Archive for Interviews
February 13, 2012 at 11:46 am | Spongercity General, International, Interviews News
The Coffee Break Interview – with Jeff Hubbard
The Coffee Break Interview ? What’s that new format ? Not familiar with the new Spongercity.com interview format ? It’s basically short interviews with pros that we’ll be doing regularly on the website with unusual questions that are not just related to bodyboarding. We’ll ask questions about books, life, girls, whatever, but not bodyboarding-related questions or only weird ones… Different approach, different questions, the time of a coffee break basically… The rules are simple: The questions are not your classic ones and the last rider being interviewed chooses who’s gonna be interviewed after him (or her) !
This month Jeff Hubbard did us the favour to be our guest for this new Coffee Break Interview as Ben Player suggested Jeff as our new Coffee-Break-Interviewed rider. Thanks Jeff for taking the time to answer our questions.
Read the interview, enjoy and discover who we’ll interview next at the end of Jeff’s interview as Jeff has choosen his successor in the next Coffee Break interview.
Hi Jeff, how are you ?
Doing great just surfed fun pipe all day now relaxing watching the “hangover”
So this is our “Coffee Break” Interview format and as you know the last interviewed rider chooses who gets to be interviewed next. Benny Player was the first rider we interviewed with this new format and he chose you for this new coffee break interview as you also like coffee, oh and he added you get nuts when you drink a good one. So what’s up with coffee Jeff ? You’re also a coffee lover ?
Yeah i froth on a good cup of espresso or and ice mocha so amped on them.
What else gets you nuts appart from coffee ?
Good waves , pipeline especially
I guess you’re in Hawaii the moment ? Any good waves ?
Yes great waves almost every day
Getting ready for the pipe contest very soon ?
Yeah training hard and looking forward to the comp waves look epic
This year (2011) was really competitive on the tour and it was also the first time bodyboarding has had such a good great tour with good media coverage, webcasts, venues, riders, commentators etc. what do you reckon ?
I totally agree. it was a great step forward for the sport.
You surfed amazingly well all year and came short at the very last moment, with PLC being crowned 2011 world champ. Has this motivated you even more for the 2012 title or has is pissed you off ?
Yeah i am excited about 2012 and really looking forward to the year on tour ahead. So more motivated now.
You’re a great competitor, super smart in your heats and of course an amazing free surfer but do you adapt to contest formats sometimes or pretty much just charge and hit the biggest sections anyways ?
I pretty much try to go big all the time. It works well since the contests are so difficult you have to go all out all the time.
You’re one of the rare pro rider i now (if i remember well) who went to Uni and studied for a while and got a degree or diploma. What did you study and why ?
I studied business and got my masters in international business. it was awesome to learn super interesting and challenging and made me a better person for sure.
You’re really close to your little bro David, both on tour and out of the tour since both you guys follow the IBA world tour. How is it having a family member with you on the tour ? We’ve seen you two motivating each other before heats, we’ve even seen Dub giving you a massage before a heat in Puerto this year for example. Do you reckon it makes both of you stronger to have a brother on tour ?
Yeah its great to have that support when you really need it when you are getting ready for some heavy heats ect. Even if we don’t stay together all the time we still amp each other up and have a lot of fun every where we go.
Have you competed against each other already ?
Yes and we have a heat at pipe this week too !!
You and David have different personalities though, don’t you ?
Yes for sure.
And you have another brother as well yeah ? Is he bodyboarding too ?
Yes his name is mike and he surfs and bodyboards really well!!
How come you dont DK more when you see your bro David ripping on the knee as well as ripping prone ?
I think I will dk more this year it is super fun and I am doing dk at pipe this year and kinda scared ha ha.
What inspires you in general ? in life ? in the water ?
My family friends god and just enjoying life and all it has to offer us humans.
Do you follow or do other sports ?
Yes i enjoy soccer and football.
What books are you reading at the moment ? Anything you’d like to share ? Any good books ?
Reading healthy eating -healthy world. really good book
A lot of people first noticed you in the NO FRIENDS videos in the late 1990’s, how were those years ? The NF crew ? These vids were a serious influence on many many people i guess and to these days the NF vids have kinda set a standard in bodyboarding videos and what is cool with bodyboarding: travelling, filming, a crew or good friends etc. Do you still see or chill with the NF crew ? Stoker ? Roach ? Skipp ? Ronk ? Ross ? Do you miss these days ?
