It was an average day with plenty of sunshine and we had been out for an hour or so. There were about twenty of us competing for waves and we had a right hand break that if you went through a re-form of the wave the length of you wave could be about 50 to 80 meters.

I caught a wave and right away dropped a steep face into a tube that had me placed about six to eight feet inside of the break. I traveled in there for about thirty to forty feet and then I came out of the tube, took my board to the lip and did a re- entry and re positioned and went into another tube that went a further twenty feet or so. I came out of that tube and quickly entered another before moving onto the reform and I rode the wave all the way to the shallow water where I stepped off into shallow water.

I quickly went out and shared my wave with my elder brother and it was dismissed as he shared three or so waves he had ridden and so I thought that all I had to show for myself was a fond memory. Getting three tubes in one wave is pretty rare and getting out of them all is even rarer.

Years later I was walking down to the same beach with my elder brother and one of the towns best surfers. My brother was having a go at me and this guy spoke up. He told my brother in all his time on the beach he had not often seen a better wave ridden then the wave he saw me ride one day. I asked him if it was the one with three tubes and he shook his head and agreed that it was.

The lesson I learned that day was no matter what you do in life there is always a witness. God is always our witness. I have also learned to have fond memories of events I have had in my life. I will always remember that wave, I was never a great surfer but I did enjoy myself and at one time I was quite slim.

Just remember guys. Someone is always watching you even when you’re alone.

Matthew is one of two people that operate a site at http://www.escapeministries.net Escape ministries is a place where people can be ministered to over the internet, by reading articles, watching videos and receiving personal prophetic words. James and Matthew invite you to visit today to look at some of the articles they have collected and watch some of the video teachings they are setting about to produce for you. You are encouraged to sign up for our monthly newsletter or simply email James or Matthew with any of your comments. We hope that you might bookmark it and come back to visit often as we pursue our mission statement that is found on our home page.

You can visit and view their video’s live at youtube by going direct to http://www.youtube.com/EscapeMinistries

What was once a ritualistic, spiritual experience for the early Hawaiians and Polynesians in the construction of their surfboards has now become a multi-billion dollar industry with technologically advanced materials, sponsorships and celebrity. The surfboard has gone through as many changes as the culture of surfing progresses. The ancient Hawaiians constructed either ‘Olo’ (boards reserved for chiefs and royalty) and ‘Alaia’ (rode by commoners) out of wood from the Ula, Wili Wili or Koa trees. The construction of these boards was ceremonial and utmost respect was given to board makers.

The boards ranged from 10-16 feet, depending on the social class of the rider. The longer the board, the higher the ranking of the surfrider. After the Calvinist Christian missionaries succeeded in encouraging the decline of surfing by the late 1800s, a lot of tradition and board construction had ceased. George Freeth, an early 20th century surfing pioneer, developed a new style of board half the size of a traditional Hawaiian board.

Freeth experimented with this board professionally in California and it was a turning point in board design. In 1926, the legendary Tom Blake created the hollow surfboard, to the amusement of the local Hawaiians who dubbed it a ‘Cigar Board’. It was made of Redwood with numerous holes drilled in it for buoyancy. It sped through the ocean at a length of 15 feet long, 19” wide and a thickness of 4”. By 1930, Blake’s board was being mass-produced and 5 years later he developed the first fin for the bottom of the board. This afforded surfers additional stability and greater maneuverability.

The next wave of builders of 1934 were famous surfers John Kelly, Fran Heath and Wally Froiseth who created what is termed the ‘hot curl’ boards. Named this because it permitted the surfers to ride into the ‘curl’ of a wave and surf the pipe. Redwood boards weighed in at 100 lbs and were replaced with Balsa wood construction that brought the weight of the board down to 30 or 40 lbs. Balsa wood was not readily available and mixed construction of Redwood and Balsa became a new standard in board design.

By the end of WWII, surfboard design benefited from new materials and technologies as a result of wartime manufacturing techniques. Fiberglass, Styrofoam and plastics were used in these new boards. In 1946, Pete Peterson created the first fiberglass surfboard. 1949 saw Bob Simmons’ revolutionary ‘sandwich’ board design. It contained a Styrofoam core, enclosed by thin layers of plywood, balsawood rails and a fiberglass coating.

