i was flipping through old magazines and came across this back cover. when i saw the red vest and amazing sequence, all the memories came back. it was about 12 years ago when 14 of us boarded the SanSouciII. this trip to the Mentawai’s wasn’t just another ordinary one, it was a very special one. Tokura-san was to turn 60 years old so we planned to celebrated his birthday in the middle of the Indian Ocean. on his special day, we surfed super good Macaroni’s in the morning, stopped in the deep channel to spear huge fish for the birthday party that night, then dropped anchor right in front of HT’s in the evening. for some reason, nobody was around, then the sun popped out and the winds turned offshore. HT’s was perfect! we all jumped in for a dream barrel session and right before sunset, Tokura-san paddled out in his lucky red Dove vest and sat in the lineup. right out of nowhere, a perfect 6′ wave doubled up and went right to him, he turned around, paddled his hardest, and caught the wave of his life! he pulled into the thick emerald barrel, disappeared, then got spit out. it was one of those moments where you’re totally speechless for a second. we all were in silence, turned to each other, then when reality sank in, we all screamed for joy! it was one of those priceless moments i will never forget. a cold Bintang and sashimi platter was waiting for him as he got out of the water, and we had the most amazing birthday party ever. i still clearly remember thinking that night as i watched everybody having the happiest time of their lives. i thought to myself, “wow, when i turn 60, this is exactly how i want to celebrate my life.” and till this day, that thought hasn’t changed one bit…
Happy Birthday again Tokura-san!
