I still remember this drop at Banzai Pipe...
My life flashed before my eyes as I got held in the lip on take off and the North East trade wind ripped me rightwards.
I floated in the lip line, like a bird balanced in the breeze - hovering between the gusting wind and the rearing wave - tip toeing on death's scalpel.
I was fully stretched out and somehow I got to the bottom on my 7'7" Bill Barnfield shaped baby swallow.
A wave of absolute commitment burned into my soul.
To celebrate the ride and the re-ignition of my heritage brand Instinct that I founded back in 1979, I had local Santa Barbara legendary shaper Dave Johnson make me a beautiful replica for the upcoming Surf Expo trade show.
Dave hand-shaped the board out of a twenty plus year old original Clark Foam blank - no shaping machine involved just his Skil 100 planer, router, sandpaper and gauze. And then he sprayed it, glassed it, sanded it, finished coated it and then polished it, all on his own - an awesome solo endeavor filled with old school soul.
