About Last Night

Thought I would post this video in honor of last night's surf.

Had a fun session last night at a usually empty break, but because it is the middle of summer, there ended up being eight other guys in the water, falling into the usual categories, with a few exceptions. #1 were the old guys on longboards. There were two of them and they didn't do much but float atop their Stewart tri-fins and when a wave did come their way, they were kind of hesistant to take off. They did a lot of sitting and looking around at the crowd, too busy thinking about the conference call they had to make with the boss after they got out of the water. Of course, they were dressed great from head to toe. #2 were the Kayakers. One guy looked like George "The Animal Steel" and he and his wife would position themselves to take waves, paddle and then fade off at the very end with a disappointed look. Also, the gentleman had no idea where to line up, so he just followed everyone around. With kayakers, its just best to act like they are not going to make their wave and just go. That rule definitely worked last night. #3 were the college bros. They definitely looked the part, but you could see the insecurity on their faces. Perfect tans and riding a wide range of boards, you could tell they thought they owned the place, when in reality, they were mediocre. Talking loudly about waves so everyone could hear them, pointing out to each other the finer points of their waves, basically making sure people all around them new what shredders they were, I just shut up and kept snagging waves. I kept waiting for them to high five one another, but it never happened. Whatever. There were two guys shortboarding that were really fun to watch, though. Solid turns and could position themselves so they didn't have to constantly pump the board down the line and seemed like pretty nice guys too. I wished I could ride a shortboard like they could.

I actually enjoyed watching everybody do their thing in between snagging a couple thigh to waist high waves. I can't even imagine what the North End was like, seeing as that's crowded all the time. Interestingly enough, the spot I was at was lining up really nicely, which is kind of rare. It reminded me of a great time I had there two years ago, only last night was a little smaller.

One dude was a dead ringer for Paul Newman too.

I'm Alright...Nobody Worry 'Bout Me

If you've ever seen the scene in Caddyshack, where Judge Smails christens his sloop then you'll know exactly what our Nights in Venice experience is like. Not my scene at all, but somehow, its entertaining to feel like I am hanging with some of Bushwood Country Club's finest. Maeve was into the boat rating contest:

Awaiting the arrival of the Ahoy Polloi:

Spaulding, get your foot off my boat!!

Positive Energy

In anticipation of the big 30 years show coming up, here's some footage of Forthright I found on youtube, compliments of Mcstyles. Eventhough there's not a lot of video footage from that era, after seeing a bunch of Wally flyers from back then makes me wish I wasn't in fourth grade in 88. After hearing good things about the Forthright reunion from earlier this year, I am pretty excited to see them and Mr. Yuk.

Well I Wonder

iNow that the beaches in Strathmere are getting pumped, I wonder if they will turn to garbage for a while?

Summer Blowout

Here's a prime example why swell in the middle of July sucks. The morning I nabbed these 7th street camera shots things were supposed to be clean and about waist high. Nothing too fancy, but good conditions this time of year means everyone comes out of the woodwork as you can see. Any other time of year, there would be one or two guys out at this time of day at most, but in July? Five guys out, with three getting ready to head out and its before 7. And is the dude all the way on the right going to ride an Alaia? Is he for real? Unless that is Dan Malloy, I think it is pretty safe to say he may want to switch boards.

Switch to the afternoon on the same day and you've got a full on zoo. I miss January.

Wolfpack

My cousin hooked me up with the Force Fed demo tape a while back and until I saw them live last week, it never dawned on me that I never got a chance to put it up on the blog. Unlike a lot of new straight edge bands these days who draw influence from groups like Blacklisted or Cold World, Force Fed's a band who know their roots. From listing SSD, DYS and Negative FX as an influence on their page, or using the cover of the Negative FX lp for a t-shirt or covering "Wolfpack" at their shows, its clear that Force Fed subscribes to a more traditional era of hardcore. Filled with anger and energy, the band rips through the demo and never looks back. I highly reccommend tracking down the demo and playing it as loud as you possibly can and then go see them live. Both this tape and their seven inch were put out on Pain Killer Records, a label out of Boston, which may have copies of both left. I wish I had the seven inch to review, but I held off picking one up until the end of the show and they were out.

Force Fed's Page

Painkiller Records' Page

Reset the Ride

Went to the rides the other night with the kids. It never gets old.

Slow Down!!!!

This sign is meant to keep you from getting into an adult crash:

Yesterday's Trash

College means never having to say your sorry, even if it is for throwing a vaccuum cleaner out a window, drawing lifesize portraits on the walls or in this case, treating the dorm hallway like a dumpster.

Let It Ride

Snuck out for some waves last night and was psyched to see this surf vehicle parked at the spot I was out. Such a classic ride, it would make for the perfect surf cruiser, plus the owner is a super nice guy who owns a Bing that I am pretty jealous of. I'll add it to my list.

Not the cleanest of conditions, but the waves had some zip and I was glad I brought "old yeller" to ride instead of my noserider. It you waited for the right one, you could catch a fairly well, lined-up right that was a lot faster than what you expect from this spot.

The only strange moment was towards the end of my session. I was treading in fairly deep water next to my board and felt something, smooth, slippery and HUGE under me. As it pushed up on my feet I could tell that it was heavy, but as soon as I moved to jump back on my board it swam away. I'm hoping it was a ray or something. At first I thought a dolphin, but it never surfaced. Completely weird.

Insurance Risk

Good things come in Japanese packages

Go Into Jermyn, Saturday Night...

So Floorpunch weekend came and went, and after a lot of miles I can honestly say it was well worth the trip. Here is some footage by Hate5Six:

Floorpunch - My Path + Intro + Changes from hate5six productions on Vimeo.