Yeah those were awesome fun days for sure and yeah miss them some times ha ha
You’re one of the rare pros (with the exception of a couple other guys) to be sponsored by a more mainstream or surf-oriented clothing company called Oceancurrent, how is it riding for a bigger company or a more mainstream company ?
Its awesome they support me so well and are supporting the sport amazingly i am really lucky and amped on them. great clothes and great people.
You’re from Kaui, Hawaii yeah ? You spend a lot of time on the North Shore of Oahu in the winter and surf Pipe everytime it breaks. How is it between islands ? Is there a rivality or a sort of priority for north shore guys when you surf at Pipe ? It’s hard to imagine for people who have not surfed in Hawaii before but there’s a serious pecking order at Pipe and it’s hard to get the good ones on crowded days yeah ? Where do you sit in the pecking order there ? People know you and you get more waves or is it still hard to get waves with the locals ?
I am from kauai and have lived on oahu off and on for the last 20 years. I know all the locals and respect them they respect me. I get my waves but there are so many guys tring to get waves at pipe I choose to sit in certain spots to get the most or best waves.
Can you still feel a rivality between bodyboarders and surfers in Hawaii or elsewhere in the world ? Yeah a little bit in hawaii but no that much mostly maybe in california most of those surfers over there are just such kooks.
You must have travelled quite a lot but is there a place you never surfed before and would love to surf ?
I have been to a lot of places but would really like to go to ireland and and try surf a few waves over there and check out the scene one day.
If it was not a surf trip but just a classic touristic trip, where would you like to go ?
Maybe Italy to check that zone out as well.
Would you rather return to Cloud9 with the crew who went with you in WELFARE (McGee/Booth/Skipp/Burk etc.) or go back to indo on a boat trip with the NF crew (Botha/Stoker/Skipp etc.) ? I know this is a hard one ! haha
Yeah thats a tough choice but probably cloud 9 with the welfare crew we would own that place no one else would get a wave off our crew thats for sure ha ha!!!
Bat tail ? You’re one or the rare pros who consistently ride a bat tail board, what’s the difference and what’s better for you ?
The bat tail offer better projection and faster better boosts which i really like to do most of time in most waves.
What kinda board do you ride ? PP or PE ? Thin board with 2 stringers ? Who shapes them ? Dan Sivess now ?
Dan Sivess shaped my new boards. Thin board one stringer mesh pp. They go insane.
Is there any question we should ask you ?
Not really too many questions already JK lol
Is there a question you’d like to ask us at Spongercity ?
Keep it up every one enjoys the website and interviews thanks
Alright, thanks heaps for your time Jeff, we hope you’ll score and get sick waves in the pipe comp, it’s now time for you to choose who will be interviewed next for the next Spongercity Coffee Break interview, who do you reckon we should interview next ?
I think you should interview Amaury Laverhne as he does not like coffee but likes doing interviews.
thank theo aloha
Cheers Jeff,
Theo – SC Editor.
December 21, 2011 at 6:22 pm | Spongercity General, International, Interviews News
Our first interview in our series of new Coffee Break Interviews with Spongercity.com – What’s the new format ? It’s basically short interviews with pros that we’ll be doing regularly on the website with unusual questions that are not related to bodyboarding. We’ll ask questions about books, life, girls, whatever, but not bodyboarding-related questions or only weird ones… Different approach, different questions, the time of a coffee break basically… The rules are simple: The questions are not your classic ones and the last rider being interviewed chooses who’s gonna be interviewed after him (or her) !
Ben Player did us a favour and accepted to go first and try out our new Coffee Break Interview. So here you go: Read the rest of this entry »
October 16, 2011 at 12:52 pm | Spongercity General, International, Interviews News
It seems to always take longer than expected to interview a rider and then release it on the website. We saw Mitch on the Goldie a while ago and had a little chat and Mitch was keen on doing the interview so we were stoked, got home, started writing down the questions for the interview and this is where is got hard: This is bodyboarding legend Mitch Rawlins ! We can’t really come up with shit questions and we can’t bother Mitch with lame questions. So we did our best to keep the interview interesting and with the quite-recent launch of FOUND boards in both OZ and Europe we thought it was the right time to release the interview . Hope you enjoy it.