Dave Velzy opened up the first surf shop, constructing his own surfboards and improving and creating new designs. The polyurethane foam boards of the 1950s were longboards between 9-11 feet. George Downing developed ‘Gun’ boards, thinner and longer boards, for Big Wave surfing in Hawaii. In 1956, some California surfers brought their fiberglass Malibu boards to Australia and wowed the surfing world with their agility on the waves. In the 60s and early 70s began to be lighter and shorter. The new construction earned the name ‘pocket rocket’, designed by Dick Brewer.

Twin fins for additional stability were added and with this combination, a surfer could surf with speed and increased maneuverability. The next revolution in surfboards was the shortboard design, enabling experimentation and allowing surfers to tailor the boards to their specific riding style. In 1971, the surf leash was developed and kept frustrated surfers attached to their surfboards forever. Australian surfer Simon Anderson designed three-fin Thruster boards in 1981. Surfboards are continuously going through changes, depending on the need and desire of surfers everywhere. The Longboard returned on the scene in the 1990s for old-timers and newcomers alike.

Eric Hartwell oversees “The World’s Best Homepage” intended to be a user-generated resource where YOUR opinion counts. Anybody can contribute and all are welcomed. Visit us to read, comment upon or share opinions on surfing and sport and visit our associated site articles for free.

In Polynesian times of the early 1600s, men, women and children would surf the Hawaiian waves together in harmony. Although there were males who were dominant in the sport, many women were also prominent. The Hawaiians looked at the sport in an egalitarian fashion, with equal opportunity for excellence and skill.

By the time the Europeans settled in Hawaii in the late 1700s and early 1800s, the historians Ben Finney and James Houston have accounted that “a large percentage of wahines (women) of early Hawaii were skillful surfers, and sometimes champions. Early engravings of the sport are full of half-dressed island girls perched on surfboards at the top of a curling wave.” These early women surfers were also, no doubt, enticed by the intimacy allowed males and females who rode the same waves together. There were also love and courtship competitions carried out by both sexes while surfing the waves.

The first famous surfer was known as Mamala, a demi-god of Polynesian times. She has a mythology associated with her name and was an extraordinary surfer, earning her accolades from the other chiefs and chieftesses. Princess Kaneamuna’s surfboard, dated to the mid-1600s, was discovered in 1905 in her burial cave.

Ka‘ahumanu was a late 18th century canoe leaper. This feat involved jumping from a canoe into the breaker with a surfboard and riding the wave all the way to the shore. She was very adept at this style of riding but later came to dissuade others from surfing after she converted to Christianity and toured with the Calvinists.

During the hiatus of surfing in the very late 1800s, after the onslaught of Calvinist Puritanism, there were very few surfers riding the waves. One woman, Princess Ka’iulaini, is reported to be “the last of the old school at Waikiki”, according to surfrider Knute Cottrell. As surfing’s renaissance began again in the early 20th Century, surf clubs cropped up and were formally organized, The Hui Nalu (surf club) being one of them. Two women surfers are on record as being official members of the club, Mildred “ladybird” Turner, and Josephine “Jo” Pratt. The famous surfer and ladykiller, Duke Kahanamoku, is documented to be the first surfer to ride tandem on a surfboard. Of course, bringing Leslie Lemon with him to accomplish this was a fun and sexy way to make history. Duke later spread surfing to Australia where he repeated his trick in 1914 with the 15-year-old ocean girl Isabel Letham, who was later admitted to the Australian Surfing Hall of Fame for encouraging generations of Australian women to engage in the sport of surfing.

Women often began their own careers of surfing from tandem rides, owing it to the fact that their boyfriends were out there in the surf and they wanted to get in on the action. Many of these spunky females would then train and become as good as the men. Mary ann Hawkins is perhaps the most famous female surfer of the early 20th century. She won a myriad of awards for competitive swimming and surfing all throughout the 30s. By the 1970s, she became a stunt double in Hollywood films and later relocated to Hawaii where she opened up a swimming school for babies.

