EUROPE: Genesis
August 2
Morning. Our first in France. The sun rises over the hills, filtering through the sheer curtains. I rise and grope to the veranda for a look at the ocean. The blue stretches for miles, ending in a ruler-edged blue horizon. Small curls collapse at Isabel’s reef. Not a day for filming, but a good day for getting to know Biarritz and her people. The crew rises like green shoots from dark soil. Mark is last, as always. He is the “fairest flower” and is slow in the morning. We down a few gobs of “Freeman filler,” library paste oatmeal, and we’re off for Cote des Basques, the main beach of Biarritz. Along the way Keith shows Mark and Bill his board. It is a roundtail, the first we’ve seen; and as Keith explains its freedom, Mark becomes more and more stoked. The van winds through the streets, past the old gabled castle on the promontory, to the long, yellow surf club headquarters perched above the steps leading down to the beach at the Cote de Basques (coast of the Basques). A group of surfers are gathering at the club for coffee (small cup, black, strong) and pastries, before heading into the water. It turns out this is a ritual part of the Frenchman’s daily dash to sea. A sign on the sand reads: Temperatures de l’eau 20, de l’air 26 (water: 68 F air: 78 F) and lists the outside times for the four meter tide (13 feet of change). Conclusions: the water is pleasant, warmed by the gulf stream, and the tides are so radical that a surf sp can change 100% with the tides. Mark, Bill and Keith have no difficulty circulating among the French. Almost everyone speaks English well They are treated as celebrities, offered pastries, and given calculating looks by a couple of girls surfers. Our surfers began to groove on the whole scene. The pastry was delicious!
While sipping coffee, Jean-Marie Lartigau (the French Champion), “Murphy” Lartigau, Alain Bernard, and Joel launch into a glorified description of the French surf: “ah, you see, we have waves of, how do you say, curling power? Very strong and large, perhaps twenty feet...” Then they go on to predict Waves for tomorrow. We look blankly at each other, raise our eyebrows and nod, knowing from experience that surfers always overrate their own surf and invariably predict its thundering arrival at least every other day. We slowly back out of the conversation, lure away a couple of the calculating surf chicks and explore Biarritz. We find a surf shop near the Grand Plage wedged into a row of tiny shops, selling everything Biarritz’ 300 surfers could want.
Nearby, Michel Barland has a factory where he produces surfboards for the natives.
The after-dark hangout for surfers is a quaint establishment dubbed the “Steak House,” a restaurant-bar said to offer a tasty wine dink called sneaky sangria (it sneaks up on you), owned by surfer Jean-Pierre Renaud. The Steak House seems quiet now amid the afternoon bustle of other shops. We find the surf club de France building with swimming pool, lounge chairs and frontyard surf. Our new friends squeal with delight. The clear, olive complexions, long, stringy, dark hair, wear brightly colored clothes, sweaters wrapped around their necks, no socks, pointed Italian shoes, and an always functional umbrella (frequent downpours). The smoke strong cigarettes (Gauloises, Gitanes), and drink wine and smooth beer (Kronenbourg). After touring, we take the girls to their homes where they squeal with delight. Then we return to Isabel.
Martinson: August 4— La Barre
Morning… I got up and opened my window to a cloudless sky, and was about ready to flop back in bed when the noise caught me and immediately gave me a tickling sensations that made my body quake for a second. Then my eyes watered. I’ve surfed long enough to recognize the sound: the surf was pounding across Isabel’s reef like the French predicted. Breakfast turned into a rush deal. Freeman came in and gulped his usual two quarts of apple juice and about a dozen hard candies, which all went down in less than a minute. Greg had his usual coffee; not time for oatmeal. Everyone was in the VW within fifteen minutes with La Barre centered in the crosshairs of our minds’ eyes. Just by the surf at Isabel, we could tell that La Barre would be best.
