NE BLAHS

The Land of Ice Cream Headaches -- Ready
Once upon a time, in the land of pointbreaks and icecream headaches, people would awaken from frozen hibernation right about now, and this would be the first report since the onset of winter. Now, with the advent of six mils and other cold water accoutrements, the news just keeps comin’ all year, and as always, things are beginning to get busy with spring’s appearance. Up north in Groton, Connecticut, Core Skate, Snow, and Surf is thawing out from the winter with lots of new goodies.
Tyler Abbatiello -- Swegles
The shop will be carrying a ton of new boards this spring, so keep an eye out for some fine shapes. In addition to the new sticks, the shop is in the process of assembling a skate team to reek havoc on the freshly built skatepark in town. The facility has a variety of skateable structures, from pyramids to hand rails, and eventually it will have a pro shop as well. •Mark Anastas from Liquid Dreams returned to a temperate but flat Ogunquit, Maine, after an unreal trip to Costa Rica in mid-February. Stopping everywhere from Mal Pais to Tamarindo and catching waves shoulder-high to double-over left him with a big ol’ smile on his face. Even though Costa has gotten crowded lately, he scored a perfect point break for three days with only two of his bros, Joe Bussre and Duncan Murphy. Incidentally, congrats out to Joe and longtime girlfriend Allison who got engaged while on the trip. Lastly, Mark says he is stocking the store with threads from Hurley and boards from Channel Islands. •New York’s Woody’s Surf Shop has been busy getting their team ready for the NE Regionals in Sea Isle, New Jersey. Teamrider T-Bone Abbatiello has picked up Channel Islands, and brother Tyler is still going strong with Matt Kechele Surfboards. Joey Rosadio, Mike Becker, and the Abbatiello brothers have all been hooked with goods from Etnies, FreeStyle, and Arnette. Chris Seipel says that the shop has brought Realm, Rietveld, Lost, Byrne, Weber, Channin, and Bing through the doors this year. Woody’s will be stocking 200 surfboards and bodyboards all summer long from many of the aforementioned companies. The Shirley, NY, store is planning an eventful summer with numerous raffles, video nights, and a paddleboard race. Look for the specific dates of these events in their upcoming ESM ad. •Massachusetts’s John Croitty has been pick ed up by Realm, FCS, Slap-on, and Body Glove. •Congrats out to Mark and Kaupe Keup at Nor’Easter Surf Shop on the birth of their first child in April. The timing of the little one kept Mark from his annual trip to Hawaii in March, although he valiantly tried to convince the new mom to go. Speaking of Nor’Easter, the shop added CB and Rip Curl Surfboards, Toes on the Nose, and Stussy to the list of available merchandise. The buzz on the street is that Elleven Clothing is doing really well, Gravis Shoes are killing it, and Rusty C-5’s of every variety are taking off in MA. Mark is adding 2 more racks in the boardroom for the new additions and plans on stocking 150 sticks.
Justin Casey -- Rickerich
•Warm Winds Surf Shop’s Tom and Sue Hogan slipped off to the Virgin Islands in mid-March, leaving operating duties to Brian Kelley, Wendy Woodmansee, and crew. Before Tom left, he was busy shaping boards, and Local Motion’s Jay Lavigne stopped by and performed glassing duties. Speaking of boards, Brian said the new Rusty and Ricky Carroll boards look great. •Justin Casey returned to Rhode Island in mid-March after he spent his spring break in Maui. The lucky boy surfed Honolua Bay going off the morning he left, then when he landed back on the East Coast, he paddled straight out at Ruggles. Skater Island is now on Casey’s list of sponsors which already includes Cannibal, Rip Curl, and Waterbros Surf Shop. Justin and pal Bryan Burns will hopefully be running a surf camp this summer in conjunction with Waterbros. Incidentally, Skater Island has achieved national recognition after Thrasher Magazine named it one of the five best parks in the country. It is currently being remodeled and will reach a girthy 20,000 sq. ft. •Rhode Island’s Symon Cousens, Becky Clarke, Mike “The Puddle” Ferreira, Pete “Fat” and Karen Razza, and John and Katie Boone escaped to Mex for a late January vacation. The crew encountered uncrowded lineups, friendly locals, and cheap beer–a highlight of every surf trip. Symon says nothing is new from last year in the shop, but he has changed the name of his Middletown store from Redney’s to Elemental Surf and Skate.
