NE BLAHS
•Dubious Honor Productions' Ben Keller checked in from Portland, ME, to let us know that the hip Proven In The Northeast film festival is set to kick off for the second year in a row--and organizers are now accepting submissions. Filmmakers of all abilities are encouraged to submit films of seven minutes or less that depict surfing, skateboarding and/ or snowboarding in New England. There is no fee to enter and the winner will receive a new digital video camera plus exposure on the national sports channel, Regional Sports Network (RSN). Proceeds from the event will benefit the Surfrider Northern New England Chapter. Submissions with the entrant's name, mailing address, phone number and e-mail address should be sent on VHS, MiniDV or DVD by August 31st, 2006. Mail to: Proven In The Northeast, PO Box 5134, Portland, ME 04101. Go to www.provenne.com for complete details. •During a mid-February personal assignment to West Palm Beach, FL, New Hampshire photog Brian Nevins was snowed out of his homestate due to a record-breaking nor'easter that dumped more than two feet of snow on several regions. Nevins made use of his extra time in the Sunshine State by absorbing some rays ("I can't believe you guys call 50 degrees cold down here!" he said) and stopping by the infamous ESM headquarters ("I can't believe you guys drink so much Red Bull down here," he said) in Melbourne Beach, FL.
•Chris Kluesener from Thrust Clothing let us know that they recently moved business down to Wrightsville Beach, NC. After launching and operating the line out of Long Island, NY, they felt the bustling college town would be the perfect place for additional growth and prosperity. Click on www.thrustsurfwear.com to learn more about Thrust Worldwide LLC.
•Two CT boys in the 2006 Maverick's Surf Contest final? No, not WCT boys... but Connecticut boys, namely CT-born Surfing Magazine Editor-In-Chief Evan Slater, who knows his craft on and off the page. It's no secret that the mild-mannered desk dweller is one of surfing's greatest journalists, a phenomenal waverider, and a charger of frightening proportions. But when we heard he placed 6th at the recent Maverick's Surf Contest in February, the line as writer and rider have never been blurrier. But that's one assignment you can have all to yourself, Ev. And more Connecticut cheers go to former Constitution Stater/ big-wave hellman Grant Washburn who placed 5th in the same Mav's event.
•Zoo York added the following East Coasters to the team: Sean Killarney from Long Beach, NY, Casey Lockwood from Durham, NH, as well as Morgan O'Connell from Frisco, NC. Sean has been holding it down in New York for many years now and is always a standout on the North Shore every winter, while Lockwood is a staple in the New England scene. The 15-year-old Morgan is part of a new crop of Outer Banks rippers and is currently touring Australia with the ESA Allstar Team to compete in Pro Junior events. Also in Zoo York news, the company is set to release their first major surf video featuring riders such as Will Skudin and Ben McBrien charging Rightside hurricane swells, Hawaii and an assortment of other hefty locales. Those boys ain't scared.
•New Yorker-switched-Southern North Carolina shooter Kenny Onufrock recently redesigned his website, www.dpsurfer.com, adding new pics from this winter on the North Shore. Go on in and get your 'Frock on.
•New Jersey pro-turned-Puerto Rico ambassador Jason Reagan organized an impromptu ESM Always Right video premiere at the restaurant/ bar where his girlfriend Talia Crespo work, The Pool Bar. One of Maine's top surfers and a former ESM Who Da Guy, Nico Evans, made an appearance and was later seen catching heaps of waves on PR's northwest coast.
•New England-based Himaya is making quite an impression with their solid East Coast surf squad, including Evan Geiselman, the Thompson tribe, Hunter Lineback, Tommy Orsini, Danielle Clow, Oliver Kurtz, Matt Turner and Patrick Madsen, all of whom sport Himaya's sunscreen, which utilizes a high concentration of miconized zinc oxide to provide all-day water and sweat-proof protection. Find Himaya in a growing list of surf shops and online at www.himaya.com.
