The Sewage Alert Service provides beach users with free real time SMS messages and web updates after raw sewage discharges from Combined Sewage Overflows (CSOs). After years of focused campaigning on the impacts of CSOs, SAS have persuaded water companies to provide real time sewage spill data. In 2011, just 50 beaches were included in the Sewage Alert Service, generating an astonishing 80,000 free sewage alert messages warning beach users when their favourite beach was polluted. According to a Defra survey, SAS’s real time sewage alerts helped change the behaviour of 94% of the beach users receiving real time warnings.

SAS has consistently campaigned for more transparency about the frequency and impact raw sewage discharges on UK beaches and bathing waters. The Sewage Alert Service is not only a vital public health service, protecting surfers, swimmers and beach users from sewage pollution and associated health threats, but will help map out problem CSOs in need of more investment. This vital real time service informs subscribers of impacts on water quality as they happen in contrast to other water quality information which is often a year old.

Checking for poo.

For many years, SAS encountered fierce opposition from water companies when requesting this information, but with tenacious campaigning we have successfully persuaded the majority of water companies, regulators and politicians to support and promote this pioneering initiative.

In 2010 SAS used the Blue Flag scheme as a driver for these improvements exposing shortcomings in the programme and calling for 35 Blue Flags to be removed from beaches around the UK. SAS has since worked with Keep Britain Tidy to ensure their Blue Flag beaches are capable of warning beach users when there is a raw sewage spill from a CSO.

SAS piloted the Sewage Alert Service with just 2 beaches in 2010, which grew swiftly to cover over 50 locations in 2011. In 2012 we are very proud to announce that figure has again soared to now almost 200 beaches. That’s over a third of the UK’s bathing waters. Sign up for your free real time alerts and visit our CSO map.

To date we have been alone in providing this information to beach users via text messages however we are encouraged to see water companies now replicating our service and providing their own SMS monitoring alerts. We believe all bathing waters should be covered in this way.

SAS Campaign Director, Andy Cummins says: “It’s vital that beach users know when raw sewage is in the sea and our Sewage Alert Service has proven to successfully influence beach users’ behaviour. SAS continue to expose the impacts of CSOs and water users are now able to access information to help them avoid exposing themselves to raw sewage polluted waters.”

SAS campaigners can be available for comment on Porthtowan beach in Cornwall on May 15th. SAS would like to thank Rip Curl Planet, Firetext and Fruitcake designs for supporting this ground-breaking water quality initiative.

Recently, there have been some new ideas about form and function in the face of a wave. More and more, surfers are ignoring the mainstream universe and looking for a board which help to support their level of surfing or find new styles of waveriding.

Some things never change, a tube will always be a tube and when you hang-ten, well, you hang-ten. But freedom of expression in the ocean is a just as important and worth considering. With all this creativity, and at the same time a return to surfing’s cultural values, shows that surfing is achieving a new level of maturity. So what can we expect from this path we’re now on?

The first visit of one of the youngest representatives of the new generation of independent shapers, John Wesley, was too much to ignore. I sounded him out on this enticing future of shaping.

John Wesley in California

André Falcão: Tell us about when and how you started surfing.
John Wesley: I started surfing when I was eight years old, my dad surfed so he went out a got me this insane board for 25 Dollars at a garage sale, I just remember that summer being so stoked when my parents would take me down to the beach and it was all I wanted to do.

AF: What was your perception of surfing during that time?
JW: Yeah when you’re eight you don’t really know much, I mean I surfed one spot, didn’t know about tides or swell, just knew if you go to the ocean there’s waves to surf, (laughs). But as I got older I became a lot more competitive and literally surfed every day, surfing was the only thing on my mind.

AF: Who were your main influences in that time?
JW: For a while, when I was 10-14, my main influences for surfing were all the guys in the Bruce Brown films, lead by Phil Edwards. At this age in my life I was really mesmerized by the fun summer-time vibe of striped shirts and high Levis and boards with D-fins.