Eddie Burke -- Rickerich
•Rhode Island’s Emily and Paul Bennett, owners of the famous Bennett’s Surfside Deli in Pt. Judith, returned from a month’s stay in Southern California in early March. Paul said that although the crowds were often overwhelming and there were a lot of kooks in the water, Malibu was unbelievable and worth the hassle for the perfect waves they caught. •Ed Burke has been making the most of the wintertime in the NE with snowboard trips to Mt. Snow in VT, and Sunday River in ME. The RI charger said the hills are still packing real powder, but he is looking forward to a summer filled with plenty of hurricane swell.   •The New England ESA and Surfrider chapters combined forces through the help of Jan Czajkowski. The merger will continue to support and promote surfing and the environment with greater strength. Jan said that this way, both the ESA and Surfrider will benefit with more memberships and financial support. Speaking of the ESA, mid-Atlantic Grandmaster Jeff Phillips made the trek north through six hours of snow and sleet to compete in the 33rd Annual ESA NE Mid-winter Championships. •South Providence, RI’s, Pat and Mike McNulty, came home in early March after a vacay in Costa Rica. Pat, a policeman, said he was tempted to use his nightstick on a few floundering Californians but exercised some restraint. While he was pleased with the surf he caught, he had reservations about the law enforcement in Costa. The peace officers brandished machine guns and T-shirts with a police star printed on the front–not exactly the ideal image of a modern policeman. Despite his concerns about the weaponry, Pat said he would definitely go back. Compiled by Chris Stellacio


MA BLAHS

Tony Butler -- Oakley
The boys at OCMD’s Cloudbreak Surf Shop were prepping their midtown store for the onslaught of tourist season when the unexpected happened–the shop caught fire. Fortunately, it didn’t burn to the ground, but it suffered fire and water damage. The guys made the best of it, though, by holding a fire sale, so stop in and check out the “hot” shapes. •Newbern, NC’s, Eastern Edge Surf Shop has added Fox Racing motocross apparel to their inventory, and John “Mo” Morgan said the line has been great for business. John, along with Mike Hearne,
Mike Hearn -- Lally
Anthony French, Ron Butler, and brother Tony from Sweetwater Surf Shop, journeyed to Puerto Rico in early March. While the group reaped the benefits of quality waves, they paid their dues through an unnecessary hassle. The boys were robbed while helping two bodyboarders who were being sucked into the razor sharp rocks at Indicators. In their haste, John, Mike, and Tony tossed their boards on the roof of their car and went to make the rescue. While they were being good Samaritans, Anthony was left to watch the gear but fell asleep, and somebody made off with two of the sticks. Fortunately, they found the boards, but the saga wasn’t over yet. Two days later, the same individuals who stole their gear, slashed the tires on the crew’s rental car. •Speaking of Sweetwater, teamriders Mitch Baker and Pete Viele returned from a spring break hiatus to Cali in mid-March. About that same time, Justin Perry and Mark Yonkers were planning for their break to either Panama or Puerto Escondido. Meanwhile, Kevin Powers was hard at work studying to become a man of the cloth at Duke. •Another NC guy on the move is Mark Hunt who was picked up by Action Surfboards. •The New York/ New Jersey region of the Surfer's Environmental Alliance (SEA) has announced the addition of geologist Douglas Auld P.G. to its staff. The Wyckoff, NJ, resident comes to the organization with 15-years of environmental remediation, investigation, and contaminant transport experience. SEA has recently addressed the issues of the Mud Dump site off the Sea Bright coast and jetty notching in Loch Arbour, NJ. Both issues are of great concern to surfers in the Monmouth Co. area. Jetty notching is a process by which rocks are removed from a section of the structure to allow sand to flow through from the north and south. Because these holes affect sand deposits, the process also directly affects how the waves will break. The Mud Dump is a site where sediment dredged from shipping channels has been unloaded by barges offshore. The mud is a toxic blend of dirt and pollutants, and it's impacting not only the water quality, but it destroys habitat for marine life as well. Anyone who would like to get involved with SEA can contact Brian Unger at 212-889-2323. •Maryland-based ESM Senior Shooter Brian Maglietta is stepping up his photography biz with a sponsored trip to Hawaii thanks to the United States Surfing Federation.