•Nova Scotia's Morgan Begg informed us of some seriously sick local shots recently posted online at www.tmcleanphoto.tripod.com. Check out the mouthwatering secret spots at 15-foot and throwing. Then it's time to dust off the 6/4 mm, fly up to Novi and go find them for yourself.
•In Blah Bloopers, we were informed about a mislabeled photo of Shaye Cavanaugh (that we credited to Claire Hassett) last issue, which was actually taken by the talented Northern shooter Luke Simpson. Our apologies, Luke.
•Looking for the most hardcore surf shop in the Northeast? The unofficial (don't get all bent out of shape, shopowners) results just came in from Great Lakes correspondent Magilla Schaus, who's claiming www.thirdcoastsurfshop.com. We'd certainly agree that the coldest temperatures our side of the Mississippi coupled with the last frontier of freshwater surfing definitely makes this shop a top candidate, Mag. Visit www.thirdcoastsurfshop.com.
•Congrats to Aquadilla, PR, native/ NYC musician David Sasscer and his group, the Mojo Conga Band, whose song made it to the semifinals in the International Songwriting Competition. The judges for this year's comp included Tom Waits, Loretta Lynn and Macy Gray. Stay tuned to David's website at www.davidsasscer.com for more news on the contest results and his music.
•Air and ocean water temperatures could not have been better, um, or "bitter" for the 38th Annual New England Mid Winter Surfing Championships, held at the Narragansett Town Beach in mid-February, where occasional snow flurries fell during the final heats. What else could you ask for in a New England comp with that name? Well, a clean three-foot swell, of course, which competitors ripped apart. Some of the top finishers included Dave Reynolds, Peter Pan, Erica Ferrera, Kate Ryan, Nora Vasconcellos, Wade Madden, Matt Richards, Gidget Ferrera and the Gansett Juice Surf Team. If you missed coverage of the event by four local news stations--then you need to complain to your local cable provider--and go online to www.surfesa.org for the rest of the deets.
•Rhode Island artist extrordinaire Mike Montanaro recently opened the Montanaro Gallery in Newport, sitting in a hopping location on scenic Thames Street, alongside the many restaurants, pubs and coffee houses. Mike is excited to focus on monthly shows that feature both established and emerging talents from contemporary mediums, such as photography, video, painting, sculpture and drawing. And it will also serve as homebase for Mike's clothing line, Montanaro Designs Limited Edition Clothing. Stay tuned to www.montanarogallery.com for the latest on the grand opening. Compiled by Mike Fish
|
MA
BLAHS
•Eastern Surf's deepest prayers and sincere condolences go out to everyone who knew and loved Zeke Sanders, a longtime fixture in the Virginia Beach, VA, surfing community who died tragically on January 5th at the age of 29. Zeke was a beloved friend with a unique style in and out of the water, and a well-respected ripper who once won an ASP-WQS event, the 1998 Gotcha Dan Heritage Memorial Classic. Among those close friends left behind includes award-winning videographer Pat Stublen, who set up a website in Zeke's memory, www.zekesanders.com, full of nostalgic, heart-wrenching pictures, a bio, and a tribute video edited by Stubby himself. Sanders' family is requesting donations be made to Surfers' Healing, a surf camp for autistic children: PO Box 1267, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693. Chesapeake Surf And Skate (CSS) even held a benefit contest on February 5th at Rock Lane in Sandbridge, VA, the inaugural CSS Cold Water Classic, with all entry fees going to Zeke's family and the fund. And Zeke's close buddies passed out "ZS" pins at the Orlando Surf Expo, proof that he will live on in East Coasters' hearts forever. •Big ups to Cape May, NJ, pro-turned-relocated Puerto Rico ambassador Jason Reagan, who graciously put up a bunch of his Mid-Atlantic brethren in late January--including ESM Editor Matt Pruett, ESM Assignment Writer Ben Pratt, Billy Hume, Jeff Myers, Jason Gilleland, Pete Viele and Wilmington, NC, videographer Nate Lee (the latter of whom was collecting clips for his upcoming video, Baggage, a testament to the life of a traveling East Coast surfer). The crew encountered big waves and bigger crowds, as the first northwester of the year managed to hit PR immediately following Orlando Surf Expo. Other well-knowns who made the flight included Gabe Kling, Jody Davis, Shane Beschen, Danny Melhado and Pat Gudauskas. Look for photographic evidence of the swell on Surfline, www.surfline.com, courtesy of shutterman supreme Steve Fitzpatrick.