La Barre is situated in front of a ping-pong center. I think its real name is La Barre’s Ping-Pong Center. The La Barre setup includes the nearby go-cart and horse race tracks, too. There is a jetty to the north, and a river flows beside the jetty causing the waves to be extremely hollow. It breaks both right and left, with an occasional great straight-offer. I caught a lot of those, but thought they were rights. Keith, Bill and I surfed the waves, eight footers, while Greg and Jim wound and punched their cameras. I took a short lunch break, and Greg gave me one of those delightful shortbread cookies. You know, the kind the astronauts eat. Don’t eat them after you’ve surfed for four hours straight; your mouth turns into the Mojave Desert. I was close to suffocating. It was pitiful. Despite the “dries” the surfing went on all afternoon. The drive back to Isabel seemed to take hours, but from so much good surf. The walk up the stairs to Isabel seemed like an eternity. I flopped into bed, sunburned, hungry, aching, not even brushing the sand from my feet. The dried salt on my back felt rough against the sheets, but I didn’t care. The discomforts were overshadowed by the great surf and fun we had that day.
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READER COMMENTS
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 7:34 AM
Bummer, just as he was starting to come right competitively. I think the tour would be poorer for not having him around next year. A year making videos might be cool, but Jordy is ultimately a competitor and needs competition to drive him to the highs he's already achieved. Let's wish him a speedy recovery.
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 9:11 AM
Ouch....great timing!!! Hope he takes it easy and makes a full recovery. He is one of the few on tour who get me excited to watch.
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 11:38 AM
sh***t I wanted Jordy on my FSteam for all season next year..... sorry but screw aritz!!! jordy is the man,,,,,,,
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 12:09 PM
sick. more video parts!
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 1:00 PM
Do those calculations take into account Bruce retiring and AI maybe taking a year out?
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 1:12 PM
Jordy, s one of those guys that everyone wants to see. His Sunset performance in serious waves was simple insane, by far the best surfer out there. He surfs Pipe everyday he's in Hawaii, but he would still have a hard time getting out of round 2 with the local talent. That being said, I am sure he will req. right on the bubble or get an injury spot because he was inside the bubble before the injury occurred. The tour needs him and Dane, maybe with another year on the WCT they can start giving Slater a run
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 2:56 PM
I did both of my knees as Jordy did last winter. Not career ending by no means. Hyperbaric chamber mention is the first sign he's on it. Worst deal will be the 'avoidance syndrome' that occurs being these injuries mess with your head and confidence big time. Good luck JS, you'll be proper, maybe they give him the Timmy R treatment and get him a medical waiver...
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 4:55 PM
wont he get an injury wildcard?
Tue Dec 9, 2008, 10:25 PM
Jordy is a cocky kook who should be kicked off the tour just like kerr ill be glad to see the man who was supposed to be world champ in his first year get blown off. Dane reynolds is the man.
Wed Dec10, 2008, 12:43 AM
He will be sweet , Dhob has secured a spot and with bruce retiring should go back to #28 so . Cambo is out , just need Dunne or Pires to faulter and Jordy will be sweet
Wed Dec10, 2008, 1:18 AM
Check the results from round one today at Pipe. Jordy looks like he is catching a luck break, a huge chunk of the guys chasing him are gone already. Has to suck for it to be out of his hands though...
Wed Dec10, 2008, 2:32 AM
hope u get better jordy! no stress you still rip!
Wed Dec10, 2008, 3:28 AM
Hard Luck Jordy. Not the greatest performance on tour this year but then again KS did not have the best rookie start. The tour would be crazy not to award a wild card. You had performed well enough to date and you rip on the North Shore. Good Luck and get well.
Wed Dec10, 2008, 4:04 AM
yeah that is great comment berto (not) u say the guy is a kook; like to see u go surf sunset the way he ripped it up. The guy deserves to be on the tour for the next year, his surfing is some of the most exciting and keeps me coming back to the screen for more.
Wed Dec10, 2008, 6:34 AM
Jordy represents for S.Africa, if he's out of the CT for next year, he'll be back soon!! he musnt waste his time with video's next year, he should go straight back onto the QS. Go Jordy, you da man!!!!