“She was an all around waterperson,” big wave rider and oceanograher Ricky Grigg, noted, “and I think it gave them [the women surfers who followed] a sense of depth. They had to be more than surfers. They had to be good bodysurfers and swimmers and just totally comfortable in the ocean.”

Eric Hartwell oversees “The World’s Best Homepage” intended to be a user-generated resource where YOUR opinion counts. Anybody can contribute and all are welcomed. Visit us to read, comment upon or share opinions on sport and visit our associated site articles for free.

If images of the kahuna (experts) ritualistically chanting to the Gods to bring the waves, protect men and women who rode them, bless the carved wood boards, kings and queens battling for wave rights and integration between man and the magic of the sea brings images of the history of Surfing to your mind’s eye, then you must be filled with Aloha, as the Polynesians intended. The history of surfing dates back centuries before the first written account of observing ‘the sport of kings’ in 1779 by Lt. James King in the ship’s log of Captian James Cook’s Discovery.

He scrutinizes the sport as existing purely for sport and amusement; “The Men sometimes 20 or 30 go without the Swell of the Surf, & lay themselves flat upon an oval piece of plan about their Size and breadth, they keep their legs close on top of it, & their Arms are us’d to guide the plank, thye wait the time of the greatest Swell that sets on Shore, & altogether push forward with their Arms to keep on its top, it sends them in with a most astonishing Velocity, & the great art is to guide the plan so as always to keep it in a proper direction on the top of the Swell…”Surfing was created as a royal pastime, embedded in the codes of the kapu (taboos) as governed by the Hawaiians.

It was a very well-respected and almost mystical experience which kings and queens welcomed into their lives. When the Europeans began to arrive from England in droves in the early 1800’s, bringing with it their puritanical Calvinistic Christian philosophies, the kapu of the Hawaiians was destroyed and they were forced to live a more European way of life. With this change came the degradation of surfing as offensive to God and Jesus Christ. The Hawaiians were manipulated into believing in a resulting eternal damnation for surfing, and consequently, the sport fell out of favor.

The thrill and immortality of surfing was not completely demolished and there were dedicated lone surfers continuing to take on the waves, despite the Calvinists’ demands. Tourists from other countries began to hear about the fascinating sport and wanted to try it for themselves. In 1851, the writer Reverend Henry T. Cheever inscribed his observation of the mysticism, skill and beauty of surfing. Mark Twain has recorded his account of having wiped out on a wave during his initiation to the sport in 1866.

Surfing stayed on an underground level and continued to decline until 1907 when author Jack London, native surfer George Freeth and eccentric wanderer Alexander Hume Ford founded the Waikiki Swimming Club. London was famous and influential, bringing surfing to the world’s attention with his book “A Royal Sport: Surfing in Waikiki”. George Freeth won the title of “First Man to Surf in California”, which wasn’t exactly true but drew public attention nonetheless. Hume Ford petitioned for Waikiki to be a permanent home for surfing and won. On May 1, 1908 the Hawaiian Outrigger Canoe Club was founded and the sport began to flourish again.

Eric Hartwell oversees “The World’s Best Homepage” intended to be a user-generated resource where YOUR opinion counts. Anybody can contribute and all are welcomed. Visit us to read, comment upon or share opinions on sport and visit our associated site articles for free.

Oahu, Hawaii-North Shore

Hawaii is the original home of surfing. The Polynesians began the sacred ritualistic sport here more than 500 years ago. Today, Hawaii is home to most of the Big Wave surfing and some of the most coveted breaks exist in this island paradise.

The North Shore on the island of Oahu has gigantic winter waves and is commonly referred to as ‘wild water’. The North Shore covers almost 20 miles of beautiful, open sandy beaches that produce mammoth 20-30 foot waves from October to February. The most famous of these breaks is at `Ehukai Beach, known worldwide as the Banzai Pipeline. This ferocious tube breaks over a coral reef that bottoms out at under 24 inches and the waves are normally 10 feet high. This is the place were surfing legends are made and broken.

