Sunny Garcia is a professional surfer from Westside of Oahu, Hawaii, who is often regarded as a fierce competitor with the record of most WQS event wins. He was born in Ma’ili on 14th January 1970 as Vincent Sennen Garcia. He grew up in Wai’anae and after finishing his school, he took part in the 1986 Gotcha Pro at Sandy Beach, Oahu for the first time. Garcia won the event beating the previous champion, Tom Carroll. Some of his top accomplishments are winning the 2000 ASP WCT World Champion, having the record of most WQS event wins (22), six titles of Triple Crown of Surfing, and he is the second surfer to win 1 million dollars! He retired in 2005 but made a comeback in 2008. Today, he aspires to win the ASP World Tour.

Personal Life and Surfing Career

Sunny Garcia had a hard time growing up. His parents got divorced when Garcia was very little. He then lived with his mother in Mā’ili which is nearby the beach. Surfing was initially an escapeway for Garcia to avoid the hardships at home. However it soon became his passion. At the age of 17, he debuted and won his first title, a 1986 WCT event. In the following years, he continued to achieve top ranks in various competitions. In 1995, he got the third position in Pipeline Masters finishing behind Kelly Slater and Rob Macahdo. Afterwards, Garcia gained a lot of weight and his career rapidly declined. It looked as if Garcia’s period was over. Four years later, things took a turn for the better and Garcia started to work out. Inspired by Mark Occhilupo, he got rid of all the extra pounds and moved to Kauai where he began to surf with the Irons brothers, Andy and Bruce. In 2000, Garcia got his big break. He won the first two ASP WCT events in Australia and one in Brazil. He also won the fifth Triple Crown title in Hawaii. Slowly he moved into the top tens in numerous events and was determined to win the WQS series. 2009 did not prove to be a good year for Sunny and he also had a knee surgery. In 2010, he got ranked 67th in the new ASP World Rankings and was formally introduced into the Surfing Walk of Fame at Huntington Beach.

Garcia’s personality has been the subject of interest for many years. Some people claim he can be very volatile while others depicted him as a very friendly person. He is known to be a fierce surfer who lashes out his anger during riding the waves. His anger is one of the main reasons for his success. Garcia married for the third time in 2008 to Colleen McCullough and has three kids from his first marriage.

Sunny Garcia Surfing in Hawaii

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Mark Sheldon Foo was a professional surfer who born on February 5, 1958 in Singapore to Chinese parents. Acknowledged as one of the best big wave riders, Foo helped to increase the popularity of the sport worldwide. Even though he died young, Foo is known for his bravery, determination and enthusiasm.

Early Life and Surfing

When Mark Foo was 10, he moved to Hawaii with his family where he developed a passion for surfing. He started to surf the waves at the South Shore of O’hu and continued to surf even when his family kept moving during his teen years. After finishing his high school, he returned to Hawaii. In 1977, he joined his first professional surf trip, IPS World Tour. However he soon stopped competing and quit the IPS World tour. Foo started to ride the huge waves at Waimea Bay on the North Shore of O’ahu. Foo’s love to brave the waves led him to bigger and bigger waves.

Accidental Death at Mavericks

Foo died on December 23, 1994, when he was only 36, while surfing at the mavericks. Mavericks is a natural big wave phenomenon located in Half Moon Bay, Northern California. Surfer Magazine stated that Foo visited the city just to surf the waves of Mavericks. With little sleep and jet-lag, Foo paddled out to surf and faced an 18 to 20 feet wave that ended in wipeout. The wipeout ultimately caused him to drown because his foot was entangled by the leash to the board. His body was found 2 hours later in the Pillar Point Lagoon tied to his broken surfboard. His death came as a big shock to the surfer’s community. His funeral was held on 30th December at Waimea and was attended by hundreds of people. About 150 surfers went into the Bay to form a circle in his honor. Foo’s ashes was scattered into the ocean by one of the surfers.

Legacy

Foo was considered as one of the best big wave surfers of his time. Due to his courageous acts and enthusiasm, he became a favorite topic among the photographers.  Moreover, he was one of the few surfers to have his own cable television surfing program. Foo’s motto was, “If you want to ride the ultimate wave, you have to be willing to pay the ultimate price”. He lived up to it to the day he died trying to accomplish another feat. His death brought attention to the extremely large sizes of the surf boards and leashes and safety measures have since been taken. Mark Foo has been featured in books; Andy Martin’s Stealing the Wave and Matt Warshaw’s Maverick’s: the story of big-wave surfing. Since his tragic death, Mark Foo has become a symbol of bravery and courage among the surfers.

