Caught up with the Lopez Bros recently, realized one thing: these are two bigs who like to have fun.

TGR: What’s the all-time one-on-one record in the backyard?

Robin: Brook’s got the lead in the series. I’m not sure that it’s even close…Well, the games are, but not the series…

Brook: Yeah the games are always close… he might be exaggerating a bit though. I can’t count how many of them ended up in fights.

TGR: Last year, I understand the Stanford library was the cool place to hang out? Um, what’s a basketball player doing in the library?

Robin: Because parts of it seriously look like something out of an eighties slasher pic. Whenever I would go down there with, Brook, Landry, Da’veed or Will you would almost swear one of us wasn’t coming out. The few lights flicker on and off and it’s narrow as heck.

Brook: I guess I would have to go with what Robin said. We’d definitely be lying if we’d said that we haven’t ditched Da’Veed down there before.

TGR: Is Brook working on any new audition songs for the stage — other than the previously reported Britney Spears?

Robin: I’m not sure if he is, but I’m working on Michael Jackson and Mariah Carey for my stage act. I’m thinking about going on with the name “The Boy Wonder,” as in Robin, as in “Batman and…”

Brook: Yeah… Maybe there’s a chance I’ll do, “You Rock My World,” from Michael, or maybe something from the library of Jessica Simpson…

*Anthony Goods: Robin loves to sing. Brook loves to tell Robin to shut up.

TGR: Is the singing good?

Anthony Goods: It’s an acquired taste.

* former Stanford teammate

*

Luke Walton on growing up Walton

We’ve all been there. We’re trying to do some serious balling, blow-off some steam, when one bad apple comes along and spoils the game for everyone. And the rot can spread, until it gets as bad as a lame-duck political party trying to disarm the entire Middle East. OK, maybe not that lame. But, regardless, it’s time I told you what the f*ck’s bugging me about your hoop game.

1. Stop calling “And-1” as you launch yet another brick over the backboard. One more, you got a house.

2. Just because you miss, doesn’t mean you got fouled. It probably means your wandering eye got lost.

3. Your elbow in my face does not constitute a foul on me. It constitutes your elbow in my face.

4. Hey, SHG — sweaty hairy guy — you must remain an arm’s length from your opponent at all times. Especially if it’s me.

5. The “argument” does not go to the one with the biggest mouth and lowest IQ. Unless he also happens to be the one with the biggest muscles.

6. BTW: You don’t have to act like an asshole just because your friends do.

7. If you make me cover the retarded guy, or a girl, don’t come down on me when I swat their shit, OK?

8. Just because you happen to be modeling your designer Fila doesn’t mean you’re touching the ball. It means you must have played a great game at the mall.

9. Message to Pretty Boy: You can stop calling for the ball now. The game’s been over for like five minutes.

10. Game point is game point. No do-overs or hanging chads. Leave that crap for the departing Republican party.

OT:

You got game, Obama*? Bring it on. (You might want to start with a few push-ups.) Hey! Look! The glue that held Punahou High together…

* I just realized your initials were B.O.! ROFLMAO. I’m really catching up with this campaign now!

Name: Kevin Martin

Position: SG

Pros: Score the motherf*cking basketball

Cons: If he collides with, say, Shaq…

Respect: Seriously, if you saw a lineup of NBA players on the street, and you had to pick one guy to fight, you would choose Kevin Martin. No one in the League looks this scrawny and delivers such badassactual scores on people. He dropped 50 last night against the Warriors, and his scoring average has gone from 23.7 in 2008 to 24.6 this season.

Questions: How can the Kings build around him? Is he the player they want to build around? Does he want them building around him? Whatever. The Kings suck, and all the cowbell in the world ain’t gonna help them for many years.

Summary: Kevin Martin is a serious baller. And we could still kick his ass!

*

Recommended reading: Fun with the Lopez Bros

A new year a new dread…

“Rasta mon vibration, yeah.”

