Boardshorts

Tales from the wave-chasing life

Category: Surfing

Empty lineups beckon in a time of selfless isolation

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On April 10, 2020

In Galveston, Surfing, Uncategorized

The waves weren’t big, less-than-stellar by any standard. But riding my bicycle along the Seawall on Tuesday morning, I could imagine the push from these little peelers reeling across the shore in waist-deep water.

Light offshores were freshening up what had been a choppy lineup just a few hours earlier. Clean and green and beautiful.

Before all this started, it was the type of morning where I would’ve likely grabbed the longboard and paddled out to catch a few before heading into the office for the day.

Such surfs are just the sort of palate cleanser that most of us need to get us through the normal, stress-filled days at work.

Alas, on this particular morning, such an experience wasn’t possible. The beaches, having been closed for more than a week at that point (and by extension prohibiting surfing too since most of us have to walk on the beach to enter the lineup), were empty. Wave after little wave cruised through the lineup without anyone on them, exhausting their final energies along the sand in complete anonymity.

I stopped at 61st Street and watched for a long while, closing my eyes occasionally to focus on listening to the gentle hum of the ocean’s energy caressing its sandy bottom, sending whitewater froths in uniform lines.

In my mind’s eye, I could feel the lift and the smooth glide of takeoff, speed building as my imaginary longboard began to effortlessly plane on the clean wave face.

While no substitute for the real deal, we all will need to reach into the storehouse of our surfing memory banks for a bit longer, recalling our most memorable waves ridden or a particularly thrilling session.

It seems every surfer who has been doing this for a while, has several memorable rides that have happened in their lifetimes. Some of mine have been right here on the east side of the Flagship; others are from trips to Mainland Mexico or Costa Rica or California.

Regardless of location, these memories are punctuated by the feeling of surfing, the unmistakable thrill of speeding atop a foaming wall of moving water, harnessing the vast energy of the ocean we call home, even for just a few seconds.

At this point in time, memories are all we have. Hopefully soon we’ll have the opportunity to make more. Until then, stay safe.

Stephen Hadley is a longtime surfer who lives and works in Galveston. You can reach him at stephendhadley@gmail.com.

Surfing not immune to cancellations and closures

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On March 21, 2020

In Galveston, Surfing, TGSA

This column was originally published in the March 21, 2020, edition of The Galveston County Daily News.

As the spread of the coronavirus continues to grip the United States and alter the landscape of professional and amateur sports, surfing competitions are among the latest to be put on hold.

This week, the Texas Gulf Surfing Association announced it is postponing its 2020 Texas State Surfing Championships, which were scheduled for March 28-29, until a later date. Check www.surftgsa.org for updates on when the events might be rescheduled.

In addition, the World Surf League this week officially postponed or canceled all events at every level of competition through the end of May. That includes the three World Championship Tour events of the Australian leg at Snapper Rocks, Bells Beach and Margaret River. The much anticipated G-Land event at Grajagan in Indonesia, which was set to take place in June, is being removed from the schedule as well.

“We have every intention of commencing the 2020 championship tour season and all of our tours as soon as possible,” WSL CEO Erik Logan said. “We are already hard at work doing scenario planning for what a re-imagined 2020 tour might look like.”

Aside from the postponement of the competitive season, there also have been communities up and down the Texas coast that are considering closing beaches to public access, effectively limiting surfers’ access to the waves. This week, Cameron County, which includes South Padre Island, closed its beach access points and beach parks to the public until further notice. Surfside also has limited visitor access to its beaches and parking areas, and Galveston is discussing whether to close its beach access locations.

While it might be a hard pill for many local surfers to swallow, discouraging tourists from visiting the beaches in large numbers by closing access points is one tool cities and counties have used to try and prevent the spread of this virus.

It could be argued surfing is a great way for a segment of the local population to stay fit and active while diminishing stress, key factors in improving health generally. Being able to paddle out and immerse ourselves in the ocean’s natural bounty is akin to a religious experience for many of us.

But if large numbers of people continue to crowd the local beaches, the city might not be left with much of a choice. I’m hopeful it won’t come to that but, if it does, we should all remember this too shall pass.

Here’s to healthier and happier days ahead.