Wed Dec10, 2008, 7:54 AM
aw man! sorry this happened man, this sucks. praying for a speedy recovery so you can get back in the water!
Wed Dec10, 2008, 9:25 AM
Hey Jords, no worries...you are our champion in South Africa..legends come in time buddy and you'll get there!!!!
Wed Dec10, 2008, 9:59 AM
Berto you have no idea what you are talking about...Kook. To expect a World Title from a 20 year old in his first year is just crazy. Especially with Fanning & Co in their prime...You are right about Dane being the man, but Jordy will bring as much to the sport as any one of the world champs... Rest well Jordy, looks like your place is safe for now...
Wed Dec10, 2008, 11:37 AM
Jordy shreds. He will come right on the tour next year. Dane shreds too. Berto, you're a doosh!
Wed Dec10, 2008, 2:03 PM
We were at Sunset watching Jordy Smith when his injury occurred. The poor guy was in pain, and yet nobody came to meet him when he came out of the water (except us). He put on a brave smile despite the pain, and all I could think of was why nobody was there to help him - when it was evident from the start of the heat that 'something' was wrong. His performance prior to the injury was superb. His perfect 10 ride was a sight to behold. Get better soon, Jordy.YOu were definitely the best surfer at that O'Neill final.
Wed Dec10, 2008, 2:30 PM
Jordy was doing some Chipsesque hacks at Big Sunset but The Chips noticed that he claims more than a Brazilian. Maybe they can fix his arm when they take care of his knee. The Chips wishes him a speedy recovery and if he wants to do some real rehab he knows who to call. 23 Chips
Wed Dec10, 2008, 3:10 PM
forza jordy...youre the best...stay calm
Wed Dec10, 2008, 10:53 PM
JORDY IS IN ........EVRY ONE WHO COULD RUIN IT FOR HIM IS NOW OUT OF THE EVENT. HE WILL SLOT IN AT #27
Thu Dec11, 2008, 4:26 AM
Best Sunset performance ever. There, I said it. Think about it, seriously. Ever notice how WCT guys make Hawaiians look stiff? Well, Jordy was making everyone, including all the locals look really stiff out there. If it was Backdoor Shootout format, he woulda won no prob. Maybe this time off will give him time to meditate and relax, and stop trippin out on everyone. Jordy, people suck, surfers suck, don't be a jock, smile at people, do something different. whatevs
Thu Dec11, 2008, 10:30 AM
Does anyone know if Jordy has requalified?
Fri Dec12, 2008, 11:17 AM
Its official, Jordy Smith is on the 'CT next year at #27 suck it up haters. It would be a travesty if the likes of Jordy and Dane weren't on the tour. As for bleating about him claiming etc I would much rather watch an aggressive competitor (who claims) competing as opposed to the hearing and seeing the tiresome " I dont really care about the tour " attitude some pro's flaunt. At least BI has bowed out on his terms, respect, its not for him. But to the rest who can't muster a proffessional attitude saying you dont care is an insurance policy in case you choke - simple. Rest up, heal up and give it horns Mr Smith. Plenty more 10's to come.
Mon Dec22, 2008, 8:05 PM
Between Dane & Jordy Dane wins. Dane's missed more contests but placed higher. He surfed half the amount of QS's 2 years ago and still finished 2nd. Bottom line is Dane's better. Now. Jordy. He's better than De Souza, Flores, Stedman, Ward, Reyes, Otton, Whitaker, Bruce, Perrow, Neve, both Hobgoods, all Europeans and all Brazilians. He deserves to be on the tour. He should hit top 10 next year. Mick Fanning has to pick it up. He's too robotic him and Jordy need to take a little bit of each others surfing to mix it up. Fanning is the 2nd best surfer in the world but not creative enough like Slater. You can guess exactly what he's going to do each wave. Jordy is an X factor but just needs a little fanning machinery in him.