"The Bible of the Sport" to maybe take a step toward leaving the print world entirely!
Surfer magazine, the monthly lovingly hand-crafted in California, has been published since 1960.
1960!
That’s 56 years of sun, tubs, personalities and heart. Some of the world’s most well-loved surf journalists have had their names emblazoned on its glossy pages and some of the world’s most well-loved surf photographers have done their best work whilst in the magazine’s employ.
Its monthly nature, in any case, means that I have at least twelve different things to look at while standing in the checkout line of Seaside Market over the course of one year not counting Blake Shelton or Gwen Stefani or Miranda Lambert or Oprah or Selena Gomez or Theon Greyjoy or Oliver Kurtz.
Rumor has it though, that soon I will only have four different things to look at while standing in the checkout line of Seaside Market not counting Kanye West or Prince or Blac Chyna or Gwen Paltrow or Blair Marlin.
That is, unfortunately, (maybe) right. The “Bible of the Sport” is transitioning from a monthly to a quarterly.
Print is, of course, dead-ish not counting the glorious Surfer’s Journal which somehow continues to defy the laws of human consumption. Still, it is sad to watch our proud institutions brought low, begging for attention amidst an increasingly crowded entertainment space.
Fucken surf websites n shit.
It is a shame, though Derek’s heartfelt story about staff buying Surfing Life and White Horses is touching. Maybe there’s still a place for print.
I meant to write “maybe there’s still a place for print?”
I meant to write “there’s probably not a place for print unless the printing reads The Surfer’s Journal.”
Fucken surf websites n shit.
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surfermag has been shit since early 2000’s. pencil thin filled with shit ads and maybe 2 paragraphs of writing. good riddance. only good article in past year was about occy
“…or Blair Marlin,” LOLOLO
I was flipping through the latest Surfer at Barnies & Nobles on my lunch break and it was really good. There was an investigative journalist piece of sorts on San Diego’s poor water quality and the reasons for it, a highlight on chicks who surf Ocean Beach and some other stuff that seemed pretty cool. I thought about getting a subscription until I remembered that the best things in life are free.
Only $20 per sock!
In unrelated news, SurfStich is selling Martin Potter socks for $40. Be quick.
Guaranteed to make you surf at 75%. Make that fuckin heat.
How often can you publish a Bible anyway. Fuck! Chas! Let’s collaborate — let’s rewrite the Bible but about surfing! Everyone can take turns writing a chapter. Warsaw can write Genesis, I can write Exodus, Shearer can write the rest of the Old Testament, Rielly can write the weird light hearted bits of Paul etc, and you can do Revelations! That’ll out sell any surf mag.
contradicting yourself a bit here
Oh I am so in! Let’s really do!
OK here is Exodus Chapter One
(The Book of Exodus charts the progress of a brave tribe of outsiders who must pass through all manner of trials before they are allowed to be free)
These are some of the sons of Brazil who went to California with their families: Adriano, Filipe, Gabriel, Wiggolly, Miguel, Thiago, and many more unto the number of 70, although it seemed like there were thousands of them; Neco and Flavio and those others who preceded them had eventually died out, but the Brazilians were extremely fruitful and multiplied greatly across the land, until there were Acai bars and various martial arts academies everywhere to be found. Then the Kings of the California Industry looked upon them and said to the many Bros who had gathered about, “The Brazilians have become too numerous, we cannot allow this, for if we do not deal with them swiftly, they may grow even more numerous and join with our enemies, and toss us out of the CT.” So the Kings enslaved the Brazilians, and they built many Condos to house them where they could be watched, and forced them to put Logos on their boards. But the more they were oppressed, the more the Brazilians multiplied, really like rabbits; and so the Kings further worked them ruthlessly, forcing many of them to go on the QS and travel to terrible faraway lands in the hope that they would just fucken stay there and never come back. And the Kings also commanded the coaches of the Brazilians, “When you are tending to these Cariocas, if it seems like they are going to win a heat, you must command them to perform an Interference and be eliminated, so they never make it out of the QS.” But the coaches were fearful of the might of Speaker, and did not dare to advise their Brazilians to throw their heats. So Speaker was merciful upon the Brazilians and allowed them to flourish beyond reckoning under His Mighty Cloak of Money. Then the Kings grew furious, and proclaimed a new law: That every Brazilian who was seen to Claim would be eliminated and driven from the land of California, leaving only their Girlfriends.
Good one.
Rory can write the Book of J.o.b.
What version “New King Kelly”, “Speakers Word”, or “The Message Surf”?
I subscribe to surfer, but was about to stop, the stories are too short, I can bring any magazine in to the toilet with me and by the time I have read an article, a shite will have been birthed! I couldn’t give a fuck about photos, I want long stories! The best shit they have done in a long time was the long article on Occy in last years big issue. If it goes to quarterly and I get more quality and quantity like that then I’m still in, if it becomes a quarterly of photos I can see on Instagram then I’m out!
I’ll suggest that TSJ survives because it’s good, and that it’s good because it doesn’t have to come every 30 days.
i believe it survives b/c the paper is nice and there are very few ads. The articles, meh.
I believe it survives because the Baby Boomers love it, and the Baby Boomers are the only print market left.
Son of a baby boomer. I let my subscription lapse this past year. Really haven’t missed it until this conversation..
It’s on you, TMZ of surf! 😀
Blood on your hands is good when you’re a vampire!
We need to add a “lawsuits threatened” ticker somewhere on the front page.
I prefer “TMZ is the Beach Grit of entertainment news.”
How much Game of Thrones do you watch, Chas? PS: some guy on Surfline used the Jack “Mother of Dragons” Freestone joke without crediting the proper authorities. Sad!