Though this summer brought the warmest water temps to the Northeast’s lineups in five years (up to 70-degrees even in Maine), Rhode Islanders are finding that the season’s heat wave also promoted dirty water conditions. After a handful of the state’s beaches were closed due to high levels of fecal coliform and E. coli bacteria, Surfrider and the EPA joined forces this August and tested many of the popular surfing locales. Kimberly Wood Bellmore of the Rhode Island Surfrider’s Blue Water Task Force sent ESM the findings, showing that Deep Hole had the highest percentage of bacteria, followed by breaks like Monahan’s Dock, K-39, and Scarborough Beach, which all had levels slightly below the dangerous mark. And even though every one of the lineups were declared safe for surfing by September, knowing that a bunch fecal matter is floating around out there sure gives a new meaning to the phrase “crappy surf.”

•In other Rhode Island news, Narragansett Juice’s maniacal mascot, Peter Pan, “slugged” the surfboard industry once again this summer with his development of the new Bic Magnum. The 8’4” surfboard is crafted with heavy-duty molded plastic and can float up to 200-lbs in any conditions. Pan is claiming that the Magnum is going to be another “sure thing” for winning contests in small surf, and if it can help someone like him win heats, you know it’s got to work for just about anyone. For more details, go to bicsurfboards.com.

•Down in New York, Unsound team terror Ryan Carlson recently signed on with Emu Australia.

•And speaking of Unsound, owners Mike Nelson and Dave Juan, along with the New York chapter of Surfrider, organized a huge memorial paddle-out this 9-11 to commemorate the one year anniversary of 2001’s terrorist attacks. Over 150 people hit the waters off Lincoln Blvd. in Long Beach at 8:45 am—the exact time the first plane struck the WTC last year—and formed a large circle out past the breakers to offer prayers and remembrances in honor of the thousands who lost their lives that dark morning. The New York event was held following a larger paddle-out in California at the WCT Billabong Boost Mobile Pro at Trestles, which drew thousands of pros and spectators to join together out in the water after the finals on Tuesday the tenth.

•Mark Keup at Nor’easter surf shop in Scituate, MA, told us that this summer has been cracking in terms of business with board and wetsuit sales through the roof all season. He attributes the boom to both record-high water temps and the rush of new females charged up by Blue Crush. An additional Nor’easter shout out goes to new teamrider Elvis Presley from Marshfield who just signed with O’Neill this August.

•Northeastern photo hounds Bob Johnson and Joe McGovern threw a raging slideshow at local bar Charlie O’s in Narragansett, RI, this August. The presentation combined the two shooter’s recent portfolios as well as their archival material to give the audience a 20-year retrospective of the Northeast’s best swells and surfers. Bob and Joe’s grade-A collection had the drinking hole packed to the rafters with just about every local surfer and industry rep present and jockeying for the top seats. The party went off so well, preparations are already in the works for another event in the near future. Stay tuned to ESM for details.

•New Jersey native Hank Stelzl, who runs Stone Tyler Shapes with his brother Chris in Call, recently did a little promo run through the Northeast, landing accounts in both Sunset Bay Surf Shop in West brook, CT, as well as All Seasons in Long Beach, NY. Any other shops or individuals looking to score Stone Tyler boards can go to stshapes.com or call 858-442-8086. After publishing an extensive study of 1700 surfing injuries this May, Rhode Island surfing doctor Andrew Nathanson is once again researching our sport’s health concerns. This time, his work focuses on competitive surfing injuries from both amateur and pro contests. His first fieldwork went down at the US Open in Huntington Beach, CA, this summer. By monitoring the incidents over a period of several years, the Bristol-based physician hopes to collect enough data to establish an overall injury rate for every 1000 hours of waveriding. His study comes as an added bonus for contest organizers as Andrew volunteered to provide free medical support at every event he covers. To enlist his services and get some help with your local heats, e-mail Nathanson at andrew_nathanson@brown.edu.

