Al Merrick – Biography

Like most shapers, Al Merrick started out with a planer, 50 bucks, and a dream; but unlike most shapers, Merrick exceeded all expectations by building a worldwide industry and securing bragging rights to equipping some of surfing’s greatest champions like Kelly Slater, Tom Curren, Shaun Tomson, Kim Mearig, Lisa Anderson, and Sofia Mulanovich.  Rising from a local shaping operation in 1969, Merrick’s Channel Islands Surfboards and his mantra, “To provide the most dedicated surfers with the most advanced, performance designs” made him Santa Barbara’s most famous board builder and struck a chord that resounded across several generations of surfers.

Born March 11, 1944, Merrick moved with his family to California by way of New Jersey and Florida. He picked up surfing at 10, eventually riding boards from Surfboards Hawaii. Inspired by shaper John Price, the San Dieguito High School graduate began shaping amidst the design turmoil of the Shortboard Revolution. As Bob McTavish tested his innovative designs right there in Merrick’s backyard of Santa Barbara, it proved an inspiring time for the aspiring board builder.

By 1977, icon Shaun Tomson was riding Merrick’s boards when he won a world title. However, it would instead be a local pre-teen with deep surf pedigree who would generate a wave of success for Merrick. Tommy Curren wasn’t just a world champion; he was the most loved and respected American surfer of his generation to whom Al became sort of a father figure. Curren and Channel Islands became synonymous. The pairing defined the generation.

But as Curren the athlete drifted into a post-competition soul surf afterglow, the children of the New School (Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, Chris Brown, and Taylor Knox) became the catalysts for a fresh batch of excitement for Merrick’s shapes. It seemed like a pretty solid business model: put the best surfers in the world on your boards and let them go to work. The 90’s ended, but the brand continued to rise. As Slater began to amass an unearthly amount of titles, and surfboard blank behemoth Clark Foam closed its doors in 2005; Merrick unapologetically turned to the accuracy and speed of computerized shaping methods and mass-produced pop outs from overseas. The company was acquired by Burton snowboards the following year and  headed into the next decade with Dane Reynolds’s radical new lines setting the trajectory and setting surfboard sales records by making his signature CI Dumpster Diver model one of the best selling surfboards in America.

With Channel Island’s surfers garnering some 20 world titles and sales going through the roof, the only problem for Al Merrick could be his own success. CI General manager Scott Anderson echoes this sentiment, “The more boards you sell, the less cool you are.” But given his track record, Al Merrick may have just transcended cool.

Bells Beach and the rise of the Rip Curl Pro

Although Mark Richards once called Australia’s Bells Beach “The most overrated wave in the world,” the contest that has been held on its shifty right breaking peaks for more than 50 years has transcended mere competition to become the longest running professional surfing contest in history and one of the sport’s premiere social and cultural events. While Rip Curl gave the grassroots contest a global legitimacy, the power of the Bells Beach event lies in its inception among the natural if dramatic splendor of the venue itself where intrepid locals first found an empty, rugged surfer’s paradise. Its rocky cathedral atmosphere and ever-changing moods made it a perfect spot to have a contest.

The wave itself has been described from epic to unpredictable, and its history is both storied and debated. Bells earned it name from the family who owned farmland nearby, but surfers found the place later in 1949 when some Torquay wave riders rode dirt bikes up on the cliff edges and found a picturesque bay perfect for fishing and camping. The crayfish in the rocks and the swell catching topography were perfect, but its location made for an arduous hike with the unwieldy equipment of the time. Almost a decade later, the much lighter Malibu boards allowed Bells pioneers like Peter Troy, Joe Sweeney, and “China” Gilbert to access the surf more easily. Stories of those early surfers camping and gathering wood for fire, fishing, partying, and even hunting for food still reverberate off the rocky cliffs. Sweeny would eventually scrape together 30 pounds to have a road cleared to Bells. He charged surfers a pound a piece to use the road until he recouped his cash. Fittingly, Sweeny now makes the Rip Curl Pro trophies.

The first unofficial contest at Bells was in 1961. George “Ming” Smith won that contest and earned one pound for his efforts. Many refer to this as surfing’s first professional contest. The following year, surfers Peter Troy and Vic Tantau organized the first Bells Beach Rally in January with a couple card tables on the beach. Teenager Glynn Ritchie won the event, and George Smith took in a pound for the “wave of the Day.”  The following year, organizers added a junior event which was won by a young upstart named Nat Young.

While the contest had been steadily building its stature, it was the 1965 event that would cement its legitimacy with giant, perfect swell pumping for its entirety. It was so big, they cancelled the junior event altogether. Some call that contest (won by Robert Coneely) “the greatest contest ever held.” The following years between ’65 and ’72 would pit Australia’s best and brightest surfers against one another. Just a few of the greats include Nat Young, Peter Drouyn, Ted Spencer, Terry Fitzgerald and a young Wayne Lynch who all made names for themselves. However, Gail Couper went on to become the greatest Bells performer ever with 10 career wins in the women’s division.

In 1973, the event gained a new level of professional legitimacy with sponsorship from Amco and a small local surfboard and wetsuit company called Rip Curl. Rip Curl (run by local surfers Doug Warbrik and Brian Singer) along with fellow Aussie brands Quiksilver and Billabong would go on to dominate the world surfing market in the late 70’s and 80’s. With a cash purse of $2,500, the modern era of the Bells Beach Easter Rally had begun its rise towards today’s Rip Curl Pro. The late Michael Peterson would garner $1,000 for his 1973 win and would go on to dominate the next two years before Hawaiian Jeff Hakman won the event in 1976 to become the first non-Australian winner. The same year marked the beginning of the professional surfing circuit. The Bells Rip Curl event would become the tour’s longest running contest venue.

