PECKING ORDER
By Corky Carroll

A couple of weeks ago I did a column that had to do with my horribly bad back and how I am in the midst of trying to fix it, along with the rest of my body, by working with Costa Mesa based Synergy Training Center. As a result I got quite a bit of interesting emails. Many wanted info on how to reach Synergy and others had their own advice on how to treat my back issues. There was one that told me that if I only ate rare mountain beets from Tibet that not only would my back pain go away but I would reach a higher form of awareness and elevate not only my body but also my mind into a cosmic state of nirvana. That sounded pretty good but they did not clue me into where you get rare mountain beets from Tibet. I couldn’t find them at Albertsons. The very next email was from a guy who told me that he had met legendary surfer, and known bizarre dude, John Peck a few years earlier and that John had cured him of numerous health problems that he had been dealing with. Through John’s awareness of Yoga and other mystic arts he was able to help this guy and he told me that I ought to go see him for help. The fact that those two emails came back to back was strange enough in itself as they actually have a lot to do with each other. John is sort of like the rare mountain beet from Tibet. Strange and exotic and who knows if it works or not but either way they are both things that make you rub your chin and go “hmmm.”

In any case this made me painfully aware that I have never written about John Peck before, at least not that I can remember. And I am sorry for that because in my opinion John Peck is one of the greatest surfers who has ever set feet on a surfboard. He was a leader in all aspects of surfing, from big waves in Hawaii to competition surfing here in California and he was a gifted innovator in surfboard design. His “John Peck Penetrator” surfboard design for Morey-Pope Surfboards in the mid 1960’s was one of the great designs in an era of breakthrough changes in surfboards. To this day John marches to his very own drummer and lives his life in search of elevation of both himself and all those who come in contact with him. Many write him off as totally flipped out. He looks like some sort of Maharishi off of an old Beatles record. Others, and especially those who take the time to get past all that, realize that there is a truly unique individual in there. Yes, there are the tales of how he turned himself into a beam of light to escape from a jail cell and how he travels through the universe physically and mentally on a stream of rainbow colors etc. Who knows? I don’t really care about all that. What I do know is that John is not now, nor never has been, anybody else’s man other than what has come from his own heart and soul.

He has always been that way. I met him when I first started going to Hawaii to surf in the early 1960’s. He is a few years older than me and had already made a mark with amazing performances surfing on the North Shore. He had his critics, as does pretty much everybody who does not conform to what is accepted as “the cool way to be.” But I found him to be a great guy and we got to be friends easily. His dad was in the Navy and they would move from Hawaii to Newport Beach in the middle of John’s surfing career. He was a solid fixture on the West Coast competition scene for years, winning many events and always in the top of the rankings. He was great in big surf and had, and continues to have, an extremely functional and clean surfing style. If you talk to him he may not be what would expect. But he is genuine and I respect the dude for that and layers of other reasons.

John lives in Costa Mesa and surfs daily at local beaches. He remains a living legend in the sport of surfing and one of the real original dudes you could ever meet. I call him a pal and always look forward to seeing him. Plus I enjoy the entertainment value of the tales of his life. The guy is really the “real deal.”

GIVEAWAYS THAT YOU ARE LAME

By Corky Carroll

I got a question this morning submitted to my “Ask the Expert” column which airs in the Sports Section during the week.  It was regarding which direction your board should be in when you strap it to the roof of your car.  I had to laugh because this is one of the things that sets off the “kuk alert” horn in my old dog eared brain when I see it.  Let me clear up what a “kuk” is.  Most people would use the term “kook,” which would mean somebody a little crazy or a tad off, so to speak.  That is different than a “kuk.”  A kuk is one who is clueless to surfing, surf culture and is basically a lesser form of human being than we, the core surf clan.   Strapping your board on with the fin in the front would seem like common sense, but I guess it is like walking into the water holding your board sideways, it’s obviously really stupid but people do it all the time anyway. 

Why your board should always go on with the fin in the front, you ask?  Because it acts as protection in case your board starts to slip out of the straps or rope or whatever.  The fin will catch and keep you board from flying off of your car and into the windshield of the car, bus or moving van than is right behind you.  It can really change the attitude of somebody on a motorcycle.

Walking into the water with your board held out sideways in front of you is just plain dumb.  Of course the first wave that comes along is going to slam into your board and send it right back into your waiting chest and/or face and chin. 

Danger Will Robinson, Danger.  This is fat lip and lost teeth just waiting to happen.  Kuk horn honking.

Another dead giveaway that you are of the lame and surf-socially ignorant is how you carry your board.  Wax in is most definitely a key kuk alert move.  If you carry it that way the wax on your deck is going to rub off all over your brand new t-shirt, jacket, sweatshirt or dinner jacket.  And not only that but if you carry it with the fin out you are just begging to hit something or someone with the fin. Some things are just wrong. 