The Dream Tour

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On July 22, 2017

In Jeffreys Bay, Milby Shannon, South Africa, Surfing, TGSA, World Surf League

Galveston native Milby Shannon chases waves around the globe as part of his job with the World Surf League

Shannon surfing at Jeffreys Bay, South Africa, on Thursday, July 13, 2017. Photo by Sacha Specker. (Instagram @sachaspex)

This column was first published in The Galveston County Daily News on July 22, 2017.

For most surfers, venturing to South Africa and riding the famed right-hand point break at Jeffreys Bay would be a dream come true.

But for Galveston native Milby Shannon, it’s just one stop he’ll make this year as he follows professional surfing’s championship tour around the globe.

Shannon, an associate producer of the live website broadcasts for the World Surf League, travels for 10 months of the year to the most iconic surf locations in the world—including Tahiti, California, Hawaii and Portugal—so that viewers can watch the world’s best surfers competing in the best waves.

On days when the contests are on hold because the waves aren’t optimal at one of these pristine locations, Shannon gets to break away for a surf. Last week, in the days leading up to the South African competition, Jeffreys Bay was doing its thing, reeling with ruler-like precision down the point for hundreds of yards. Shannon was there, snagging a few nuggets with the other WSL crew members who were trying to get wet before the pros took over the lineup.

Shannon in Western Australia, 2017. Photo taken by Dan Shetron (Instagram @stanley_shetron)

Riding waves has been one of the true constants in Shannon’s life. His father, the retired former Frost Bank President Albert Shannon, is a longtime Texas surfer and so is his mother and his three sisters and brother.

“Honestly, I couldn’t tell you when I started surfing in Texas,” he says. “I remember before I could even swim fully, my dad would take me out to the T-head of the Flagship with a lifejacket on and he’d tandem surf with me to the beach. I hated every second of it, and constantly screamed until we were standing up and riding a wave. Then, I would go silent and soak in every moment of the ride.”

Shannon, 27, was a standout in the Texas Gulf Surfing Association when he was a grommet (a younger surfer), and he credits that experience with enabling him to grasp competitive surfing from an early age and to realize the importance of grass-roots event organizers to the sport. Nearly all of the best professional surfers celebrated today had their start in similar organizations and worked their way through the ranks.

Out of all the places Shannon works and surfs each year as part of his WSL duties, he ranks Teahupo’o in Tahiti as his favorite. Because the village of Teahupo’o is so rural, crew members and pro surfers stay with local families year after year and develop deep relationships that make it seem like a home away from home for those on the road.

“Tahiti is an absolutely beautiful location, with lush green mountains jutting into the deep blue Pacific Ocean while also creating amazing world-class waves for surfing,” he says. “Over the two-week competition window (in mid-August), life moves slowly with surfing, fishing and hiking the main pastimes for us when we’re not working. It’s a great bonding experience for the staff members and has produced some of my best memories on the tour.”

While Shannon lives in California when he’s not on the road, Galveston is still considered “home” in many ways.

He says growing up on the island left him with two, indelible lessons in life. The first, whether it’s waves or experiences, you should welcome all challenges as opportunities. And second, everyone you encounter throughout life has led a unique path and each should be individually appreciated.

“Growing up surfing and skating in Texas, I never would have dreamed of this life path,” Shannon says. “The world is truly smaller than it seems, and I’m eternally grateful to those who have coached, mentored and opened doors for me along the way.”

To check out Shannon’s work and see the best surfers in the world compete on the championship tour, visit https://www.worldsurfleague.com.

Boardshorts

Dog-gone winners

The annual Ohana Surf Dog Competition last Sunday attracted 30 entrants, one from as far away as Oceanside, California, said William “Boog” Cram, the man at Ohana Surf & Skate.

The winners from this year’s competition were:

  • First place—Deborah Markwardt and Riptide
  • Second place—Erin Simmons and Hank
  • Third place—Ashley Stringer and Atticus
  • Fourth place—Liz Johnson and Emma

Memorial paddle-out

A memorial paddle-out for Larry LeGros, a.k.a. “Wave Hog,” will be held today at 7:30 p.m. at the 37th Street jetty in Galveston.

Save the date

Planning is underway for the annual Endless Summer Galveston Reunion, which will take place on Saturday, Sept. 9, with proceeds benefitting the Galveston Island Beach Patrol. Stay tuned to this column for more information about the event in the coming weeks.