Highlights at Bells run the gamut from near tragic to ground breaking. In the giant surf of the spectacular 1965 contest, surfers nearly lost their lives being swept across the bay by massive sneaker sets. In 1981, Simon Anderson unveiled his industry and performance juggernaut, the 3-fin thruster design, in the boldest way possible by winning the Rip Curl Pro in classic conditions. The iconoclastic clash of Mark Occhilupo and Tommy Curren in the 1986 final is still regarded by many as one of greatest heats in surfing history. In 1998, Occy returned as Australia’s favorite son and elder statesmen to dominate the field at Bells before going on to win his historic first world title.

Under the professional sheen and gloss, things weren’t always so clean as a cultural clash raged between local soul surfers and the budding surf industry during the 60’s and 70’s while infamous stories of utter debauchery and lawlessness permeate the party culture that has remained ubiquitous since the beachside campfires burned in the early 50’s. And sometimes the surf just didn’t show as several events at Bells had to be scrubbed and moved to more surfable venues. And that’s the thing about Bells Beach. It’s not perfect. Every swell brings another nuance and another bit of funk to the wave face, and fluctuating wind and tide can change a session from epic to unsurfable. But something about the wave and those cliffs and the history of this contest have transformed the culture of Torquay and made winning a trophy at Bells a dream of every pro surfer. The Rip Curl Pro’s multimillion dollar multimedia extravaganza serves as a seamless connection from today’s greatest athletes to those early pioneers who warmed up by the fire after a classic session.

Continue Reading

Jimmy Blears was always searching. He loved to scour the water’s edge for valuable bits of flotsam and jetsam that the powerful Pacific surf may have shaken loose from bathing suits of hapless tourists. For years, looking for lost treasure became something of an obsession for the Hawaiian lifeguard. You see, there is one thing a lot of folks never knew about the good natured island boy who spent 25+ years at the beach pulling surfers and tourists to safety. Jimmy Blears was the 1972 world surfing champion, a feat that etched his name on to an elite (and quite short) list of Hawaiian champs. Andy Irons, Sunny Garcia, Derek Ho, and Fred Hemmings have all staked their claims on surf history, but Blears, it seems, had it shaken loose from his grasp like the treasure that littered the sand surrounding his lifeguard tower. For most, getting paid to spend your days on the North Shore watching the waves would be enough, but Jimmy was still searching for something more…maybe to recapture a treasure he lost decades ago.

Jimmy Blears was born in Los Angeles in 1948 but moved with his family to Hawaii 2 years later. A lucky soul for sure, little Bruddah Jimmy was raised on the beach of the era’s surfing epicenter: Waikiki. His family took up residence in the historic Steiner Building where the statue of the legendary Duke Kahanamoku stands today. His dad was wrestling legend and match promoter Lord James “Tally Ho” Blears. Once described as “a magisterial Englishman,” the elder Blears was an avid surfer who even made an appearance in the seminal surfing documentary, The Endless Summer, and who would go on to become the ubiquitous announcer for events like the Makaha International Championships and the ABC Wide World of Sports surfing specials.

Jimmy experienced surfing as a family affair. The Blears often spent time with other famous surfing clans like the Aikau and the Paskowitz families who were all ingrained in the Waikiki Beachboy culture. The sprawling Honolulu lineups provided an incredibly inspiring playing field for the Blears kids, which included Jimmy and his younger siblings, Laura and Clinton who also proved to be world-class wave riders. Dad would pack up the whole family into their VW bus for day trips to Makaha when big south and west swells came pouring in. For Jimmy who had been riding waves since he could walk, the ocean was his playground.

Spending his elementary days at Waikiki’s Washington Elementary School, Blears then moved on to prestigious Punahou High School from where he graduated in 1967. During his school years, he proved to be a talented and successful competitive swimmer, but his passion lied in surfing the soft, blue walls of the South Shore where he shared the lineup with legends like Joey Cabell, Buzzy Trent, Buffalo Keaulana, and Barry Kanai’uapuni.

Jimmy’s style was powerful and deliberate with a wide goofyfoot stance that held fast in the strong Hawaiian surf, and he quickly distinguished himself as a dominant force on the Hawaiian amateur scene, earning a coveted spot on the Weber Surf Team. In addition to local competition, Blears excelled in big waves as a standout at North Shore power zones like Pipeline and Sunset. He was there at Makaha on the day of Greg Noll’s famous last wave, a day when the swell was pumping at a reported 40 feet. Legend has it that Jimmy caught and rode a massive set wave from the outside point all the way to the inside bowl, not a common feat. His big wave chops put him on the shortlist of invitees to the Duke Kahanamoku contest 4 times, and he made a 3^rd place showing at the Smirnoff in 1970. The following year, he again competed in the Smirnoff and made it into the semi-finals.

In 1972, Blears earned a slot on the Hawaiian surf team that would compete in the World Contest in San Diego alongside Michael Ho and Larry Bertleman. The San Diego event would prove both exultant and problematic for Jimmy Blears. All signs pointed to a stellar competition as the swell of the year struck the California coast. The problem was that the swell was not right for San Diego where contestants were forced to trudge through meager conditions. There was a collective thumbing of the nose from many of surfing’s A-List talents like Rolf Aurness, Margo Godfrey, Midget Farrelly, Felipe Pomar, Nat Young, and Fred Hemmings who all chose to skip the event.

