Foster Huntington

Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Foster Huntington is a graduate of Colby College, a former employee of Ralph Lauren and the author of the forthcoming book, "The Burning House." For the past few months, Foster has been traveling around the country, from Big Sur to Baja, taking photos, mining stoke and making friends - all of which he chronicles on his blog, A Restless Transplant. Ahead of his next adventure, which will take him even further south in search of surf, Foster took the time to answer a handful of questions.

Salmon Theory

Similar in many ways to the Pacific Northwest, the coast of New Hampshire has, as far as I can tell, a handful of breaks offering a wide variety of waves. In this video produced by The Granite Stoke, Casey Lockwood talks about the winter surf season and the tight-knit tribe of surfers on the East Coast.

Chronic Blues

What I've been listening to lately...

Absence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder

Skipped town around four on Friday. A long line at the ferry meant we wouldn't see the sea until after seven. Decided to stay in PA. Up early and on the road before breakfast. The sun was in the sky. Over our shoulder as we went west. We knew it would be windy. NOAA was reporting 25kt winds from the east. They didn't disappoint. Jeff calls it "Indo-Buck." Offshore and overhead. Beautiful blue water. Surreal.

Camping Crap 2.0

Towards the end of October, following a summer filled with camping on the coast, some ne'er-do-well broke into our Subaru and stole all of our camping equipment. A sleeping bag, our camp stove and cookware, one of our headlamps and a handful of other shit. Sad story. And the cops don't care. It didn't seem to sink in, though, as we hadn't been camping in a couple of weeks. But now, with the weather turning from shitty to sunny, it was time to equip ourselves for the coming camping season... again.

Involvement Style

I keep telling Karissa I'd like to listen to jazz while I surf. Baker, Bird, Davis, Satchmo. Anything but that smooth shit. Reminds me of my mother. Anyhow. This video, which features Matt Chojnacki and Pops playing in the background, was filmed at Noosa Heads and showcases Chojnacki's 'involvement' style of surfing. The board, which was shaped by Bob McTavish, is a replica of what he and his friends were shaping and surfing some 46 years ago. Additional info is available here.

Onshore & Ugly

Onshore winds make for ugly conditions. White caps and wind in your face. Ingredients for an uncomfortable afternoon. But sometimes you have to say, "What the fuck!" Make your move! And although it was raining when we arrived, followed by the occasional sun break, etc, it wasn't that bad. Windy, though. Way too windy. Coming from Canada. Small swells showed up every so often. Two, maybe three feet at best. But that didn't seem to matter. Fun was had. Surfed with a few friends from Seattle, as well as a fella from Tacoma by the name of Chris. Borrowed a Bing. Had a handful.

Jorgelina Reyero @ Wategos Beach

Jorgelina Reyero hails from the Atlantic Coast of Argentina and has spent the last six years travelling the world with her surfboard. When she found herself at Wategos Beach in Byron Bay, New South Wales she decided to mount a camera to the nose of her log in order to capture the beauty of an empty break.

Two For Twenty

After a hard night of drinking with SPJ and Gary Grannypants, Ms.Wood and I caught the eight-forty ferry Saturday morning, and were straitside no later than noon. It was small. Which we didn't expect. Everything looked right. Direction, intervals, etc. And there wasn't much wind. But nothing happened. Two waves every twenty minutes. Knee high at best. Sure glad I didn't get up any earlier than eight ;)

ONDE NOSTRE

What's this? An Italian surf flick shot in 16mm?! Sure is. And it doesn't suck. Filmed in the summer of 2010, Onde Nostre takes place, for the most part, on the Italian island of Sardinia. Directed by Luca Merli and Matteo Ferrari, the film captures the wide variety of waves available in the Mediterranean. Serious short board stuff and a little loggin. Beautiful bit of film. Subtitled so you know what's going on.

