There’s something about the fall. On the ASP tour it’s most concentrate number of contests with the Boost Mobile Pro Trestles, Quicksilver Pro France (Hossegor), Billabong Pro Mundaka, and Hang Loose Pro Santa Catarina, Brazil all being run off in quick succession. Incredibly, Taj Burrow actually has a chance at catching Kelly Slater for the world title (assuming Kelly implodes and Taj turns it on for the last couple of events). But watching this video of Kelly at the Boost Mobile Pro makes it hard to argue that he’s not the best surfer in the world.
Couple video clips from Surfline TV. First up is one of the craziest barrels I’ve seen: Michael Brennan at Shipsterns’ Bluff. The Second clip is off urban surfing in San Francisco.
Check out this insane short film of Adam Kimmel and friend bombing down Claremont Canyon trading a video camera back and forth. Watch the HD version if you can. The film is by Ari Marcopoulos.
Last week I posted my story on my boat trip to Northern Sumatra. Here’s a sick video by Patagonia and their sponsored surfers (the Malloys, Belinda Baggs, Fletcher Chouinard) of the their trip to the same area.
Ok, so what, you’ve won a record 8 world titles and are well on your way to a ninth. You hang courtside in LA at the NBA finals and date a few super-models. But can you pull into a barrel, come out and and switch feet before going into the next barrel section all in a wave you’ve never surfed before in a WCT contest?! Oh, you can…
This video isn’t surf related but is one of the coolest travel videos I’ve seen. Here’s an HD version (incredible if you have the bandwidth). Check out the Driftnik Blog for more info on Matt and his travels.
Kelly Slater at Rifles. Rifles is hands down one of the best waves in the world. It’s sister wave Kandui’s (or Nokan as in “no-can”) as a reputation as one of the fastest, heaviest, longest left barrels in the world. Though often considered not makable. There are two land camps in the Ments (although I’ve read about construction of a third at Lance’s). Kandui Resort and WavePark Mentawai. Here are a couple of clips of what you wake up to at Kandui Resort from the Donkey Patrol surf blog. These guys will be waking up to these waves in a couple of weeks.
If you’re a surf media junkie like myself and your monthly surf video purchase and four surf magazine subscriptions just don’t seem to be enough, Fuel TV has some great surf content. A friend suggested to me last year, and I was blown away by the quality and how much surf related content they have. They’ve got two weekly shows dedicated to surf content: Fins and On Surfari. Fins does a great job with profiles on surfers, photographers, film makers, etc. On Surfari is a travel show by a San Diego-based surf couple, Shannon and Shane McIntyre, who travel the world in search of surf and cultural experiences. Here’s an interview they did with TransWorldSurf Magazine. [Video Clips from Fins and On Surfari after the jump]
If you’re a surfer, it’s crossed your mind on more than a few occasions–buying a camper, packing it all up, and heading south. Surfwise is a documentary about Dorian “Doc” Paskowitz and his family doing that. Doc was a Stanford educated physician who in the 1950s decided to live the surf life on the road and loaded the family in a 24 ft. camper (nine children all together). Jonathan Paskowitz, a professional surfer, tells the story of his family, their travels, adventures, and surf. Apple has a high-def version of the trailer. NPR has an interview with Jonathan Paskowitz, Doc’s son and a producer on the film. Surfwise was released in theaters on May 9, 2008.