Another North Shore Big Wave surf spot is Waimea Beach. The Quicksilver Eddie Aikau Invitational competition is held here annually, with wave requirements being 20 feet or higher. This winter wonderland of monster waves is also one of the most dangerous surfing locations in the world. In the summertime, the water is flat and is a charming spot for snorkeling, fishing and swimming.

Cape Town, South Africa- Jeffries Bay

With its mountain backdrop, incredible wildlife, beautiful seashore and gnarly waves, Cape Town and its surrounding breaks are paradise incarnate for the seasoned surfer.

There are all sorts of secret breaks and deserted beaches along South Africa’s Wild Coast. 375 miles to the west of Cape Town is Eastern Cape, home to Jeffries Bay, or J-Bay as it is known, is a pristine spot for consistent surf with famous curls. “Supertubes” beach brings perfect waves that are considered to be unparalleled anywhere else in the world. In July, professional surfers gather here for the Billabong Pro tournament. Other notable surfing breaks are Bruce’s Beauties and Cape St. Francis from Endless Summer fame. Tourism has destroyed some of J-Bay’s charm, however as cheap apartment buildings have sprung up in the area, detracting from its natural beauty.

Watch out for sharks! This area has the reputation of attracting sharks in droves due to the Indian Ocean’s warm water. The breaks in the area that will get you totally stoked are Boneyards, Dungeons, Kitchen Windows, Phantoms and Magnatubes. Some of these beaches can surprise you with a wave you can ride for up to three minutes.

Half Moon Bay, Northern California- Mavericks

Named after a sea-worthy German shepherd in 1961, this beach and its break has become synonymous with Big Wave surfing. It is the only place where surfers can find waves from 25-50 feet in the winter outside of Hawaii. The extraordinary rock formation underwater is the reason for this break’s Big Wave phenomenon, luring many of the world’s best big wave surfers to Pillar Point Harbor, north of Half Moon Bay. Although Mavericks was named in 1961 and surfed by only a few brave surfers for many years, today it has become a popular destination for surfers who want to catch a big wave in California. In 1999, the first annual Invitation-Only Mavericks Surf Contest was formed. This contest gives the top names in big wave surfing 24 hour notice to show up and rip, possibly leaving with cash prizes. Crowds of over 40,000 spectators gather to watch these surfers take on the cold water, unpredictable and strong current conditions of this paddle-in contest.

Eric Hartwell oversees “The World’s Best Homepage” intended to be a user-generated resource where YOUR opinion counts. Anybody can contribute and all are welcomed. Visit us to read, comment upon or share opinions on sport and recreation and visit our associated site articles for free.

In the early 1900’s the Hawaiians organized the Hui Nalu (surf club) and competed in neighborly surf competitions with the Outrigger Canoe Club. This drew a great deal of attention to the Waikiki surf shore, bringing a revitalized interest in the sport, which had fallen out of favor in the late 1800s. Duke Kahanamoku, an Olympic star in swimming, popularized the sport further by traveling internationally and showing off his surfing style to thrilled audiences around the world. He was favored by Hollywood elite; having acted in bit parts in films and was always recruiting new surfers wherever he went. He is credited with surfing the longest wave of all time in 1917, in the popular surfing area now called Outside Castles in Waikiki. His 1000 meters plus wave record has yet to be overtaken.

In the 1930s, the sport of surfing was experiencing a Renaissance. Tom Blake, founder of the Pacific Coast Surf Championships that ended with the onset of war in 1941, was the first man to photograph surfing from the water. Another photographer and surfer named Doc Ball published California Surfriders 1946, which depicts the pristine coastal beaches and good-time, relaxed atmosphere of surf living. Surfing, although curtailed in the aftermath of WWII, revived as always by the 1950s. Bud Browne, an accomplished surfer and waterman, created the first ‘surf movie’ with his 1953 “Hawaiian Surfing Movie”. This inspired many photographers, filmmakers and surfers to continue documenting the sport, culminating with is arguably the best surf movie of all time, 1963’s “Endless Summer” by Bruce Brown. The film opened up the genre of the surf movie and the art of surfing to non-surfing people, accumulating fans and inspiring neophytes.

