films and images by Hayley Gordon
Just got back from an epic road trip adventure with Jen Smith, Jenna Balester, and Mele Saili. We rented an RV and drove from San Diego, CA to Tofino, British Columbia Canada and back. We scored some epic surf on the way up and although we only saw Tofino’s raw and rainy side we still had a blast. The surf scene up in Canada is truly filled with stoke – we met so many amazing and generous people there. Video coming soon!
Had a great time hanging out in Oceanside this past weekend for the Supergirl Pro. Special thanks to the California Surfing Museum for hosting the dinner party. L to R: Ornella, Jen, Jess, Sofia, Marina, Me, Jenna, Lee Ann
Finally picked up my Bar Of Soap Mini Simmons type board yesterday from the boys at Shaper Studios. They just did the final sand / polish. FYI I didn’t glass the board – I just shaped the foam and painted it, then decided fin placement and let the boys do the rest of the dirty work. Glassing is an entirely separate art form in itself and I was happy to leave it in their hands.
Put on a fresh coat of wax and drove up to Church since the SSW swell is passing us by here in Encinitas. The waves were crumbly at first but by the end of my three hour marathon sesh it had shaped up with the receding tide and the wind had eased up making it semi-glassy.
All in all I had a blast on the board. I thought it would be difficult to ride and turn, but after a few waves I started getting a feel for it. The large fins definitely keep it stable, however, it’s not as hard to turn as you might think. I can bring it all the way around pretty quick as long as my foot is on the tail. On my last wave I did a snap cutback and nearly brought the board all the way around, maybe 3/4, and felt it start sliding. But it was loose enough that I was able to bring it back around and continue down the line. So fun, I’ve never been able to do that before. I even did a few weak off the lips and floaters. It’s not as easy to pump down the line as my quad fish, but I figured that you can pump it a little and getting it to the high line is pretty important.
I’m going to need a few more sessions to really get a feel for it. But I am STOKED. Oh, and duckdiving is interesting. Even though it’s pretty squat at 4’11”, it’s beefy so it’s rather buoyant. The wide nose doesn’t help either. I got ragdolled a few times by a few sneaker 6ft sets at Church.
Anyway…if you’ve ever thought about making a board….you SHOULD. Actually I had never even thought much about making my own…until I watched Margaux and Jen doing it at Shaper Studios. I went there so much I eventually decided I had to do one myself. Once I saw Jen’s “cutie” that was it. It was exactly what I wanted to make.
Check out their website at http://www.shaperstudios.com
After it's first sesh, taking a rest on the beach
Jen Smith invited me to tag along and shoot video during a photoshoot with Jon Steele. They were shooting photos for Sector 9, and Jon was nice enough to let me observe and learn a bit about what he does. It was really cool to watch him in action. Check out his website at http://www.jonsteelephoto.com/
Jon Steele getting the shot with Jen for Sector 9
By The Way will be playing at the California Surf Festival at the California Surf Museum this summer in Oceanside, CA!
Check it out playing before Steve Cleveland’s new flick “A Paradigm Shift” on Wednesday 7/25 (there is a typo in this picture) at 7pm
See you there!
Drove up to Huntington to film with Jen Smith and Jenna Balester. Just so happened that Steph Gilmore made an appearance too, so that was fun. After that coffee and breakfast with the crew, then I headed up to Malibu with Jen where we met up with Kassia Meador. Then it was back to Huntington to hang out with Jenna and Bijou for some sunset frisbee shenanigans and get some tasty Shabu Shabu. Overall a pretty good day I’d say.
Malibu Lines
Palm Ave, Huntington Beach
Shaping is similar in surfing to me. Both seem to bring out this zen mood in me where I just get absorbed in what I’m doing and all my cares seem to fall off my shoulders, just for a while. I was in a funk today and headed over to Shapers Studios to work on my board. It’s actually a very theraputic activity in a certain way.
I’m almost done with the mini simmons / bar of soap type shape that I’m making. It’s going to have a twin keel setup. I’m not in a rush to finish it. I almost don’t want to be done with it as I’ve found this project to be extremely enjoyable. It’s so great to go to the shop, shape, have a beer, joke around with the guys, and actually make my own board. Today I spent a lot of time looking up as many pictures as I could of Tyler Warren’s bar of soap model. I saw that his rails on the bottom were hard, and he had a bevel in the rails on the deck. So I beveled the rails on top, leaving the bottom hard. I’m really happy with the way it came out. This picture is before I thinned out the nose.
Margaux and Sara waiting for a set. Not the best surf day, but made the most of what they had.
I love searching around the internet for random reviews and mentions of “By The Way”. It’s cool to see who watches it and what they say.
If you know me you know I don’t go around and try to promote myself, so even writing this blog post is a bit strange for me. BUT, I thought people might be interested to read these.
http://www.aspeurope.com/2012/03/08/international-womens-day-what-about-womens-surfers/
On the ASP Europe site. “It gives Women’s surfing credibility and obviously more media attention with videos like “Leave a Message” and more recently “By the Way”. The girls have clearly stated that they want their surfing to be considered a proper Sport and not just a pretty lifestyle in bikinis and Turquoise waters..”
http://www.thesurftorialist.com/2012/03/ladies-hour-by-way.html
Independent review. I like her list.
Surfed Swami’s on Tuesday from 12 – 4. Probably one of the best sessions I’ve had all year. Bright sunshine, clear blue water, and 4-6ft with some solid 8′ set waves still rolling through. I didn’t get any of the biggest set waves, but I did get some incredibly fun, bowly, 6ft righthanders that let me do a few fun turns. Swami’s, I’ve decided, can be really effin fun. You just have to go when it’s not overly crowded. I love the way the wave bends through the outside bowl, then reforms on the inside. I feel like I’ve been surfing well, and I’m really stoked on surfing at the moment. Can’t wait to go again in the morning.