•Another “doctor” performing research this fall is New Hampshire’s favorite Marlboro-voiced charger, Kevin “Doc” Grondin. Doc recently purchased a 25-foot Mako fitted with twin 150 outboards, and has been scouting a slew of secret breaks tucked away inside a certain section of Maine’s craggy coastline. Kev isn’t giving any specifics but told us that he’s already uncovered heaps of classic points, ledges, reefs, and beaches inside the area’s isolated wilderness. But before you go charging off on your own, Grondin bluntly warned us that the region has extremely difficult access, boat-crushing rocks, huge tidal fluctuations, and no medical facilities for hours, making it very likely that if you get lost or hurt, “you’re gonna die.” As the Maine residents say, “You can’t get there from here.”

•And even if you get lucky and happen to find one of the coveted Maine breaks, you still have to compete with longtime locals like Ogunquit’s Brian Aromando, who’s mere presence at 6’2” and 210 lbs. helps regulate the local waters. Mark Anastas at Liquid Dreams said outside of his size, teamrider Brian is particularly well-suited for enforcing the law of the lineup as he just completed his hellish first year at Maine Law. Mark also told us that he will be opening another Liquid Dreams outlet right on Long Sands Beach in York next April. To find out more, go to their new website, liquiddreamssurf.com.

•Just two issues out and Travis Beckmann, the New York-based grom covered in Issue #82’s Who Da Guy feature, is fully living up to our hype. First, the Montauk local snagged first in Explorer Boys at the NSSA’s Ocean City, NJ, contest on August fourth, and then he pulled down another win in Boys Shortboard at the New York ESA’s competition at Gilgo Beach on the 17th. Following those victories, Beckmann headed south to the ECSC at Virginia Beach, VA, and took out a heavy field of talent to seal a respectable fourth in Junior Men's. And ESM isn’t the only pub catching wind of his surf savvy as Empire State weekly, Sunday Newsday, featured a covershot of the teen tearing it up at Ditch Plains along with an extensive story on him inside the paper, which boasts a mass distribution to over 650,000 people. Congrats on the smokin run, Travis! –Compiled by Chris Towery.

Teknikal has officially added a surf squad to their constantly growing skate team. Outer Banks crossboosters Christian Kane, Seth Barrick, Josh “The Arsonator” Parsons, Brandon Litchfield, and Mikey Weeks will join spongeheads Ben Mullis and Dan Cera in helping to advance Teknikal’s rep in Right Coast waters. For the dillyo on the company, contact Charley Buxton at 252-216-8129.

•Other swashbuckling tales from the Graveyard of the Atlantic find Nigel Haynes and Martin Fucci pirating $700 each from the pros at the ECSC. Martin will use his share of the booty to finance his winter stay in Melbourne Beach, FL, while Nigel fell into the niche of buyer for Wave Shack, adding to his repping and riding duties for Walker Surfboards. “Nacho” is on a bit of a competitive roll lately, and word has it he gave OB main man Noah Snyder quite a run for his money in the Volcom Jellyfish Series finals held in Kill Devil Hills this summer. Go Nacho... rip that chip!

•ESM offers a heartfelt congratulations to injury-prone Virginian surfer/ snowboarder Dave Palmer and his wife Jessica on the August 27th arrival of their daughter, Kira Dawn Palmer. Kira was born a healthy seven pounds, ten ounces, and she has since made it several months without sustaining a single bodily injury, a trait she no doubt acquired from her mother. Dave gave godfather honors to none other than Chesapeake OG, Leif “Cable Guy” Lindquist.

•And on the 14th day of August, TR Deveney spoketh, “Look out world, the Barbosa Twins have arrived!” Marco and Lucas were born to proud parents Martin (an Arnette sales rep) and his wife Paula, and you can expect to see these little guys raising the bar-bosa around the New Jersey lineups in days to come. TR went on to tell us Todd Granitzski took over as North America Sales Director of Idiom Eyewear, maker of Hot Buttered Sunglasses. For more on the new line of shades, contact the main office at 800-353-8411.

•Doug Phillips of Blue Collar Surf took a much-needed family vacation to Costa Rica this summer. Did he score? Well, the three-man crew caught 10 straight days of overhead conditions, as well as a session at an undisclosed reefbreak cooking with six to eight-foot backs... yep, it’s safe to call that a score. Apparently, Costa local and Jersey transplant Tim Bell sat the deepest and copped the sickest pits, even popping out unscathed after getting pitched and cartwheeled towards exposed rocks.

