Surf's Up This Spring
While skiing and snowboarding are the most common Fernie activities in winter and mountain biking in the summer, many Fernieites are involved in a multitude of other sports. Paddling, golfing, road cycling, hiking, and even surfing. No, Fernie is not situated near an epic surf spot in the ocean, but our town is full of hard core adrenaline junkies and we have two distinct off seasons in which some of these junkies travel to find their next rush slaying waves.
I myself have travelled the short one-day (12 hour) trip to the Oregon coast every fall for five years to surf (if you can call flailing around, looking like a sea lion surfing) and just booked a trip to Punta de Mita, Mexico this spring with my boyfriend and friends. I am mostly excited about the beach and margaritas, but at least in Mexico I don't have to don my 5/3 wetsuit, gloves and booties before hitting the water.
While in Pacific City, Oregon last fall one of our buddies noticed this dude shredding on a stand up paddleboard. Upon closer scrutiny he realized it was Gerry Lopez, also known as Mr. Pipeline and for his role alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in Conan the Barbarian. G-lo (as we dubbed him) lives in Bend, Oregon and commonly surfs the northern Oregon coast. The boys chatted with the down to earth legend and then tried to emulate some of his moves. Lopez is two-time winner of the prestigious Pipeline Masters on the ASP tour (Association of Surf Professionals). The ASP tour sees the world’s best surfers compete in 11 events (men) and seven events (women) at the hottest, biggest and toughest surf spots. Ten time men’s tour winner, Kelly Slater just started the 2011 season off with a win and at age 39 is still looking as sick as any of his younger tour rivals. The ASP tour suffered a huge loss this past season with the passing of Andy Irons. Andy was a three-time tour champion and one of Slater’s biggest rivals. It was reported he suffered from serious dengue fever leading to his death.
Surfing has its own very distinctive culture and following. Hip clothing lines, music and language are all a part of the surfing way of life. Surfing is not just about looking cool and hanging ten, most surfers embrace their own type of zen philosophy. The ocean and waves are very powerful and surfers appear to have a special respect and bond with the water. Watching professional surfers is like watching a dancer on water. I find it sometimes better to just sit and watch the show with a margarita in hand than tackle the waves myself. This spring however, once the ski hill has closed, I will grab a long board with a bunch of my Fernie buddies and try to hang ten (or at least stand up). I also will follow the ASP world tour to see if Slater can pull off an unprecedented 11th tour championship.
Check out the ASP world tour site to watch video footage of live competitions. Also visit the Oregon State Park site to check out some of North America’s finest camps spots near some stellar Northern Oregon Coast surf spots.
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