Memo from the Surf Desk: Leashless

"Outside!" someone will scream. You can see it, something surfable. But what if I get closed on, swallowed whole by that big blue bastard!? And what if I let go - loose my stick in the soup? What will keep me afloat? Enough with all that noise! You know how to swim, you sonofabitch. You can make it to shore. Wait it out. Hold on tight when you have to. Size won't matter anymore. Just something you can surf. You'll appreciate the ones you have. Forget the ones you failed.

Dora did it, surfed sans leash. Shit, they all did. All of those bronze gods of the surfing '60s. No one knew any better, I'll give you that. But you have to think someone said it - "Why don't I tie a rope to this damn thing!? Save myself the swim?" Good idea, I suppose. But what was lost? Surely some soul. When that first guy wrapped rubber around his ankle. Secured himself to his surfboard - died, an era did. Over were the days of cautious consumption. Forever changed. Forever carefree. Facing monsters without worry. No need for well rounded watermen. We're all out there with our own little life raft. Safe and sound.

I'd like to see some digression. Back to a time when surfing wasn't so serious. When waves were fun. Not all this big wave little board business. Leashes and tow ropes. Back to a time when you were happy with the ones you had. When craftsmanship was common and your board was made by the hands of a man. Ramble on.

Sincerely,

Duke Dangerpants

Guest Blog: Better Than Beer

What do I know about surfing? Admittedly, nothing. The extent of my surfing experience is a short lesson what was probably a two-foot wave in Hawaii, and a VERY cold spring day off the coast of Oregon. Of the two days, I gleaned that Northwest surfing is not for the body heat challenged (even with a wetsuit), and I don’t do well being sloshed about repeatedly in salt water, no matter how warm it is.

Luckily, I have not been asked to discuss my lack of prowess on the water, but rather what one does after a long day on a board. I was informed that the go-to tipple for many surfers is beer. Makes sense really, it’s portable, not breakable (in a can), doesn’t need mixing, and can be purchased on the fly: no planning required. For those who crave a real cocktail after a surf session though, a little more planning is needed.

Close Calls & Long Lefts

We sailed the second ship on Saturday. In the water around 9am. Had the place to ourselves. Tide was too far out, though. The shape of the beach had changed significantly since the last time we were there. More of a bowl, less of a point. Lots of little lefts for the first few hours. The swells increased in size as the tide came in. Chest to shoulder high, a few that were two feet taller than I am. Karissa had something overhead and awesome. Disappeared down the face, a trail of white water the only clue as to where she was. Gordon and Lynn paddled out around noon. One of their friends joined us an hour later. Lynn had a close call with a closed top kayak. She escaped unscathed. Sometimes boats and boards don't mix.

BoardRoom - Legends of Surfboard Shaping

'BoardRoom' is a feature length documentary that highlights the pioneers of modern day surfboard shaping. Following the conclusion of World War II, surfers, looking for a better way to build lighter boards, began using polyurethane in place of redwood and balsa. The evolution of the surfboard was at hand and surfing would never be the same. The film, which "pays homage to the men who created the boards and also shaped this industry," features a handful of legendary shapers such as Greg Noll, Hap Jacobs, Donald Takayama, Larry Gordon, Robert August, Dick Brewer and Terry Martin.

Finterview: Future Fins 'Performance Longboard Fin'

Picked up a 9.0 Future Fins 'Performance Longboard Fin' at Wave Hounds a few weeks ago. According to their website the fin "allows for good release, but has just enough tip for those long nose rides." More maneuverable than my 9.25 Salty and certainly snappier than the 10" Dorsal that Beads let me borrow, the fin was fast down the line, allowed for big bottom turns on head high waves and would float to the top for quick trips to the nose. Attached to my 9'6" Becker UFO, which has a reasonable amount of rocker and hard rails, the fin was a lot of fun. Not that stable when cross-stepping, though. I'd say it's a fin for those looking to make the most of a wave, not for someone interested in finding their way to the front.