•In other Garden State haps, people once told former Jerseyite Mike “Stump” Koester that he couldn’t get laid in a morgue. But those fools might have spoke too soon, because Stump recently scored a job at El Camino Mortuary in LaJolla, CA, and he swears it’s nothing like Six Feet Under. In his downtime, Mike and roommates Justin Schub and Subhan Anwari hold down the Eastside cajones rep as Blacks regulars. The trio applauds Justin’s mom, Beth Schub, for shipping them copies of ESM every six weeks. Thanks for the support, fellas!

•On a sad note from the Delmarva region, after being inducted into the Ocean City, MD, Surfrider Chapter’s Legends Hall of Fame in 2001, JoAnn Quick, the group’s first female Legend, passed on to join Duke, Eddie, Miki, Rell, and Doc Ball in that Big Lineup in the Sky. The OCMD community sends their prayers and deepest sympathies to Jo’s family and friends, with assurance that she’s in great company.

•Although his calendar is filled with engagements related to managing Burton Snowboards in the southeast and repping Gravis Footwear in the Carolinas, Emerald Isle, NC’s, Buck Rowlee still managed to scribble together some last-minute Mid-Atlantic deets: Gravis rider, talented artist/ musician, and Buxton local Jason Andre recently got engaged to longtime sweetie Jada Huebert. The couple is currently holed up in Wilmington, and Jason can be found ripping ‘Ville beachbreaks on his hand-painted In The Eye shapes. Meanwhile, fellow Gravis teamer and Foundnation Surf School rock star Jason Forrest is blowing town this winter since he scored the enviable gig of a boat driver in Fiji. Finally, Buck wants to send props out to Scott and Carol Busbey for taking him surfing, Lynn Shell for the magic boards, and LIT Records for all of the rad punk.

•In case you hadn’t heard, 7th Street Surf Shop fixture Matt Keenan got a widdle boo-boo in Indonesia this summer, but 7th Street owner Larry Friedel maintains that Keenan is doing well rehabbing the dislocated shoulder, and you’ll be seeing him back in men’s clothing (meaning a jersey) sometime this fall. Larry and wife Becky are also proud to report their daughter Taber rode her first waves recently on a BZ softboard. At only six-and-a-half years old, Taber can’t be dragged out of the water with a crane, and don’t be surprised if she follows successful Jersey wahines Linda Davoli and Jamie DeWitt to future surf stardom.

•Malibu’s Surf Shop out of Ocean City, MD, blows a kiss to all customers who stopped in to support the shop this summer, and owner Lee Gerachis wishes everyone a safe and happy fall and winter. Lee’s righthand man at Malibu’s, Glen Moore, filled us in with fellow Marylander Chip Ayers’ plans for October. Apparently, Chip is relocating to Kauai to join Christopher Vivorito on a venture to set up a pizza delivery restaurant on the island. Before that, though, Chip and Christopher will meet up with Johnny Dee in Bali for a five-week arak research program.

•Rehab is for quitters.

•Brian Heritage called to update us with some Heritage teamrider news. Skate/ surf rat extraordinaire Ryan Barrett just got the nod from Volcom, and Nick Evancich is now riding for Oakley sunglasses and clothing. Besides that, Heritage says that DHD Surfboards are flying out the door.

•Need a little pain in your life? Those of you forced to work desk jobs through all of this fall’s tempting weekday tropical swells can distract yourselves by logging on to Sweetwater Surf Shop’s updated website, www.sweetwatersurfshop.com. Torture yourself watching the live surf cam courtesy of Surfchex.com. There’s also info on store specials, team remarks, and a surf report. The site was designed by Ben Miller of www.bighousedesign, and according to store manager Tony Butler, this version blows their old site away by a country mile.

•Time Bomb Surfboards teamrider Gregg “Sak” Sakowicz informs us he's added Red-X fins to his resume alongside preexisting hook-ups Body Glove, Tortuga, and No Flat Earth Surf Shop. Sak calls the new system, "the strongest, most versatile fin setup I've ever had.

