One thing I’ve noticed about many of my favorite surfers is how they can jump on just about any type of equipment and skillfully ride waves without missing a beat. Longboard stylist, Kassia Meador, is one of those multi-faceted surfers who can surf anything from a high-performance thruster, to a retro-styled twin fin, to a traditional single fin log. I’m not sure if she still rides them, but a number of years back, Kassia began riding a thin, finless, wooden board known as an Alaia.
If you’ve ever seen someone surf an Alaia, you’ll quickly realize that it is a completely different way to ride waves. I’ve seen many people give it a go, only to return to the sand deflated that they either couldn’t catch a wave or the ones they did catch resulted in wipeout after wipeout. For those who push through the initial challenges, however, the reward is a feeling of unadulterated speed, glide, slide, and freedom. On this particular wave in Encinitas a few years back, Kassia Meador glides into a fun, lined-up, glassy left. It’s really fun to watch the nuances that come into play on finless boards—case in point, the subtle drifting Kassia employs as she heads into her 360-degree spin. Landing a floater on an Alaia is no easy task, but Kassia effortlessly pulls one off to finish her ride.
Thank you for stopping by for another installment of Single Wave Thursday. As always, thank you for your support of Jettygirl. None of this would be possible without you, our dear readers.
Surfer: Kassia Meador - @kassiameador Film: Chris Grant - @chrisgrantphoto Sound: Audio provided by abcopen at freesound.org
Alana Blanchard, Summertime in Southern California - Jettygirl Social Media Files
Only 52 days until summer. Alana Blanchard exits the water in summertime in Southern California.
@alanarblanchard | @jettygirlsurfmag | @chrisgrantphoto | @ripcurl_usa | @cisurfboards | @rockstarenergy | @reef-girls | @spyoptic | @gopro
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* Like, tweet, post, pin, comment or whatever. Waves are meant to be shared.
Backside Snap by Anastasia Ashley - Jettygirl Social Media Files
She says, lives and does what she wants ...and I know she ruffles some people's feathers in the process. What sets her apart for me though is that unlike a number of people who have walked in and out of the Jettygirl project using it only for their own personal gain, she has remained true, honest, and forthright with me over the years. Throwing powerful backside hooks between swimwear shoots, Anastasia Ashley.
@anastasiaashley | @jettygirlsurfmag | @chrisgrantphoto | @airwalk | @bikinireadylifestyle
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Indah Mano Triangle Reversible Cage Bikini Top - bra style triangle top with caged detail on the back. Cut out at center front. Reverses to black.
Indah Loke Elastic Side Reversible Bikini Bottom - low rise bikini bottoms. Cheeky coverage.
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Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Indah Mano Triangle Reversible Cage Bikini Top - bra style triangle top with caged detail on the back. Cut out at center front. Reverses to black.
Indah Loke Elastic Side Reversible Bikini Bottom - low rise bikini bottoms. Cheeky coverage.
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Leila Hurst, Spring 2014 - Jettygirl Social Media Files
The best way we know how to deal with California gray is to add a dash of Hawaiian color. Leila Hurst, Spring 2014.
@leilahurst | @jettygirlsurfmag | @chrisgrantphoto | @vans | @vansgirls | @zealoptics | @skullcandy | @drinkwaikoko | @stickybumpswax | @hicworldwide
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Vans Classic Slip On Shoe - classic Vans slip-on sneaker. Lightweight canvas upper with Vans gum rubber waffle outsole.
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* Like, tweet, post, pin, comment or whatever. Waves are meant to be shared.
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Vans Classic Slip On Shoe - classic Vans slip-on sneaker. Lightweight canvas upper with Vans gum rubber waffle outsole.
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Surf Photo Friday - Double Vision Edition with Tory Gilkerson
One Moment, Two Surf Photos - Photos by Andrew Grant and Chris Grant
Many years ago, possibly in the 1980's, one of the three major surf magazines (Surfer, Surfing, or Breakout) at the time ran a feature that showed two photos of the same surf moment taken at the same time. The concept has intrigued me for years and is something I've always wanted to try. A few months back while my son was out of school for Martin Luther King, Jr's birthday, I enlisted his help to give the photo experiment a try. We decided that he'd post up on the beach while I went for a swim.
A few days earlier I mentioned our experiment to the super talented longboarder, Tory Gilkerson, who was quick to join in. It seems that more often than not, weather systems attempt to foil any photo plans but that wasn't the case this time---we were greeted with glassy, shoulder-high to overhead surf with bright sunshine and light offshore winds. Tory usually bolts straight for the lefts, but knowing what we were trying to do, she paddled out and scored lengthy backside noserides on right after right.