AF: You still have your first surfboard, a 6’10” semi-gun. Why do you keep this surfboard? What do you like the most about it?
JW: I still hold on to that board mainly for memories, it’s a pretty wild shape when you look at it. With those six channels and all, but I just broke a side fin off it last time I rode it so its safe to say its retired for now.

John and Natasha

AF: How did shaping come into your life and in what moment did you feel, that shaping could become your job?
JW: Shaping came into my life when I was glassing boards shaped by my good friend Dodge, I never thought I could shape because I tried to shape with a Surform and got totally frustrated and ruined a blank so I just stuck to glassing, then after a while of just watching Gary Larson and Terry Martin and constantly asking questions I slowly eased into it and those were the days; making one board a week everyone better than the last, just surfing and building these wild boards was the priority of everyday and that’s when I really fell in love with it, and knew no other career could bring me the same happiness. At first that was really hard for my family to understand, “What do you mean your going to make surfboards for a living!?” I knew this is what I was meant to do because my whole life I’ve been pushed to achieve excellence. I could have done a number of things but I chose this and it chose me. Not because I couldn’t make it anywhere else but because this is my absolute passion, what I think of when I wake up and when I go to bed and that’s what pushes me to surround myself with the best people and continue to work hard because I’m at the point where I’m achieving my goals and dreams and there’s nothing that can match that feeling.

Shaping shot by Alex Swanson

AF: Tell us a little about working with Robbie Kegel and Gato Heroi. Did you learn a lot?
JW: Yeah, working and traveling with Robin was definitely the experience of a lifetime. I just showed up at the shop saying, “Listen I make surfboards, everything from start to finish; that’s all I want to do. I will do whatever it takes to keep doing that, I’ll sweep the floors clean up the shop, run errands, answer phones, whatever you need help ill do it just to get involved.” From there on out I would spent hours watching him shape and discuss the way boards go through the water, then shape my own boards at night. It was a ‘round the clock job; surf-work-shape-surf-glass-eat, a never ending lesson, and had some of the wildest times of my life. From there, I started doing some production boards first for Japan, then when Robin went on his tour of Europe, I got to shape boards for a number of clients I came to know well. At that point was the first time I thought to myself “Hey I’m kind of doing it, I get to go to work and make boards for clients from all over.” I’ll always remember that time in my life; I was pretty young to be doing that and really changed my life for sure. From there I got to travel with Robin on a little tear of the Pacific surfing the North Shore, experiencing Sunset Beach at its glory, getting scared to death, and surfing wild Pipeline on a 9.2 single fin longboard gun. That inspired me to take my shaping and surfing up a whole different level. From there we went and worked and surfed in Japan, and came all the way down to Australia surfing everywhere from Manly on up to Noosa for the contest and everywhere in between this truly opened my eyes and showed me, there is a whole great wild world filled with interesting people outside of cozy California.

AF: Besides Robbie, who inspires and influences you in shaping and in surfing? Who are your influences these days?
JW: I have a wide range of people that influence and inspire me in many ways; a lot of them are not connected to surfing at all. As far as surfing inspirations go, there are very few people in the water today that interest me as much as the iconic group of Bob Mctavish, Wayne Lynch, Nat Young, Ted Spencer and George Greenough. Furthermore the surfing footage and attitude of Mike Hynson, Terry Fitzgerald, Michael Peterson, Shaun Tomson, Gerry Lopez, Butch Van Artsdalen, and Joel Tudor have definitely left a mark on me as far as how I want to ride and draw lines on a wave on a variety of equipment. As far as my shaping goes there are a few guys out there that are really talented only devoted to handshaping, and not really influenced or phased by any current trend or hype that happens to be in surfing at the moment. As well have been able to accomplish great things outside of the shaping room. True leaders of their generations. Those are the guys that I would one day liked to be grouped in with when it’s all said and done.