•What Exit? 2—The Northeast Surf/ Skate Film (75 min DVD / 50 min VHS) is finally on Right Coast shelves and selling fast as sin! Producers/ Directors Brent Dolan and Chenzo thank all surfers, skaters, bands, and filmmakers who contributed to the project. ESM’s very own Tom Dugan even scored a cameo, so if your local shop has already run out of the vid, tell them to reorder copies. Or if you want to shop online, go to WhatExitProductions.com. Retailers looking to carry the video can contact Chenzo at 973-441-7873. Look for a more in-depth review of What Exit? 2 in next issue’s Cinematheque Department

In case you didn’t see Surfer Magazine Senior Photographer Scott Aichner’s mesmerizing water shot of Jesse Hines barreled in Puerto Escondido (adorning the “Taking Off” pages of their September 2002 Issue), you missed one of the few pics nominated for the highly coveted title of Surfer Mag’s Photo of the Year. Unfortunately, Hines didn’t win the award, but he received just compensation nonetheless after Waves Magazine out of Australia used the image on the cover of their November issue. Congratulations to Hines and Aichner for the combined effort. –Compiled by Matt Pruett.

•Former Who Da Guy Marcio Lucas from Puerto Rico dropped us a line to tell us about his new shop, Board House, in Oviedo, FL. Opened in late August, Board House carries full clothing lines from Counter Culture, Fuel, Lost, Famous, Aleeda, and many others. Currently, they have between 25 to 30 brand new surfboards, plus some used. Marcio’s store also offers ding repairs and water safety classes. For more info on the Alafaya Woods Boulevard-based shop, call 407-366-9597.

•It’s official: East Coast legend and epoxy evangelist Greg Loehr has left the building. Early this October the innovative Central Florida shaper relocated from Satellite Beach to the deserts of Tucson, AZ, to practice his high-flying shaping endeavors in a, well, more high-flying field—the aviation industry. Loehr plans to open another branch of Resin Research in Arizona to supply local aircraft designers and plastic manufacturers with his latest epoxy formulas and applications. In addition to those businesses, he’ll also provide shapers in Hawaii and California with his board materials in an effort to finally get the epoxy movement really going in the Pacific market. And for Right Coasters who have come to depend on Loehr’s handiwork, there’s no need to worry because he personally assures all that longtime protege Sam Barker will carry on his enterprise in Satellite, manning the helm at the original Resin Research and cranking out boards under the Loehr label. If G.Lo’s involvement in the Eastside’s surf industry is any indication of what will happen out West, it’s likely we’ll see polyester surfboards eventually go the way of the polyester suit. Or at the very least, we’ll witness the development of the Double-Ender 747. Either way, we’re sure Greg’s gonna charge it, and we wish him the best of luck.

•Another Satellite Beach, FL, surf business, RC’s Boardshop, has also undergone a major change. Former owners Dusty and Debbie Simmons closed RC’s last September after 9-11, but early this summer, Hawaii’s Fred Thibault bought the popular shop and reopened its doors. Fred said that the new RC’s still carries its full line of gear, including boards from local shapers Ricky Carroll, Jeff Thomas, and Chris Birch, as well as designs from JC and Rawson of Hawaii. Stop by the store, which is located in the same plaza as the world-renowned Tootsies, and check them out.

•In North Florida, Ponce Inlet local and Salty Dog teamrider Colin Terry e-mailed ESM to let us know that he recently signed with Hurley International and Reef. In addition to his deals, Colin’s bud Dylan Bates was picked up by Infamy Surfboards and Trey Edwards nabbed new clothing sponsor No Friends.

•Shaper Matt Kechele wanted to send out double props to teamrider Heidi Drazich of Cocoa Beach, FL. First, Heidi scored national coverage in Seventeen Magazine where she was featured along with Lisa Andersen and the rest of the Roxy girls in a five-page article on surfing in Fiji. Then, shortly after returning from the South Pacific, Heidi hit the NKF in Cocoa Beach, landing second-place in the Women’s division. Speaking of contests, Kech also wanted to get the word out that this year’s King of the Peak will be held November 2nd and 3rd at Sebastian Inlet. Turn to page 65 for entry forms.