•BAM! Jeff Myers just joined Ocean City, NJ, pro Matt Keenan on the West Clothing squad. BAM!
•Noah Snyder and Jesse Hines took a trip to La Isla Encanta with ESM Senior Photographer Jimmy Wilson this February. Stay tuned to the pages of Eastern Surf to see how they fared.
•Congratulations to ESM scribe Noah Garrett, who just got engaged to fiancé Rachael Jebaily.
•Speaking of ESM Assignment Writers, Josh Hunter landed the highly coveted Senior Editor position at Transworld Business. And though we can to some degree credit ourselves for helping give Josh his start in surf journalism, it wasn't just his pen-pushing skills that earned him the gig, but also his experience as a manager of Wrightsville Beach, NC's, Surf City Surf Shop, where he studied the finer points of specialty business retail under industry noisemakers Roy Turner and Mike Barden. Josh can now be reached out west at 760-722-7777, ext. 127 or at joshua@twsnet.com. •Delaware ripper Aaron Powell has been spending the past few months on the North Shore of Oahu, where he reports to be surfing tons, mostly at Sunset, and experimenting with all kinds of single fins and retro shapes.
•Ezera rep Donnie Jones checked in from Mainland Mexico to tell us he just put Wrightsville Beach, NC, freakshralper Matt Gilligan on the team as Ezera's #1 East Coast guy.
•As of December 15th, former ESM Who Da Guy and Hoven Eyewear/ Ammon Watches rep Jason Forrest became the new Southeast rep for the skateboard distribution company NHS Inc., covering Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee. His brands include Independent, Santa Cruz, Ricta, Krux, Creature, Mob Grip, Bullet and Designarium. You can reach Jason at 252-573-9628 or livelife810@hotmail.com.
•Topsail Island, NC, surfer and Anarchy teamer Mike Beech has been building his portfolio lately, contributing several photos to the new, free, Wilmington, NC, surf/ skate/ music publication, Line Up Magazine.
•In other mag news, change your bearings and loosen your trucks, punks, then feeble grind your way through the 10th year anniversary of one of the toughest, real deal skate pubs out there, as our friends at Concussion Magazine get ready to birth their 30th issue with the battle cry: "Better Than A Hole In The Head," according to East Coast photog and founding member Jason "Blurry' Murray (whom you might remember as former photo editor of Surfer Magazine). With a black-and-white, zine-style format printed on super sturdy glossy stock paper, this rag is better than a lot of the crap out there (especially those regional pieces of poseur trash we see littering shop floors these days). The photography is stupendous, some of the written words are gloriously stupid (in a good way), and with the occasional surf flavor cross-wired in, who'd ever think a Concussion could feel so good that you'd want to come back for more? Get your very own hole in the head by sending $20 for four issues or $30 for eight to: PO Box 70535, Richmond, CA, 94807.
•Savage Rips just added Outer Banks destroyer Dana Quinn to their already stacked list of talented riders which includes Josh Saunders, Dave Whitfield, Jason Mailand, Ryan Rhodes, Craig Purkiss, TJ Crum, and Matt "Pay Da" Price. The boys send shakas to Ted Kearns at TK Shapes for building them such killer boards. They also just picked up Florida's Miles Jacovits and Jersey boy Tom Brendli to rep Savage Rips on the East Coast. You can check out the latest styles for 2006 at www.savagerips.com.