Shane Upchurch -- Oakley
Brian has been putting in mega hours upgrading the USSF’s website, and his hard work is beginning to pay off. During a July 10th trip to the South Shore of Oahu, he will be doing a live webcast of the USSF’s competitions. •Belleville, NJ’s, Vito DeFranza’s recent trip to Hawaii came to an abrupt end due to a precarious injury. The Joisey boy was out at Jocko’s on the North Shore with solid 6-8’ surf when he took off on an outside clean-up wave and went over the falls head-first. He immediately felt a warm rush in his groin area and realized the fin on his board had ripped a 7” gash down his inner thigh. The cut started roughly one inch below his “do-dad’s,” and it went all the way to the femur bone. By the time DeFranza made it to the beach, he began to go into shock. Waimea emergency personnel treated him until he was rushed to the hospital and promptly stitched up on the inside and out. He woke up six hours later, but doctors found that the wound hadn't been cleaned properly, so surgeons reopened the wound, cleaned it out, and stitched him up again. For more on DeFranza, check out the Who Da Guy profile in this issue. •Chris Todd at 17th Street Surf Shop in Virginia Beach reported that local hot grom Drew Moye has signed on with Billabong. The Bong is substantially beefing up their East Coast squad this year. Also, the Vah Beach store is rescheduling the 17th St./ Billabong Jr. Pro so as to not conflict with the ECSC’s in August. The contest will still be held in Hatteras, though. •Chauncey’s Surf Shop in OCMD added Ole and legendary Cali longboard label Con to their stock. Other shop happenings had Blair Rhodes returning from a two-week stint in Kauai, HI, where he scored all time Hanalei Bay. •Up the street, K-Coast Surf Shop is gearing up for their second annual Surf Off on June 24th. The contest is sponsored by HIC, Sector 9, and Oakley, and it will be held at 78th St. across from the store. The contestant field is being capped at 60, so those interested should contact the shop at 410-723-3330 to ensure themselves a slot. Terrence and Joe McNulty will attend the Surf Off, and proceeds will benefit a local charity.  
Drew Moye -- Swegles
•NJ’s Bill Brown is back at work at Wave Jammer Surf Shop after a two-week stay in Barbados in late February. While on the island, Brown caught a seething, eight-foot north swell, and in the departure department, longtime manager Mike “Ammo” Amatrudi left the shop to sub-rep for Rip Curl under the guidance of Ed Pierce. The Toms River store has their website running flawlessly, and it apparently has been receiving a lot of attention. Be sure to check out www.wavejammer.com, and give it a look-see. •Ken Roughton at Fenwick Island Surf Shop welcomed back island hopper Matt Naylor from his annual winter romp across the Caribbean. Other DE guys returning from fun-filled winters in PR were Robbie Clower and Colin Herlihy. Herlihy is working on putting together a bodyboarding video with footage from the trip. Ken said he’d be remiss in his Blah Blah duties if he failed to mention that Dennis “The Menace” Cappo is stuck in PA trying to figure out how he can move back to the beach. •Lastly, on a sore note, NC supergrom Shane Upchurch has been out of commission for over three months. In early December, doctors found a chip in his right knee which immobilized him. Apparently, it was an old skateboarding injury that suddenly decided to flare up. Shane said he couldn’t bend it or do much of anything, but he's been exercising the knee and is now back in the water. Compiled by Chris Stellaccio


SE BLAHS

Gabe Prusnack -- Snyder
Spring is upon us once again, and after a short and relatively waveless winter, things are starting to heat up–at least in terms of temperature. Some of the surfers in the Southeast who were lucky enough to score a little surf during the cold months include Gainesville, FL’s, Free Ride Surf Shop owner, Meredith Burch, who hopped on a quick flight to the Bahamas during a February swell. Burch, along with Scott McGuire, Dr. Dan O. Schellemi, Ferguson Peters, and Tom Glikes, were treated to 5 hours of 4-6 foot quality surf at Walker’s Cay. They reported that they were the only surfers within 100 miles, and after surfing for a few hours, flew back just in time for dinner. The miracles of modern transportation never cease to amaze. •ESM Contributing Photographer Jeff Snyder in Corpus Christi, Texas, will be transporting himself to the Boston area to attend MIT. Snyder recently mailed us some photos of a Texas Gulf Surfing Association contest in Port Aransas and reported that the young and unsponsored Gabe Prusnak has been dominating the Menehune’s division for the past two years. Snyder will be doing graduate work in Marine Geophysics at MIT, and he will be assisting in research on fissures and cracks in continental shelf off of North Carolina. The research will be based out of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in MA, and it could shed light on catastrophic tsunami’s possibly occurring when these cracks in the shelf expand. •In other ESM photog news, Chris Wilson has moved back to the Indialantic, FL, area after a short stint shooting for a real estate company in Naples on the Gulf Coast. The hardworking Wilson can be found either shooting, surfing, napping or fishing at Sebastian when he’s not dropping by ESM headquarters trying to bum film or a cup of coffee.