A couple of things stick out in my mind from this session at Oceanside Harbor. First, it's a lot tougher to get simultaneous photos than I would have thought. On Tory's best two waves, my son missed one due to cell phone distractions while I completely blew another one by using the wrong focus point in my camera, basically focusing on a bubble in the water instead of on Tory who was enjoying a lengthy noseride on a flawless left that peeled through the lineup (see video). The second thing that sticks out in my mind is how much smaller the waves look in water shots compared to ones shot from land. It never ceases to amaze me ...I'll swim in after a heart-racing session, load the photos onto the computer, then wonder how in the world I thought it was so heavy out there when the waves appear to be waist-high.
Thank you, Tory, for helping out with this trial run. I can't wait to attempt Double Vision, Volume II.
Thank you for dropping by for another installment of Surf Photo Friday. Have a great weekend everyone ...and as always, thank you for your support of Jettygirl. Please consider helping out with a "Pay Whatever You Like" subscription to the site. Every little bit helps!
Photo Credits: Surf photos by Andrew Grant and Chris Grant.
Previous Surf Photo Fridays | Jen Smith and Her Furry Friend, Colin, in Cardiff, California | Stephanie Schechter, Family Surf Trip to Panamá | Prue Jeffries on a Donald Takayama Quad | Sara Taylor Sequence | Get Stoked on Lady Shapers | The Session That Changed Everything | Justine Dupont and Pauline Ado in California | Role Models, Why They Still Matter | Surfing New Jersey's Polar Vortex Swells with the K Twins | Mele Saili and Hayden Lane, Cardiff Reef | Jill Manos Surfs the Freezing Water of Nova Scotia, Canada | Malia Ward, Chris Ward, & a Surf Photographer's Second Worst Nightmare | Chloe Buckley & the Tiny Five Hundred Dollar Wave | A Special Surf Session with Ashley Lloyd Thompson, Julie Cox, Alex Thompson, Chris Cuevas & Sheri Crummer | Kelly Nicely & the Pelican Session | Mary Osborne & Her Beloved 9'10" Cooperfish Single Fin | Kelia Moniz, Megan Godinez, Geodee Clark & Bruna Schmitz | Kamalehua Keohokapu | Claire Bevilacqua | Lulu Erkeneff | Alexa Frantz |Rebecca Woods | Silvana Lima | Alessa Quizon
Additional Resources:
Tory Gilkerson on Jettygirl's Single Wave Thursday
Tory Gilkerson's Snapshots from China during the Swatch Girls Pro
Tory Gilkerson on Instagram
Tory Gilkerson on Facebook page
Hawaiian Pro Designs
Select Surf Studio
Eidon Swim
Zeal Optics
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Sticky Bumps Cool Wax 6 Pack - easy to apply and long-lasting. The Cool Water formula keeps you stuck to your board when the water temps are somewhere between a 3/2 fullsuit and a 2mm spring. 58-68 degrees Farenheit / 14-19 degrees Celcius. 6-pack of wax.
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Holly Beck Obermeyer - Single Wave Thursday. One Ride, No Music, Just Surfing.
Women's Surf Movies on Jettygirl Online Surf Magazine
Holly Beck has so many of the qualities I look up to in another human being. She's intelligent, resourceful, organized, goal-oriented and so much more ...all wrapped up in a truly down-to-earth and fun-loving personality. On this day in 2009 she took out a new Rusty "Dwart" surfboard and in a crew of some of the top surfers in the world, literally blew the roof off the session as seen in this lightning-fast whip off the section.
Thank you for stopping by for another installment of Single Wave Thursday. As always, thank you for your support of Jettygirl. None of this would be possible without you, our dear readers.
Film: Chris Grant | Sound: Audio provided by abcopen at freesound.org
* There's no HD on this one but to get the best quality, click the little icon to the right of the clock on the YouTube player (you must hit the play arrow first to see the icons) and select 480p.
Previous Single Wave Thursdays: Ashley Lloyd Thompson | Kassia Meador | Amee Donohoe | Felicity Palmateer | Tammy-Lee Smith | Tia Blanco | Pauline Ado | Tory Gilkerson | Claire Bevilacqua | Kaleigh Gilchrist | Courtney Conlogue | Justine Dupont | Silvana Lima | Courtney Conlogue | Erin Ashley | Brittani Nicholl | Alexa Frantz | Lindsay Steinriede
Additional Resources:
Holly Beck | Explore. Connect. Inspire.
