"I mean, what's a guy to do?"

11x surfing champion Kelly Slater is, by far, the most famous of our kind, except for maybe Laird Hamilton or Jonah Hill, and both knows and communicates with other such celebrities. He also just so happens to have dated many of the same women as award-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio including, but not limited to, the Brazilian model Gisele Bündchen and Israeli model Bar Rafeli.

Very cool and Slater, being very cool, does not exhibit any sort of dog-like jealousy toward his stablemate but, rather, commiserates and encourages.

In an alleged recent interview, DiCaprio’s alleged ex-girlfriend Camila Morrone shared details of the “worst date of her life,” saying, “He rented out a whole cinema and made me watch every single Star Wars movie while he ran around with his lightsaber pretending to fight bad guys.”

Slater, quick on the trigger, wondered, “I mean, what’s a guy to do?”

As it turns out, the quote has been disproven and Morrone and DiCaprio are still together but I’m certain the star is happy to know that the world’s greatest surfer is in his corner.

What a guy.

CHP investigators said the woman either “fell or jumped.”

Ever try to kill a flea? Ain’t easy. Whack it with a phone book, flame it with a cigarette lighter, flick it with your finger, firehose it with DDT.

Don’t work.

That is also true for Darryl “Flea” Virostko, a big wave surfer from Santa Cruz who was determined to drown himself anywhere in the Pacific Ocean during the Roaring 90s.

Flea was part of the Santa Cruz “Vermin” crew – Skindog, Barney, Ratboy, Condor – who were Pied Pipered to Mavericks by Vince Collier, and who wanted to pay homage to surfers like Jeff Clark and Richard Schmidt who pioneered the place by charging hard at one of the most dangerous waves in the world.

The zeitgeist to Flea and his westside brethren was simple: “Go now, ask questions later.”

And that is what Flea did, from Mavericks to Waimea, launching himself into some of the biggest waves ridden at the time, but also some of the most horrendous wipeouts.

Virostko survived substance problems, enjoying meth and acid at some length although he was hardly Robinson Crusoe around Santa Cruz in that regard, and some pretty wild beatings in the Pacific Ocean to emerge butterfly like and become a daddy etc.

Now, according to Santa Cruz news outlets, on January 10 a lady rear-ended Flea on Highway One, and then she rocked over to the cliff, jumped in the ocean and drowned.

What?

According to Amy Larson on www.kron4.com:

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KRON) — A bizarre and tragic crash involving a former professional big wave surfer unfolded on Highway 1 north of Santa Cruz Monday.

A 40-year-old woman was driving a Honda Accord when she collided into a Toyota Tundra driven by surfer Darryl “Flea” Virostko, according to investigators.

The two-vehicle collision happened at 9 a.m. in the northbound lanes of Highway 1 near upper Swanton Road.

“After the collision, both vehicles pulled to the shoulder. The woman driving the Honda reportedly exited the vehicle, crossed the highway, and walked towards the cliff overlooking the ocean,” the California Highway Patrol wrote.

Witnesses saw the woman plummet down a 300-foot cliff. CHP investigators said the woman either “fell or jumped.”
The U.S. Coast Guard deployed a helicopter and water rescue team. The woman died before rescuers could lift her out of the water.

Virostko told KRON4 Monday evening that he is OK.

The CHP is investigating the collision. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office is investigating what happened immediately after the crash.

CHP officers said they classified the crash as a “hit-and-run” because the woman technically left the scene on foot before she went over the cliff.

A mystery wrapped in neoprene: Why did the woman rear-end Flea? How fast was she going? Why did the woman jump into the ocean?

Even more mysterious: Where along Highway One can someone pull a Kim Novak into the ocean?

The woman’s name was not released. The CHP said she lived in Santa Cruz.

Okay so it was near Upper Swanton Road. so that means the accident happened around Greyhound Rock, which means the woman walked a couple hundred feet across a field to the edge of the cliff… and jumped.

Real odd.

 

Buy low, sell high.

Oh. Here’s Ben Gravy. I was just now wondering where they YouTube sensation, most popular surfer in the world was as a tsunami steamed toward the west coast of these United States. Thinking about the hits he would receive from a soft topped tidal wave session but the New Jersey star has his hands more than full as it was just announced that he is an invitee to Oregon’s premier big wave event.

The Nelscott Reef Pro.

Nelscott Reef, which bubbles off Lincoln City in the Beaver State’s north, is a cold water monster. According to the website, “On the biggest days of the season, Nelscott Reef breaks about a mile offshore. The massive open ocean swells are generated during the winter months. Coming primarily from the northwest and westward direction, these storms produce wave heights in the 30′ – 50′ dance once they hit the outer reef with some occasional crazy swells maxing out in the 60′-70′ range.”

This years list of hellmen/women includes the likes of Jamie Sterling, Luca Padua and Justine Dupont.

And Ben Gravy.

Ben Wilkinson, Pat Shaughnessy and Grant “Twiggy” Baker are alternates.

What do you think the betting line is for Gravy to take the win?

Will he ride a soft top?

Buy low, sell high.