Accidental Death of Mark Foo at Mavericks

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Philip Andrew Irons was an American professional surfer who was born on July 24, 1978 and died on November 2, 2010. Irons began surfing from an early age on the ferocious and shallow reefs of the North Shore in Kauai, Hawaii. During the course of his surfing career, he won the world titles three times in the row (from 2002 to 2004), three Quiksilver Pro France titles (2003, 2004, 2005), and won four of the twenty surf tours from 2002 to 2006 including the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing. On 3rd September 2010, he won the Billabong Pro in Tahiti. He also used to host the surfing contests for kids called Annual Irons Brothers Pinetrees Classic along with his family. Moreover, he is the only surfer who has won the every title named on the ASP calendar. He died at a very young age of 32 in 2010. Since his death 13th February has been declared ‘Andy Irons Day’ in his honor by the Governor of Hawaii.

Life, Career and Death

Andy Irons used to surf along with his younger brother, Bruce Irons, who used to be a former contestant on the World Championship Tour of Surfing (WCT). From 2001 to 2006, Andy won numerous contests and tours including three Word Championship Tours. In 2008, he was formally introduced into the Surfing Walk of Fame in Huntington Beach, California. Over the course of his surfing career, he was widely compared with his presumed rival, Kelly Slater. However, both of them stated to be good surf buddies. He pulled back from a full ASP World Tour due to personal reasons. In 2010 ASO, he was inducted as a wildcard entry. He won the Billabong Pro Tahiti contest in 2010. Billabong has designed an “Andy Irons” line of board shorts in his memory. He was married to Lyndie Dupuis who was seven months pregnant with their first kid at the time of his death. Lyndie continues to live with their son, Andy Axel Irons, in their home on island of Kauai. Irons has been the subject of quite a few movies including Blue Horizon, a 2005 surfing movie, depicted his WCT tour and his rivalry with Kelly Slater.

Irons died on 2nd November 2010 when he was only 32 years old. He was discovered dead in bed by the hotel staff who decided to investigate when he did not open up the door on several knocks. The official medical report stated that he died of a heart attack, however the second cause of death ‘acute mixed drug ingestion’ was also listed. His memorial service was held on 14th November 2010 in Hanalei Bay, Kauai. He requested to be cremated and his ashes was scattered outside Hanalei Bay by his wife and brother. Thousands of people came to wish him goodbye. Andy Irons may have lived a short life but he made his mark in the surfing world. He is regarded as one of the world’s greatest competitive surfers and big-wave riders.

Andy Irons – I Surf Because (A Short Film)

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Jeff Clark was born on March 26, 1957 in Redwood City of California. He is one of the most notable and renowned big wave surfers who gained worldwide respect and fame after surfing the Mavericks all by himself for 15 years. Maverick, a phenomenon occurring nearby Half Moon Bay of California, is an enormous perfectly shaped 20-foot wave that breaks like a hollow 6-footer with such savage fierceness that only brave-hearted surfers can face it. Besides riding the waves, Jeff Clark is also a founder of annual Mavericks Surf Contest., a surfboard shaper, surf clothe designer, and an occasional actor.

Early Life and Surfing Career

Jeff Clark was born in Redwood City but moved to Miramar Beach with his family when he was a child. He started frolicking in the waves from an early age and soon began to surf. He gradually mastered the stronger waves along the Northern Californian coast. During the winters, Clark and his friends used to observe the large waves off Pillar Point that broke near the Half Moon Bay’s hillside. The waves were later discovered to be Mavericks. When Clark was 17, he went out at Mavericks alone to surf the huge waves. His friends decided not to come as they thought it was a dangerous feat and warned Clark that they will tell the coast guard. For the next 15 years, he surfed the huge ferocious waves alone. Due to his bravery and determination, he is labeled as world’s best big-wave rider all over the world.

Clark is one of the few ambidextrous big wave surfers in the world. Ambidextrous means having equal ability to surf regular foot or goofy foot. Clark is a natural goofyfooter and had to learn to ride the waves on a regular foot for about ten years. His ambidexterity has also allowed him to ride the waves while facing them (frontside surfing). In 1994, Surfer Magazine called him as one of the “world’s best big-wave riders”. Clark has been featured in a handful of surf movies. Apart from appearing in Half Moon Bay and Mavericks surf scenes, he also acted in Riding Giants and Adventures in Wild California. Moreover, he is the only surfer to be featured in San Mateo County Sporty Hall of Fame.

