Art Show in the Morrow...

So, in lieu of frisky first-graders, delightful and dangerous all, I will be grabbing hold the creative rope and swinging wildly about my school's cognitive canyons. I am going to be working as an arts teacher helping link content-area instruction with the arts. Jack of all trades, me. Master of one, joy.


With the arts in mind I present to you a show to be attended, considered, celebrated, and perhaps hooted for. Enjoy Wavelength La Jolla at the La Jolla Library Gallery- a fine venue. Beautiful works and beautiful people are a guarantee.

Oh, and there will be a selection of Bird's Boards.

Not sure if you noticed but...

Lis, Civil Rights.

Lis. Cell-phones do not take good pictures of bagged beauties.

Cher Pendarvis, surf-matriarch of San Diego Proper, researched, penned, and produced a fantastic piece about my favorite shaper of all time, Steve Lis, for my favorite publication, TSJ. She participated in the very organic and experimental timeframe when Mr. Lis and his cohort were at the heights of their collective and individual creativity. Please read it and fancy the phrasing and photographs. Imagine a moment or two along those sandy shores, next to those sublime reefs, during those dynamic years.

Thanks Cher!

Last dip...

What is Pendoflex? from Cher Pendarvis on Vimeo.


Thanksgiving morning. After a week off of work I've yet to surf. My beloved is laid low with sickness now lessening. We are headed to the beach to celebrate Thanksgiving with a few neighbors. Soccer for the kids, smalltalk for the adults. But what for me?

Of course I throw a wetsuit in the car (short-sleeve-full is the Swiss Army knife of neoprene). Of course I mention a "If I can slide out for an hour it would be great, but I didn't even bring a board so we'll see." My understanding better half grins. She knows. She gets it.

Pull up to The Drive-Through and spot clean shoulder high lines, good winds. Even better, I spot Rshred with Dlightful and their little wahine. Boards are stacked high on their car.

After settling and mingling and nervous glances towards the waves I slide over to glean a borrowed board. "Sure, what do you want to take out?" "What've you got?" Selection is good. I take out a 6' three-finned swallow tail Pendoflex. I love the tripped out flex profile of Pendo's boards. They're unique and hard to categorize. Time to surf.

In one hour I get many fun little fancy ones. Mostly rights, I feel out the three fins and start to use the vertical alignment knob. Smack, smack, whack. First thruster in a while feels fresh and easy. Thanks Rshred!

Returning the board I spot The owner of PB surf shop. He spots me and lets me know that the board is a shop demo. RAD. Double dip for me!

Due to some health issues, this was the last time that I surfed. I'm just about ready to go again and cannot, cannot wait.

Ofishially...

A little clarification was shared via Sin Diego surf matriarch and artist divine, Cher Pendarvis. Educate the educator...

Hey Andrew, hope that you are enjoying a nice weekend! I enjoyed your post about the Larmo stories and the fish on Born to Lose.

Actually RK first rode Mikko's fish in 2003, and got stoked and inspired by the fun little board! The fish resurgence started earlier (as confirmed by Hanky Warner) when his friend Derek Hynd came to San Diego (1995-1996) and visited with Skip and Hanky when they had Harry's Surf Shop in PB. As Hanky remembers, Derek was looking through Skip's quiver and discovered a small old keel fin fish that Skip had in a bag, and asked what it was. Derek was stoked to have a fish, so Skip shaped him one. The next year, Derek came back and asked for Skip to shape him another one, with a slightly narrower tail. Derek ended up taking it to J-Bay and rode it there. Tom Curren rode Derek's fishes as well, at J-Bay, and inspired folks with his amazing surfing. Some of their rides were filmed by Andrew Kidman and can be seen in his movie, Litmus.

Aside from this story, some of us never stopped riding fish, and have kept them in our quiver since the early fish days. FYI: the fish is my favorite design of all time! I'm stoked that Hanky helped clarify some of the dates as to when Derek first saw Skip's fish. We look forward to talking with you, soon!

Aloha, Cher
Is there a more consequential modern surf film than Litmus? Not to me.