During the Achiu years, one of Kent Smith's neighbors left his airbrush rig with us to hold while he was away for a year or so. Curiosity got us going and soon we were airbrushing everything, this one started out as a fade and we just kept adding stuff in. Kent's friend came back one day and our airbrushing days were over.

Paul Nielsen - Photo courtesy of Tom Parrish

Paul Nielsen at Sunset on an 8'0", it takes guts to put yourself in this kind of situation. Paul was smooth in the water and on land, especially for an agro Aussie. He seemed to have a great time with girls, kind of coolly shrugging it off as if he didn't realize his appeal. It was a pleasure to see him not take himself too seriously and instead of ego; Paul always had the twinkle of a jokester in his eye. This board was an 8'0" made especially for Sunset, and was 19" wide, 3 1/8" thick. Many of the other guys were going with a little more width, but at 19" this one had a really nice line, not too straight and not too much curve. Paul would handle a drop like this as if it was no big deal, but anyone who has been in this spot at Sunset knows it is thick, windy and hard right there."

Photo courtesy of Tom Parrish

In 1970 my parents rented a house at Pipline for a month, Off the Wall really hadn't been surfed yet. I couldn't believe it when we were able to rent a few doors down for a year or two. As people began riding backdoor more, the overflow pushed down the beach, especially when the waves were small. Pretty soon Off the Wall emerged as a spot of it's own but it was mostly surfed when it was small. A few people saw how on the right direction, Off the Wall could be ridden much bigger. This shot wasn't really a big day but it shows the juice. Pretty soon the cameras from Pipeline stretched out down the line to Off the Wall and once the stars starting surfing it, the special nature of it being an off spot was over.

Tom Stone - Pipeline - Photo courtesy of Tom Parrish

Tom Stone 1970, a real treat to watch at Pipeline. In between Jock and Gerry, Tom Stone represented the beautiful, casual, flowing Hawaiian style as well as anyone. Contemporaries like Tiger Espere and Eddie Aikau were already experienced in the big waves of Sunset and Waimea, however, Stone seemed to always be at Pipeline. Maybe every generation is partial to the styles they grow up with, watching big wave surfing styles go from survival to stylish was such an inspiring thing to see. Grace under pressure, flow, timing and the magical sense of style, Tom Stone had it. When I look at this photo it brings back all the richness of the time, the 60s went out with a lot of design evolution. Jose Angel used to paddle from Log Cabins into huge Pipeline from the back door. We owe them big time for illuminating the path.

Keone Downing - Photo courtesy of Tom Parrish

Keone Downing at Sunset on an 8'4" made by George, I think. The Downings were such a tight knit family and their history is so much a part of Hawaiian surfing. The exchanges between George and Ben Aipa over board design or marketing were classic, not always fun and games.

Keone had big shoes to fill as George was, and continues to be, a strong force, but he always rose to the occasion, handling 25' surf or situations on land equally well with values and lessons learned from his rich family heritage. It amazed me how he could surf big Sunset so seemingly easy when he didn't surf there all that much. His style was simple and smooth, no unnecessary moves, jukes or jives.

Mundaka - Photo courtesy of Tom Parrish

Mundaka. Special place, special people. The rivermouth creates a perfect sandbar, keeping the lineup in the same place all the time. Spain is just the right combination of insane passion and old world reserve. Was so lucky to score a shaping job in Bakio with Alfonso & Alex Nebreda, and Marcelo Puente, stayed for about a month a couple of times. The coastline between Bakio and Mundaka is spectacular. Mundaka can hold 10 feet and it just peels, only downside is the crowd and it can be really cold. Hanging out in the village, watching the waves from a friend's balcony, looking through the medieval rooftops, once there you don't want to leave.