The contest was riddled with controversy, most notably when locals stole David Nuuiwa’s board and hung the fish model broken and defiled from the Ocean Beach Pier. Nuuiwa, who was favored to win the event, had to ride a backup board. Mishaps aside, the heats were packed with talent and read like a list of surfing’s future icons: Richards, Anderson, Petersen, Fitzgerald, Cairns, Lopez, Hakman, Downing, Aipa, Abellira, Carroll, and Crawford.

In the final, Blears faced off against teenage stars Michael Ho and Peter Townend and a red hot David Nuuiwa. From all accounts, Nuuiwa surfed the best, but the contest criteria favored Blears’ bigger and longer waves. While many surf media outlets appeared to ignore the event, some critics were outright caustic about the results. The response to Blears’ win was due in part to the weak surf and judging criteria, but there was also a prevailing dissatisfaction with the World Contest itself. This would be the death knell for the event as a budding world tour format took shape over the next decade.

With his surfing zenith at hand, Blears returned to Hawaii with little fanfare from the surf media. In 1977, he put his vast knowledge of the ocean and weather and his skills in the water to work as a city lifeguard as which he would serve for 25+ years at his home beach of Waikiki, Makaha, and Sunset Beach. Blears sometimes gave surfing lessons for extra money. Stationed at Sunset Beach Tower 25, Blears shared his experience and expertise with successive generations of surfers as they prepared to paddle out, many of whom never knew they were getting advice from a world champ. By the end of his lifeguard career, Blears was back on the South Shore at Ala Moana.

Reportedly struggling with substance abuse later in life and after completing at least 1 rehabilitation program, he retired from lifeguarding in 2002 and moved in with friends on the island of Kauai. Locals tell of a smiling, healthy Blears on the Garden Isle. While he was no longer surfing on a regular basis, he was helping to judge local amateur events and looking happy and healthy. But after returning to Oahu, fate intervened. Jimmy Blears died in his sleep on February 6, 2011at 62 years old.

Alright Beau, let’s start at the beginning. What is your earliest memory of surfing? Can you describe that “Aha!” moment when you knew surfing would be your life?

My first memories of riding a wave would be on my father’s back. I couldn’t swim for quite some time, so I was surfing years prior to being confident enough to swim which is kind of funny really.

I guess it dawned on me pretty early that I was completely overtaken by surfing. There was a tiny right hander called “kiddies Corner” at Sydney’s Palm Beach I learnt to surf at. I would be out there into the pitch black evening and have to get  called in for dinner; that was kind of like my gradual “Aaah” moment where I knew the ocean would always be one of the strongest draw cards for my enjoyment here on earth.

All kids want their parents to support them and take an interest in whatever they do. Most folks would envy your position as the son of a surfing legend; however, looking at what your dad was accomplishing in your formative years, he was pretty busy. What was the level of his involvement in your surfing growth and evolution?

It is a funny thing being the son or daughter of somebody famous. There are definitely reasons for and against. My father has a big personality, so it is tricky for me as some people love him. Some don’t.  I wouldn’t say I was ever in an enviable position. From an outsider’s perspective, it may appear so, but in reality I was definitely more critically judged, and I had to prove myself beyond what was really needed in my opinion.

My dad was the one who I would follow out of the rocks when the waves were really big, and in critical situations in the ocean I would stick to him like glue. Truth be told, my mother (Marilyn) was the one who drove me to all the surfing events as a youngster and later my stepmother (Ti) would also be there for me.

Only as I got older did I realize the enormity of what my father had achieved as a surfer. Purely as a surfer and not as a father, I am completely in awe of his surfing style, prowess and the evolution of surfing he has to such a large degree shaped. He has just always been there as a best friend, yet it would also be a lie to say that we haven’t had our moments, but what families don’t.

In writing your bio, I assumed a “looming shadow of your father” as you pursued pro surfing as a career. Is this melodramatic or was there pressure to follow in his footsteps? If so, from where did it originate? Was it real or imagined? 

There was never any looming shadow to any degree. I chose the path I chose, and I put the effort in (and still do) daily to surf to the best of my ability because I love the ocean and surfing feel so good. My careers and paths have never been pushed upon or forced in any way by family. I feel very lucky. My whole life, my family has been supportive of my choices but never pushy, never really giving guidance. Really what I achieve, I achieved on my own. Nat would be the last one I would ever consider a “soccer dad” type force. It troubles me seeing kids so young pushed so hard. My kids (when I have them) will never ever be pushed. Personally, it just needs to be there, the drive and the passion exactly how I was shown growing up.

In contrast to shortboarding, what was it about longboarding that spoke to you as a surfer (or as an artist)?

Surfing is creative. There is no doubt I feel free in the ocean. Just yesterday morning, I was riding small tubing waves on my knees due to the wave size. I have never really felt part of any particular surfing style, and I never want to be a part of a set subculture. I think history has amazing moments captured in time. I was never going to continue on a shortboard circuit with 700 other guys battling for points for too long.

Longboarding spoke to me as a completely different medium to shortboarding. The obvious similarities are there: surfboards directed by fins driven by a wave of water, but that’s where the similarities really stop. Surfing is a personal pursuit. I see too much fad and trend in minor subcultures within surfing these days. It’s kinda like any reason to segregate even in a pursuit such as surfing, and I tell you what, I don’t like it and I never have. I don’t care what car you drive, the money you make, or how cool you look in the clothes you wear, as long as you are a genuine nice open human. When it comes to surfing, there should never, ever be any segregation or egalitarianism in something we are simply just very, very, very lucky to be doing.

My father’s surfing in the 1966 San Diego World Titles was a portion of the catalyst for me riding the longboard: combining cat-like grace and flair, power and control along with immense finesse and balance. Riding bigger craft is a different feel, and to do it well takes a very long time indeed. It is a contradiction of sorts because it ultimately looks too easy when done right. No flippant tricks in my dad’s 1966 surf demonstration, and I guess I have always longed to somehow try and be even vaguely close to that that I have seen on film, but I’m no lone soldier there.