Rey Fresco

What I've been listening to lately...

WAX Magazine

Aeriel Brown, along with two other like minded surfer (slash) city dwellers, are preparing to launch a bi-annual magazine for urban surfers. The publication, entitled WAX, will explore the intersection of art, culture and surfing in and around New York City. According to Brown, "the idea (more or less) is to make a magazine for the surf set found in the city. At our local breaks, we find the people we meet are artists, architects, writers — and often the leaders in their fields — and we wanted a publication that spoke directly to them." Their first issue will feature interviews with filmmaker Mikey DeTemple, artists Garth Weiser, Danny Gordon, Ann Pibal and Ann Woo and writer Michael Scott Moore, among others. Brown and her constituents have launched a Kickstarter campaign to help fund their project and have already raised roughly half of their goal. Additional information is available here.

Handmade Hand Planes

My friend and fellow waterman, Renick Woods, has spent the last few months shaping, sanding and painting these little things. Hand Planes they're called. Something to facilitate all this 'sliding sans surfboard' business. Rumor has it, hand planing(?) has become rather popular. An organic connection with the ocean I'm told. Something simple. Done a bit of bodysurfing myself. Never with anything attached to my appendages, though. Down to do it. And these damn things look delicious. Shawn from Stoke Harvester interviewed Renick regarding his recent work. You can read the Q&A here. Oh, and if you're interested in owning one of these bodysurfing hand board things, click here.

Jail House Trunks

Noll Surfboards and Billabong have teamed up to created a ten-piece apparel line inspired by one of surfing's greatest, Greg Noll. According to Greg's son Jed the new Billabong collaboration is "a worthy tribute to the roots of surfing and those who pioneered the North Shore and beyond." The collection, which will be available at the end of March, includes board shorts, t-shirts, tank tops and 200 pairs of signed and numbered “Jail House” trunks that will be sold in an online auction starting March 22nd.

Additional info here.

Early Morning Ankle Biters

We didn't have much time. Two, maybe three hours. So we skipped breakfast, caught the first ferry and were in the water around half past nine. Swell wasn't working very well, angle was all off. And the tide was on its way out. Little lefts breaking close to shore. Knee high at best. We had a few fun ones, though.

Pillage & Plunder

Shaping and surfing the TCSS x Thomas Surfboards 'Pillage Model.'

Sticks & Stones

I've always envied those with room for all the things they've collected along the way. Sticks, stones, shells, whatever. You see, I've always lived in an apartment - one bedroom, one bath. And collecting that sort of shit seemed inappropriate. Over the last few years, however, I've made space. I've started collecting things. Little things. Don't know how it happened. Suppose it helps me remember where I've been and what I was doing there. A piece of red rock from Moab, a brick from Tiberius' mountain mansion, a shell from somewhere down south. Pieces to a puzzle. Picked up a few more on Friday.

Somewhere In Central America

New York native, Mikey DeTemple, in one of the finest short surf films I've ever seen.

When You're Surfing Big Waves

When you’re surf­ing big waves, it forces you to focus on the surf. It kind of clears your mind. When the surf is smaller, you’re think­ing about the guy next to you, the crowd. But big waves bring you back to the point where you don’t think about any­thing else. You’re just focused. Oth­er­wise, hot dog surf is just drama for me. Peo­ple want to chal­lenge you to a surf-off in the water. Big waves allow me to keep that dis­tance between all of that crap. It keeps peo­ple on the beach and I can be way outside.

- Tyler Hatzikian

Chasing Dora

Chasing Dora is the story of three California surfers who travel to Jeffreys Bay, South Africa to host a competition inspired by one of surfing’s most iconic personalities, Miki Dora. And while he disliked the idea of competitive surfing, Dora felt that the ultimate test of a surfer would be a contest for the longest wave, on a self-made wooden board, sans leash, in eight foot swells, wearing nothing but wool trunks.