Take 'Em Up

Bloodshed Rain

My street where I grew up is a magical place where some of the strangest things happen. There are a lot of hilarious stories from growing up on our block, but I miss out on many of them living elsewhere. For over a year, I have heard my dad tell me about our neighbor across the street who likes to wash her car in the rain, never really fully believing it. Apparently, anytime a little rain is in the forecast, goes outside, armed with a bucket and a sponge to harness the rain in the attempt to clean her Ford Taurus. Thinking how about how ridiculous this tale was, I was highly skeptical about its validity, until it began to rain yesterday afternoon.

Dressed in a clear poncho, out comes our neighbor with the exact equipment described in the story. She proceeded to collect water from the gutter (no rocks or dirt in there!) and scrub down her car for a good fifteen minutes in the rain. Honestly, it was probably one of the funniest neighborhood events I have witnessed in a long time. I didn't have a good camera or anything, but I felt the story needed some documentation to legitimize it.

Food for Thought

Ate at Smitty's the other day and remembered just how much I like the place. You should eat there.

Keep It Clear

Two more days....

Floorpunch - Keep It Clear from hate5six productions on Vimeo.

True 'Til Death?

Found this on youtube and was psyched. Part 1 of 4.

Generations

Heading up with the extended family to watch Maeve go nuts on some rides. My mom, Maeve and myself in a scene reminiscent of the "Bonds of Friendship" cover.

Rid of the Losers, Bring on the Cruisers

OOoooooh! Nothing makes me more scared than seeing this in the parking at OCHS. Watch out for this Honda Pilot!

Wrath of the Math

Keep your eyes peeled for this cruiser coming to a parking lot near your. The Apocalypse will be televised.

Rooftops

Hey world are your listening?

For Those Who Fear Tomorrow

Found this in the halls the other day. MMMMMMMMIIIIIIIIIICCCCCCCCCCCHHHHHHHAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pose Hard

Had to run into the local surf shop yesterday to pick up a birthday gift and being that the height of the summer season is upon us, I knew that it would be an interesting trip. The shoppers did not let me down. Upon walking in and looking around, I see some kid who I have never seen before in my life checking out the racks of clothes and giving me a weird look. I guess I didn't have on any expensive surf clothing or something, because he was looking at me like I was out of place or I must be some kook. About eighteen years old, the look was perfectly manicured: Brand new pair of boardshorts on that looked like they had never been in the water, a popular surf brand t-shirt and the ever important flat-brim barely on his head and cocked to the side. Text book, I wanna look like a surfer look, because as we know, it is all about the look. I'm sorry my fashion sense disappointed him. He checked out the clothes, proud to make the transition from Hollister and Pac Sun to a real surf shop.

Second scene was even better. As I am paying for said birthday gift, Joe Blow walks in with lobster red skin and a matching OCBP tank top (must have been off duty) and, of course, no shoes (it really lets everyone know how hardcore you are). Joe wants to rent a surfboard for his son, which up until this point is totally cool in my book. But Joe can't leave well enough alone. Despite coming just short of walking in with a giant sign on his shirt saying "I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT", he starts talking to the girl working there about the board on the wall, that clearly had the shop's name as the lam. It is a beautifully shaped wooden fish and very unique, earning its spot on the wall rather than the racks.

Joe: Say did ___________ shape that thing?

Girl: No.

Joe: Really are you sure? ____________ makes insane boards. I know him. He's right down the street. I am really pretty sure that he shaped that.

Girl: I don't think so.

At this point, the girl turns to one of the shop owners ands asks her if her dad shaped that board. Of course, since the name is right on it, she says yes and he only ever made three. A relative of the shaper confirms. Joe's plan is foiled for the moment but he can't leave well enough alone.

Joe: Oh. Well, ____________ makes those too and they are insane. Really, you guys should check them out. He is right down the street.

I am in disbelief. There is some genetic code deeply buried inside the body that triggers the brain to say the dumbest things when entering the local shop. People feel like they need to prove that they know more than the surf shop employees or at the very least, make it sound like they know what they are talking about. What they don't realize is that it usually comes off as horribly transparent and they end up sounding like a complete jackass. Just shut up and stop trying to prove how much you don't know. I'm all for people asking questions and having a conversation, but too many times it turns into "let me show everyone that I'm not the kook they think I am."

Couple that with the fact that as I am at a red light, who pulls up next to me but flat brim. Of course, he is from Pennsylvania and has the absolute most hardcore, soulful sticker that a surfer can put on your car to let everyone know that you are a ripper. Yep, that's right, a Ron Jon surf shop sticker. Image is everything.

Nose Over Tail

A while back, I drew the crimson ghost in honor of the Misfits on the fin of this board. It didn't dawn on me until last summer that the board was also crimson in color. Said board was on loan to a friend until late spring, and when I got it back, I decided to properly tag her nose the results of which can be seen below.

Code of the Streets

You'll never guess where I found this:

Hightide Motel

Inviting isn't it?

You Axed For It

Local legend, contest promoter, philanthropist, prankster, pervert and my neighbor Nick Bricker gets some time in Surfing Mag:

http://www.surfingmagazine.com/news/surfing-pulse/the-god-father-nick-bricker-interview-070409/

Don't Forget the Struggle...

Happy 4th!

Watch Out

Always a sign of a fun evenng when you get apology notes like this one from a friend:

Hair-raising Accounts of Restless Ghosts

Someone put this up on the Livewire board:

Leave Your Mark

A shot of one of the shelves in the Shack.