getting back to the mentawai crew. got a few more to introduce so i’ll continue. the guy in the back row 4th from the left is Tomoyasu Toda. i met toda-san 20 years ago when surfing the JPSA circut in japan. all i remember is that he was super skinny and dark all the time. he quit surfing to become a snowboarder and now he’s back. back bigger than ever! meaning his stomach.. haha… toda-san is 2x bigger than 20 years ago and surfing with 4x more power…..
hey toda-san,
first, wanted to say thank you always for your big kind heart. the way you support go-naminori and myself is unbelievable. your always there for people and you can truly be counted on. thanks for all the waves you’ve given me at your home break, thanks for making me eat so much food and gaining weight, thanks for entertaining everybody on our trips, and thanks for being a true friend. you might look scary to most people, but i tell them that your a little teddy bear but just don’t get that little teddy bear mad. haha… take care and see you real soon!!
mahalo, kirby
so there we were on our first surf session of the trip at bankvaults in mentawai. we were surfing all alone when this other boat filled up with hungry surfers arrived. like always, there seems to be no manner when they think japanese are in the water. they paddle out and try to catch everything in sight. i get pissed because there is absolutely no respect. japanese surfers are just too nice and won’t drop in. as for me? i go! anyway, then here comes a set, i yell from the dingy, “GO TODA-SAN”, knowing that a guy was trying to snake him from the inside. toda-san went anyway and while i was snapping the 8 shot sequence, i couldn’t stop laughing. toda-san paddled back out and then the guys started respecting the japanese. i want to frame this photo because you don’t see too many of these around…
**CLICK HERE FOR A BIG JAPANESE STAND UP PADDLERS BLOG NAMED TODA…..
