Surfing, Skateboarding, Music, Photography, Travel, Culture and general antics of the youth on the run.

Dane and Gabriel in Hawaii Collected Thoughts 030

Hawaii photographed by Scott Chenoweth What Youth

PHOTO: Chenoweth

I’m trying to keep calm. I’m trying to carry on. But after doing some responsible drinking, I’m going to chime in. Since Friday, two maneuvers were pulled off that were crazy. One by Dane in competition — a turn that perfectly demonstrates his disregard for things like waves, surfboards and competitive strategy. The turn was a big fuck you to no one in particular — they just bring that kind of intensity. Whether or not it was out of frustration, he rode out clean and got a 7.33. No claim. Just a casual duck out. Yes, best turn ever: 7.33. Remaining calm. Carrying on.

Down the beach at Rocky Lefts, Gabriel Medina did a massive backflip and dubbed it the best thing he’s ever done and posted it on his website, sending it to the viral machine where it has since been destroyed, amended, praised and commented upon by anyone who’s turned on a computer. And aside from the fact that everyone has already seen it, the incredible backflip has been covered with so much graffiti and commentary I can no longer even enjoy the damn thing. Despite the fact that it’s probably on par with Danny Way doing an ollie over the Great Wall of China.

This saddens me. I want these amazing feats to psyche me up to surf and live, but they just don’t. At least not as much as the Kelly’s part in Focus did. Or Taj in Sabotaj. Or Andy in Momemtum: UTI.

And don’t get me wrong, both events were documented fairly well, but the way I had to view them would be the equivalent to watching Sonic Youth with the sound turned off. Dane’s turn was cluttered with webcast chatter, and despite the fact that I have thoroughly been enjoying Shane Dorian and Nutty on the webcast, it was a turn I’d rather lay a song to and talk about for the rest of my life. Instead, it’s on a heat recap and will be cursed with a 7.33 for the rest of eternity. Medina’s, on the other hand, was posted on YouTube, set to a club thumping atrocity and then replayed five times in one edit and rebroadcast on every site in the world where commenters were allowed to chime in with their name games and negativity.

But instead of getting negative myself, I’ve decided to keep calm. And carry on. Because at the end of the day, both Dane and Gabriel have just done things that were super sick. And I like that. Happy Holidays. -Travis

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Nate’s Back where the water is warm Collected Thoughts 123: After a stint in CA, Nate’s back in the tropics

“Man, it’s nice being back in the tropics…” —Nate Lawrence

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Yago Dora, Indonesia, 2016 Collected Thoughts 122

“There was a time in my life that I could do nothing except think about Macaroni’s. Like every day I would think – how am I going to get there. I think Yago thought the same thing on our trip. He was on another boat trip and was supposed to hop straight onto ours. It…

what youth collected thouthgs Kolohe Andino photographed by Nate Lawrence

Kolohe Andino, Bali 2013 Collected Thoughts 121

“Nobody’s perfect, and we love that.” —Nate Lawrence

what youth dion agius photographed by nate lawrence

Dion Agius, Hossegor, 2015 Collected Thoughts 120

“I first saw Dion on the cover of Transworld Surf magazine. It was a D.Hump flash photo that popped Dion onto the map in America. He was young. He was Australian. That was pretty much all I knew about him. Fast forward 12 years and still, a lot of people don’t know much about Dion….

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Collected Thoughts 119 Nate Lawrence mind surfing Indonesia

“I always look at photos of Greenbush, and wonder why the guy isn’t taking off behind the peak…” —Nate Lawrence

what youth collected thoughts stretch surfboards nate lawrence

Collected Thoughts 118 Stretch Surfboards shaping room, 2013

“I’ve always had a fascination with surfboard shapers. Mainly because they are really weird and mostly crazy. And I like crazy. Growing up in Santa Cruz and visiting a few of the local shapers, I started to see some similarities. Empty cans of Coors Light. Photos on the walls of mostly naked women and day-of-the-decade…

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Mason Ho doesn’t have bad surfs Collected Thoughts 117 with Nate Lawrence

“Does Mason ever have a bad surf? Nope.” —Nate Lawrence

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Dane Reynolds, Honest in Chapter 11 Collected Thoughts 116

“If you haven’t already watched Dane’s new film, Chapter 11, go watch it now. It is one of the most honest pieces on surfing that I have ever seen. As a huge fan of Dane Reynolds, I have liked almost everything he has ever been involved in. First Chapter. Young Guns. His section in Campaign…

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When Obama got Elected Collected Thoughts 115: Nate Lawrence’s view from abroad

I was in Senegal, West Africa when Obama got inaugurated for the first time. There was a sense of excitement and joy wherever I traveled for that next year. As an expat living overseas I had been saying I was Canadian when people asked. It was the safe thing to do, especially in Muslim countries…

Frame Grabs aren’t taking over. Yet. Collected Thoughts 114: Nate Lawrence on the new Canon 1DX Mark II

I recently saw a photo from a Canon event where editors from Surfing Magazine were giving a talk. A big pull quote was streaming from a projector saying, “THE DIGITAL CAMERA WAS JUST A TEMPORARY BRIDGE FROM FILM TO FRAME GRABS” —Peter Taras There’s been a bit of talk recently about Canon’s new 1DX Mark…

what youth gunner day photography by timmy Ridenour

Gunner Day Driving Through Indo Collected Thoughts 113: What makes this kid any different?

So you’re 16 and an up-and-coming professional surfer from San Clemente…so what? There are a lot of those. Like a lot.  T Street looks like an Olympic training ground of fluorescent wetsuits these days.  So what are you suppose to do to stand out in the surf world? Is it the QS grind three to the beach and a…

what youth collected thoughts luke hynd

Luke Hynd at The Bush Collected Thoughts 112: Timmy Ridenour talks about shooting Greenbush from the water

I would like to tell you about me being scared. And the dangers of swimming 8- to 10-foot Green Bush at close proximity to the reef with a very large camera. I assure you it’s a scary place at any breakable size and I was scared. But in the split second this photo was taken…

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