Read the rest of this entry »
November 25, 2010 at 5:33 pm | Spongercity Europe, Girls, Interviews News
Our first girl interview on Spongercity.com – Currently #2 on the womens bodyboarding world tour, Spanish bodyboarder Eunate really impressed everyone with her riding and her approach of the media/communation side of things, releasing super cool video clips and imagery, taking care of her riding as well as the image she creates and really showing everyone what girls are capable of on a boogieboard. We thought it was high time to interview Eunate and learn more about her, her riding, her training, her projects and views about the bodyboard scene etc.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 27, 2010 at 1:05 pm | Spongercity Australia, Interviews, Links News
There’s a great Lilly Pollard interview on our friends’ website Surfmadam.com – Great read for both girls & boys, go check it out and if you’re a girl you should definitely check Surfmadam.com coz the site rocks for girlies and they’re good friends of ours.
July 5, 2010 at 7:52 pm | Spongercity International, Interviews News
We interviewed Thom Robinson the other day about his new project with James Kates: Highwaydaze.com – Thom was cool and answered really quickly. Here’s more about Highwaydaze
SC: Hey Thomas howdy ?
Thom Robinson: Yer good, just cruising waiting around for the shark island comp to hopefully pump.
SC: Can you introduce the Highwaydaze project ?
Thom Robinson: Highwaydaze is basically the product of having alot of spare time and wanting to make something.
SC: Who are you doing this with?
Thom Robinson: Well its basically just james kates and myself but dave fox has helped alot by actually making the site for us. we are lucky in the sense that we are surrounded by alot of really talented people so a heap of them will be contributing along the way.
SC: What can we expect from this new project ?
Thom Robinson: Wave riding in a few different styles, photos, videos, drawings… hopefully any art-form you can view through a computer screen.
SC: How different is this project from others ?
Thom Robinson: It seems to be more arty and personal, can you develop ? as far as professional bodyboarders and websites go i guess its taking a slightly different path. it feels good in the sense that anything on there is made by us or one of our friends and not some company trying to jam something down your throat.
SC: What’s coming next from mister Robinson ?
Thom Robinson: Are you filming or planning any trip for this Winter in Oz or somewhere else on the planet ? at the moment im just trying to film for the website and save some money for a round world trip i have planned for later in the year to work on a DVD project which should be out for christmas.
Thanks Thom!
Spongercity.com
July 1, 2010 at 8:04 pm | Spongercity Interviews News
You probably heard about BOOGTIQUE, the new online shop that Fintan Gillespie and pro bodyboarder Jack Johns launched not too long ago in the UK. Fintan and Jack were kind enough to answer some of our questions on skype regarding their new store and the interview turned out being pretty funny!
READ THE INTERVIEW HERE.
PS: keep reading toward the end of the interview for an exclusive Spongercity & Boogtique deal – 10% off !
July 1, 2010 at 5:45 pm | Spongercity Interviews News
You probably heard about BOOGTIQUE, the new online shop that Fintan Gillespie and pro bodyboarder Jack Johns launched not too long ago. FIntan and Jack were kind enough to answer some of our questions on skype regarding their new store and the interview turned out being pretty funny:
(PS: keep reading toward the end of the interview for an exclusive Spongercity & Boogtique deal – 10% off !)
See Jack shred here on video and check his site here also.
Spongercity and Boogtique – The interview:
SC: Hey guys
Jack Johns: hello
SC: Can introduce yourselves ?
Fintan: Hey I’m Fintan Gillespie, bodyboarder from Ireland and co-owner of boogtique
Jack Johns: Hey, i’m Jack Johns, from Cornwall in the Uk and co own Boogtique with Fintan.
SC: So… first question… what motivated you guys to start a shop online ?
Fintan: you answer first Jack, i’ll add to it
Jack Johns: It started as an idea in Aus. I notice the all the kids there wore bodyboarding branded clothes and i was I was just fed up with seeing the local bodyboarders at home in the UK wearing brands that do not surport bodyboarding……
Fintan: Same boat here. My problem was in a lack of access to the bodyboarding brands i like
Jack Johns: so the idea began to start importing the clothes into Europe and make it more avalible….