Who have been your greatest surfing inspirations? Greatest lyrical inspirations?

Michael Peterson, Tom Curren, and Nat Young.

Neil young, Bob Dylan, and Paul Simon.

Was pro surfing ever enough to sustain you financially? What other sources of income did you have along the way during your surfing career?

I worked 3 jobs in the fledgling stages of my surfing career. I was a waiter at a fine dining restraint, a bell hop (I think you call them) taking people’s bags to their rooms, and I worked in a surf shop as well. I would convince my bosses to let me go for a week, fly all the way to Brazil and lose first round of competition. Surfing as a profession can throw you some hard knocks early that definitely ground you. “A lot of shitty hotels with average coffee, jetlag and white line fever.” There a couple of lyrics from a song I once wrote. If you’re not heralded as a protégé early on, you have to put in the extra yards to make it happen, but the work is always worth it.

I made really quite good money there for at least 6 years or so, and I still can’t believe it. For at least 15 years, I was getting paid to just simply go surfing (even though you often needed other jobs to help fund the career). I definitely made a career out of riding waves for a good chunk of time, and I am very thankful for how blessed I was.

You spoke of an event in the Brazil contest that sparked a long estrangement from Joel Tudor. Can you go into more detail concerning that event?  And how did you eventually mend the rift?

Time mended my riff with Joel. The situation actually occurred in France at the Biarritz Surfing Festival. Joel and I have always been brothers. We do see a lot of things differently though.

Looking back, we were both the dominant forces in longboarding competition at the time I guess (along with Bonga Perkins and one or 2 others). It was the final, and there was a left coming from way outside and Joel began to paddle around me (I was winning the final at this time with 1minute remaining). I said, “Hey Joel come on don’t do that. Don’t paddle around me I’m on the spot here!” Joel proceeded to paddle around me, catch the wave, and win the final. Joel believes that competition is competition (anything goes pretty much) and I personally do not. There is an unstated code in many things, and the same goes with surfing (I believe). As best friends, this particular discretion took years to heal, but it is just one of those things. I’m not claiming I was an angel in competition, but most definitely when friendship and respect are in such high regard that side of me does not come out.

As Oxbow team mates, your dad and Joel became close. He even referred to him as “like a son.” Was that relationship ever a source of animosity? Did it have any part in yours and Joel’s issues after Brazil?

Dad and Joel were definitely father and son. Joel was his real protégé early, not me. Their relationship was never a source of animosity. Dad was Dad and from 14 years old, Joel and I were like brothers really. Time changes things somewhat. You know, Joel is still pretty into the surf scene where as I am basically a recluse who plays children’s music. Joel said there is a chance I and my surfing could get forgotten, and I need to stay out there to make it work, but that’s not my style. I don’t mind being off the radar. Surfing and music are my passion I don’t need to know the right people to go surfing for free or to simply pick up a guitar and be free.

Upon winning your 2^nd world title, you promptly retired from pro surfing. Can you detail the reasons for your departure? Do you think pro surfing has changed (for better or worse?) since you left?  

Pro surfing is very main stream. I’m ok with that. It has gotten worse in that regard and that won’t change. I was lucky enough to make a living from it for some time. Even these so called soul surfing companies are cashing in for the wrong reasons I believe. It is not all about pretending to be cool. It is about finding yourself and feeling relaxed and in touch with the real world, our natural world. Now that’s why I write animal songs for kids. If a company ever sponsored me again, it would not be because I am trying to be something I am not. I’m not changing an image mid stream.

I stopped competing because I wanted to surf without a criteria and music spoke to me in ways competing for money did not. I was leaving competition win, lose or draw in that last event anyway.

Music has charts and top selling artists just like surfing does, but that’s not me. My dream is to have kids understand the natural world and all of its beautiful creatures that inhabit it. Animal existence is fragile and I’m here to get kids involved early.

In writing your bio, I noticed that there is an obvious lack of info on your life in comparison with many other world champs. For a guy with a unique upbringing, great talent, and a charismatic aura; what’s the deal? You’ve got a great story. How important is “attention” and “fame?” For careers in both pro surfing and music, do you think is attention is important?

No, attention is not important to me, or I would be out there promoting myself. Like I said earlier even at the height of my competitive days, I still felt I was an underdog and not as well known. I have no problem with that at all. My focus is to get to kids though and give them good music. Attention has never really been something I would ever pursue, and it’s true it seems to be a necessary evil for both surfing and music careers. I still believe good things happen naturally for those who work hard at what they do, but I guess these days, that comment doesn’t quite ring as true as it used to.

 What’s life like for Beau Young today? What are you involved in and what part does surfing still play?   

Surfing still plays a daily roll for me. I love surfing and the feeling of freedom and creativity it instills in me. But I am primarily focused on “Animals Rock”. Animals Rock are specific animal songs I have written for children between the ages of 0-6. I have big dreams for the animal band and believe we can educate children through music on a large scale. Animals Rock feels really right, kind of like nothing I have ever embarked upon before. You let go of all inhibitions, and with the band we get the little people rocking out. I guess when you talk about getting attention, the only time I want any is to get the attention of kids, the natural world, and its surrounds.