If Trivia Pursuit asked you to name three NBA owners, chances are, the first name rolling off your tongue would be Mark Cuban. Before he took over in Dallas, the Mavs had gone 11 consecutive seasons without making the playoffs. Since his arrival, they’ve made the postseason every year. But, obviously, the big one has alluded them.

TGR: Can Dallas ever win a championship?

MC: No, we prefer to spend our summers on our ass. Of course we can, that’s why we’ve put this team together.

TGR: When did you first know you wanted to own a basketball team?

MC: When I was at the Mavs season opener several years ago. The opener is supposed to be about hope, excitement, energy. The team is undefeated! As a season ticket holder, I was at the game, and there was none of that. I sat there thinking I could do a better job. I was finally able to put my money where my mouth was!

TGR: How valuable is dissension in our current time?

MC. It’s invaluable. I tell all of my partners and key execs that they need to have the balls to stand up to me and disagree. If I don’t get into knock down drag out arguments with people in upper management, they aren’t committed to their ideas.

TGR: Why are you the only NBA owner that speaks out?

MC: Unfortunately, in the NBA, you get more accomplished discussing things in public than in private.

TGR: Can you make a correlation between running a business with living, breathing people and a computer operating system?

MC: An Operating System? That is the most bizarre question I have ever gotten.. I like it. Well, first of all, it’s not Linux, because it’s not free, that’s for damn sure. Maybe, it’s like Windows….the Mavs definitely crash at times…

TGR: What system have you installed in Dallas?

MC: I let the coaches deal with the Xs and Os, my job is to develop a culture of winning and support. I want our guys to know that they will get the things they need to succeed, while setting the expectation that if they don’t commit, in terms of brains and effort, and step-up to meet our expectations, we have no problem replacing them.

TGR: Greatest obstacle standing in the way of people’s success?

MC: Themselves. Everyone dreams, very few do the homework. Bobby Knight said it best: ‘Everyone has the will to win, few have the will to prepare to put themselves in a position to win.’ And worse, we all think we’re working harder than the next guy, and we usually think it while we’re on the couch watching TV.

TGR: Has the Mav experience exceeded your expectations?

MC: I really had no expectations other than to have fun and to make the playoffs. Owning the team has lived up to my expectations, and then some, on the fun side. I have been a little blindsided at all the politics of the NBA, and the lack of passion on the part of some, but I guess I have gotten used to it.

TGR: What’s the vibe you’ve tried to create in your life and how does success directly relate to someone’s overall energy?

MC: I’m a big believer in Karma. I try to pay attention to things that can impact people around me, whether big or small. I tend to stay away from the things I’m not good at, and let people do what they do in areas that complement me. But most of all, I try to realize that we only go through this one time, and I don’t want to be 110 years-old and regret not playing in that pick-up basketball game 20 years ago.

TGR: How can someone bring more positivity to their life?

MC: Oreos. No one can be depressed after eating Oreos….I don’t know that there’s a key, but to me, if you find the things you love to do, it’s hard not to have fun. I was broke, sneaking in bars to eat the free happy hour food, and living six guys in a 3-bedroom apartment and loving every minute of it. It’s not about what you have, it’s about waking up with a smile and looking forward to your day.

TGR: Where does your drive for success come from?

MC: My dad and fear of failure. My dad told me if I wanted something, I had to work for it. And once I had a taste of the good things, the fear of losing it keeps me motivated.

TGR: What was your first successful business venture?

MC: Collecting stamps. I started collecting because my mom had a little collection. Then I went to stamp shows and started buying and selling and making some money, realizing that not everyone who ran a business was so smart – and even at 16 a kid could make money competing against them.

TGR: Were you the kind of kid who could build a small rocket launcher from a Lego set?

MC: Hell no. I could barely pass woodshop.

TGR: Tell me about the Euro invasion.

MC: As long as they allow kids to turn pro over there at 14, and don’t limit how long teams and players practice, they are going to get better and faster than our kids. High School Associations and the NCAA have archaic rules limiting the structure, length and locations of practice opportunities here. There is no way kids that can practice, at most, 2 hours a day can compete with kids practicing 8 hours.

TGR: What about the NBA’s plan to go worldwide?

