Of all the infinite possibilities...
The great Jamie Brisick asked me this one question a few weeks ago for a writing corner he does in collaboration with Birdwell Beach Britches that is worth visiting often. It is a wonderful pairing, the iconic trunk and the iconic surf journalist/writer. Understated, thoughtful, quality. He just released a book of short stories (buy here) which had William Finnegan swooning. I’ve watched their chat (below) three times now, savoring it like a crystal tumbler of fine Siberian vodka with just a twist of citrus.
I’m agnostic when it comes to lemon or lime.
In any case, I spent a fantastic afternoon with Jamie before the summer but we didn’t get around to interview-ish questions as I hogged all the time picking his brain about writing. So he called me, asked me that one question and I rambled like a illiterate fool. Would you like a taste?
I recently spoke with him on the day that he was finishing his forthcoming book, “Some of My Best Friends are Terrorists,” to be released in spring of 2020 on Rare Bird Books. He was stoked to be at the end of a truckload of writing. I had but one question for him: What most interests you in the surf world today? He paused for a second, took a sip of something that might have been vodka, and said this:
“The most interesting thing in the surfing world to me is what surfing is going to become, and is it going to maintain any kind of rebelliousness? Because surfing for me has always been a rebellion against either the culture that I was brought up in, like redneck culture in Oregon was so awful and terrible and I hate it so bad. And my way to rebel against that was just to go surfing everyday, even in Oregon’s hell water. And then down here, it’s always been rebellion— rebellion from all of the Middle Eastern travels, like bringing surfboards to Yemen, Lebanon, even Syria, Somalia, all those bad places. Bringing surfboards felt rebellious. When we were there I think people really wanted some kind of scholastic or scholarly take on the Middle East at that time, and we were like, ‘Fuck this, we’re surfing,’ which felt like a rebellion against academia and against the way people kind of put things in boxes. And then today, surfing is a rebellion against writing or a rebellion against my duties. I have such little time that to pick up the board and go surfing feels rebellious… And then I just see the World Surf League, and the surf media, and all these companies, it feels like a tipping point’s come where now surfing, they can push it into this weird, I don’t even know what it is, it’s a safe space. It’s goobery, mushy, soft, just dumb. Which just drives me crazy. And if we’ve come to the tipping point and that’s what surfing’s going to be, then it just makes me want to kick it in the balls as hard as I can. And so long, long answer, but that’s what interests me in surfing. Can the grumpy local, can the rebel, can the person who feels just that kind of angst that I think we all used to feel and what all pushed us into surfing, will that guy or girl be able to kick what surfing is becoming in the balls hard enough to where we kick it back to be, yeah, just weird again?”
Oh that’s just plain garrulous but true. That’s what most interests me in the surf world today. Can we dig our heels in and stop its gooey slide toward the grand utopian VAL paradise where everyone is equal and all boards are 7’3?
More importantly, though, what most interests you in the surf world today? While you’re thinking, savor this…
So what makes this era different from any other, aside from the fact that our kookier tendencies are in our pockets and in our face around the clock?
Are we less rebellious than when “The Bible of the Sport” featured an eight-page Morey Boogie advertorial at the height of the bodyboard scourge?
More mainstream than when the ASP ushered the world’s best surfers to the world’s worst surf spots, going as far as a boat-wave-generated event in Florida and a one-foot-wavepool-showdown in Allentown, PA — both won by the small-and-mighty Tom Carroll?
Any more fashion deaf than when our heroes donned colored zinc, webbed gloves and tight spandex shorts as their surf gear of choice?
Point is, surfing has been an internal struggle of kook and cool since Miki Dora stunt-doubled for Moondoggie on one hand and railed against the almighty surf industrial complex on the other.
To write off today as “the end of surf culture” is a boring and lazy excuse to give up and surf less.
No matter how many wave pools, VALs, live cams, WSL Surf Breaks and surf rage lawsuits, there is still something inherently cool about a surfer outsmarting the rest of the masses and connecting with the right swell at the right place at the right time.
If you’ve lost the ability to do that, you’re not looking hard enough.
The “cool” side of surf culture will always exist. It just won’t be published on Instagram.
Thank you sun bear, channelbottom and Section SB.
That was one hell of an entertaining comment thread you all put together right there.
Cheers
What kind of bullshit is this, Chas? You make an appearance out in San Diego without inviting your local Gritters? Your quote wouldve been better if you had. We would have sauced you up even more than you were so that you’re garrulity would’ve been on overdrive.
haha no. found them! I did cut gemstones then, 90’s (faceting) and centered some cut ones into the circuit boards, like it would actually do something? haha I was pretty high those years! They did look somewhat other worldly tho? The perfect formal structure of a faceted stone, wrapped around by beat up silver circuitry, with that green board. I was going to layer one in the nose of my board, for power!!! haha…yeah acid thoughts!!!
i had a semi feral friend who would secretly smash bottle on the
shorebrerocks, so he come down later and get the beach glass. Its weird, I still get out of the water and your vision is so tuned up, rocks and “stuff” just takes on such significance. Always see guys carrying rocks etc after surf sessions.
