japanese competitive life of surfing contests. just hanging out at the beach all day long cheering on friends. here is the Toda-san fan club gallery!

at contests like these, everybody wins! here is the lucky winner of the paddling contest. winner of a round trip ticket to Bali! awesome!

and yes, the coolest hand made trophies ever! i wish i could win one of these! super classic 40 years of Dove Wetsuits.

twice at night, i walked into the wrong room. yeah, all the doors were unlocked so it was easy to make that mistake. our room was 415 but for some reason, i kept on going to the 5th floor and walking into 515. the first time i walked in, i saw different bags and stuff lying around the room. opps, wrong room! then the second time was after the party going back to our room. i walked in and seen a girl in the bathroom brushing her teeth! omg! wrong room again! i said sorry and closed the door. unbelievable i made the same mistake twice in one night. haha. i think my memory is getting bad.

waking up the next morning and seeing this is depressing. you just know you’re in for a long lazy day. i still can’t believe we all fit in our tiny room. haha.

sitting at the airport on standby getting hungry. i walk around and see something i haven’t eaten on this trip. sush! so i order the king plate for 1700 yen or $14. yummy!
i have a favor to ask. i was too busy filling up drinks all night so i didn’t take too many photos at the party. if you have some, please send it to me because i want to try to remember what happened. haha. great time, great memories, and waiting for the great photos. mahalo!

yesterday was another amazing day i wouldn’t have wanted to miss. full day of contest surfing hanging out at the beach with surfer friends from all over japan. people i’ve known ever since i came to japan back in 1990. than all together at night in one room celebrating 40 years of history, friends, waves, and memories.

classic hotel in atami right on the edge of the mountain overlooking the pacific ocean.

atami is such a beautiful place! haven’t been here in a while so felt good coming back for this special event.

before the party, i walked down into the party room and looked at the setup. very important people from hokkaido to okinawa all coming together. the biggest surfers party ever.

40 years is a very long time for a surfing company in japan. to be able to stand out strong all these years tells you the backbone of this company. a company made by surfers, and a company run by surfers.

Tokura-san is a surfing legend. meeting him 23 years ago was like hitting the jackpot. he took me on so many surf trips, he sent me around the world, he taught me so many amazing things, he supported me, and most important, he always believed in me. if it wasn’t for Tokura-san, i would have to subtract over 1,000,000 experiences and 5,000 friends from my life. that’s how big of a role added to my very happy life.

Taisuke-san set up the photo studio and there will be some amazing photos to come. too many happy faces to list. can’t wait to see them all.

i flew to japan just for this day. a few people told me “wow, you just came for this?” i told them, “yes, surfing is my life, these people are my friends, i wouldn’t have missed this for the world.”

the atami view! love it!

once again, Tokura-san made me the person i am today. i was very young when i met him. he was my age that i am now. i use to envy his lifestyle back then. i use to always dream of a world with any friends like him. and guess what, i’m living it right now! Tokura-san is 66 years old and has more friends than anybody i know. he’s still traveling the world surfing and enjoying his life. still an inspiration for me and when i turn 66, i hope to be doing the exact same thing.

Tokura-san introduced me to Yassan. Yassan has been supporting me for over 20 years with TSSC. another person i respect and another person that always supported my dreams.

Kimura-san is another person that is very important in my life. not only because he supports me, but he teaches me. when ever i need advice, he sets me on the right path. priceless.

seeing Ieki-san was the highlight of my trip. one of the most kindest man you will ever meet. nice to see you Ieki-san!

and Nick Nozaki! always bringing the Aloha where ever he goes.

started up too late. at 2pm, had to kick everybody out of our room because i knew today would be a long day. and yes, it is. trying to get a flight out of japan when most flights are full. i might make it back to hawaii, i might not. either way, i’ll be ok. just going with the flow. if it takes me back to hawaii, i’ll go surf. if it keeps me in japan, i’ll go eat.

the next generation of Dove! Taichi Wakita, Shun Murakami, Ren Murakami, and Kaito Kurokawa. these kids and generations after will take Dove for another 40 year journey at the least. i’m looking forward to watching that!
Dove for Life!

One big happy family!
Congratulations Dove Wetsuits on 40 years of excellence!
Keep warm. Keep Dove!