotted at all the good breaks on a good swell. I ran across him (not literally) at Rincon in the mid-1960s. It was an overhead day and just a pumping NW swell. It was a who's who in the water that day with the likes of Phil Edwards, Paul Strauch, Bob Cooper, John Peck and more.
I remember seeing "Marshall Dillion" catch a bunch of waves and he was good for an old guy. Back then "old guys" were anyone over 30. He was in his 40s and hanging in there. Big smile on his face going backside at the Con. Anyway, he was a legend and a true waterman. Haven't heard much about Rolf over the years, but I hope he's doing well. Arness was a man to look up to. RIP Marshall!
Herb Torrens
Old Days at Big Corona
Growing up in Newport Beach, California I'd always heard about the days before they built the south jetty of Newport Harbor in Corona Del Mar. "Big Corona" was the place of legends. My dad told me the stories first. Duke Kahanamoku coming to Big Corona for a surfing exhibition. My dad said he rode it on a belly board, much like a skim board.
Anyway, I ran across this video of Big Corona filmed in 1939. Really cool stuff and you can see that there was definitely a surfing element going on in Newport. The music is great too! Looks like they could have definitely used a PaddleAir or two. Can anyone say "splinters in the chest?" Enjoy:
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Spain's SportHitec Posts Ergo Video
Our PaddleAir at SportHitec in Madrid, Spain posted this great video demonstrating PaddleAir's Ergo. Check it out:
Laid Back with Corky and Friends
Leave it to the Japanese to love all things retro! My buddy, and PaddleAir team rider, Corky Carroll e-mailed me to let me know some guys in Japan are going to re-release his 1970s classic album "Laid Back, Corky Carroll and Friends. It won't be an album, of course, but a CD. Anyway, I was one of the "friends," and laid down two tracks -- Hanalei, and Chang My Mind -- along with by buddies Dave Rullo and John Close. We were called Hana at the time. The album contains a lot of good stuff from the likes of the Patterson Brothers, Denny Abberg, and Corky. It was engineered and produced by Dennis Dragon, son of Carmen Dragon and brother of Daryl Dragon of Captain and Tennille fame. So look for it soon and enjoy.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Frog House Could Croak
Leave it to the geniuses in Newport to piss off the surf community. I can say that with conviction because I'm a Newport guy. I was there when they passed an ordinance that made us all have licenses for our boards. Idiots!
Now they're at it again. A pending zoning change could put a surf shop, The Frog House, out of business after nearly 50 years of serving the surfing public in Newport Beach, California.
The Frog House is a classic throwback with a full line of real surf stuff--including our PaddleAir and Ergo -- and of course a crew of smart ass clerks who are happy to serve you as long as you can take a little ribbing. They are like those guys in the move High Fidelity.
Anyway, there's a Facebook page to help support TK and the crew at the Frog House. Hopefully, the geniuses on the city council will figure out that Coast Highway is not a residential zone. Keep hopping!
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Encinitas Surfboards Joins the Team
PaddleAir Inc.’s dealer network is growing. We are very pleased to have some old friends join the team with the recent addition of Encinitas Surfboards to our Preferred Dealer list.
I personally go way back with founder, owner John Kies. He’s a great shaper who learned the ropes from the best including Diffenderffer, Takayama, Hanson and my old partner in Downhome Surfboards, Tom Gaglia.
John’s partner Marc Adam has been a great businessman over the years and the two have maintained one of the more traditional style surfshops since 1975.
Also, you don’t want to get in a golf bet with John, he’s out of that Diff school of golf, which means he carries a single digit handicap. Back in the days of the Surf and Turf contests, he was hard to beat. Took me out in a surfing heat a couple of times! Welcome to John and Marc, and the legendary Encinitas Surfboards.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Dinner with the Stars
Call me a cynic. I just read where the good folks at the Surfing Heritage Foundation are hosting a celebrity dinner featuring Stacy Peralta and Sam George limited to 12 guests at $500 a plate!
I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure any real surfers are going to pay $500 a plate to chow down with anyone. Don’t get me wrong I admire Peralta and George for what they’ve accomplished—Riding Giants, Dogtown and Z-boys, etc.— but I can’t imagine what the guys at Heritage were thinking when they put this together. Wouldn’t a viewing of clips and comments from the celebs for a couple of hundred people be a better idea? Sell tickets for $25 bucks and everyone goes home a happy.
An exclusive dinner at $500 a plate is just not consistent with my view of surfing culture! Anyway, I wish Heritage all the best with this “once in a lifetime opportunity,” but I’d rather share a hot dog around the fire ring with them after a good surf. Maybe I’m not so cynical after all.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Saying Goodbye to Andy Irons and 2010
Well it’s the end of another year, and I have some reflections. 2010 was not a banner year. In fact, it was less than memorable unless you think about the weird weather…a spring that never showed up, a summer that was more like a fall and well now it’s winter and it does seem like winter even if the climate-change weirdoes predicted La Nina. So much for the science of global warming…err I mean climate change.
So looking back I think the thing I will remember about 2010 (is it “twenty ten,” “two-thousand and ten,” or the newest: “two-ten?”), is that we came out with a great new product with the Ergo. It was great working with the PaddleAir team in creating a new Web site, and marketing plan (yes I know I owe you dealers a couple of calls). For the most part, it was a good year for PaddleAir.
