HONOR THE BARRCUDA 3-12-08
By Corky Carroll

Bud the “Barracuda” Browne was the best surf moviemaker of his time. Period. That would have been the mid fifties to late sixties. He always had the best surfing action and great photography. Plus his humor stuff was totally “core.” There were others who had a slicker presentation and maybe more suave narration but none held a candle to Bud when it came to out and out capturing great surfing.

Bud is a long skinny dude with a smile that gives him the exact appearance of a barracuda. He also was a marathon swimmer. Most of his life he lived in Costa Mesa and would swim a zillion miles every morning before heading out to shoot surf movies. He also believed in only eating one meal a day, dinner.

He is one of the nicest people I have ever known and also was probably the worst driver that I ever had the fear of riding with. When I was a young teen and couldn’t drive, Bud would come by and pick me up and take me up or down the coast to great surf spots to film. Problem was he was such a horrible driver that I would be so nervous by the time we got there I couldn’t surf. Finally I had to force him to let me drive, even though I was too young, just to save our lives. It is a miracle that he has lived as long as he has.

They are honoring him this week at the San Louis Obispo Film Festival. My pal Steve Pezman, publisher of The SURFER’S JOURNAL is going up and will report back next week on how it went. The following is an email from Steve I got today and a little of his reflections on the Barracuda:
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“The San Louis Obispo Film Festival is having a “Surf Night” on Thursday and they are honoring “The Barracuda” who will be there in person. It is not his style to attend stuff like this; in fact he always got someone else to narrate his movies, but word is he is looking forward to this event and so are we. Old surfers are coming out of the woodwork to be there. The list includes Peter Cole, Dick Brewer, Fred Van Dyke from Hawaii, Walter Hoffman, Bruce Brown, Greg McGillivray, Mike and Sharon Marshall, my brother Tom (representing The Surfing Heritage Foundation) and Gerry Lopez. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg as the word is spreading and this is turning into a gathering of the clan to honor Bud. For the last few years, he has been blind and is living in an assisted living facility up north, being looked after by Buzzy Trent’s daughter Anna Moore. Being the father of the surf movie, his films were the primary mode of information and stoke transfer for the early formative years, giving birth to all other media that followed, yikes! He would not take credit for that but it’s all his fault. These days Bud lives mainly in his memory banks and we aim to let him known that his life’s work has been hugely appreciated! He’s one of the last of the old school surf personalities, a gentleman with firm values and with never a mean or demeaning word about others! I interviewed him once about photos from
his scrapbook and he was so uncomfortable answering impromptu that he seized up and asked me to submit the questions in writing so he could carefully consider the answers. Months after the article ran he was asking if he could soften some things that he was afraid would hurt the feelings of the subject. As far as his filming went he and Warren Miller, an old Manhattan Beach surfer who remembers hearing about the Japanese bombing Pearl while out in the lineup at Malibu, were the fathers of the cult-film- four-wall-high school gym genre. Of course, Warren, Bud’s ski movie equivalent, made a whole lot more money than Bud. Bud was never a businessman, but was devoted to his art form and serving the sport accurately. Bud was Captain of the USC swim team in ’33, an early lifeguard, skin diver who made his own equipment, and his swimming skills put his camera point of view right in the lineup at time when all others shot from the beach. His water angles were unique and powerful. The surfers he filmed respected him and he lived with them and was part of their lives. Thursday night, we hope to return the favor just a bit.”

More to come on the life of a true surfing legend and great man.

SURF AID AND READING DORA
The Wave ~ 3-12-08
By Corky Carroll

Today I have a couple of interesting newsworthy items to present to you. The first is about SurfAid International and a fundraiser coming up that I think is a really good cause and hope you do to. SurfAid has been working closely with Huntington Beach’s own Quiksilver to provide a better world for us to surf and live in. Below is a little bit of a press release that I just received on the event coming up.

Swimming to Save Lives: West Coast 2008
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Opportunities to turn a few hours of fun into life-saving support for isolated regions of the world are few and far between, SurfAid International is thrilled to announce registration has begun for the second annual Swim 4 Life fundraiser. The event will take place at the Los Caballeros Sports Club in Fountain Valley on Sunday, March 30, 2008 at 12 noon.

With 4 venues this year, fundraising efforts begin immediately. Teams and individuals participating in Swim 4 Life will work to gain sponsors for their thirty-minute swim. The money raised goes towards SurfAid International and its efforts to improve the health of people living in isolated regions connected to us through surfing. It will also be a small step in furthering the United Nations 15-year Millennium Development Goals aimed at reducing extreme poverty and preventable deaths worldwide.

The top fundraiser will receive a surf trip with World Surfaris USA to G-Land Joyo Surf Camp, Indonesia, one of the world's most incredible surfing destinations! Top Team (fundraising total) will receive two berths on Islander Sportfishing 7-day Surf/Fish Boat Trip to the Isla Natividad region of Baja California.

Other Top Fundraising Prizes include a brand-new Green Surfboard from NVS.com. Plus, every participant will have the opportunity to receive incentive prizes granted by sponsors at important fundraising milestones. A quick cross section of prizes includes skateboards from GFH Boards, watches from Freestyle, natural sun care products from Beyond Coastal, sunglasses from Dragon, backpacks from DaKine and much more to come as the contest nears. Plus, Rubio’s is generously providing lunch for all participants!

About SurfAid International
The mission of SurfAid International, a non-profit humanitarian aid organization, is to improve the health of people living in isolated regions connected to us through surfing. SurfAid is incorporated in the USA, Australia and New Zealand, with the program base in Tuapejat, the regional capital of the Mentawai Islands, off West Sumatra, Indonesia. SurfAid is the recipient of the 2007 WANGO (World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations) Humanitarian Award. For more information, please visit SurfAid’s website: www.surfaidinternational.org
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The second thing I wanted to point out is the upcoming release of two books about the life of surf legend Miki Dora. The first one is called “All for a Few Perfect Waves.” It will be available in early April from Harper Entertainment. This account of the adventures of Miki was written by a dude named David Rensin and is billed as “The Audacious Life and Legend of Rebel Surfer Miki Dora.”

I just read a very promising review done by long time surf journalist and book critic Robert Feigel. Robert was a friend of Dora’s and a Malibu guy from way, way back and a dude I would consider a reliable source. The following is a little bit taken from Roberts review:

"When I started reading the book I thought I knew Miki a little. As I read more, I decided that I didn't know him at all. Now, having finished the book and joined in the paddle out, I not only feel that I know Miki better than I ever have before, but that I also know myself better." - from an email to David Rensin after I'd finished reading his book.

What impressed me from the beginning was David's integrity and absolute commitment to somehow capturing Miki and the story of his remarkably convoluted and sometimes Byzantine life in a book. He wanted it to be a fair, balanced and comprehensive account that reflected the dynamic vitality, complexity and mystery of this enigmatic individual.

In my opinion he not only succeeded in that ambitious quest, but produced a real page turner in the process.”

Also coming soon is “DORA LIVES - The Authorized Story of Miki Dora.” Tom Adler's keenly awaited biography of Miki Dora - written by C.R. Stecyk III and Drew Kampion with archival photos most of us, including myself, have never seen before.

Miki was one of the best surfers that I ever saw and no matter if you worshiped him or hated him he certainly was one of the most interesting.