Jairo Perez Rippin' & Reppin'
by: Alex | Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Jairo Perez is rippin' it up and repping etnies Costa Rica in the World Junior ISA Championships! Here's what the FSC had to say about his stand out steez:
Hossegor, France May 29, 2008 – The surfers Jairo Pérez and Nataly Bernold, both of Jaco, advanced yesterday in the Junior male and female categories at the 2008 Quiksilver International Surfing Association (ISA) World Junior Surfing Championship (WJSC) in Hossegor, France. They are now two of three Hispanics remaining in the WJSC primary rounds.
Yesterday, Pérez in particular demonstrated extreme force in each of his waves. The conditions of the ocean perfectly resembled his home break of Jaco, with waves of 2-3 feet breaking hard on the beach, which allowed the Central American Junior champion to connect best with roundhouses, cutbacks and an aerial in the final sections of waves. His score was 11.77 in the 2nd round during heat 12. Jairo classified 2nd behind Nat Young of the United States, who pulled 14.73. This morning, he is surfing with the local Frenchman Marc Locamare, New Zealander Paco Divers and Brazilian.
At only 15 years of age, and already participating in the Junior Women’s division, Nataly Bernold of Jaco, passed her heat yet again. Her family recently moved from Tamarindo to Jaco, where she, too, has become familiar with the wave that is similar to Hossegor, bringing that to her advantage in France, even with the cold water barrier and the use of her wetsuit, and great names as opponents. The Limonese-raised surfer seems very relaxed in all the minutes of her heats. Yesterday, she advanced behind the Frenchwomen Marie Dejean in heat 5 with a score of 8.00, and today is opposing the New Zealander Airini Mason, the Hawaiian Leila Hurst and South African Bianca Buitendag.
The four Costa Ricans on the National Junior Team that are Less than 16 years of age—Carlos Muñz, Anthony Fillingim, Mykol Torres and Jose Calderón—were all competing in repercharge yesterday and proudly represented their country during their first round by all advancing to the next one. This morning, they will be in round 2 of the do-or-die repercharge heats 1, 2, 11 and 12.
Also today, Debbie Zec, Lupe Galluccio and Anatassia Patterson are set today in repecharge round 2, since Galluccion and Patterson dropped from the primary rounds. The surfer of Dominical Beach, Debbie Zec, advanced yesterday in her first heat of repercharge round 1.
Today, Costa Rica opens with all their surfers still in competition.
Banjo McLachlan Exhibit
by: Alex | Friday, April 18, 2008
Banjo is a photographer residing in Sydney, Australia and is a young chap more than capable of mixing talents, whether it be sliding waves on his 8ft McTavish single-fin longboard or late drops on an early 80’s thruster, to schralping a mountain via jibbing, sliding and launching over anything in his path...
After completing a diploma in photography at the KVB college in Sydney, Banjo has been working freelance as well as building up a strong personal body of work.
Much of what Banjo captures involves the experiences and adventures of his everyday life and etnies is a proud sponsor of his upcoming exhibit in Manly, Australia. Info above. And below.
Picaresque Video Trailer
by: Alex | Wednesday, April 16, 2008
etnies Australia's Harry Roach is all over the new Picaresque Films video trailer! Watch as the style bandit gets all nasaly on his log and gets tubed on those crazy Alaia wood boards... Harry is the blonde haired regular footer. Watch the teaser...
Mole In PitPilot Surf
by: Alex | Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Check out the latest PitPilot cover featuring etnies UK surfer Mole and heavy Irish Break Aileens!
Dan "Mole" Joel is currently ranked among the top UK big wave and tow-in surfers and has clocked more time than most surfing the mystical Irish big wave gem known as Aileens. Tucked away at the bottom of mountain sized inaccessible cliffs on Ireland's west coast, this monster wave is unpredictable, fickle and life threatening should you get it wrong. Get it right, take a few deep breaths and you get the picture. If we told you where it was we would have to kill you.
Mole is part of an elite and fearless crew of UK surfers in search of the biggest swells to hit the UK and Ireland. His commitment and dedication mean that an overnight ferry and all night drive across Ireland to ride 50ft waves, get a few photos and return back to work two days later is not uncommon.
Congrats on the coverage, Mole!
New Hawaii Surf Photo Gallery!
by: Travis | Monday, January 14, 2008
- Slash!
That's right, we visited Hawaii's hot spots and got some glamorous team rider shots. While we were rippin' the surf we made the team riders product test our new sandal line by trekking through the wilds of Hawaii.
Try them for yourself by going HERE or go to our Hawaii Surf Gallery to see all the photos!
COSTA RICANS SWEEP REEF LATIN PRO!
by: Travis | Thursday, November 29, 2007
Press Release from - Federacion de Surf de Costa Rica
PLAYA JACO, COSTA RICA November 27, 2007 – It may have been the Brazilian Ernest Nunes who earned the 2007 Asociacion Latinamerica de Surf (ALAS) Latin & Caribbean Open title by the end of the day on Saturday, but it Jairo Pérez from the home turf who came away the big winner of the Reef Classic Latin Pro Costa Rica in Playa Jaco the next day, Sunday, November 25. The 17-year-old won the 9th—and final—ALAS Tour event with steady, controlled maneuvering, in a man-to-man final heat against his own countryman, Jaco’s Luis Vindas. As a matter of fact, with the exception of Venezuelan Ronald Reyes winning the Longboard category, all of the major divisions were taken by the Ticos: Jaco’s Nataly Bernold won Women’s and Jaco’s Jason Torres scored a trophy for Pro Juniors.