In professional surfing, judges award the highest points to waves ridden with the greatest risk, speed, and control. Based on that logic, Mick Fanning should have banked a closet full of world championship trophies. To watch him surf, one is first stricken by his speed. Dubbed “White Lightning,” the bleach blond Aussie regular foot glides from rail carve to rail carve with full-tilt blinding velocity coupled with a mechanical precision that places his board square in the power from take-off to kick out. Even in comparison to the world’s most timeless talents like Slater and Curren, Fanning’s top-to-bottom combo appears futuristic. Shouldered with baggage of family tragedy and severe injury, Mick Fanning has balanced the edge between hard drinking Coolangata homeboy and two-time professional surfing champion whose clean and flawless surfing cloaks an out-of-the-box character channeling surfing’s feral early years.

Born June 13, 1981, far from the beach in Penrith, NSW, Australia, Mick Eugene Fanning trudged a tough path. His parents divorced when he was just an infant, and he wouldn’t get to know his father until much later in life. Mick first stood on a surfboard at age 5, not adopting the lifestyle until 12. He moved with his mother to Tweed Heads where the family struggled to make ends meet. Years later, he would tell how those meager years would instill a marked apathy towards material goods, and as surfing fast became a career for Mick, he found something more, something in his DNA that connected him to his home break of legendary Snapper Rocks. The area’s perfect waves and fierce competition brought out the best in Mick, as he spent his adolescence honing his skills with good friend Joel Parkinson.

By 1996, Mick Fanning had distinguished himself as one of Queensland’s great talents with a top-three finish at the Australian National Titles and soon a win at the Pro Junior. But as one star rose for the teenage athlete, fate would have another fall. When Mick was 17, his older brother Sean along with friend Joel Green was killed in a car accident. As word spread, Mick was saddled with the responsibility of breaking the news to his dad, sisters, and brothers. As Mick grieved (remaining in his house for days) the local surf community grieved alongside him as the lineup at Snapper Rocks emptied before a memorial paddle out for Sean.

But nothing could hold back White Lightning. Strong finishes on the 2001 World Qualifying Series (WQS) afforded Fanning an opportunity to grab a wild card entry at the Rip Curl Pro, an event that ended with Fanning at the top of the heap (a win he dedicated to his fallen brother). The following year, he won the Billabong Pro at Jeffrey’s Bay and scratched to the top spot of the WQS. His 2002 sponsored video bio “Fanning the Fire” highlighted the blurred speed and ruler edged perfection of a rising star. The same year, Mick found himself firmly on the ASP Tour, finishing his rookie year in the top five. But again, fate disrupted his ascent. Two years after his stellar pro debut, he ripped a hamstring while on a photo shoot in Indonesia. The result was major surgery, but extensive rehabilitation (complete with metal screws) would get him back in the water. By the start of 2007 after five years of competing on the ASP Tour, Fanning burst out of the gate with a win in the first event, the Quiksilver Pro, and later at the Santa Catarina Pro. 2007 ended with Mick Fanning taking his first world title.

However, as the following year progressed, Fanning struggled under massive expectation and media focus in addition to more injuries. He dropped to 8^th place. 2009 didn’t look to be much better as the trophy slipped farther and farther out of reach as hometown buddy Joel Parkinson surfed brilliantly. Parko had the season on lock until a mid-season ankle injury opened the door for a re-charged White Lightning. The title came down to Pipeline. Parko fell in the 3^rd Round, and Fanning grabbed his second world championship.

Throughout his career, Fanning proved to have distinctive layers. In the American press, he appeared the one-dimensional surf machine, but deeper fires burned. For one, family was an essential component to the Fanning formula. Using his vantage point as a traveling athlete, he spirited away from France after an early round loss to travel to Ireland and explore his family roots. Taking the trip with Parko and Nathan Hedge, Fanning met his God parents and searched out his father’s childhood home.

And while Mick’s accomplishments and his rigorous training would suggest the sensibilities of the consummate professional, Mick’s behavior behind the scenes could veer off into something altogether more chaotic. At the 2009 Surfer Poll event at the Sun Theatre, in Anahiem, California, flush with Vodka and Red Bull, a belligerent Fanning heckled American icon Kelly Slater during a speech, calling him “Jimmy Slade” (a reference to his dubious Baywatch role). But when Kelly in an attempt to defuse the awkwardness invited Mick on stage and asked what would happen if the 10-time champion had done the same thing in Australia, the fired up Fanning replied, “You’d get laid!” Upon retrospect, Mick told Surfer Magazine’s Chris Mauro, “I don’t remember much of last year…it was one of those dickhead moments in my life.” But hard partying and manic, drunken stripping have proven status quo for his alter ego “Eugene” and a badge of honor for what was termed a new breed of Aussie surf stars. The dry, blunt edged pro image did not sit well with him and his mates: Parko and Dean “Dingo” Morrison. But demons be damned, Matt Warshaw would call the trio of Coolangata Kids, the hottest Aussie surfers since Michael Peterson, Peter Townend, and Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew.

But although 2011 proved another tough year for Fanning as he bounced from questionable judges’ calls to a season ending neck injury, 2012 unveiled a well-rested and rejuvenated Fanning getting ready for the Quiksilver Pro, eager to jump back into the fray. He posted the top scores at the Kirra Surfriders Club event on the Gold Coast against decidedly hot competition Owen Wright, Parko, and Mark “Occy” Occhilupo. Mick admitted, “It was definitely a break I needed. I was feeling pretty stale and pretty close to burnout towards the end of the year.” Burnout is bound to happen to surfing is as white hot as Fanning’s, but if his rise and fall from injury and tragedy to world champion surfer has proven anything, it’s that lightning can strike more than once.