AF: Nowadays, there is an alternative and an independent movement in surf culture, where an explosion of different shapes and types of surfboards has happened. What do you think about all this?
JW: I support the alternative heavily, and feel that the future will hold a vast array of classically inspired but revised to modern standards allowing people to ride waves reminiscent of the past but to a whole new level. That is in play as we speak with many shapers. At the same time though if you want to go out and ride your vintage Hobie that was shaped in 1962 that’s 3 inches thick and has box rails, go for it, its your decision and if that piece of equipment makes you have the most fun you possibly can then I fully support that. There is no reason for people to surf with any other intentions than to just have fun and vent out some stress of the daily grind. This idea is slowing seeping into mainstream surf industry, with their involvement in the alternative scene higher than ever before I feel that will just keep growing. This isn’t anything new this process has been in place for years and its encouraging that there is no right or wrong way to ride a wave its totally up to the individual and that mentality is now on a public scale.

AF: As a shaper, you leave a part of yourself in each board you make. What moves you?
JW: I’m really fortunate that I have people who out of all the hundreds of shapers and board labels in the world go out of their way to order a board from me. And not just any board, boards I personally love to shape. When I am in the shaping room I spend as long as I need to, in order to make sure that board is exactly how it should be, in my mind there is no room for error. So this current mindset of some of my contemporaries who have hand shaped only dozens of boards then get an order of maybe 20 for the month and decide, “well that sure is going to take me a long-time, I would have to be in the shaping room all day, I have other things I need to do, I’m just going to cut these” is totally unacceptable and something I vow to myself to never become. People wonder why I incorporated gold into my logo is because it is found to be rare, the highest quality and symbolic of something that is worth achievement such as in an award or something, and that is what I want my work to develop into.

AF: What distinguishes your work and the boards that you develop?
JW: Basically the models I offer are all derived off my personal quiver, I have spent countless hours refining each model by riding and testing them myself one at a time, over a period of time to arrive at the boards you see today. My models right now go down two categories; one is my midlength and longboard shaping that is refined hull entry into vee single fins. The other are my shorter, curvy templates of twin and multi fin boards that are inspired my past templates but the modernized rails and foils to make them functional for quick beach breaks and the surf I encounter here in California.

AF: Of all the boards you shape, hulls, fish, logs, which ones do you most enjoy shaping? And which ones do you prefer surfing with?
JW: That’s a good question, on a good day with a nice open wave there’s nothing like laying down some carves, trimming and tucking under the lip on a board with some volume and length. I personally click with larger boards on bit larger waves that’s the ultimate for me.

AF: Which model of your range of surfboards, would you recommend to someone who wants to start to surf with one of your boards?
JW: For someone who is new to my boards, I would really want to know their background and what they are currently riding, for the surfers who are really comfortable on hulls I recommend the Cresentmooner, Spacepin , and Doublender. For more longboard oriented surfers the cali 66 is really smooth classic trimming board and the NAT is fun as well , and finally for people riding shortboards , the Lennox and TWIN FIN PIN I really stand behind.

AF: You’ve travelled a lot. Where have you been?
JW: Travelling has made the biggest impact on my life and who I’ve become. So far I’ve been to Mexico, North shore Hawaii, South Carolina, British Columbia, Japan, Australia, Spain, and France.

AF: You’ve already visited the south of France and the Basque Country. How did you find these trips?
JW: Honestly the Basque country and south of France are some of my favorite places in the world. I really like the waves and they suit my style and approach to surfing, the people and culture are really attractive and interesting to me just because it’s so different from suburban California. I was able to enjoy some really great food; it’s the one place outside of California I could envision myself living for a long period of time, its beautiful and made a huge impression on me.

AF: First time in Portugal. What have you heard about us and our waves?
JW: I can’t wait to get to Portugal; I’ve heard nothing but good things about the waves and the people. The coastline looks insane as well; it has the makings of being an amazing trip.

AF: What do you expect from this visit?
JW: I expect a lot of hard working coming up, long days at the factory , a lot of traveling on trains , planes and buses , but overall a good time , always fun to meet and work with new people, and surf new spots.