In 1998, Clark teamed up with surf clothing manufacturer Quiksilver and founded the annual Mavericks Surf Contest. Later, Clark together with Evolve Sports, a San Francisco-based sports marketing group, formed Mavericks Surf Ventures. However in 2009, Clark resigned from the Board of Directors of MSV. Clark is considered as one of the best big wave surfboard shapers and designs his own line of custom boards. He runs Mavericks Surf Shop which is located in the Princeton Harbor neighborhood of Half Moon Bay where he sells his own line of clothing and surfboards.

Jeff Clark Mavericks Pioneer

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One of first few surfers to brave the waves at Waimea Bay in 1957, Mickey Munoz is an American professional surfer and surf board shaper who is well known by his nickname, ‘The Mangoose’. He was born in 1937 in New York City and attended Santa Monica High School. He gained nationwide recognition as a surfer in 1950s and later perhaps got more famous as a surf board shaper. He has been featured in various surfing documentaries like the movie, Riding Giants and also acted as a stunt double for Sandra Dee in the 1959 movie, Gidget. Due to his particular posture during surfing, he got another nickname as ‘quasimoto’. A stunt man, big wave rider and small wave pioneer, Munoz was also a start performer in surfing competitions. In 1962 and 1963, he ended up as a runner up in West Coast Championships and had third position in the 1964 United States Championships. He won Tom Morey Invitational noseriding contest in 1965 and was invited to the esteemed Inaugural Duke Kahanamoku Invitational. He took second in the U.S. Championships later that year; he got a fourth position in the World Championships. Currently, he lives in Capistrano Beach, California with his family and fashion surf boards for a epoxy surf board industry, Surftech.

Surfing with Mickey Munoz

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Gerry Lopez, also known as Mr. Pipeline among the surf enthusiasts, is an American professional surfer, a surfboard shaper, a journalist, and a movie actor. Only a handful of people can claim that they have changed the history of a sport. Gerry Lopez is one of those people who single handedly made Pipeline the most popular and an incredible wave to surf.

Early Life

Lopez was born on November 7, 1948 in East Honolulu, Hawaii. He grew up there and went to Punahou School. He was interested in surfing since an early age. He often used to surf the reef breaks in Aina Haina and Metro-Honolulu. His inspiration was an elegant surfer of that time, Paul Strauch. When Lopez was 14, he won the Hawaii State Championship which encouraged him to practice surfing even more seriously. After becoming a champ, he gradually sharpened his skills as a casual yet brave tube rider.

Career: Surfing, Acting and Surfboard Shaping

Later, Lopez migrated to North Shore of Oahu with his surfer buddies where they used to observe professional surfers like Butch Van Artsdalen and Jock Sutherland braving the waves. Gerry himself gained worldwide recognition as the best tube rider when he performed at Pipeline. In 1972 and 1973, he won the Pipeline Masters Competition which has now been renamed as Gerry Lopez Pipeline Masters. He also explored various surf spots around the globe and is particularity famous in Indonesia where he rode the dangerous left-hand pointbreak in the natural reserve of Plengkung. On windy days, Lopez also used to do windsurfing, one of his favorite sports. Besides surfing, Lopez has played a major role in sailboard and surfboard shaping and manufacturing. He has fashioned his own surfboard line and named it Lightning Bolt Surfboards. The surfboard with a noticeable and stylish lightening bolt, the signature sign of the brand, is still a popular choice among the surfers. In 2002, he was awarded the Shaper of the Year Award by Surfing Magazine.

Lopez has also starred in quite a few movies and surfing documentaries. He frequently appeared in movies directed by his ex-surfer friend, John Milius. In 1982, he acted in the film Conan the Barbarian with Arnold Schwarzenegger. His other work includes Big Wednesday (1978), North Shore (1987), and Farewell to the King (1989), Five Summer Stories (1973), Tales From The Tube, Step Into Liquid (2003), and Riding Giants (2004). Today, Lopez resides in Bend, Oregon with his family. He has a wife Toni and a son, Alex. Moreover, Lopez has now developed a passion for snow boarding as well. He is honing snowboards along with surf boards which are still a commercial success. No matter what the quest is, Gerry Lopez faces the challenge with an impeccable grace.

