Ultra-cool surf stud Noah Beschen signs deal with Swatch

"Noah Beschen has become the symbol of an era when surfing transcends the boundaries of sport."

Time flies, they say, when you’re having fun. It seems as if it were only yesterday that we were watching a young ripper burst out of San Clemente, California, changing what we thought possible. Shane Beschen was stylish, fierce, progressive. His bouts versus Kelly Slater culturally important. The lanky blonde represented something new and thrilling.

Rad.

Well, it was not, in fact, only yesterday but rather some two decades ago and, now, Beschen’s son Noah is stealing hearts and captivating minds.

The 24-year-old has wildly impressed, packing large tubes on the North Shore and in Mexico while also flying and flipping at wave tub events. Swiss watchmaker Swatch took notice and recently signed the model-handsome young man to the team with a statement reading, “(Beschhen) speaks of ‘free movement’ and ‘personal style’ rather than scores or podiums. This philosophy appeals to a generation of riders for whom technique only makes sense if it’s accompanied by emotion. Swatch capitalizes on this vision to reinforce its lifestyle and creative positioning.”

The Paris Select Book added, “Noah Beschen has become the symbol of an era when surfing transcends the boundaries of sport. His partnership with Swatch is seen as a visionary collaboration: not to freeze performance, but to make it a moving work. Insiders believe he could soon be taking part in new multi-sport event formats in Europe, and even in Paris, according to our sources.

Very cool.

But do you remember the Swatch craze of the late 80s? Oh man, I remember being ultra-envious of the cool boys in my junior high school who were fortunate enough to have one, or sometimes two, Swatches. Bright, colorful, a li’l rebellious.

Certainly not your grandfather’s watch.

The Swatch Guard, which came out later, nearly blew my mind with its awesome and I would go to bed, each night, dreaming fluorescent plastic dreams.

I eventually got a Swatch, likely for Christmas, and, though I can’t recall specific details, I’m certain my life drastically improved.

I also made a significant mistake around this time. My birthday was coming up, maybe 12th, and skateboarding was au courant with Mike Gonzales, Christian Hosoi, Steve Caballero etc. giving ‘er hell. I was presented with two options for potential gift: a Vision Gator or a fake K-Mart thing in a box with griptape already applied and trucks pre-attached.

It was called “The Dominator.”

I chose “The Dominator” because I thought the black and white checkerboard deck was a superior graphic and, thus, my skateboarding skill was forever stymied.

Congratulations to Noah Beschen.