Cory Lopez is a waterman. And as a waterman, even the flattest days won’t keep the Floridian free surfer from his favorite place on earth — the expanses of waterways surrounding him in their convergence on the open ocean. So he was undoubtedly stoked when WaveJet introduced the wrangling big boy to their self-propelled line of boards: the 11’0” Pau Hana Big EZ Angler SUP. With the Sea Mount system, and designed in collaboration with Todd Caranto of Pau Hana Surf Supply, the legend is able to employ any mount he feels like using, depending on where he’s headed and what he’s fishing. There’s even room for a cooler full of ice-cold beers to, er, refrigerate the fish…
“The weather and water were going to be good, and we heard the boys had been catching fish. So we pulled the trigger and went out in Mosquito Lagoon to a particular area that I hadn’t really been before. Within minutes of leaving the dock, we were already on some fish and knew it was going to be a great day. It was a really low tide and we were running the board in super shallow water — there would have been no other way to get back there. Then on the way home, the tide was still ripping out through the canals, and after four hours of fishing, you’re pretty tired. All in all, we had a great time and caught a lot of fish.”
Sounds like a damn good time to us. Quite frankly, anyone who rags on the man for finding new and innovative ways to cruise the coast and the rivers in between them — well, they obviously aren’t watermen: it’s nice to have a water-soaked alternative on days when the waves are kept at bay.
For more ways to explore the Flat Day Frontiers, check in with the Lopez brothers and friend Peter Mendia.