Although surfing was a male-dominated sport, adventurous women surfers can be seen all the way back to the times of the Polynesian Queens. Two notable ‘surfer girls’ were Eve Fletcher and Anona Napolean. Eve Fletcher was a California-born animator for Walt Disney and Anona Napolean was the daughter of a respected Hawaiian surfing family. The two pioneered the sport for modern women, winning surfing competitions up and down the California coast at the end of the 50s and into the 60s. Hollywood was quick to be on the scene and with the 1959 film “Gidget”, surfing was flung far out into the mainstream, never to return to its humble, ritualistic beginnings. “Gidget” inspired a slew of “Beach Blanket Bingo” movies that brought surfing to a new generation of teens and inspiring a new genre of ‘surf music’ that accompanied films and made The Beach Boys more famous than Elvis in the 60s.

Surfing spread throughout all media and Surfing Magazine was born in the early 1960s by famous surf photographer, LeRoy Grannis. After that, other publications cropped up bringing more information on the sport, equipment and stars of the surfing scene. John Severson, an accomplished filmmaker and photographer, created Surfer Magazine, originally called “The Surfer”. These publications brought advertising, professional surfing, surf culture and publicity to the now very popularized sport.

Eric Hartwell oversees “The World’s Best Homepage” intended to be a user-generated resource where YOUR opinion counts. Anybody can contribute and all are welcomed. Visit us to read, comment upon or share opinions on sport and visit our associated site articles for free.

If you enjoy taking risks and having a good time appreciating the thrills of nature’s beauty, you probably like to Surf. If this is the case, there are some great surf videos that have awesome waves and surf tricks, displaying the killer California surf, man. You might also be interested in Surf Wear like Sunglasses and Surf Truncks that will make your ride perfect. If you are a regular surf champ, there are some awesome surf facts that you should know. Back on the early days of California surf, a group of friends would pile into a car and head off to search for waves together.

As airplane travel became affordable in the sixties, surfers would toss their long boards on a flight to Hawaii and share a beater and flophouse North Shore housing for their first taste of a ’surf safari.’

Then, in the seventies, groups of traveling surfers used freighters, sailboats and exotic Third World modes of transportation to locate and surf new spots. During the 1980’s and 1990’s surf camps appeared in remote locations where surfers could take their friends and wives and enjoy a feeling of genteel exploration while surfing un crowded waves.

Additionally, as technology and the internet have opened the world to easier access of information, surfers have used more and more high-tech methods to achieve essentially the same thing as the early travelers, to surf with your buddies in an uncrowded environment.

You probably are aware that surfing spots are crowded and will get worse and worse in the future. To find previously waves that have not been ridden waves in California today, you need a good boat, and we’ve found one. The ” Condor Express” is a 75′ aluminum jet-drive rocket ship that will easily do thirty five knots.

Even if we are using a high-tech catamaran and PWCs to access these remote waves, it’s essentially all about the adventure-the ‘aloha spirit’ of our film crew and tow-surfers getting together, sharing the whole experience with anyone interested.

When big swells hit California, we’ll be on the Condor with some tow-surfing teams and a film crew. When we return we’ll post our images, videoclips and stories on this site so you can share the adventure. Anything that pushes you to the beach is just fine.

It doesn’t matter if you’re bodysurfing, bodyboarding, windsurfing, kiteboarding, foilboarding, surfing or towsurfing, it’s all the same thing.

It pushes you to the beach, and that’s what it’s all about. Now we have satellite based surfing forecasts, live surf cams and guys flying personal helicopters to inaccessible spots in order to achieve the same objective. Surfers now scour the world looking for not only the perfect wave but the biggest wave.

For greater information about Hurley Clothing or more related subjects about Hurley Gear or about Hurley Store please review these links.

Surfing has become popular throughout the 20th century and remains so today. The traditional view of a surfer is that of a stocky , square-jaws, blond male - made popular by movies, TV and commercials. The truth is different.

Although surfing was a male-dominated sport, adventurous women surfers can be seen all the way back to the times of the Polynesian Queens. Two notable ‘surfer girls’ were Eve Fletcher and Anona Napolean. Eve Fletcher was a California-born animator for Walt Disney and Anona Napolean was the daughter of a respected Hawaiian surfing family. The two pioneered the sport for modern women, winning surfing competitions up and down the California coast at the end of the 50s and into the 60s.

