Surf Style carving

[Kevin Kinnear]

I know Jeff Grell and Chris Karol were both in Aspen before the freecarve era and doing a lot to get the resorts to allow snowboarding. I still think the carving underground is the best kept secret in snowboarding.

[softbootsurfer]

I know Jeff Grell and Chris Karol were both in Aspen before the freecarve era and doing a lot to get the resorts to allow snowboarding. I still think the carving underground is the best kept secret in snowboarding.

Yes, I remember Jeff at Highlands in 84 on a Sims I think ? though he was much younger than I at the time

and in 85 Bob Klein was at Milk to teach till early Jan. when he left because

no one really wanted to learn then...

and I have all the Snowboard Life mags downstairs...

Thanks...:)

[Kevin Kinnear]

Man, you've been around a long time. Grell developed his Hibak there as well. When did you start riding?

[Kevin Kinnear]

I see you started in 1984. In Aspen, I assume. What was your first board? More importantly, that's a really cool surf shot, where was it and who took it? I've been riding for Donald Takayama since 1983 when I was editor of Breakout magazine based in Carlsbad. Used to compete before I had too many kids. Beat Donald in my first contest on his team because he starved completely in our semi. I got second to Dale Dobson in the most pathetic waves I've ever surfed, period. Donald beat me in the next one at Del Mar and I got second. It was all downhill from there. He's just about retired from shaping and just made me two new boards. Just in the nick of time.

[softbootsurfer]

I see you started in 1984. In Aspen, I assume. What was your first board? More importantly, that's a really cool surf shot, where was it and who took it? I've been riding for Donald Takayama since 1983 when I was editor of Breakout magazine based in Carlsbad. Used to compete before I had too many kids. Beat Donald in my first contest on his team because he starved completely in our semi. I got second to Dale Dobson in the most pathetic waves I've ever surfed, period. Donald beat me in the next one at Del Mar and I got second. It was all downhill from there. He's just about retired from shaping and just made me two new boards. Just in the nick of time.

Well a Snurfer, a Snowster and a backhill kicked my ass...

The Elite 150 in 85 with the metal edges and the fins removed in untouched Groom at Buttermilk is when I knew

that I had found the perfect Pointbreak with no one out...

The Surf Pic is from some movie footage by Ralph Myers at Trestle in 1964

Takayama has been one of the best shapers forever...enjoy your new sticks...

[Kevin Kinnear]

Was there anyone else riding at Buttermilk back then?

[Kevin Kinnear]

What kind of board were you riding in the surf photo?

[softbootsurfer]

Was there anyone else riding at Buttermilk back then?

Not that first year...the next year their was a HB that I saw once a week or so

the guy was a soul rider too...we would wave and smile knowing it was just

to good to be true...

[softbootsurfer]

What kind of board were you riding in the surf photo?

My first board in 56 was a Velzy 8 ft. pig burned in a Newport fire ring

I had Hobies, Quiggs, Yaters, Harbours and Hansens at the end.

The Newport Beach Film Festival on 4/28/10 is premiering a doc called

"Living it Forever" about those days...60's around Newport/CDM

[Kevin Kinnear]

So you grew up around Newport? Did you know they're honoring Yater at the Sacred Craft Festival in Ventura this coming weekend? Check it out.

Please contact me via e-mail so I can find out who you really are. I like to keep track of important details like who rode where and when. I'd like to write the early history of snowboarding one day in the not too distant future and you're definitely part of Colorado snowboarding history and I'm on a brand new committee for the Vail Ski and Snowboard Museum with Dave Alden, Kurt Olesek, and the moving force and board member for the museum, Trent Bush.

kevinkinnear@att.net

[Frank Morales]

Hey Kevin,

Its been a long time, If you get up to Ventura area give me a call.I have a extra Dobro and longboard waiting for you.The Sacred Craft Expo is at C street

fairgrounds this weekend it will be honoring Rennie Yater.

Frank

[Kevin Kinnear]

This is great! Frank Morales! I can't believe it. Tom Sims talked about you last time I saw him six months ago after surfing the Ranch with Andy Neumann. Tom has a really nice Les Paul and was trying to figure out Pro Tools.

You should've seen my high-end guitar shop on State Street in Carlsbad right down the block from where I used to work at Breakout Magazine. I had an amazing collection of Goodalls, R. Taylors, Froggy Bottoms, Ehlers, a few RKS electrics that blew my mind including a Ruby Red I wish I could've kept, a hand made electric by Andy Powers, who is the best 29 year old guitar maker in the world that I know. Right here in Oceanside. andypowersinstruments.com

I'm supposed to be doing a profile on Andy for The Fretboard Journal but looking for a job is the hardest job of all. I interviewed with R. Taylor a few weeks back but am still waiting to hear if they're going to recreate the sales/marketing position my friend used to have there or not. I sold so many of their guitars at Buffalo Bros, where I was general manager, that Bob Taylor gave me a Style 2 worth almost seven grand.

kevinkinnear@att.net

[Kevin Kinnear]

This is too damn weird. I was just telling someone else on the forum about Sacred Craft honoring Yater this weekend. I wish I could be there but a really good Robert Johnson style blues player named Scott Ainslie from Vermont is playing at the Museum of Making Music for free this Sunday. I had him do a workshop at Epic last year and we really hit it off. He plays a Froggy Bottom.

Just asked Kenny Sultan to be my friend on Facebook yesterday so we're hooked up. I put on a workshop for him at our other store Old Time Music when I was working at Buffalo Bros. Shot lots of photo of him and his son.