Surf With Amigas - Women's Surf and Yoga Retreats
Holly Beck on Facebook
Surf With Amigas on Facebook
Holly Beck on Instagram - @hollybeck27
Surf With Amigas on Instagram - @surfwithamigas
Rusty Surfboards
Body Glove
Sector 9 Skateboards
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Sector 9 Peru Skateboard - Fully renewable bamboo deck, wide 10" Gullwing Charger trucks, 70mm 75a Biothan wheels with Abec Five PDP bearings.
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Surf Photo Friday - Jen Smith and Her Furry Friend, Colin, in Cardiff, California
Photos by Chris Grant
The year was 2007 and Jen Smith had just returned home from France after winning her first ASP Women's Longboard World Title. Though jet lagged and exhausted from the festivities, Jen met me for a quick surf at Cardiff Reef. Perhaps the reef itself sensed everyone's depleted energy levels and didn't really offer much in the way of quality waves. Jen rode a few, touched the nose a couple of times, and returned the beach to her anxiously waiting dog, Colin.
In retrospect, this session was never going to be about Jen riding waves. Instead, the lazy day was more about reconnecting---the return back to a normal pace of life in her beloved San Diego and to meeting up with friends of both the furry and human variety who were waiting to congratulate her on her world title. Looking back, I can't really remember anything from that day other than the look in Colin's eyes as he saw Jen leaving the water to take him for a walk. A world title is amazing no doubt, but the love of a good friend is priceless beyond words.
Thank you for dropping by for another installment of Surf Photo Friday. Have a great weekend everyone ...and as always, thank you for your support of Jettygirl. Please consider helping out with a "Pay Whatever You Like" subscription to the site. Every little bit helps!
Photo Credits: Chris Grant / Jettygirl.com
Previous Surf Photo Fridays | Stephanie Schechter, Family Surf Trip to Panama | Prue Jeffries on a Donald Takayama Quad | Sara Taylor Sequence | Get Stoked on Lady Shapers | The Session That Changed Everything | Justine Dupont and Pauline Ado in California | Role Models, Why They Still Matter | Surfing New Jersey's Polar Vortex Swells with the K Twins | Mele Saili and Hayden Lane, Cardiff Reef | Jill Manos Surfs the Freezing Water of Nova Scotia, Canada | Malia Ward, Chris Ward, & a Surf Photographer's Second Worst Nightmare | Chloe Buckley & the Tiny Five Hundred Dollar Wave | A Special Surf Session with Ashley Lloyd Thompson, Julie Cox, Alex Thompson, Chris Cuevas & Sheri Crummer | Kelly Nicely & the Pelican Session | Mary Osborne & Her Beloved 9'10" Cooperfish Single Fin | Kelia Moniz, Megan Godinez, Geodee Clark & Bruna Schmitz | Kamalehua Keohokapu | Claire Bevilacqua | Lulu Erkeneff | Alexa Frantz |Rebecca Woods | Silvana Lima | Alessa Quizon
Additional Resources:
Fin-First Takeoffs with Jennifer Smith - Jettygirl School of Sick Tricks
Jen Smith on Instagram - @jensmithyowza
Hawaiian Pro Designs
Sector 9 Skateboards
Soul Grind
Jen Smith's 2011 Interview with Liquid Salt
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Sector 9 Peru Skateboard - Fully renewable bamboo deck, wide 10" Gullwing Charger trucks, 70mm 75a Biothan wheels with Abec Five PDP bearings.
More in the Store >>
* Like, tweet, post, pin, comment or whatever. Waves are meant to be shared.
Ashley Lloyd Thompson - Single Wave Thursday. One Ride, No Music, Just Surfing.
Women's Surf Movies on Jettygirl Online Surf Magazine
One of my favorite Jettygirl days was the one I spent with surfer/shaper/musician, Ashley Lloyd Thompson, at her home in Santa Cruz, California. Watching the ultra-smooth surfing styles of Ashley and her husband, Alex, was a refreshing change of pace. If filming the two of them drawing clean lines in the water wasn't reward enough, I was blessed even more with a home-grown salad and an impromptu live music performance after the session. It was an epic day through and through!
Thank you for stopping by for another installment of Single Wave Thursday. As always, thank you for your support of Jettygirl. None of this would be possible without you, our dear readers.
Film: Chris Grant | Sound: Audio provided by abcopen at freesound.org
* There's no HD on this one but to get the best quality, click the little icon to the right of the clock on the YouTube player (you must hit the play arrow first to see the icons) and select 480p.
Previous Single Wave Thursdays: Kassia Meador | Amee Donohoe | Felicity Palmateer | Tammy-Lee Smith | Tia Blanco | Pauline Ado | Tory Gilkerson | Claire Bevilacqua | Kaleigh Gilchrist | Courtney Conlogue | Justine Dupont | Silvana Lima | Courtney Conlogue | Erin Ashley | Brittani Nicholl | Alexa Frantz | Lindsay Steinriede
Additional Resources:
Ashley Lloyd Surfboards - official
The Shapes - official band site
Ashley Lloyd Thompson on Instagram
The Shapes on Facebook
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Billabong Pent Up Sweater - oversized, open-front designed sweater.
