Surfings Origins - Soul - Gerry Lopez
A two-day adventure.
So much has been written about Gerry Lopez. I’m not enough of a historian to tell his story, but I can relate my personal experience on the 40th edition of Wood Water Soul. I only had the opportunity to interview Gerry Lopez on time. During my interviews with Paul Strauch Jr., Paul clued me on that Gerry was one of the true high priests of surfing. My interview with Gerry occurred long before his name was displayed on foam boards of his design for sale at Costco. The impact of the interview on me is still profound to this day; it was a moment to draw upon for the rest of my life.
The trip from Santa Cruz started with Larry Fuller and a film crew attached, with Tony Dizinno as the DP. The first stop was Northern California to look at some curly redwood for future surfboards.
Larry and I were in a rented car with quite a cargo of boards for Gerry to finish as he was part of Larry’s project.
We took a wrong turn, and rather than a two-hour trip from Medford, Oregon to Klamath Falls on Interstate 5, we ended up on an intense mountain road after dark, US Highway 199 from Arcata, CA to Medford. We ended up on Lake of the Woods Highway turning into Falls Highway and down into Klamath Falls where we finally slept after a six-hour drive. Arriving at our hotel at 11:30 that night, we carried the four boards destined for Gerry through the worst swamp of bugs driven to a frenzy by a sodium vapor light up the stairs to our room on the 4th floor… insane. Tony, who was traveling in another car, saw the swamp and went and found another hotel. I think they even got some kind of fast food.
Leaving at 5:30 in the morning, we headed for Bend Oregon, where I was to meet and interview Gerry and turn over the boards we had carried back down four flights of stairs a mere four hours before. Somewhere on US Highway 97, Tony went past us at a huge rate of speed so they could photograph before the interview.
Arriving at Gerry’s place we went directly to work. Gerry and Larry went on a tour of the attic, with Gerry showing Larry some very early foam blanks, and pieces of history.
Gerry has been a part of surfing since his birth in Hawaii in 1948. A goofy foot surfer, he mastered Pipeline early and became known as Mr. Pipeline. He also ventured out into design and was one of the originators of Lighting Bolt surfboards.
The interview was nothing short of magic. For over an hour, Gerry shared his insights and history, his dedication to Yoga, and his environmental concerns. He also made light of what surfing has become with the clothing and such. He shared a rich history with me; I’m sure the hour changed my life. His full-length interview is in process, and I’ll share it as soon as it’s ready for free. One huge takeaway for me was that during the entire interview, his hands never stopped caressing the board in front of him. His connection to surfing is without question. Thank you Gerry, for such a great three hours.
We left Bend around noon and drove back to Santa Cruz, arriving around 11:30 that night. What a couple of days it was. I leave you with this drawing from his shaping room.
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I want to thank you all for reading Wood Water Soul. Please share this Blog with a fellow surfer or with a friend who needs some Joy in their lives. I invite you to watch, Aloha.