AF: What projects do you have in mind? What can we expect in the future?
JW: I have some secret projects were testing right now, but mainly continuing to develop and fine tune the models and start to see two sides of my shaping. My love for surfing midlengths and longboards derived from the Australian Involvement period of rolled entry with vee through the tail. My shorter twin fin and single fin classically inspired modernized foil and shaped to produce functional beach break and California surf machines. I have some great people on my team helping me out everyday. We work really hard at what we do day in and day out. We will keep pushing to deliver the most exciting and highest quality work that the surf industry deserves, and you can be sure you will not see any computer cut JW’s as long as I am in control.

Photo by Greg Swanson

Visit John Wesley’s web site.

Visual interludes of apricot sunsets, decorative Hindu festivals, the fervent heat of thali in banana leaf, beautiful people and smiles are all now spaced further and further apart. Normally my overseas experiences are met with a return to Byron Bay, to my fun and familiar surfing clients, warm water, and endless right-hand point breaks. Lets not forget to mention a lively town atmosphere injected with colourful personalities, diverse multiculturalism, unique board craftsmen, and incredible surfing talent.

This time I have chosen a different route. I am currently residing in the quieter, rustic, and naturally rich surrounds of the mid-north coast. I am in a small coastal town with my girlfriend, both of us surrounded by National Park on all sides. The town is so small I dare not mention its name for fear of retribution from the grand total of 5 local surfers. In Byron you can find yourself strategically positioning and jostling constantly for your spot in the line-up. Contrast this to the past 3 weeks where the locals here track each other down so they have a surfing partner. With such a high wave per head of surfer ratio the focus shifts from energy of underlying competitiveness to that of relaxed conversation and sharing.

To be honest I am taking a little break from my perennial teaching practice. Recharging the batteries, nourishing the soul for new ideas, and opening the inspiration channels for saturation. I am still busily excited with the daily challenges of running Surfbodysoul online, and will be embarking on regular road trips to visit clients. This involves checking in with their injuries, customising new surf fitness programs, and in general enjoying a catch-up. Over the next month I will travel north to visit Chippa Wilson and Anthony Walsh, before voyaging to Ulladulla on the south coast of NSW. Here I will touch base with underground hell man Paul Morgan, whose recent vimeo clip highlighting his paddle in antics were nothing short of mind blowing. Even now I am in Sydney, preparing to meander to Avalon and assess before customising some Surfbodysoul programs to the crew in the ‘Surfing World’ office.

With my extended bouts of computer-based work I have been taking regular breaks to lye on my roller, open the chest, pectoral muscles and heart space. Below I have included a great exercise from my office floor to offset all the nasty postural habits we develop behind the screen. I hope you enjoy this exercise as much as I did!

Median Nerve Stretch on Roller

Benefit
Stretches and lengthens the median nerve which branches from the nerves of the cervical spine or neck. By keeping this nerve flexible you unload or take pressure off all the muscles for which this nerve runs through and activates. This therefore unloads the muscles and joints of the neck, shoulder, elbow and hands.

Drift now exercise

Instruction
Start lying on your back so that your buttock, spine and entire head are comfortably resting on the roller. Bend your too 90 degrees, feet on the floor.
Take your upper arms towards the side of your torso, let the forearms fold out to the side, and extend or tilt the wrists backwards as far as you comfortably can. (Image above)
Exhale to slowly reach and straighten both arms away from the side of the torso in line with your shoulders. It is essential to maintain the fully extended or backward tilt of the wrists during this movement. Stop when you feel a moderate stretch through the arms.

Inhale, keep the wrists extended as you bend the elbows and return the arms to the starting position.
Repeat 15 times
Rest 6 breaths
Repeat a second set of 15

Inconveniently tripping over scrap wood turns out to be a form of forced inspiration that has led to a group of products which have become part of Grain’s Offcuts Initiative as all that scrap wood has gotten a new life as hand-planes and http://www.grainsurfboards.com/boards/body-surf/sea-sled/.

Most recently they’ve converted those dusty piles into skateboards made by a local deck-presser. The Grain Cider Hill Skateboard has gotten so much attention and has been such a great way to make sure that they’re using the resource wisely that Grain decided to hire Courtney on and bring her operation right into their own shop. By pressing leftover veneers of wood too thin for surfboards onto her sustainable-certified maple decks and applying eco-resin bamboo-cloth grip finish to the decks, she’s become the latest change-agent in the Grain family that helps them to do the best they can to do the right thing and still make great-performing stuff. Look for the Offcuts Initiative logo on the Grain site to know that you’re “part of the solution”.