Fintan: You had to either order from AUS or US to get em
SC: How did you guys met ?
Jack Johns: Well… fintan??? ha how did we meet?
Fintan: i presume in the water at Blackspot a popular bodyboarding wave in ireland, years ago, jack and Dan Skajarowski used to come over loads and have never stopped coming back
Jack Johns: Yeah, i used to travel to ireland alot when i was younger….. and seeing as back then Fintan and his brother tom were the only boogers there… we ended up chatting i guesss.
Fintan: Jack and Dan used ot stay up in Dub with us too and party like maniacs
Jack Johns: that led to me and dan skajarowski staying with fint. Dublin is a fun city when the waves are flat….
Fintan: Seeing Justice live in Dublin on my birthday was one of those nights
SC: Do you guys travel a lot ? Has the new shop changed things a bit ? You have to stay home and send orders now ?
Jack Johns: haha…. It changed abit i guess. I’ve still done alot of sneeky trips this winter…but i cant do the big trips like i used to…not unless i plan it well…
Fintan: I travel as much as i can, did loads after college but I have a full time job too. I’m currently in South Africa hoping to score some waves in cape town next week!
SC: Ok, so Jack is the shop your main job now ? Fintan what’s your job ?
Fintan: I work for Google
Jack Johns: I’ll say yes, Boogtique is my main job…. but i am a full time Lifeguard here in Cornwall where i live.
SC: Fintan you work for Google in Ireland ? or the UK ?
Fintan: I actually work on the South African team, it’s a balancing act haha
SC: Are you guys considering selling boards on your shop in the future ?
Fintan: hmmm we’d love to, it’s a decision that is out of our hands, but hopefully soon.
Jack Johns: Yeah… we would really love to and do plan to but at the momnet, we dont want to step on any ones toes, we’re are just testing the water and waiting for the right time to do it.
SC: Boogtique is the only 100% bodyboard store in the UK ?
Jack Johns: Yeah
Fintan: it’s the only store you can buy online from in the UK but we like to see ourselves as european, the site is available in 5 different languages although we still have some translations to do!
Jack Johns: Maybe you could help us Theo… haha
SC: How is the feedback so far ? Kids are stoked to be able to find bodyboard shirts and stuff i reckon ?
Fintan: Yeah for sure, they’re loving it, it’s great to see them buying bodyboard brands over QuikRipabong we also interact with them as much as possible on www.facebook.com/boogtique and www.twitter.com/boogtique
Jack Johns: To be honest i didnt think we’d be soo we’ll recieved. The kids here in the Uk seem to love it… which is really positive…
SC: I bet ! If there wasnt any real BB shop there before it’s really cool
Fintan: We’ve also shipping as far as the Carribean
SC: So Jack you live in Cornwall and Fintan you’re still in Ireland or you’re also in the UK now ?
Fintan: I’m currently based out of Ireland. But travel to UK and South Africa a good bit
Jack Johns: Yeah, I live in Cornwall, but Fintan lives in Dublin, but is currnetly working down in SA.. which is… hopefully spread the Boogtique word down there a bit…
SC: Who’s sending the orders everyday ? Jack ?
Jack Johns: Haha. yep, im the postage gimp!
Fintan: Yeah Jack’s the workhorse
Jack Johns: haha, but i take my time, every order is package with alot of love
Fintan: He also kinda looks like a horse, has the face of a horse anyway and the hobble of a horse
Jack Johns: oii ha see my skype picture…
Jack Johns: me with a donkey!
Fintan: Well you’re deffo of the horse variety
Jack Johns: thank you.
Fintan: I think a Mule is what we’re looking for when u cross a donkey with a horse
Jack Johns: lets move away from me being a horse.
Fintan: next question haha
SC: Next question: do we keep the mule/horse stuff in the final interview ?
Fintan: Whatever u think…..i think its funny
Jack Johns: hha. well‚ umm, what ever you feel Theo. The horse has no say anyway.
SC: Well, Jack you’ve got a horse pro model with NMD right ? and have quite a bit of an international profile now ?
Fintan: HAHAHAHA yeah jack
Jack Johns: ha
Fintan: screw the crow logo (Spongercity note: There’s a crow logo on Jack’s Pro Model from NMD). Get a Mule stamp next time.