TGSA Grom Roundup

The Texas Gulf Surfing Association will hold its annual Grom Roundups, sponsored by Texas Surf Camps, on Aug. 19 at Galveston Island State Park and Sept. 2 at Horace Caldwell Pier in Port Aransas. Both events start at 8 a.m. The events are open to kids 12 and under and entrants can register for the Roundups through private message on the TGSA’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/texasgulfsurfingassociation/, by providing the competitor’s name and birthdate. The first 36 groms who enter will receive a T-shirt and medal.

If you’ve got a suggestion for a surfing-related topic you’d like to see covered in this column, email Stephen Hadley at stephendhadley@gmail.com.

The right-sized surfboard makes all the difference

By

On July 15, 2017

In Galveston, Longboard, Surfing

This column was first published in The Galveston County Daily News on July 15, 2017.

It was the summer of 1985 when my friend and I resolved that we would learn to surf.

There wasn’t really any rhyme or reason to our decision. I just remember us thumbing through the pages of the surfing magazines, thinking how easy it looked when the pro surfers featured in  the photos turned on a dime, sending fans of spray in their wakes. We can do that, I thought.

Our main issue was that neither of us had a surfboard. That changed when my friend’s mom found a delaminated, used one sitting in the corner at a garage sale. Once he had the tiny, weather-beaten board in his grasp, my friend promptly set about refinishing it with fresh cans of red and white automotive paint to make it look more like the boards we saw the pros riding.

The first day taking turns riding that little board in the waves at Galveston County Pocket Park No. 2 was a disaster. For starters, we didn’t know much about how to wax the deck so we kept slipping off every time we tried to lay on it and paddle. Second, we had no clue how to get from our stomachs to our feet. It seemed impossible.

Of course, that didn’t stop us from trying. And we’ve kept trying over and over again for these past three decades. Fortunately, as we got older and stronger, we figured out how to ride waves at many locations around the world.

The real issue, I would learn later, was that our first surfboard was just too darn short for either of us. When it comes to learning how to surf, choosing the right-sized board is critical.

If there’s one piece of advice I can give to the surfer that’s just starting out, it would be this: Get yourself a longboard rather than one of the wafer-thin shortboards you’ll see ridden by the pros on the world tour.

A longboard, preferably one at least nine feet long and thicker than your arm is wide, will be easier to paddle, make it somewhat likely that you’ll stand up at some point during your first day in the water and be a whole heck of a lot more enjoyable when your figuring this wave-riding thing out.

The key with surfing—as with life—is to never give up. Your next ride could be your best yet.

Board Shorts

Goodbye to “Wave Hog”

Condolences to the friends and family of Larry “Wave Hog” LeGros, who died June 15 at the age of 63. LeGros, a longtime surfer from the Upper Texas Coast, developed his own line of surfboards under the “Wave Hog” label, which he promoted from coast to coast for many years. He was considered a friend and mentor to many up and coming surfers from this region through the years and always had a smile on his face both in and out of the water.

Southern Comforts

In late May, a group of Texas surfers headed to southern Mexico to log some water time at a famous Pacific Ocean point break. Scoring fun waves (and dodging the season’s first Pacific tropical storm during the trip) were Steve Hill, G. Scott Ellwood, Lauren Kenney, Bronson Hilliard, Lee Hughes, James Fulbright, D. Kenney, Melvin Kottwitz, Andre Leeder, Tim Moriarity, Mark Zwahr, Mick McDonald and Mike Meyers.

Salty Dogs

Don’t miss the 5th annual Ohana Surf Dog Competition on Sunday on the beach at 28th Street and Seawall Boulevard. Registration for the competition, which benefits the Galveston Island Humane Society, begins at 8 a.m. with competition starting at 9 a.m. Activities for this year’s event include the surfing dog competition, a puppy sandbox complete with toys and a hydration area and an adoption tent to learn more about rescuing your own canine. Registration for the competition is $25 but otherwise it’s free to attend.

This is a new column about surfers and surfing-related topics here in Galveston and across the Upper Texas Coast. It is written by Stephen Hadley, a former journalist and longtime Texas surfer who lives and works in Galveston. To submit ideas for this column, please email stephen@boardshortscolumn.com.

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