The official program will be unveiled wednesday May 30th, but here’s some idea of what’s on.

This year there will be a pretty cutting edge program, some of the best international surf films, up and coming local filmmakers, and a new killer concept!

Extended Vision is a series of masterclasses and collaborative short film shooting with IPhones. Jack McCoy, Keith Malloy, Kepa Acero and Igor Bellido will share some of their secrets of making a good surf film. followed by four hours of filming in La Zurriola Beach, four directors, four groups of students, four hours of editing and Voila! This project is curated by Juan Azpitarte. Reserve your slot quickly as there are very few places available.

Extended Vision masterclasses

The festival kicks off on the 31st May at 20.30, with a double program of Surf + Skate in the Trueba Cinemas, the Spanish premiere of Skatistan and another very special title which will be unveiled soon. On Friday 1st June, there are screenings of HUGE SURF: paddle vs tow then FUTURE, at the Aquarium.

Spanish premiere of Skateistan

On Saturday June 2nd the festival returns to the Guardetxe, for an evening of films, art, music and food. This magic space overlooking Donostia hosts Kutxa Gaua, from 18.00pm JapaNing, a project curated by Kurando Shogi that brings a slice of the freshest Japanese surf culture, then the premiere of Gastrologging.

Guardetxe June 2nd: JapaNing + Gastrologging

Tenth anniversary poster designed by Borja Garmendia from Pensando en Blanco on an amazing Photo by Nick Waplington.

For more information please visit the official web site or read our feature about last year’s festival here.

Jeff Raglus likes coming to Byron Bay. Jeff Raglus likes doing small paintings. He failed art in high school – the art teacher said it was cartoon rubbish! – and in so doing, unknowingly set forth on the path of the ‘outsider’ artist. Ragee left school early, bought an airbrush and spray-painted surfboards and started playing trumpet in the first of many bands.

At the same time, he printed T-shirts and made posters until eventually joining the iconic Sydney-based graphic company Mambo.

He worked there for most of the nineties – that is, when Mambo was still cool – and pretty soon started to paint in his Urban-Primitive-Surf-Pop style. Having had many sell out shows around Australia, this show at Art Park is a return to what he loves best.

Jeff says his influences are many, but could be summed up as ‘Rocky and Bullwinkle meet Picasso at Malibu Beach’! Of late, Ragee has skipped doing graphic work for other people and has instead concentrated on his own art and music. This show is a reflection and continuation of that.

Read the Drift feature on Jeff Raglus and Jerry Wedd here.

Scientists, surfers, NGO representatives, politicians and business owners discussed issues related to coastal access, water quality, the economic value of surf spots and efforts to improve the current situation of the region’s coastline. Although limited coastal access and poor water quality is currently limiting economic and recreational opportunities, there is a new wave in Baja California to improve the situation.

Speakers from Pronatura, the Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC), WiLDCOAST, Surf Ens, CETYS University, Locales Surf School and the United Athletes of the Pacific Ocean (UAPO) presented their collective efforts to engage youth in the sport of surfing and reestablish a clean and accessible surfing environment. The event was a significant success and attended by a number of university and high school students, surfers, local decision makers, business leaders and the general public. At the closing of the conference, UAPO donated a copy of “The Tribe of the Waves” by Mexican author and surfing pioneer Ignacio Nacho Felix to the university’s library.

The weekend’s events continued at the 2^nd Annual Walter Caloca Open at the iconic break of San Miguel. Walter Caloca, a local Ensenada surfer, tragically passed away in 2010 at the age of 18 in a car accident. In 2011, UAPO, a San Diego and Ensenada based nonprofit, and local Ensenada surfers decided to carry out an annual surf contest in his honor. The contest was an instant success and San Miguel showcased classic point break conditions for the inaugural event.