Beau Young – Biography

For Australian Beau Young, a life in surfing was penciled in years before he took his first breath. The future world champ came bearing some pretty heavy lineage. His dad, Nat Young, won a world contest, 4 longboard world titles, and was integral in the progression from longboards to shortboards. So with dear old Dad piloting the family Truckster up and down the coast, being a surfer probably looked pretty awesome to young Beau. Boat trips to perfect reef passes, boards shaped by legends, and, of course, tutelage from some of surfing’s most accomplished athletes made becoming a good surfer pretty easy. But with a rather large paternal shadow looming, the question lingered: would he be a great surfer? Beau answered definitively with a longboard world championship in 2000 and yet another in 2003 (both times meeting friend Joel Tudor in the final). But soon Young’s competitive fire became tamped by industry responsibilities, and he found himself facing retirement at age 29. Surely, the former champ with the rich lineage would settle in to a cushy surf industry job. That’s precisely when the Beau Young story veers off the script. He ignored any expectations to match his famous father and instead became a musician for kids as part of the Animalz and embarked on an entirely different path as a solo singer/songwriter. Years after securing his second world title, Beau Young found a creative life not limited to the face of the wave but still inspired by its possibilities.

Beau Young was born August 28, 1974 in Grafton, New South Wales and later raised in Sydney. Several factors led to Young’s penchant for riding waves, the least of which being that New South Wales boasts a history of producing many of the world’s greatest competitive surfers. Its world class waves and engrained surf culture make it a veritable greenhouse for growing talent. However, an even more powerful influence came from his father, 5-time world champion and historic surfing icon, Nat. In his autobiography, Nat’s Nat and That’s That, the elder Young writes of learning his first son’s impending birth, “I was skiing at Perisher Valley when I got the call that my wife had gone into labour 7 weeks early.” As Nat raced to the hospital, he was inspired by a song on the radio “Mr. Bojangles.” He named this “3 pound 6 ounce skinned rabbit” Beau. Tiny but healthy, he was born during a tumultuous time in the family as his parents would soon split. Nat writes that having this second child was an attempt to save the ill-fated marriage but to no avail.

Matt Warshaw describes Beau as first learning to surf at age 6, yet his father’s narrative tells of the budding regular footer having yet to take up surfing seriously as of 1983 (at age 11). Never pressured by his father, it wasn’t long until Beau was meandering with Pops from one surf spot to the next and the impressionable lad soon became passionate about riding waves.  At 18, he traveled with his dad to the North Shore for his first big wave experience. They stayed with pro surfer Bryce Ellis, and on one notable session, the 3 of them surfed 12 foot Haleiwa. Nat writes, “This set the stage to Beau’s jump to bigger surf.” At this point, he was riding short boards primarily, and during his late teens, he competed professionally without much success. But it wasn’t until he began riding longboards in his early 20’s when he found his surfing muse. Although preferring the classic and artistic lines that the longer boards drew across the wave, the Aussie regular footer didn’t abandon his radical shortboard aesthetic. On a longboard, Young had moved from struggling pro to world title contender.

In 1998, he finished 2^nd behind Joel Tudor in the Canary Islands. Two years later, he won the Men’s Longboard Title, once again facing Tudor in the final in Brazil, but this time Young bested his best friend. He Finished 3^rd in 2002 before rocketing back to the top in 2003 in New Zealand. With another world title and a modest $7,000 in winnings, the 29 year old Young stood on the beach, exclaimed “I’m tripping right now!” and promptly retired from competitive surfing. Beau had proven himself worthy by placing ahead of Bonga Perkins and Colin McPhillips (both world champions) in the ASP rankings. However, he had also again met his friend Joel Tudor in the solid 4-5 foot windswept swell. Father Nat added, “There was a period when Joel was just like a son to me too, so I wish it could have been more blow-by-blow during the final…” That final marked a falling out with the longtime friend and competitor, resulting in a rift that lasted for several years. Young cites this as one of his reasons for his retirement from professional surfing in addition to a disillusionment with contest surfing. Beau explained, “I think surfing beautifully and surfing to the best of your ability…showing surfing in a beautiful artistic fashion is just as relevant as competitive results.”

Years earlier, Young had begun playing guitar but only casually.  He admits, “I strummed around from 17 to 26. I probably played two weeks a year.” But as competitive surfing faded to the background, music became more and more prominent in his life. After a break-up with his “dream girl,” he wrote “Waves of Change” which would become his artistic break-out in 2005. Building on his involvement in 4 albums for kids with the Animalz (for which he toured toy companies and similar venues), Young incorporated wistful ocean inspired lyrics with acoustic cool into a smooth blend of good vibes and lost love. In “Waves of Change,” he writes:

“Waiting for waves of change to come my way,

Oh yeah, I miss the old sweet, old sweet days”

This melancholic longing for the simplistic past may reverberate subtle echoes of his own disillusionment with professional surfing and wishful crooning for something more. With support and inspiration from Ben Harper, his debut album did well on the independent charts and resulted in Young’s touring of Japan, Europe, and the United States, most recently with the film “Searching for Michael Peterson.”

Young’s surfing achievements and the influence of his iconic patriarch are ubiquitous as Beau himself admits to following in Dad’s footsteps. They both experienced disenchantment with competitive surfing, but Beau’s post-surfing career has succeeded in finding a unique path and voice through music. As in surfing, Young has found a way to ride the muse and moods of creation, but while the medium may be different, Beau Young is still a surfer. He says “Both art forms leave me feeling this sense of discovery…they’re both like meditation in a way.” He released the album “One Step at a Time” in 2010 and continues to surf and travel. Whether riding perfect barrels or playing music for  international crowds, Young’s song remains the same.