A Tribute to Gerry Lopez aka Mr. Pipeline

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Greg Noll is a legendary American surfer who is famous for his ability to master the big waves and as one of the pioneers of longboard shapers. Noll was born on February 11 1937 in San Diego, California. Phil Edwards admiringly nicknamed him ‘Da Bull’ because of Noll’s fit physique and the way he takes charge of the big waves. He has also produced a number of surf movies.

Early Life

Noll began surfing in the South Bay when he was just 11 years old. His family moved to Manhattan Beach when he was 3 and gradually he showed interest in surfing. He became a member of Manhattan Beach Surf Club and there he learned a lot on surfing including how to shape the surf board by another member, Dale Velzy. He was also a member of Los Angeles County Lifeguards from where he completed his paddle boarding training. Noll started to surf the Californian huge waves in Palos Verdes at breaks like Lunada Bay. In 1954, he moved to Makaha, Hawaii after finishing his high school in California.

Master of the Big Waves

Noll gained recognition as a big wave surfer after his various daring feats in the Hawaiian waves on the North Shore of Oahu. In November 1957, he was the first person to surf the 30 feet wave at Waimea Bay which was deemed impossible to surf by the locals. He gained further reputation in 1964 when he surfed a reef break called Banzai Pipeline. In one of his interviews, he said, ‘The wave I caught at Outside Pipeline that day walled up twenty-five-feet high about half a mile in front of me. It broke to the left, so I was riding with my back to the wave, goofyfoot, and it was a god-awful uneasy feeling. Instead of getting smaller as I rode it, the sonofabitch grew on me. It got bigger and bigger, and I started going faster and faster, until I was absolutely locked into it. I felt like I was on a spaceship racing into a void. At first, I could hear my board chattering across the face of the wave in a constant rhythm. As my speed increased, the chattering noise became less frequent. Suddenly there was no noise. For about fifteen or twenty feet, I was airborne. Then I literally was blown off my board.’ Later in December 1969 at Makaha, he rode an enormous wave which is considered one of the largest waves ever. To this date, Noll is viewed as the most daring surfer of his generation.

Board Shaping

Noll learned to shape the surfboards by the help of Dale Velzy at Manhattan Beach Surf Club. He established his own surfboard business in 1950s and gained commercial success within a short time. Today, he is one of the most famous longboard shapers.

A Mini Documentary on Greg Noll

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Alana Rene Blanchard is an American professional surfer who gained worldwide recognition at the age of 22 as one of the best female surfers in the world. Besides surfing, Blanchard frequently appears as a bikini model and has also taken part as a designer of Rip Curl Bikinis. She was born on 5th March 1990 in a Hawaiian city, Kauai. The young role model has even more followers on Twitter and Instagram than Kelly Slater who has won world championship 11 times. Moreover, Blanchard is a participant of ASP World Tour. Currently she runs her show on Network A, by the name of Surfer Girl, which follows Alana’s life in Hawaii along with her surfing and modeling career.

Alana happens to be the friend of Bethany Hamilton, a famous surfer, and was there with her when Hamilton got attacked by the 14 foottiger shark. In the 2011 movie, Soul Surfer, that depicts the actual events, Blanchard was played by Lorraine Nicholson. While Hamilton became the symbol of hope and strength among surfers and traveled as a surfing ambassador throughout the world, Alana also worked hard to achieve success in surfing. She took part in various contests and won many of those such as Women’s Pipeline Championships in Hawaii, the Rip Curl Girls Festival Jr. Pro in Spain, the Roxy Pro Trials, Haleiwa in Hawaii, the Billabong Pro, Pre Trials in Maui, and at the Volcom Pufferfish Surf Series right at her homeland at Pinetrees, Kauai. As Alana morphed into a successful surfer, she got noticed by the fashion industry for her photogenic looks as well. Although many people, particularly fellow surfers, have criticized her modeling career, there is no denying that Alana has helped to make surfing an attractive sport profession. Alana Blanchard is not merely a model who can surf but she is a surfer who got great looks!

Alana Blanchard Surfs with a Shark!

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Taj Burrow was born on 2nd June 1978 in Yallingup, a town in the South West region of Western Australia to American parents. He is a renowned Australian professional surfer who has competed in 13 ASP world tours and is currently participating in his 14th one. He used to be a typical high school kid who turned into an extraordinary surfing pro. With the likes of Kelly Slater and Tom Carroll, Taj became a ‘next big thing’ in the 21st century who is still living up to all the expectations.