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Surf Photo Friday - Stephanie Schechter, Family Surf Trip to Panamá
Photos by Janet, Jason, and Stephanie Schechter
Panamá. Not the first place that comes to mind when thinking of a surf trip destination… But that may be one great reason to choose to go there. While Panamá is known to have good waves and fabulous weather, it is definitely considered an off-the-beaten-path country for surf trips. This is precisely why my family chose to travel there last week for a seven-day trip of surfing, fun, and relaxation.
I had just finished final exams for winter quarter at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and my brother had just finished his finals at UCLA. Instead of going on "MTV Spring Break!" style trips with friends to places like Florida or Cabo, our parents were kind enough to invite us to share some quality time on a surf trip to Panamá! We flew directly from LAX to La Ciudad de Panamá, and the flight was only six hours, a quick hop in comparison to flying to somewhere like Asia, which has flights in the 12-14 hour range. We spent the night in a hotel near the airport in the beautiful capital city, and then set off in our rental car, stacked sky high with our board bags, to Playa Venao. We were told the drive would be four and a half hours, but of course, it ended up being around five and a half, not including the amount of time we spent taking wrong turns!
Finally, we arrived at beautiful Playa Venao. We found the house we were staying in, nestled in the jungle overlooking Playa Venao. It was adorably named La Casa Mango, after the several mango trees providing shade for the house in the 80-90 degree Panamanian heat. We went to see the waves, and our jaws dropped. In front of us were perfect sandbar beach break peelers with only a few people in the water! There were peaks dotting the entire stretch of beach, and while some waves closed out, most were head high, open-faced walls, perfect for riding any type of board. We spent the week surfing and having fun at Playa Venao, while the offshore breeze cooled us off and perfected the waves. We found a wonderful cove for snorkeling, with crystal clear waters and plenty of fish!
Although the trip was only one week long, we spent our time well, by not only surfing and snorkeling, but also doing yoga, walking through the jungle, relaxing in hammocks, and more! There was wildlife galore, including monkeys, exotic reptiles, and LOTS of insects. This trip was one I will certainly always remember, celebrating a successful quarter at UCSB, surfing with my family, and learning about the wonderful culture of Panamá!
Thank you for dropping by for another installment of Surf Photo Friday. Have a great weekend everyone ...and as always, thank you for your support of Jettygirl. Please consider helping out with a "Pay Whatever You Like" subscription to the site. Every little bit helps!
Photo Credits: Surf photos by Janet Schechter; snorkel photo by Jason Schechter; scenic photos by Stephanie Schechter.
Previous Surf Photo Fridays | Prue Jeffries on a Donald Takayama Quad | Sara Taylor Sequence | Get Stoked on Lady Shapers | The Session That Changed Everything | Justine Dupont and Pauline Ado in California | Role Models, Why They Still Matter | Surfing New Jersey's Polar Vortex Swells with the K Twins | Mele Saili and Hayden Lane, Cardiff Reef | Jill Manos Surfs the Freezing Water of Nova Scotia, Canada | Malia Ward, Chris Ward, & a Surf Photographer's Second Worst Nightmare | Chloe Buckley & the Tiny Five Hundred Dollar Wave | A Special Surf Session with Ashley Lloyd Thompson, Julie Cox, Alex Thompson, Chris Cuevas & Sheri Crummer | Kelly Nicely & the Pelican Session | Mary Osborne & Her Beloved 9'10" Cooperfish Single Fin | Kelia Moniz, Megan Godinez, Geodee Clark & Bruna Schmitz | Kamalehua Keohokapu | Claire Bevilacqua | Lulu Erkeneff | Alexa Frantz |Rebecca Woods | Silvana Lima | Alessa Quizon
Additional Resources:
Stephanie Schechter on Instagram - @stephanieschechter
Stephanie Schechter's interview on Liquid Salt
Kevin Connelly Surfboards
Swell.com
Shop for your favorite brands in the Surf Store:
Frankie's Bikinis Kaia Braided Sport Bikini Top - sport style bikini top with braided criss-cross detail on the back. Deep scoop neck. 91% micro nylon / 9% spandex.
Frankie's Bikinis Kaia Twisted Braid Bikini Bottom - Low rise bikini bottom with twisted, braid sides. Seamless. 91% micro nylon / 9% spandex.
More in the Store >>
* Like, tweet, post, pin, comment or whatever. Waves are meant to be shared.