Steph Gilmore’s curse, it seems, is that she has for the majority of her life and career travelled in a bubble of fortune, inhabiting a world where surfing world titles multiply rabbit-like in exponential splendor; where days consist of photo shoots, exotic travel, and shredding guitar sessions; where a world tour campaign can be nonchalantly interrupted by a fun-filled trip across America; and where the precious gift of a career in surfing occurs as an afterthought. Of course, none of this appears curse-like in any way. That is, unless you are Stephanie Gilmore, who has carried this unbearable lightness of being as an albatross neck weight, searching for a dark edge, an escape from her “Happy Gilmore” moniker. And upon a 4^th world title, pure happiness and contentment appeared the eternal plight of this Aussie surf goddess. But one night, trouble stood waiting for her in the darkened parking lot of her apartment complex. The question: Would an indiscriminant attack by a stranger divert the trajectory of Gilmore’s charmed path? The answer: No way! Hailing from one of the surf world’s most verdant champion farms and possessing an internal compass trained squarely on modern renaissance insures that the darkness come her way will serve as inspiration instead of consternation.

The surf gods smiled on Gilmore from day one. She was born January 29^th, 1988, in Murwillumbah on one of surfing’s most hallowed stretches of coastline: New South Wales, Australia. Like other champions, it was around 10 when she first took up riding waves. As she grew and progressed, the long, winding point walls of Snapper Rocks became a canvas upon which she could hone her art as well as develop the aggression needed to navigate a male-dominated crowd scene. Like most female surf stars, she was a tomboy who looked more to Mick Fanning and Joel Parkinson for inspiration than female peers unable to complete with her natural talent. Gilmore immediately jumped a path worn clear by great local women surfers like Phyllis O’Donell, Pam Burridge, Pauline Menczer, and Layne Beachley. But she kept her roots planted deep. Her father, Jeff, would go on to handle his daughter’s vast career earnings while her older sister Whitney would play the part of manager, keeping Gilmore’s success a family affair.

But as her surfing developed, so did her size and strength. She told ESPN, “When I was growing a lot, I was worried I’d be too tall to surf. I thought it would be a disadvantage.” But instead of lanky and gawky, the picturesque blond went a different way: Tall, athletic and powerful. Her surfing reaped the benefits.

In 1999, she finished runner up to Karina Petroni at the Rusty Gromfest at Lennox Head and a year later won the U-14 division at the same beach. After just a few years of turning heads as an amateur, Gilmore was poised for the next level. Rabbit Bartholemew told Surfer Magazine, “By the time she was 16, it was clear she was destined to revolutionize women’s surfing.” No hyperbole there, as she topped the field at the Australian Juniors and the International Surfing Association World Junior Contest in 2004. A year later, Gilmore made her professional debut in with a 1^st place at the 2005 Roxy Pro Gold Coast. At just 17 and competing as a wildcard, Gilmore gave notice that she was about to wreck shop. Like a female Sunny Garcia, she touted she was about to “kick some ass.”

By 2007, the camera friendly regular foot climbed on the ASP Tour full-time. As a rookie, she took her first world title, unseating legendary competitive juggernaut Layne Beachley and clashing with a budding list of new talent. That year, Gilmore won 3 events and was leading the race heading into the final event with former champ Sofia Mulanovich and Silvana Lima in contention. Gilmore took the event and the title. The following year, in 2008, she won 5 ASP Women’s World Tour events and garnered the Vans Hawaiian Triple Crown Title before snatching a second title. As if by sheer will, Gilmore made winning the rule.  The following year, she won the top spot a third time which was immediately followed by a fourth consecutive world title. The rest of the surfing world watched from the sidelines as “Happy” went on to accumulate titles almost uncontested. Along the way, she won a phenomenal total of 17 elite tour events.

That’s the hook: 4 years on tour and 4 world titles, but her life journey reads as rich as her achievements. Maybe she always had an eye for the interesting and eccentric, but upon her 3^rd title, Gilmore’s sensibilities began to wander away from competition and world titles. After spending time with Tom Curren on a boat trip, she began playing guitar and falling farther and farther into music. She took a hiatus from the world tour to spend time just meandering through America. From California to New York, absorbing Americana with her boards gathering dust, she somehow kept one toe dangling in  the swirling murk of competition, just enough, to win her 4^th world title.

But that experience was a watershed period as she considered a major shift from the surf-centric Rip Curl to a more fashion-based subdivision of Quiksilver. It seemed a strange move for a major athlete in her prime, but Gilmore saw new dimensions forming and new avenues opening. From L.A. to Long Beach, Big Sur and New York; she gained new perspective on her cross-country sojourn. Gilmore reflected, “America really is the land of opportunity. Nothing is impossible….There’s so much more to the states than what you get fed here in Australia.”

But it was back at home Down Under where the “Happy” story took a turn for the serendipitous if sinister. Not long after her phenomenal 4^th title and on the eve of signing a multi-million dollar contract with Quiksilver, Gilmore walked through a darkened car park towards her apartment when a stranger approached clutching a metal bar. He beat her severely about the head the wrist, leading to months of recuperation both physically and emotionally.

The indiscriminate, violent attack would force her to sit still and evaluate the future. She admitted to ESPN she was afraid to be alone in her own apartment and had lost trust in people. For a girl whose Midas touch had never failed her, the glimmer of the world had dimmed. But while this unexpected tragedy may have unearthed unknown fears and insecurities, it also offered opportunities to demonstrate new strength over adversity in a life heretofore void of any. Although struggling to get back her competitive rhythm after weeks out of the water, she posed nude for the ESPN Women’s Body Issue in which she admitted that, “I’m insecure about being boring. That’s the thing—I want to be interesting…to be the full eccentric freak.”

