|
|
|
|
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION words by Mike Ensch | videos and photos by 'Johnny B' Beutler | produced by Propaganda Headquarters, Inc. THREE FRIENDS, ONE PASSION A little adventure, a lot of fun A daylong surf adventure from San Diego to Malibu ends with three friends recounting the day's travels, waves, and camaraderie. Travis Potter, Jeremy Sherwin and Pascal Stansfield, three surfers who embody vastly different lifestyles as professionals, yet share the same intrinsic passion to surf. The day began before sun up as Travis Potter navigated his way from Orange County to San Diego on his way to pick up Pascal Stansfield for a day of what they hoped would be great surf. Pascal had taken the train from LA the night before and was staying at a friend's house in Carlsbad. A crisp November Santa Ana wind pushed lightly offshore as the two loaded up the Jeep Commander and headed to Seaside Reef where they would meet up with local San Diegan and longtime friend, Jeremy Sherwin. The 6am call time came way early for the three and Mother Nature had provided an unusually cold morning. The wide open valley from Seaside back to the inland foothills acts as a natural wind tunnel and made for a wind chill factor that felt well below freezing. Friendships were renewed and stories of NSSA days past were shared. While the three had come up grinding it out in the same amateur contests, they have since taken very different paths as pros. Jeremy Sherwin is the consummate professional, stoked to wake up every morning and shoot photos. He's tenacious in his pursuit of being the best professional he can be. Travis Potter on the other hand, lives 6 months out of the year in Indonesia. He's found his niche in documenting his experiences surfing desolate islands and sharing them with the rest of the surfing world. On a completely different plane is Pascal Stansfield. If a professional surfer could lead a rock star lifestyle, Pascal does. On a completely different plane is Pascal Stansfield. If a professional surfer could lead a rock star lifestyle, Pascal does. He's a talented artist and musician, and runs with the Hollywood crowd. His house in Malibu would make any rock star jealous of the luxurious digs.
The tide was on its way up and Seaside had some super clean little waves. With the stoke of a grom ditching school to go surf, Jeremy was the first to hit the water and was shredding for sure. He has a fluid style and moves from rail to rail as if he's floating down the wave. Next to get on the waves was Travis. He's used to surfing warm water without a wetsuit, but you'd have never guessed it by the way he laid into his turns. It was obvious Travis surfs well in all conditions. He pulled some sick stuff and seemed equally stoked to be in the water. Taking his time to join his friends, Pascal was busy laying down tracks on Garage Band. However, once he touched the water, his talent was evident. He draws more from the new school and looks for the big maneuver. Some waves he'd take off switch foot and surf better than 75% of the surfers out there, other waves he'd do shove its and pull em off with no worries. After a fun little session, the boys headed north in the Commander in search of better waves. Orange County was the next destination. San Clemente, Salt Creek, and Newport all came up dry. Then they rolled up on Huntington, and it was firing! The Southside of the Pier was overhead and glassy with a slight offshore. This time, each surfer could barely put their wetsuit on quick enough, their common passion for surfing bonding these three and pushing them towards the water. Uncrowded waters and sunny skies made for near perfect conditions and each surfer got their share of good waves. Jeremy was first to pick one off as he caught a nice looking left-hander. His top to bottom surfing matched up well with the Huntington Beach conditions and he blasted a few lips to prove his point. With a little more substance to the waves, Travis was able to show more of his full talent. Surfing goofy, he picked off several fun lefts and ripped them apart. Boosting airs all over the place, Pascal was straight up ripping. He'd fly down the line and launch himself into the stratosphere only to come down from the sky and land on his feet as if he were glued to his board. All three found exactly what they were looking for in the surf session on an unreal California day. However, they had one more spot to catch before day's end. They hurriedly jumped into the Commander and raced to Zuma to get there by sundown. Battling traffic and fighting daylight, the crew arrived in time to surf. However, finding one-foot slop not too inviting, they decided to chill and enjoy an array of fervent colors painting themselves over the Pacific Ocean in the form of a brilliant sunset. Friendship renewed, the three vow to stay in better contact. Email addresses and phone numbers exchanged, they go their separate ways with memories of old friends and the feeling of passion that unites surfers worldwide. |
|