•And while we’re on the subject of King of the Peak, be sure to check out massage therapist Jeff Mears, who will be offering his services to contestants during the event. Jeff is the owner of Melbourne Beach, FL’s, 2Relaxu Massage, and he has already gotten positive feedback from competitors who’ve received his neck and back massages before contests like the 2002 King of the Groms and Volcom’s Crustateous Tour. If you're planning to hit the KOP, look for Jeff to be set up on the beach, or if you want to schedule something sooner, call 321-917-9874 or go to 2relaxu.biz.

•Tory Strange and the rest of the crew at Surf Station in St. Augustine, FL, wanted to congratulate teamrider Lauren Hill for her recent string of contest wins. She not only sealed a first-place finish in the Wahine Teen division at the US Women’s Longboard Championships at Malibu this summer, but she also nabbed two victories at the 2002 East Coast Wahine Championships in both the Pro/Am Longboard and Surf Chick Longboard divisions. You can check out Lauren’s personal website at lhillesa.homestead.com.

•Atlantic Beach, FL, local turned Cali transplant Asher Nolan was also honored for his heat skills this summer as he was crowned Men’s Champion of the 2001 Foster’s Pro Surfing Tour at the SIMA Waterman’s Ball this August. Nolan was the points leader for last year’s North American ASP events, and although the tour was run by Surfing America without the Foster’s namesake, SIMA decided to rename the circuit in honor of the Aussie brew company which has taken over as the major backer for the 2002 tour. In addition to the Foster’s accolade, the North Florida pro also inked a new sponsorship deal with Iris and got to hit Indo with the Hurley team in September.

•Indialantic, FL’s, Colleen Del Castillo is the new Rusty Girls rep for Florida. In addition to the gig with Rusty, Colleen also reps for Split Girl and Velvet Eyewear. To find out about any of her lines, call her at 321-952-2612.

•Although most of the East Coast was pretty flat this summer, Tim Malins at High Tide Surf Shop in Tybee Island said that the Georgia lineups have been surprisingly consistent. The surf has been mostly junky windswells, but it’s been regularly rideable since May, and Tropical Storm Edouard on Labor Day capped off the season’s wavefest. Tim said that Tybee Pier saw a week’s worth of chest to head-high surf, and High Tide rider Jere Wilson’s level of surfing was literally head and shoulders above the rest as he boosted an arsenal of giant airs next to the pilings.

•The crew up at Village Surf Shop in Murrells Inlet, SC, also reported a lengthy stretch of fun waves from Edouard. Shop employee Brian Campbell told us that Garden City Pier was the local hotspot with clean chest to head-high lines getting ripped apart by Village teamriders like Shawn Clark. And during the height of the swell, shopowner Kelly Richards and his sons Cameron and Coleman ventured up to Masonboro, scoring the island overhead and firing. Kelly said that both his kids were killing it, especially Cameron who at the tender age of six was fearlessly pulling inside Mase’s thumping barrels.

•Another young grommie who’s been ripping lately is five-year-old Bradley Gale, son of Melbourne Beach, FL, local Brian Gale. Brian is the owner of Nex Generation Surf School, and after just one day of lessons, he had Bradley charging First Peak and even getting hooted into waves by pro Todd Morcom. Brian’s ability to teach a five-year-old to tackle the Inlet’s hardest breaking section in only one day speaks volumes of his credibility as an instructor, so if you want to learn to surf or improve your already honed skills, give Nex Generation a call at 321-591-9577.

•While the kids are learning to surf, you can protect them from the sun’s damaging rays and board-induced skin chafing by getting them a rashguard from new company Grom’s Wear. Started by Vero Beach, FL’s, Dane Roberts, Grom’s Wear makes rashies for children aged anywhere from one-year-old to seven. The lycra shirts come in several different styles and colors and work in both salt water and pools. Log onto gromswear.20m.com for more info. –Compiled by Chris Towery.