The older ESM gets, the more we gravitate toward the why of riding waves than the how. Take this issue’s Will Skudin profile, for example. Everyone who knows East Coast surfing knows that Will is our most visible big-wave rider. But did you know Will was born in Hawaii? Or that his grandfather hung with Duke Kahanamoku? Or that his first trip to Mavericks in three years was an emotional roller coaster? These are the details that emerge when you dig into the why of a story and not just the how. Or take ESM Co-Founder and Photo Editor Emeritus Dick “Mez” Meseroll’s February trip to the Canadian Maritimes. Might seem like a gratuitous quick-strike mission to capture brutally cold images, right? Mez actually spent three weeks wallowing in that ice-bound tundra, just to enjoy himself. He’s had an extended winter immersion in the Great White North on his bucket list for decades — he even rearranged his honeymoon to finally pull it off in 2015, 30 years after his first trip to the area.
Also this issue, Jamie Tworkowski of To Write Love On Her Arms reminds us that the why of the story is what’s important. Allison Kendro and Jhon Ocanto of SOLID Surf & Adventure remind us that you can do good if your heart is in the right place. Mason Barnes reminds us that you can break out of your own box as you grow up. Adam Warden reminds us that a burning desire to travel is sometimes all the fuel you need to succeed. But this issue’s Who Da Guys — Florida’s Michael Romano, Virginia’s Nick Copenhaver, and Maryland’s Tyler Clazey — prove that you don’t have to be a deep thinker or a globetrotter to lead a rich surfing existence. Sometimes it’s enough to be young, free, and surrounded by good friends. Maybe that’s all the why you need in life. Whatever it is you’re looking for, join us as we try to discover it in our new May 2015 issue… By Nick McGregor
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