Surfing Career

Burrow grew up in Western Australia in Busselton. He has been surfing the waves since the age of 7. In 1998, when he was only 18, he was selected for the ASP World Tour. At that time he was the youngest surfer to make it to ASP world tour. In fact, he was also selected a year before but he did not accept the offer as he thought 17 was too young to go on a world tour. He ranked 12th in the first competition for which he received ASP World Tour Rookie of the Year award. In 1999, he ended up a runner up on the world tour. In 2007, Taj won the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach and in the same year, also won the title of a 2007 Billabong Pro in Jeffrey’s Bay, South Africa surpassing the previous winner, Kelly Slater, who was then a 8-time world champion. This win earned him a 2nd place on the ASP Men’s Tour on which he finished as 2nd runner up. In 2009, Burrow once again beat Slater in the final of the Billabong Pipeline Masters at the Banzai Pipeline. He ranked 4th on the ASP world tour in 2009. In 2010, Taj haj had a winning streak. He went on his 12th world tour and won ASP Quiksilver Pro at Snapper Rocks in his home country, Australia. Few weeks earlier, he had won the Burleigh Breaker Pro including Pipeline making 3 consecutive wins in 2010. In 2011, he was a first runner up in Gold Coast and Rio ASP Competition. He once again won the Quiksilver Pro Gold Cost in 2012. Moreover, Taj has ridden a powerful cyclone swell in January in Australia, and on his boat venture in Fiji, he caught the waves from a helicopter.

Other Projects

Taj Burrow has taken part in other projects as well. He wrote a book Taj Burrow’s Book of Hot Surfing which was published in 2003. He has recorded his own surf videos and movies such as Sabotaj, Montaj, I Surf Because and Taj Burrow’s Fair Bit. He also hosts a Taj Small Fries junior surfing competition at his hometown, Yallingup, since 2005. In 2008, he started his own shoe brand named Burrow.

Taj Burrow – I Surf Because, A Short Film

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http://tajburrow.com/ http://www.surfline.com/surfing-a-to-z/taj-burrow-biography-and-photos_774/ http://www.surfermag.com/features/taj-burrow-interview/

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Robert Kelly Slater is a professional surfer from America who is renowned for his valorous style, excellent wave catching and competitive persona. In 1990s when the internet became a widely popularized must-have technology everywhere, Slater became a famous surf star who changed the course of history of surfing. Before Slater, surfers were just surfers. After he became a household name, he totally changed the image of the surfers. Today, they are one of the highest paid athletes with international fame and popularity.

Personal Life

Slater was born on 11th February 1972 in Cocoa Beach where he still lives. He is of Irish and Syrian descent. He has two brothers and a teenage daughter named Taylor from a previous relationship. He lives with his longtime girlfriend, Kalani Miller. Besides surfing, his interests include playing the guitar, composing sonnets, listening to music and golfing. He is an enthusiastic golfer. He stated in one of his interviews that he want to be a professional golfer when he retires from surfing. Slater has been around movie starts as well. In early 90s, he appeared in a famous TV show Baywatch as a recurring character Jimmy Slade. He has also dated Pamela Anderson and Giselle Bundschen.

Surfing Career

Slater has won ASP World Champion 11 times (5 times in a row from 1994 to 98). He is both the youngest one (at the age of 21) and the oldest one (at 39) to receive the honor. In 1997, when he won his 5th ASP World Championship title, he was named the most successful surfing champion in the history surpassing the Australian legendary surfer, Mark Richards. Along with participating in ASP tours, he has also surfed in the X-Games in 2003 and 2004. In an interview, he named some of his favorite surf spots which are Sandspit in Los Osos, California, Bilgola beach in Sydney, Australia, Minis in Ireland, Sebastian Inlet near Florida, Pipeline in Hawaii, Kirra in Australia, Jeffreys Bay in South Africa, Taghazout in Morocco, Soup Bowls in Barbados and many more. When asked about his inspiration, Slater named Andy Irons, Dane Reynolds, Josh Kerr and Ian Michaelson as his ideal surfers. Since 90s, he is sponsored by Quiksilver, a gaint surf-wear industry. Slater also runs a program for suicide prevention awareness and is a fundraiser and a spokesperson for it. Slater is very eco conscious and wants to preserve oceans and reefs globally. He hosts the Kelly Slater Invitational on the Fijian Island of Tavarua for environmental purposes. In 2003, he wrote his autobiography called Pipe Dreams: A Surfer’s Journey. In 2008 he published his second book with Phil Jarratt, titled Kelly Slater: For the Love. Even at the age of 41, Kelly Slater is considered to be one of the world’s best athletes.

Kelly Slater Surfing in Costa Rica!

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