“With the exception of a national contest a while ago, this is my first Open win,” said the diminutive, muscled youngster after receiving a $4,000 winner’s check and his own, giant trophy for the 6-star ALAS triumph. “When the contest started on Friday, I realized there were a lot of good surfers; I didn’t think I was good enough, but as the contest went on and especially, when it came to competing with our national champion Diego (Naranjo, Jaco), and then Diego Cadena (Mexico), I got nervous. Thank God he gave me the waves and the money because he knows how much I needed both of those things today.”
Against Vindas in the finals, Pérez received accolades for an impressive five off-the-tops on a critical part of a left wave, followed by a snap, an aerial, and a final bottom turn, scoring the highest in the Championship with 8.73 points. Of course, the other big surprise of the event, was when Jairo defeated the International Surfing Associations’ (ISA) ranked #13 Cadena in that semifinal heat. Not to mention that the youngster surfed in two finals—Open and Junior categories.
Meanwhile, Vindas defeated the Puerto Rican Gabriel Escudero with his trademark aerials—including once performing two on one wave. With this, he rated the second best average score of the weekend with 16.10 points in the semifinals, and though tough, were a warm-up for the last heat which became “a great final between Ticos to represent the country and Jaco. We live here and we both know the wave.”
The Open tally resulted in Pérez at 1st, Vindas 2nd, Escudero 3rd and Cadena 4th.
Peru’s Valeria Solé, also secured her 2007 ALAS Latin & Caribbean Women’s title in Jaco, since her closest competitor, the Peruvian Analí Gómez, didn’t make it to Costa Rica. Yet, once again, the big news was a Tica—14-year-old wunderkind Nataly Bernold, who recently moved with her family from Guanacaste’s Tamarindo to Jaco, also making the contest ground her home base.
Bernold began and ended the weekend with great performances—and the last day of the contest she demonstrated why José Urena, President of the Costa Rica Federacion de Surf (FSC) calls her a “contest machine” She offered excellent rollers and snaps in the critical part of the wave, just what the judges needed to award her 1st place in the Women’s Reef Classic Latin Pro Costa Rica, beating her mentor, 5-time Costa Rican National Women’s Champion and 2-time Central American Women’s Champion Lisbeth Vindas in the 4-women final heat. Vindas took 2nd, Solé was 3rd.
Torres, who holds the only Pan American Surfing Games gold medal for his Junior triumph in 2005, earned the best championship average with a 16.17 on the second day of competition with his Open category score, but bust out of the pack this weekend to win the Pro Juniors at the Reef Classic Latin Pro Costa Rica. He and friend Pérez were in the final 4-man heat. Pérez won 2nd, the Venezulean Francisco Bellorian placed 3rd, with Chilean Manuel Selman 4th. Selman became the 3-time ALAS Pro Junior Champion.
The 2007 ALAS Latin & Caribbean Longboard Champion is Martín Pérez. The awards ceremony will be in January, in the ALAS TOUR 2008 first stop.
For more information on Costa Rican surfers or the Federacion de Surf de Costa Rica, please go to www.surfingcr.net.
Photos Courtesy of ALAS
Kai and Jeremy Duke It Out!
by: Travis | Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Waves Surf Mag Love!
by: Travis | Wednesday, November 7, 2007
The November issue of Australian based, Waves surf magazine, has some gnarly shots of our riders slashin' like the slayers they are! Our own Andrew Mooney, Cortney and Kerby Brown can all be seen ripping it up. Make sure you pick up a copy to get all the photos and articles on our surfers!
etnies and Blinde Eyewear Bash in Oz!
by: Brink | Wednesday, October 17, 2007
To celebrate etnies and Blinde Eyewear's new upcoming lines for 2008, both companies threw a 'lil evening bash in Sydney at the MTV Gallery, Darlinghurst on Friday, the 12th of October
Seeing as it is the month of October, the theme for the evening was "Fantasy", and all who were invited were encouraged to dress in black attire... because after all, who doesn’t like black (or Halloween, for that matter)?
Gorgeous models, DJ’s, coffins, bats, spider webs, bubbling cauldrons, lots of free booze (the crux of a good shindig) and plenty of good grinds delivered the mood. And of course, Aussie lads Faker rocking out the crowded gallery as it throbbed to capacity. It all for an exceptional night, as Sydney prepares itself for the greatest time of year, the Australian Summer.
With etnies/Blinde rider Mark Mathews gallivanting around the globe, chasing big waves and therefore unable to attend, it was left to our boy, the ever relaxed and humble air freak, Mr Asher Pacey, to hold it down for both companies signing autographs and rubbing shoulders with the 350 or so crew who ventured out this evening to see what was the good stuff coming up in footwear and shades for Oz.
Ahsher Pacey in Surfing Life!
by: Brink | Thursday, October 11, 2007
Be sure to check out the November issue of Surfing Life magazine with Jamie O'Brien on the cover and a huge etnies-related story with Asher Pacey, JOB and a few other etnies dudes thrown in the mix!