Hollywood was quick to be on the scene and with the 1959 film “Gidget”, surfing was flung far out into the mainstream, never to return to its humble, ritualistic beginnings. “Gidget” inspired a slew of “Beach Blanket Bingo” movies that brought surfing to a new generation of teens and inspiring a new genre of ‘surf music’ that accompanied films and made The Beach Boys more famous than Elvis in the 60s.

Surfing spread throughout all media and Surfing Magazine was born in the early 1960s by famous surf photographer, LeRoy Grannis. After that, other publications cropped up bringing more information on the sport, equipment and stars of the surfing scene. John Severson, an accomplished filmmaker and photographer, created Surfer Magazine, originally called “The Surfer”. These publications brought advertising, professional surfing, surf culture and publicity to the now very popularized sport.

Eric Hartwell oversees “The World’s Best Homepage” intended to be a user-generated resource where YOUR opinion counts. Anybody can contribute and all are welcomed. Visit us to read, comment upon or share opinions on weight loss and obesity and visit his associated site articles for free.

In the early 1900’s the Hawaiians organized the Hui Nalu (surf club) and competed in neighborly surf competitions with the Outrigger Canoe Club. This drew a great deal of attention to the Waikiki surf shore, bringing a revitalized interest in the sport, which had fallen out of favor in the late 1800s.

Duke Kahanamoku, an Olympic star in swimming, popularized the sport further by traveling internationally and showing off his surfing style to thrilled audiences around the world. He was favored by Hollywood elite; having acted in bit parts in films and was always recruiting new surfers wherever he went. He is credited with surfing the longest wave of all time in 1917, in the popular surfing area now called Outside Castles in Waikiki. His 1000 meters plus wave record has yet to be overtaken.

In the 1930s, the sport of surfing was experiencing a Renaissance. Tom Blake, founder of the Pacific Coast Surf Championships that ended with the onset of war in 1941, was the first man to photograph surfing from the water. Another photographer and surfer named Doc Ball published California Surfriders 1946, which depicts the pristine coastal beaches and good-time, relaxed atmosphere of surf living.

Surfing, although curtailed in the aftermath of WWII, revived as always by the 1950s. Bud Browne, an accomplished surfer and waterman, created the first ‘surf movie’ with his 1953 “Hawaiian Surfing Movie”. This inspired many photographers, filmmakers and surfers to continue documenting the sport, culminating with is arguably the best surf movie of all time, 1963’s “Endless Summer” by Bruce Brown. The film opened up the genre of the surf movie and the art of surfing to non-surfing people, accumulating fans and inspiring neophytes.

Eric Hartwell oversees “The World’s Best Homepage” intended to be a user-generated resource where YOUR opinion counts. Anybody can contribute and all are welcomed. Visit us to read, comment upon or share opinions on weight loss and obesity and visit his associated site articles for free.

Kelly Slater, current eight time world surfing champion took third place in the first event of the 2007 surfing season. Does that mean he will go for his ninth world championship crown and then, if he wins, maybe for his tenth? After the first event of the year it is still impossible to say.

So, will Kelly surf the whole tour and try to win an unbelievable ninth world title? Kelly explained: “This year I’ll just take whatever approach seems to make most sense to be relaxed and not worry about results so I’ll be able to perform in the most free way.” But this is exactly how the last years tour begun. Kelly was not sure if he will compete on the tour. He did very well on his first match of the year when he won over Taj Burrow in then also won the final of last years Quiksilver Pro. Good result kick started Kelly’s most consistent year ever. Last year his worst result was fifth place and he won his eighth world crown with two events remaining on the 2006 calendar.

He later explained: “I was just relaxed. When you don’t expect anything, good things happen. When you expect to win something, there’s no upside. It all just came together.” Third place in the first event is just about somewhere in the middle of doing good and bad by Kellys standards of course. Maybe this is just the thing to get his fire burning. So what will Kelly Slater do? Let’s wait and see.

Mick runs a Kelly Slater fan site with lots of news in the best surfer of all times - his biography, gallery and more.