[Frank Morales]

I sold him that Les Paul when I was short on cash I replaced it with a reissue.

I'm short on cash again maybe he'll buy the reissue.I'm getting kicked off the computer.welcome to Bomber lots of good people on the site.

Frank

[QReuCk]

... You can't say you've surfed snow.

Maybe you've "strap surfed" snow, but that's about it.

Well, to my understanding, surfing = riding a WAVE.

Unless you roughly estimate an avalanche = a wave of snow

... and you're stupid enough to try (and claim) to ride an avalanche, you do not surf snow.

And you should realize, surfing a wave strapped to a board (tow in) is still surfing. Bad form of it if you ask me, but still surfing.

[Rob Stevens]

And you should realize, surfing a wave strapped to a board (tow in) is still surfing. Bad form of it if you ask me, but still surfing.

You're right... It is still called surfing... "Strap surfing".

"Bad form"? I don't think so. You wouldn't get anywhere near waves like that unless you were being towed at them, so it is really the only way to ride the "unrideable".

Never surfed an avalanche. "Butt surfed" a few mellow slabs when they ripped out with me in the middle, but that hardly counts.

All I'm saying is that there is a way to get even closer to the surfing sensation on snow. It has also been the best thing for my strapped in riding. So much so that my binding powder board has the highbacks off and I'll use the same Sorel "Caribou" boots.

Have a look at this video. Sorry for the first 45 seconds. It's a voice over using the answering machine recording I left my friend to get him to drive 5 hours over night to join us the next day.

Snowmobiles, my Wife skiing, Chuckie in binders and me on the NB.

We're going back tomorrow.

Cool to have Kevin Kinnear on here... I started in 84 here in Alberta on an "Outland". My friend James built them in his garage and had metal edges when Barfoot, Sims and Burton still had fins. Using the Koflach "Hunters", plastic shell mountaineering boots, we must have been some of the first "HBers" around. James beat Terry Kidwell at Ken Ach's North American SB Champs in slalom on that board up at Sunshine.

Miss your mag, Kevin.

[Frank Morales]

Ok Kevin this is just for you,I just went for a motorcycle ride up the coast and Rincon only had four people out and looked pretty fun.Bol surf report.

[Frank Morales]

Just when I was going to wank about how crowded Rincon is these days the queen of the coast slaps me in the face.

[softbootsurfer]

Wow Cool Vid. and some great turns... How does that no board work on the groom? :)

When we arrived in Aspen in 68 we had our surfboards...Mike Horn and I tried a couple times to surf the pow a lot of laughs

but not very successful...

also remember watching Mike Doyle in 69/70 ? on a Blue short looking surfboard with no bindings coming down the Ridge of Bell Mt.

in a foot of Powder...slowly, methodically but successfully Think Mike did the Monoski thing as well?

While the Snurfers, Snowsters, and Back Countrys were always Fun...I'll stick with my bindings....no pun intended.

Cheers...:)

[Neil Gendzwill]

Cool to have Kevin Kinnear on here... I started in 84 here in Alberta on an "Outland".

Welcome to Kevin also. I'm a couple of years behind some of you guys - started in 86 on an Elite 150. I ripped the inserts out halfway down the Divide chair at Sunshine on my 2nd day in the mountains on that board. I knew the Achenbachs to say hi to back in the day - it was a much smaller community.

[Rob Stevens]

Wow Cool Vid. and some great turns... How does that no board work on the groom? :)

When we arrived in Aspen in 68 we had our surfboards...Mike Horn and I tried a couple times to surf the pow a lot of laughs

but not very successful...

also remember watching Mike Doyle in 69/70 ? on a Blue short looking surfboard with no bindings coming down the Ridge of Bell Mt.

in a foot of Powder...slowly, methodically but successfully Think Mike did the Monoski thing as well?

While the Snurfers, Snowsters, and Back Countrys were always Fun...I'll stick with my bindings....no pun intended.

Cheers...:)

Groomers, you ask? Like s h i t, thanks.

The "Jackass" guys ride a surfboard in pow in a YouTube vid. Not badly, either. Hell... He even kickflips the thing in one clip!

Neil G... It was a smaill community back then, for sure. I'd like to take a vacation there.

[boarderboy]

Think Mike did the Monoski thing as well?

I remember a decades-old interview with Mike Doyle in which he talked some about experimenting with a monoski by Boehne (?? Steve of today's Infinity Surfboards ??)

And thanks for the Buttermilk footage!

BB

[Neil Gendzwill]

Neil G... It was a smaill community back then, for sure. I'd like to take a vacation there.

Yeah. For one thing, I'd get to be 25 again!

[utahcarver]

Bahne is the answer we were looking for, BB. Bill and Bob Bahne produced numerous fibreglass (flexible) skateboards in the late 1970's. I believe (Mike) Doyle is responsible for several inventions over the years including the monoski and some inventions involving Tom Morey.

Mark

[Frank Morales]

This must be old salty dog week,I just got back from the sacred craft surf expo

and saw Tom Morey, I was talking to Yater and the legends started pouring out of the wood work.It was pretty cool because they still have the stoke after all these years of being master craftsman and shapers.I also rode for Bahne when Mike Hynson was shaping for them.It was a white pigment down railer with hand painted pin lines and one of the nicest glass jobs I'd ever scene ,those guys knew how to glass.Don't get me wrong there were a lot of good shapers and glassers in Santa Barbara but those boards were sick.Most boards at the time had turned up rails except for old Tom Morey Blue machines.