While she may never be eccentric, Gilmore has proven herself a freak (of nature). Her athletic talent has lifted her high above the fray, above the dirge of normalcy; and while a random attack of violence momentarily eclipsed her achievements, it failed to extinguish fire and has failed to define her. Her surfing style is powerful yet effortless as is her threading through the fabric of life. In her post-traumatic existence, there has yet to be a 5^th world title, but with a new sponsor firmly planted on the fringe of the surfing world, budding artistic outlets of guitar and photography, and eyes on new success beyond the waves, Steph Gilmore may prove herself the archetype for the next generation of professional surfer.

Out of the gates as a mere teenager with loads of natural talent, Pam Burridge was supposed to be Australia’s first female world champion in the modern era. The title seemed a foregone conclusion, but her goal remained elusive by scant degrees for some 6 years before she finally took the crown in 1990. No self promotion or cries for attention, she was a world champ whose cool vibe prevailed on the beach and in competition. But while she flowed effortlessly along the wave, her deliberate approach down the line was punctuated with aggressive vertical re-entries, buckets of spray, and surgical carves. She peaked well before female surfing found a global audience to yield financial dividends and sometimes seems buried among louder personalities and perceived revolutionary movements in women’s professional surfing. But factor in her 20 professional victories, and Burridge comes off as nothing if not one of surfing’s great modern performers. Pepper in 15 seasons on tour, never falling below 8^th place and one begins to see makings of a classic surfing champion.

Born in 1965, Burridge hailed from Manly Beach, Australia. As a skateboarder and avid swimmer (and sister of an Olympic swimmer), learning to ride waves wasn’t a stretch; but it wasn’t until 1975 when at age 10, she hopped on a homemade surfboard and unknowingly found her calling. She was soon ripping nearby beaches, spending a summer under the tutelage of Nat Young, Bill McCausland and Tony Hardwick, which helped her non-surfing parents wrap their brains around their daughter’s new passion. And her parents must have been shocked when just 2 years after stepping on a surfboard, the blond pre-teen would take her first win at a local contest.  She continued to compete, concluding that boys were better competition against her building skills and confidence. She won Australian state titles from 1979-81 and national titles in 1980 and 1981.

Burridge fell into surfing as a career a bit haphazardly. Professional surfing in the 80’s was still in its infancy. At that time, the separation between amateur and professional athletes was a matter of money. Accepting payment for a win would officially deem you “professional.” Consequently, when Burridge was invited to compete in the Hawaiian pro events, she said goodbye to amateur status and found herself at the end of the 1980 season ranked 11^th in the world. She chose to quit school in 1982 to become a full-time tour surfer at 17. The surf media piled on the praise as her prodigious talent and good looks assured the stylish goofy foot a future in the sport and, of course, a championship title in short order.  She led the IPS world tour the entire year but found herself in 2^nd behind Debbie Beacham upon conclusion of the year’s final event. Burridge would finish runner-up an insane six times as the list of her rivals was nothing if not impressive. Throughout her career, she battled tour greats like Frieda Zamba, Pauline Menczer, Jodie Cooper, Wendy Botha, Lisa Anderson and Layne Beachley. Burridge fell just short of the title over the next 4 years, percolating among the top 5. She dropped to 7^th place in 1987 and jumped back to the runner-up position for another 2 years.

Surfing was a rough go as a profession in those days, and being a female pro surfer was even tougher. Jason Borte writes,“… Burridge had to turn to car-body repairers and hat companies for financial assistance.” In 1989, after losing her sponsors, Burridge’s boyfriend  Mark Rabbidge sold his car to purchase a plane ticket to the next contest, a stroke of faith that ignited a competitive run that garnered Burridge her most elusive goal. She won the ASP Women’s world title in 1990 after a convincing win in big Sunset Beach grinders.

There is one twist of fate that is often overlooked in Burridge’s career. Wendy Botha won the world title one year prior to Burridge and became Australia’s first world champion, a feat for the record books. However, Botha was born a South African, and just a year before her win had applied for Australian citizenship to help enhance her professional career as South African Apartheid policies hampered her travel to events. Botha became Australia’s maiden champion by way of a signature on a document, relegating Burridge to runner-up status. Burridge remained at the top of the ratings for the next three years and then retired.

In 1992,  Marion K. Stell  wrote Pam Burridge, a biography that illuminated the dark and frayed edges of Australia’s surfing queen.  Burridge admitted struggles with Anorexia as well as with drugs and alcohol, giving new dimension to her public persona. Burridge returned to the tour for a stint, finishing 3^rd in 1997 behind Layne Beachley and Lisa Anderson, a result Burridge herself calls one of the most satisfying of her career. She left the tour and then again jumped back into competition before quitting one last time as she was pregnant with her first child. She left for good in 1999, still ranked 8^th in world.

She and Rabbidge named their first child Isobel after one of Australia’s earliest female surfers. Still grabbing waves “in between breastfeeds and other irrefutable demands,” she gave birth to her second child, Otis, two years later. With 20 total victories and ranked in the top 8 for 15 seasons, there was nothing for Burridge to prove to the world. She moved with Rabbidge the South Coast of New South Wales. She was inducted into the Sport Australian Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Australian Surfing Hall of Fame in 1997. Starting in 2003, Burridge began running a surfing school at Bendalong and Mollymook and looked to be settling into rural bliss.

However, in 2005 at 39 years old, she again jumped into the competitive fray to compete against one of the most impressive lists of talent in years and surfers half her age. Burridge said, “I still feel I have something to throw at them so that’s why I’ve entered a few divisions, mostly for fun.” And with decades of competition and travel behind her, a world title, and even a Sydney Ferry that carries her name; it seems that fun is her next great adventure. She sums it up, “After 20 years I have a new perspective on it all. Just having fun, trying to surf well and getting good waves is what it’s about these days.”