Off the coast of the North Shore of Oahu, make it or break it is an understatement. And once respect is received at the proving ground, it is undeniably deserved — not only from surfers, but skateboarders and snowboarders and musicians alike.
It is an place where natural beauty is met with an insanity and raw power that articulates its unofficial motto: talk is cheap. And so in that vein, I’ll do less talking and offer the people who actually live it on a daily basis a platform to share their insights to the soul of surfing. These are the men and women who not only talk the talk, but more than walk the walk.
“90% of my friends are people that I’ve, like, either grown up with surfing, or friends who I’ve met through surfing, and it’s just fucking insane — it’s a big family for sure. You’re just out there, and if you’re in the zone, it’s like an escape. If you’re having a hard day, you’re dealing with some stuff, you just go get in the water and surf it off.” – Tai Vandyke, Maui, Hawaii
“My brain just shuts off. It’s peaceful when I’m surfing, and I’m not thinking of anything when I’m on a wave — it’s just blank. You kind of forget about everything and it’s your sanctuary, I guess.” – Dusty Payne, Lahaina, Hawaii
“Being true to something, you have to be selfless, you have to be passionate and… dedicated. You have to sacrifice a lot — that’s the beauty of it, ’cause you get that all back in return.” – Coco Ho, Sunset Beach, Hawaii
“I don’t know… you have to be true to your heart, and do it for why you want to do it, you know. Like, why did you start doing it? You don’t really think of Hawaii as a concrete jungle, but it’s a rad mix of the natural beauty and raw concrete. Knowing the history of Volcom in Hawaii and the presence that they’ve had there over the past 20 years or so, you get inspired to do it for why you want to do it.” – Rune Glifberg, Copenhagen, Denmark
“If you’re not from the Volcom house, yuou’re hanging out at the Volcom house, because that’s where the energy is. Back in the day it was like one huge party going on, and it stayed that way for quite some time. But the focus now is different because the level of surfing has changed. If one guy goes out, they’re all going out, and they go out in conditions that are kind of quite frightening at times.” – Dave Riddle, Haleiwa, Hawaii
“There’s not really a place in snowboarding that you can compare to the North Shore. In snowboarding, you know, you go up to the mountains and you just get lost, you’re in your own world, there is noone around. But being there, it’s such a make it or break it scenario ’cause the waves are right in front of everybody watching.” – Pat Moore, Holderness, New Hampshire