This year, WILDCOAST partnered with UAPO to expand the event even more. Once again, surfers were greeted with one of the best swells in years and for two days, surfers from Mexico, Venezuela, California and Hawaii showcased some of the most progressive surfing ever witnessed at San Miguel. You can read more about the event at WiLDCOAST.

The evening will celebrate all the beauty and adventure Baja California holds and our work to conserve the peninsula’s most beautiful and wild beaches, islands and lagoons along our shared coastline.

The Baja Bash will bring the best of Baja to join with some of San Diego’s favorites in a flavorful fiesta mixing food, drinks and music from throughout the region. We’ll enjoy a sunset cocktail reception, Baja-inspired sustainable cuisine, a silent and live auction, photography exhibit and live music.

WiLDCOAST is thrilled to announce that Nortec Collective: Hiperboreal will bring their border region musical fusion to the Pavilion! Nortec hit the music scene in 2002, and since then this Grammy-nominated ensemble has impressed critics and crowds alike, from SXSW to the most notable venues in Europe and Japan. Based in Tijuana, Hiperboreal combines electronic music with musical elements from the northern region of Mexico.

In addition, internationally known chef and restaurateur Javier Plascencia, of Mision 19, will lead a trio of rockstar chefs to create our menu. Javier has been featured in the New Yorker and the Food Network and will bring Diego Hernandez, the lead chef at Corazon de Tierra in the Valle de Guadalupe, to join in the creative culinary creations!

Adobe Guadalupe, a premier winery and bed and breakfast from the Valle de Guadalupe in Ensenada, will provide wine to pair with our sustainable menu. And Peligroso Tequila will create a special ‘WiLDCOAST margarita’ for us to toast during the sunset cocktail reception.

And thanks to our media sponsors, Baja.com and STAR 94.1 and 101KGB for their support!

In addition, we will be honoring Telemundo journalist Maria Celeste and Dr. Octavio Aburto, researcher at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, for their tireless efforts to educate the public about threats to our coasts and oceans. We will honor them this year as our first ‘Defensores Del Oceano!’

More details will be posted regularly on our website and Facebook page as they are confirmed, so buy your tickets today! This is sure to be party of the year, so don’t wait until the last minute! Proceeds from the event will benefit WiLDCOAST’s continued efforts to conserve the most threatened coastal habitats and wildlife in the Californias and southern Mexico. We hope to see you there!

For event questions, email bajabash@wildcoast.net. For information about sponsorship and donation opportunities, including silent auction items and giveaways, please contact Lenise Andrade at (619) 423-8665 ext. 201 or lenise@wildcoast.net

“We took busses through Peru and Ecuador, where we knew there were really good waves,” said Todd of the initial adventure. “In these towns right on the ocean, all these kids that hang out on the ocean want to surf but weren’t in the water.”

It was over a refreshing round of beers later in that trip that Todd and Stueber talked about hypothetically creating a community center for these underprivileged kids that involved surfing.

“Surfing is an elite thing down there,” said Todd. “What kind of message do you think it sends to the children when they can do it too?”

Two years later, in 2009, in Valpariso, Chile, The Valpo Surf Project (the VSP) was set into motion by, Todd, Stueber and their friend and classmate, Henry Myer.

The VSP aims to help mentor kids in Chile by teaching English language classes, environmental consciousness and, of course, surfing in an after school program.

The community center (Junta de Vecinos) and outdoor lessons.

“Surfing is the cool buzz word that gets kids interested and keeps them involved,” said Stueber. “The heart of the program is mentorship. When you have a young person in their formative years the more time they can spend with a positive role model the better. The more impact that that adult or young adult is going to have on the kid, that’s by far the most important aspect of the program for me.”

Xenophobia is predominant in surfing. People don’t talk about where they surf and if you’re a newcomer to the scene you better be ready to stand your ground. These three young entrepreneurs have adapted this belief in a positive way. They are creating a local surfing culture that encourages community involvement and activism, giving the kids a lesson that goes well beyond the white water.

“I think surfing is a really valuable thing for a kid,” said Myer. “We wanted to add components to this thing to make it really worth while. That’s why we started packing on the English component and the environmental component.”