SC: Spongercity: I think it looks good – the crow, not the mule
Fintan: You’ll increase sales 10 fold
SC: Spongercity: You should sell that board in the shop mate!
Jack Johns: Actually my orginal logo was a Horse (well a stalion) on its back legs. haha.
SC: Spongercity: no way
Jack Johns: But i quickly got rid of that.
Fintan: yeah, you’re deffo not as glam as a stallion on its hind legs far too Italian for you
Jack Johns: I had a few designs done of a horse head, or a horse shoe… ha‚Ķ next board maybe i’ll bring it back.
SC: Spongercity: cool. Did you work with Mez and Sivess on the board ?
Jack Johns: yeah… Mainly work with Sivess… he’s been making me boards for a few years now and there the best board i could imagine…every order they just get better and better…
SC: What kinda boards do you guys ride ? Water’s cold up there in the UK hey
Jack Johns: NMD- Jack “Horse” Johns… Dow with stringer.
Fintan: yeah all DOW and i think we’re both fans of narrow boards
Jack Johns: The water is icey, but the waves make upfor that.
Fintan: …and colder the water, the less crowded
SC: True. Any waves at the moment ?
Jack Johns: nope. Its been realy flat for a while now.
Fintan: Well it’s winter in Cape Town, so hopefully I’ll score like the boys did on that Nomad trip
Jack Johns: ha.. you wish fint.
SC: Do you reckon we’re good with the interview or have i forgotten details and stuff ?
Jack Johns: not really sure… it all seems sweet to me.
SC: Wanna do a discount for Spongercity readers?
Fintan: 10% or something? Ok, SPONGETIQUE. 10% off everything.
Jack Johns: code : SPONGETIQUE 10% off everything for you lucky Spongecity readers.
SC: Spongercity: ok cool !
Jack Johns: speak soon!
Fintan: Thanks for that, cheers.
June 17, 2010 at 10:14 pm | Spongercity International, Interviews News
A new interview! We haven’t released any interview for a while and eventually took the time to ask Ryan a few things, ask him for pictures and put together this Ryan Mattick interview.
Ryan is a busy man, a busy bodyboarder and his profile definitely needed a little more than just a couple pictures and a quick Q&A. We met Ryan quickly last January in Sydney and… well… we told Ryan we’d send him questions for an interview but it took us longer than we expected… Anyway, 6 months later, here’s Ryan, talking about bodyboarding, video making, wetsuits, business and more.
READ THE INTERVIEW HERE
June 17, 2010 at 5:52 pm | Spongercity Interviews News
Ryan is a busy man, a busy bodyboarder and his profile definitely needed a little more than just a couple pictures and a quick Q&A. We met Ryan quickly last January in Sydney and… well… we told Ryan we’d send him questions for an interview but it took us longer than we expected… Anyway, 6 months later, here’s Ryan, talking about bodyboarding, video making, wetsuits, business and more.
RYAN MATTICK for Spongercity.com
Hey Ryan, howdy ? what have you been up to ?
Hey mate, sorry for the late reply. Yeah I’ve been super busy designing next years Zion range, trying to get this website out, doing some film work for the HB fellas and I recently just got married to my dream girl… busy times!
Can you introduce yourself ?
Ryan Mattick. 26. Thirroul, South coast of NSW.
One time semi-pro bodyboarder turned photog, turned videog, turned wanna-be designer and businessman.
How was the FEVER DREAM DVD premieres tour in Oz ?
It was a pretty sick experience. We had 8 premieres in 4 different states. For the most of it it was Kates, Jase Finlay, Corpse and myself getting wild, with famed Mc Koot, who if you haven’t seen is the best natural entertainer ever. All up we watched FeverDream so much, I never want to see it again!
You filmed and edited everything with James Kates. How do you guys share tasks ? Who films what ? Who’s editing ?
Regarding filming, I shot most of it. Kates is pretty creative behind the lens though, loves shooting animals, especially dogs, and can get a little carried away. He shot all the super 8 stuff, and some of the extra stuff is his dad’s from the 60’s which is pretty cool.