One of my all time lame kuk moves is to leave your board in the sun with the waxed side (the deck) up.  This is another of those what you would think would be common sense deals but for some reason surf sense is not all that common.  What do you think the sun is going to do with your wax?  Maybe….melt it???  Duh!!!  You can make this really bad if you want to by leaving it laying wax up across a brand new lounge chair with fresh and clean cushions.  This has happened on my deck to my new fresh clean cushions and I have wanted to dip the offenders head in a hot batched bucket of resin.   Leaving it wax down on my brand new lounge chair with fresh and clean cushions is bad too because the wax rubs off on them.  This is also bad with tables. 

And one of my favorite lame moves is leaving your wax in the sun.  Anyplace in the sun is bad, but there are some really amazingly wrong places to do this.  Like on the dashboard of your car.   Or worse, my car.  Do you know what a dashboard looks like with a bar of melted wax oozing all over it?  Do you know it is impossible to get it off?  Another bad spot is on top of your clothes or back pack or whatever you left on the beach when you paddled out.  Geeze, didn’t anybody tell these people that is why they make wax pockets in surfwear?????  Oh yeah, and it’s also not good to leave wax in the wax pocket when you hang your shorts on the line to dry.  

And a real show stopper of the ultimate kuk kind is laying your board down on the beach after surfing and walking, or even better running, off WITHOUT remembering to take off your surf leash.  I love to see the look on peoples faces as they suddenly become horizontal about three feet off the ground and go face first into the sand.  Even you know your lame when you do that one. 

SURF STORY……THE BOOK

By Corky Carroll

There are a ton of surf related books on the shelves these days.  Many are fantastic and almost all of them are very good.  But there is a new one that just came out that is, in my fried and sun dried old waterlogged surf mind, the ABSOLUTE COOLEST BOOK I HAVE EVER SEEN.  It is titled simply “Surf Story” and was created and designed by Robb Havassy. 

Let me regress about a year or so.  I got an email from Robb saying he was attempting to put together a collection of surf art and surf stories and asked me if I would send him some of my stuff.  It sounded cool enough so I sent him over a few stories and pics of a couple of my paintings.  A little later he wrote back saying thanks and he was going to use a couple of the stories and one painting.  I thought to myself that this was nice and sort of forgot about it.  A couple of months ago I got another email from Robb saying the book was coming out and he was sending me a copy.  At the time I was in Mexico at my casa in paradise basking in some warm water and good waves, as I like to do during the freezing winter months here in the beautiful, yet chilly in mid winter, O.C.  Finally returning to reality and downtown Huntington Beach a couple of weeks ago I went to pick up my mounds of piled up mail.  And there was the book waiting for me.  

The cover is beautiful and immediately I was stunned on the size of this thing.  I weighs almost 8 pounds.  As I started to leaf through the pages I was in awe.  This is more than a collection of art…. It is ART.  Page after page of mind blowing paintings and really good stories.  I am just blown away and so honored and proud to be even in this book with all of the great stuff that just blows mine away. 

It opens up with the title “SURF STORY” by artists….by surfers.  

“When you become a surfer you fall in love.  Surf stories are just the love stories of surfers.  Being a surfer isn’t just about riding waves.  It’s about the ‘before’ and ‘after.’  It’s about how we live, breath and create.  Love for the ocean and all that it provides permeates a surfer’s life to such an extent that it inspires creativity and certifies that every artist who is a surfer will ultimately reflect the passion and love they have for surfing in what they create.  Somewhere in that truth maybe the definition of ‘Surf Art.’  SURF STORY is about the eclectic spirit that is at the heart of what it is to be a ‘surfer.’”  Robb Havassy.

The book opens with some insightful “forwards” by Greg Escalante, Jim Moriarty, Drew Kampion and Robb himself.  Then it delivers the goods hot and heavy right off the bat with the works of John Severson.  John is one of the great surf artists and the founder of SURFER magazine.  Many of us “do art.”  But find it a pretty far stretch to call ourselves artists.  But John, and most of the people featured in this book, are real true artists.  John has always been one of my favorites.  This is a guy who has surfed and lived the life since he was a kid growing up in San Clemente in the 1950’s.  He turned his passion into a successful career with the magazine and several great surf films.  His last one being one of the all time best, “Pacific Vibrations.” 

Another of the greats featured in this book is Rick Griffin.  Rick got on the map in the early 60’s doing the “Murphy” comic strip in SURFER magazine.  He went on to become one of the most famous and sought after “rock” artists of our time, including designing the logo for ROLLING STONE magazine.  He did most of the album covers for the “Grateful Dead” and a zillion concert posters in the San Francisco area during the Haight/Ashbury period. 

Also featured are Bill Ogden, Art Brewer, Gerry Lopez, Rob Machado, Ken Auster, Tom Servais, Phil Roberts, Aaron Chang, Joel Tudor, Rick Reitveld, Mike Doyle, Jim Evans, Peter Mel, Noah Johnson, Joey Cabell, Pat O’Connell, Wingnut, Greg Long, Nat Young, Rochelle Ballard and a whole slew of others whose names are new to me yet whose work is incredible. 

This is a MUST GET for anybody who enjoys surf art and surf stories.