Last year a board signed by Kelly Slater sold for $25k in an hour. Let’s see if this year’s auction can top it. Photo: Ebay
Kelly Slater and Rob Machado – two of surfing’s most recognizable names – are not immune to one of the by-products of fame. As with all stars, people pay through the nose to be in the same room as Kelly or Rob just to breathe the same air. People also pay big bucks for something that’s verified to have passed through their hands and has their name scrawled across it. Case in point: last year SurfAid auctioned off a Slater Designs Gamma surfboard signed by King Kelly. In a record 15 minutes, the board sold for $25,000 dollars. Think the wife’s mad when you have to explain a new $800 board showing up in the garage? Try explaining that one.
This year, SurfAid’s doubled the possibility of owning a surfboard signed by one of your favorite surfers – with another Gamma signed by Kelly and a Firewire/Machado Surfboards Go Fish signed by Rob. All proceeds will go to SurfAid’s mother and child health programs in the run-up to the inaugural SurfAid Cup Encinitas which will run alongside the Shaper Studios Self-Shape Festival on May 12th at Seaside Reef.
“I’ve been working with SurfAid for years actually, just trying to help them out and support any way I can, because they do so much good work in Indo,” said Rob. “I travel out to the Mentawai’s and, really all over Indonesia, and I see a lot of unhealthy kids and a lot of people suffering. SurfAid has taken things to land and really gone in to help out.”
Let the bidding begin.
Note: Bidding closes on Monday, April 9th at 4:45 PM. Boards can only be shipped within the US.