Chris Wilson -- Dugan
•Island Water Sports in Lake Worth, FL, has expanded its store and now includes another 7,000 square feet of space thanks to the addition of a second floor. The shop, home to Baron Knowlton, will now be able to accommodate even more of South Florida’s bustling surf population. Call 561-588-1728 for more info. •Barefoot Bubba’s in Beaufort, SC, has added new boards from ...Lost and Lowcountry Surfboards, but more importantly, the shop reports that they have a new sign that finally displays the words “surf shop.” Until the sign went up, rednecks from across the state were coming in without shoes and asking to see a menu. •Along the Gulf Coast, Gary Sullivan from Florida Oceansports in St. Petersburg, FL, will sponsor a surf team at Lakewood High School also located in St. Pete. The Spartan’s surf team already has 11 members signed up, and membership privileges include T-shirts and discounts to teamriders at Oceansports. As of now, all of the members are either freshman or sophomores, so it looks like the team will have a bright future at the school and out at Upham and Sunset. •In other St. Pete news, Micah Weaver of Aurasurf is expecting a baby in June with his wife Sabrina. In addition to being a proud father and business owner, Micah is also a surf photographer. You can check out his shot of Aura teamrider James Jolly in last issue’s premiere of Dick’s Pics. •Further up the Gulf Coast in the Panhandle, a new shop has opened its doors. Chance Stone and James McClain unveiled Blue Room Surf & Sport in Panama City Beach, FL, on March 1st. •Down in Palm Beach, the guys at Ocean Magic held the inaugural Ocean Magic Pro Am Surf Festival at Juno Pier. The ESA-sanctioned event had a $1500 purse and included a plethora of sponsors. The proceeds went to Surfrider Foundation and the USLA surfing clinics. •Those wedding bells are ringing here in Brevard County. Two of our best surfers, Todd Holland and David Speir, tied the knot recently. (No, not with each other.) Todd got hitched to girlfriend Cheryl Cochran on March 18th in Cape Canaveral, and Speir entered into holy matrimony with Ms. Stacey Eastabrook on April 29th. Best of luck to you all.
Corky -- Mez
•The ESM office was graced with the presence of two notable surfing figureheads earlier this spring when Corky Carroll and Jay Evilsizor stopped by during their four day surf shop tour of Florida. The tour was to promote Corky Carroll Sportswear, a full line of surfing apparel which debuted at the January expo. They started their whirlwind promo in Central Florida, headed north to Daytona and New Symrna for two days, and finally ended up in South Florida. The first official stop the duo made was here at ESM, and their last appearance was in Fort Lauderdale at BC Surf and Sport. Jay, the president of Surf Management, was reportedly so overwhelmed by all of Corky’s outrageous antics that upon returning from the expedition, he suffered two heart attacks. Thankfully, Jay is recovering fine, but the doctor has ordered him to avoid anymore full moons for at least six months. •Black Pearl glasser Mike Schemmel is also in the hospital and bravely fighting Leukemia. The Surf Station in St. Augustine, FL, held a surf contest at Anastasia State Park during March to raise money for Mike who is in the cancer unit at Shands Hospital in Gainesville. The good news is Schemmel is expected to recover and go home soon, and anyone wishing to make donations can send them to Mike Schemmel c/o Tory Strange at the Surf Station, 1020 Anastasia Blvd., St. Augustine, FL 32084. •High Tide surf shop in Tybee Island, GA, broke ground on their new public skatepark in March and says that the park will be designed by the same folks who brought you the Savannah Slamma Pro contests years ago. Shop -owner Tim Malins also told us that local surfer and DJ Josh Barret will be spinning his audio magic at local clubs in Georgia, and he has a new mystery partner in his act that will hopefully propel him into techno stardom. •Dusty Simmons, owner of RC’s Board Shop, informed ESM that his shop in Satellite, Beach, FL, has been totally remodeled. The store is all-new for 2000, and they’re beefing up their surfboard stock, doubling their skateboard selection, and adding several new clothinglines. For more info on the shop or to check the RC’s surf cam, stop by their website rcsboardshop.com. •Down in stylish South Beach, Saint Valentine delivered a beautiful baby girl to X-Isle Surf Shop owners Cheryl and Mike Hoffmeister. Sabrina Angelica Hoffmeister was born on Feb. 14, in Miami, FL, and is one Valentine present that we’re sure the couple will be remembering for a long time to come. Compiled by Chris Towery    

Blah Blahs
BACK ISSUES
#63 / #64 / #65 / #66 / #67 / #68 / #69 / #70 / #71 / #72 / #74 / #75 / #76 / #77 / #78 / #79 / #80 / #81 / #82 / #83 / #84 / #85 / #86 / #87 / #88 / #89 / #90 / #91 / #92 / #93 / #94 / #95 / #96 / #97 / #98 / #99 / #100 / #101 / #102 / #103 / #104 / #105 / #106 / #107 / #108 / #109 / #110 / #111 / #112 / #113 / #114 / #115 / #116 / #117