Deus Ex Machina's Fin Soup

Photo by Glenn Sakamoto

We spread the prone riding word as best we could. I thought we did a wonderful job. True, most people don't understand the mat. But some folks did. And others were curious. For me, that's good enough.

Our booth had mats, paipos and handplanes. Obviously, Lucy had a lot of 'splainin' to do.

The goal, for me at least, was to help people expand their worldviews. Surfing isn't only about paddling into a wave and then standing up to ride it. Kicking into that same wave and riding it with your belly on the water is an equally valid way to do one's thing.

This was the first time I'd seen so-called "hipsters" in their natural habitat. Interesting. I really don't see what all of this "hipster" negativity is about. Is it about their clothes? Their hairstyles? I just don't get it. I didn't see any negativity, condescension or anything like that coming from this crowd. I live by the rule that I respect everyone until given a reason not to do so. I also teach this to my kid. And I saw no reason not to respect any of these folks. They extended an invitation to the mat riding community to have a presence at this event. Then, we also brought in the paipo/handplane community.

If nothing else, stoke was shared, even given away. We need more of that in the water. It never hurts to do that on land first, hoping that people remember that stoke and pass it on when they get in the water.