•Cape May, NJ, videographer Lenny Helbig left for Barbados on February 18th to gather footage for his next film, to be released at a later date. Get the low-down on his current release, Untidaled, in this issue's Peepshow department (Page 110).
•Cammi and Gurney Collins of Hotline Surfboards are pleased to announce the opening of their newest location at Red Mill Commons in Virginia Beach, VA. Be sure to check out their grand opening celebration on Saturday, April 8th.
•In other VB news, Andrew Meyer, Brendan Petticrew and friends just got back from a week at Tavarua where they caught consistently fun surf, plenty of fish, and a few buzzes. Surfing Magazine Photographer Scott Winer was on hand to shoot the whole deal.
•After not surfing for three months, Joisey chick Linda Davoli spent 14 days this winter in Tortola, where she scored 10 to 12-foot Cane Garden Bay.
•According to Jersey photog Tom Spader at www.localswell.com, the second near fatal surf accident in as many months occurred on Sunday, February 5th in Bay Head, NJ, when Jenks local Ryan Ballou sustained serious injuries while surfing heavy dredging conditions, getting thrown into the sandbar and breaking the C-6 in his back. Lucky for Ryan, Sam Hammer and others were able to get him to the beach. Paramedics were called in and after an immediate scare, feeling returned to his arms and legs. He's expected to make a full recovery. The first close call, Manasquan local Sindia Sosdian, broke three vertebrae riding similar conditions in mid-December and will be out of the water until July. Godspeed both in the healing process.
•Another Jerseyite who got a scare this winter was photog Ryan Miller. While in PR and heading up to Middles, a lady plowed full-speed through an intersection, hitting Ryan's car in the passenger side and totaling both vehicles. The woman went to the hospital while Miller walked away physically unscathed but with $14,435 in damages to the car.
•Maryland artist Bonnie Preziosi has a new website up and running at www.bpwaves.com. A past contributor to ESM's Surf Art Feature, Bonnie will continually update the site each month with new work.
•Another past ESM Surf Art subject doing well is Buxton, NC, ripper Jason Andre. His website, www.home.earthlink.net/~jnjandre/jsunproductions exhibits the multitude of talents he possesses. Aside from being a straight-up ripper and one of the baddest tuberiders on the Outer Banks, Jason's an artist, a musician, a budding photographer... and even a videographer! Hey Mr. Right, hear this: You cannot have my job. He's also helping Christian Surfers put on the CS Top Gun Surf School, which went down this March at JJ Yemma's Popoyo Surf Camp in Nicaragua, with Noah Snyder and Jesse Hines signed on as instructors and OB lensman Mickey McCarthy serving as staff photographer. The purpose was to take 12 groms who are actively pursuing competitive surfing and give them a week of intense, high-quality surf instruction with a contest format, while preparing them to be ambassadors for Christ in the contest arena. For more info, contact Christian Surfers MD/DE Director Roy Harrell at 302-462-0842.
•And ending on a high note, born and bred Outer Banks ripper Trent Barkley and his wife Krista had their first beautiful baby girl, Ava Casey, on February 5th (Super Bowl Sunday). Here's to you, kids! Compiled by Matt Pruett
|
SE BLAHS
•"The Inlet's gone thermonuclear!" raved Sebastian superman Dave Speir in a phone call to the Eastern Surf offices. Speir gave up his post at Rusty to jump on board the Oakley sales team, bringing fellow First Peaker Todd Morcom along as Marketing and Team Manager and getting Bill Hartley on the Big O, as well. Meanwhile, another Brevard powerhouse, Bryan Hewitson, took Speir's place as Rusty's new Florida sales rep.
•Surfguru's Buddha is happy to report the new Spanish House cam is up on www.surfguru.com, where you can see North Spanny all the way to the Inlet and all the peaks in between! Cocoa Beach Pier and Boardwalk are sighted for new cams by the Buddha.
|
|
Blah Blahs |