Valpo beach cleans are part of the project.

The students go on numerous surf outings in which they learn how to ride waves, but also learn good surf etiquette, basic ecology and wave generation. Beyond that, the VSP also includes English language classes and classes about “respecting” the waves. The VSP aims to help raise awareness about preserving the beach environment through beach cleanings as well as classroom sessions about greater environmental issues in Chile.

“The idea we are trying to spread is that the ocean is a great resource and can be a positive influence in anyone’s life, whether your dad’s a politician or a janitor,” said Todd.

These three surf fanatics, all 26, rotate their time in Chile so that one of the three is always on the ground with the kids. The other two will be back in the States doing whatever they can, be it bar tending, serving or landscaping, to make money to sustain their lifestyle for when they are in Chile. All three are a unique breed of surfer growing up in nontraditional surf spots. Stueber grew up in New Jersey, Myer in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Wiley in midcoast Maine.

Todd is the Director of Development and does a predominant amount of the fundraising travel up and down the coastal US.

Surf sessions with the younger kids and instructors.

Myer is the Director of Operations and spends most of his time making sure that everything is running smoothly in Chile. Myers spends his time networking and hanging out with the kids, from organizing daily activities to attempting to grow the program all year round to get enrollment up and more kids involved.

Stueber is the Director of Communications. He is responsible for the social media and public relations aspect. He also does fundraising events in New Jersey and New York.

A shot from one of the silkscreening workshops put on by Brainstorm Print and Design.

How these three Bates graduates created the VSP was no easy task.

When the boys graduated in the spring of 2008 and the economy tanked they said screw it to trying to find a 9-to-5 job and decided to wait it out and surf down south.

“The economy was an influencing factor,” said Todd of their move back to Valpariso, Chile. “Also, being fresh out of college, that cliché time to be like, ‘yeah, let’s go do something sweet before we settle down, before biting the bullet and getting a job locked down.’ None of us are on that trajectory to date.”

In January of 2009, they headed down to Valpariso to set out to teach English but found there weren’t too many jobs to be had there either. A lack of English teaching jobs and headaches from running circles trying to acquire visas left them unfulfilled.
“We felt like we could do something cooler,” said Myer.

All these little mishaps lead them back to their community center idea from two years prior. They started talking to people in the community about the idea. “People down there seemed really receptive,” said Todd.

So for the first six months of 2009, the boys laid the framework for the project. Between catching waves and getting a feel for Valpariso, the boys were calling lawyers and meeting with different community leaders trying to figure out logistics. In June, they came back to the States and committed to start fundraising.

With most of the financial support coming from the United States but being spent in Chile, the boys were aware there would be some obstacles in creating an international organization.

“Basically, they told us, ‘This sounds like a cool idea, but we don’t know you guys,’” recalls Todd. “This is the number one way the cocaine cartels launder money. You are young white boys from the States trying to form a non profit, on paper, this looks really bad.”

Workshop with kids on working with resin and fiberglass to repair boards.

The boys persisted. Filling out countless stacks of paperwork that, as in traditional bureaucratic fashion, took forever, especially in Chile recalled Todd. There were also governmental cultural barriers that arose from time to time, but the boys made it through and the VSP is now in its third successful year.

“My goal is to build the organization to be more sustainable,” said Todd of the future. “One of the things I’m doing right now is to build up some sort of endowment to not have the financial basis not be so hand-to-mouth.”

While the past three years have been a tough journey at times, especially in the realm of financing, all three say it’s been more than worth it.

Myer recalls the pride he felt when the VSP’s first student finished the program. “Jocelyn was 16 when she joined and didn’t know how to swim,” said Stueber. “Two year later, she is not only really in love with surfing, she is graduating and going on to university.”
“I think the most rewarding thing has been getting involved with not just the kids but with their families,” said Myer. “Having a real place in this really tight knit community. That and starting to surf with kids instead of teaching them to surf.”

Group shot at Punta de Lobos in Pichilemu, Chile.

For more information please visit The Valpo Surf Project.