Regarding editing, Kates edited most of it, while I stood behind him with my knee to his back. Haha. Nah it was us two sitting in a room throwing around ideas and getting slightly crazy.
Do you sometimes have issues with James and the other guys because the waves are too good and no one wants to film ?
Nah I’m the filmer, when we got a project on, I’m the one geeing everything up, checking the charts everywhere and pushing the fellas, which then gets them pretty excited to perform. Once you get on a roll there’s no stopping till its done…
Where did you go for the movie ? (sessions, trips etc.)
We did a lot around the south coast. WA. VICO. SOUTH OZ x 3,and Tassie.
Do you reckon the movie is a motivation to push everyone further, do crazy shit in the water and travel around Oz and the rest of the world to score sick waves ?
Yeah for sure. Regarding the crazy, I hope it inspires people. I know how excited I get when I see new waves, or waves/surfing shot in a different way. It used to just pump me up so much, and I’d get this crazy urge to just go and do something. Giving that feeling to others would feel pretty cool…
Are DVDs still profitable or at least do you get your money back after everything is over and you’ve sold the copies to the shops ? Lots of videographers say they would love to keep on filming but it just doesnt pay the bills. What do you think ?
If the film’s promoted well and the filmer is distributing themselves, then yeah it’s possible to make a bit of profit, but it ain’t no cash cow that’s for sure. With FeverDream, we made a small profit after all the costs were accounted for. The only real profit is exposure for Zion. I would do it all for free to promote my label as photography, waves and Zion are my passions
Are you back home now ? What do you do when you’re not filming and surfing or taking care of your wetsuits brand ZION ?
Hanging out with my wife! Yeah I’m home, when I have the time I love to cook. Hanging out with mates. I have a group of mates who love curries, there’s a little curryhouse; two meat curries, rice, papadum, raita and coke for AU$8 bargain!
Can you tell us more about your brand ZION and how it all started and who works with you on this project ?
Zion was born ten years ago, but remained inside my head until 2 years ago. I just really wanted to make super quality rubber that anyone can love, and something that can do good things for the boog industry. Two years on and we have sourced some of the best materials in the world, have the freshest and strongest team, and have released two nearly sold out ranges.
Zion is owned by myself and south coast booger Matt Young. I’m a meticulous basterd, and am head of marketing, design, sales, and team and international stuff, while Matt takes care of the distribution. All the team dudes are just as mucha part of Zion with there ideas and feedback, so the aussie team of Corpse, Jase, Kates, Joe, Backshall, Bennett, Griz and Kingy are all in.
There seems to be way more bodyboarding brands nowadays with 100% bbing clothes and wetsuits for example. How do you explain that ?
I guess this is due to bodyboarders doin their own thing ya know. Like a lot of boogers are starting their own labels. And they’re successful cos generally the brand and product is good and boogers are typically brand loyal and are supporting thisa, which is good to see.
What’s the typical Ryan Mattick day when you’re home ?
Business, coffee hang, business, ocean, business, wife hangs.
How do you share you time between surfing and taking care of the ZION business etc. ? Do you also work aside of that or do you only do ZION 100% of your time now ?
It’s not a very well known fact that I barely surf anymore. Like, I will go out every now and then, but Zion is something that I commited to without knowing just how much work was involved. My passion for riding waves was taken over by the passion to shoot photos, so if I’m in the ocean, most times I’ll be shooting and not sliding along on my gut.
Oh, and I’m also real bad on the boog too now haha, my moves suck!
What’s coming next ? Any other DVD project or anything new with ZION ?
Yeah, we are coming to Europe! Zion will be hitting Europe this year with a big range of 4/3’s and 3/2 steamers so I’m pretty pumped on that. We’re also doing a team vid project in Europe at the end of this year, so I’m super excited to see more of the world….
Do you know which countries in Europe you will visit ? PS: The Spongercity HQ being in SW France, we’ll pay the beers if you come down here.
SW france is on the itinerary, as is Ireland, Scotland, and a few secret lands. You keep those beers cold and we will be there!
Last words ?
I’d like to say a big thanks to my beautiful wife for letting me marry her, and putting up with all my chit. I’d like to also say Europe, prepare yourself for Zion, I’m preparing for one serious case of Euro rig!
Thanks Ryan!
Theo
Spongercity.com
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