That’d be cool.
Some good books:
https://www.booktopia.com.a…
https://www.printedmatter.o…
Awesome. Thats really cool. Neuromancer. Green circuit board solder patterns, ocean tumbled. I tried to make things of them, like jewelry, but failed. I think its a thing now.
Eat them all first. It’s a work in progress
Who gives a fuck, over thinking it, just go surfing cunts
I hate bad kerning!
But it’s so descriptive!
That’s weird and pretty cool. I wish I was in your art class during the “critique “, I’d have tried to say something good about that deal!
they (crits) used to really stress me out, but I just powered through them as best I could. One time when I was in art school, there was an assignment to draw your home. I drew a larger than life graphite of Madonna, huge 6 feet tall, smearing in a leather jacket. When I put it up in the crit, complete silence! No one could even muster a single word! Either they thought my brain was fried or I was some kind of idiot! No sense of humor, those artsy bastards!
I love it.
I also understand your conundrum.
As a maker who loves pursuing aesthetics before forcing alleged content, the flip-flopping justification bullshit of so many artists’ statements leave me almost angry. An artist should really be allowed to just make something and let others wax gooey about it. There is certainly a huge important place for theory and intellectual critique, which I am not discouraging.
I very purposely left any pretensions to the art world behind many years ago due to the insanity of it all. At least with pro surfing there’s a fairly clearly definable output to appreciate / value. As you well know with the art world, it’s 75% about who-you-know than what-you-do. Perceived quality is an amorphous beast.
Now as a designer, function is more at play to support the tent of aesthetics, and it soothes my soul.
I’m also fascinated / art-pearl-clutching horrified by the unspoken market megadon; sweat shops pumping out any aesthetic known to man with no actual passion to the work beyond pure capitalist forces. Piled high in warehouses to dress houses for sale etc. C’est la vie.
Lemon for vodka, lime for gin. Either for beer.
I’m sorry, but fuck surfing. I love it and who cares. Can we make surfing a verb again?
To me it has alway been, and always will be a present participle….but more often a gerund.
Hasn’t Marx(?) proposed the idea of accelerationism(?)? Something like, in order to get to communism we have to accelerate capitalism until it crushes under its own weight, creating the energy needed for radical social change.
Could that concept work for surfings current “culture”? Do we all need to go out and buy go pros and a 6’4 hypto kryptos?
nice you’ve asked chas, I’m interested in bg’s take on ibw itacoatiara big wave comp ran last fri on my local, also bruno santos’ homebreak… had a nice feedback already from highlights reel link posted on another article, think it’d be worth the ‘journalistic’ approach, names in the final including former cter paulo moura, p. calado, l. chianca, ‘gordo’ cesarano, guinness’ r. koxa… you have a brazzo audience also, c’mon step up…
I watched. looked like most big wave comps… Boring unless you on the beach or in the water.
agree, seen bwwt puerto, todos santos in lesser conditions…
Looked unreal wrapped up in a 60second clip!
That bit you can’t see on a chicks G string.
Ah Bex , you are a lover of Bach and fan of “ Air on the G String “ .
https://youtu.be/CLk8OILr72U
He asks the rock hard questions
I just answer them.
This interests me:
https://m.facebook.com/stor…
What’s the story?
Maybe CB , it is possible that Mason makes MR twins famous (once More ) for Mayhem and Matt wants a Monopoly …. ? Mmmm. and Local unLucky Luke Lost ….. out … ?
It’s a curious bunch of words on the link for sure.
It’s a year old CB!
Oh no! The Terrible Two’s. Wears ya down before the Me Me Me Three’s.
I understand that but I’m still curious about what went down / happened/ destroyed/ revived / shat/ who-ate-who.
Is it still a thing?
I dont know, but one year on the meat, sting and pumping blood is gone.
I’m not asking for C&D to play investigating journalists.
I’m asking the crowd if anyone out there has some further industry jizz on what eventuated.
Curiosity killed the cat, and I’m overdue.
I’ve heard the Mr guy now swims with the fishes.
Make of that what you will…………………………………………….
……………
so… you’re saying he’s Aquaman?
or like, some sorta Jacque Cousteau?
I’ve just spoken to my sauce and they said a deals been done and his boards are now called MRS.
As someone on the verge of turning 40, I am most interested in stories of men older than me having a fantastic surf life including lots of ripping and successful surf trips. So, basically I am only interested in Kelly Slater.
There’s Kelly Slater, then there’s the rest of us in our forties with broken marriages, substance issues, bankruptcy, affairs, angry teenagers and motivation issues offset by a few usually shit non-high performance surfs on high volume high performance shortboards.
Welcome.
It’s so funny getting old!
And creepy.
You know
Like when a teenager catches you scoping her.
It’s quite thrilling!
Especially if she winks back.
Nah, I have noticed that they tend to cover up a bit and look away.
Shitty non-high performance surfs on high volume high performance shortboards is my forte
you should look up a guy called Eric Logan.