On the downside, the surfing world lost a hero. Andy Irons was more than a great rider, he was an icon and (dare I say) role model. I didn’t know Andy well, but I do know his dad, Phillip, and all his uncles. I was closest to Phillip and Jimmy, and remember when they first moved to Kauai. Phillip was as good as anyone in the water including his brothers, and that’s saying a lot.
When I last visited Kauai, in 2006, I was lucky enough to attend the Irons brothers’ annual Mennehune surf festival. Andy and Bruce put on a great event for the kids and induced all their sponsors to contribute. There were wetsuits, sunglasses, rash guards galore and everyone had a great time. After the meet, Bruce, Andy and fellow pro tour buddy Roy Powers (also a Kauai Boy) went out and gave the crowd an Expression Session at their old home break, Pine Trees. It was awesome, and I left with a feeling that these guys are really giving back to the community where they grew up.
Andy was a one of the good ones and we’ll miss him. Anyway, I’m looking forward to a better year in 2011, and I hope you will too.
-- posted by Herb Torrens
The Internet is Killing Us!
Went to a party last weekend and saw many old friends. "Old," meaning both long time and...well...old! So everyone was talking about the "old days," and how it used to be when you could catch the right swell at the right spot at the right time. You had to know how to read the ocean to get a jump on the crowds.
Then, we did a lot of cruising. You know, driving up and down the coast, checking indicators, wind conditions. You knew if it was blowing south wind that only a few spots would be good. You had secret spots, west swell spots, north wind spots that blew off shore, etc. Well, the lament from the boys around the table last weekend was that is all gone.
Now, you can go to any number of websites and check the conditions before for you ever leave home. Guys in Anaheim have just as much chance of jumping the swell as the guys in Newport. And, everyone knows when a swell is coming, even if it's days away. So much for local knowledge and knowing how to read the ocean. I could add leashes to this story and laments about guys who can't swim, but I'd just sound like an old fart.
Anyway, as my good friend Don Craig says: "Old Guys Rule!" Time to put on the PaddleAir and take a cruise!
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Hot Doggers
Did you hear about Corky Carroll and Hobie Alter battling it out for a space in the new OC Airport (John Wayne) food court? Hobie wants to open "Hobie's Hut," and serve beachie kind of food in a bar and grill. Corky wants to call his Corky's Surf Bar. No word on the Corky fare, but I'm thinking smoothies and healthy stuff. You can vote for who deserves the space at Corky's column in the Orange Coutny Register here.
I think Corky might be more of a presence, but Hobie has a knack for doing things right. Either will be fun!
-- posted by Herb Torrens
Rash-Guard Plus!
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| Ergo by PaddleAir |
Over the years, we’ve received thousands of comments about how PaddleAir makes prone paddling comfortable. Indeed, the first time I used it I described paddling my longboard like I was driving a cabin cruiser. That simple pocket of air beneath the chest does wonders for the ribcage. And, it puts you in an ideal position for power.
With five-mil Neoprene in the front, and the inflatable bladder, Ergo is a rash-guard and much more. Checkout it out.
The Early Days
I met Dave Hilts back in the late 90s through a mutual friend who was learning to surf. Dave helped him fix up an old Bing and did a great restoration job. We started going surfing together and both helped our mutual friend with the ins and out of the soup. Eventually, Dave and I became surfing pals and started going to the beach whether our friend was with us or not.
I remember Dave being very resourceful. He was always building gadgets for his truck to store surf gear and boards. I was impressed, but have never been one for having everything completely organized.
Anyway, one day in the early 2000s, Dave came up with an idea for a paddling aid that would help him with lower back pain. I didn’t pay much attention, but just kind of nodded and said “cool.”
I remember going over to his house and seeing him working in his garage with some cut-up inner tubes, hoses and valves. He had this mad scientist look on his face and looked sort of dangerous holding a glue gun. I just rolled my eyes and said “cool.”
He worked hard on the thing for more than a year, and would give me little reports about his progress. “Cool …” Then one-day I actually listened to what he was saying. Evidently, he had actually designed a proto type and had his friends at a wetsuit company build a couple.
Soon after, he was at my house and telling me how great this thing worked. He said his long-time friend Jay used it and loved it. He wanted me to try it. As I remember, I was sort slacking off going to the beach and was losing it shape wise. So I said okay, I’ll give it a try.
We went down to Little Jetty in Oceanside, and I put the thing on. He showed me how to blow it up and gave me some basic instructions. I’ll never forget that first paddle out. I jumped in the current along the jetty and stroked out. My first thought was man I’m driving a cabin cruiser.
I’ve always loved boats, and often equated paddling a surfboard to navigating a vessel. When I was a kid I thought about being on a Destroyer in heavy seas, or a PT Boat on the attack. Just a little childhood fantasy, but I still sometimes think that way. So there I was paddling out and the first thing that comes to mind is “I on a cabin cruiser!
It was so comfortable, and it really did help me paddle. I was amazed. No, I was really amazed. Not only did he come up with a great idea, but he actually followed it through, and the thing worked!
I was an immediate convert.
Dave and PaddleAir have come a long way since that day, and I for one am really proud of what he has accomplished with the product. It was no easy task, but one well worth the journey for him. So Dave, to you I say … ”Cool.”
-- posted by Herb Torrens