MC: I’m ok with licensing the NBA brand to overseas leagues, but we need to work on getting more Americans to watch us on TV before we should care about overseas.

TGR: Has your high profile in the league raised your status in the business world?

MC: No. Business is very Darwinian, money does the talking – everything else is noise. When people see your name on the Forbes 400 list, they’ll take your call anyway.

TGR: How would Steve Nash describe Mark Cuban to his mother?

MC: He’s a nice guy, but keep him away from the Oreos.

Mark Cuban’s 4 Laws to Make Money

1. Be the smartest guy in the room about your business.

2. Always put yourself in your customers shoes and know their needs as well as they do.

3.Treat your customers like the most special people in the world and make their lives easier.

4. Sell, Sell, Sell, and when you think you are done selling, get on the phone, make cold calls and sell more.

Mark Cuban’s All-Time NBA Team

SG: MJ
PG: Magic
C: Shaq
PF: Bird
SF: Anyone
6th Man: Paul Mokeski

*

Join The Guy Report at Twitter

*

Recommended reading:

Lamar Odom on meditating and Kobe
Can the Lopez Bros really sing?
NBA ref Bennett Salvatore on scrutiny of job

Back in the day, it used to be that da boys would hit the surf and da girls would hit the beach, looking pretty tanning themselves on the shore — the quintessential trophy babes. But that attitude is so “yesterday.”

“Today” girls have taken to sea, land and air to show the boys they’re not the only ones who like to get all wet and wild. Instead of being the trophies, they’re out in the alternative sports world trying to win them.

Today, girls make up 25% of the 2.3 million active surfers between the ages of 9 and 25. In skateboarding, girls make up 26% of the 13.1 million skaters and 26% of the 6.9 million snowboarders.

How have these sports grown so immensely popular? Fads, baby, fads. The cool-factor of being the first one on the block, or the 40th, to boogie-with-a-hula-hoop type of thing. Although, pop culture has also played a large part in the equation.

The movie Blue Crush can largely be credited with getting many young girls out of the cybersex chat rooms and into the water. And once the conglomerate pimps discovered that these girls were hip–to–be–hooked, they pounced on the market, reeling in more participants with action scenes in movies (e.g. surfing in Charlie’s Angels and moto in Lara Croft), television shows (MTV’s Surf Girls or WB’s Boarding House: North Shore) and massive clothing apparel to fit the lifestyle. A lifestyle described as “sexy–sport,” a combo of tomboy looks and feminine detail.

“There’s nothing wrong with being an athlete and a beautiful woman,” says professional snowboarder/model Tara Dakides.

And just because they may be beautiful, doesn’t mean they’re afraid to get down and dirty.

“There are always going to be times when I eat shit, because I’m not afraid of getting hurt,” Dakides says. “I’ve fractured my back, dislocated elbows, and torn ligaments in both knees. When I’m on the mountain I’m probably the furthest thing from feminine.”

“But when I’m off the mountain…”

If feminist activist Gloria Steinem heard that, you know she would be proud — that these alt sport babes have left the sidelines and stormed the field, ready and able to prove their meddle and take on the mystique of the male athlete being superior.

“Sometimes I see these baseball players making millions of dollars and they’re, like, ‘Oh, my god, I sprained a pinkie.’ Are you kidding me?” says BMX racer/model Tara Llanes. “I’ve broken my left collarbone twice, I cracked my tailbone, and I’ll slam into a 40–foot tree, knock myself unconscious, and still get up and finish the race.”

“Take that Griffey Jr!”

And what do the boys think of all this?

Holly Beck, the blonde vixen that was previously on MTV’s Boarding House, a professional surfer and president of the International Women’s Surfing union, says, in regards to the men on the pro circuit, that “it’s divided, the guys aren’t un-supportive, but they’re not going to go out of their way to help us. They’ve got their own agendas.”

“I’d cook for you if you didn’t have an agenda, pal.”

“There remains an underlying sentiment that women don’t belong, but many guys are being less negative, and many women are pushing hard against it,” says Michael Brooke, publisher of Transworld Skateboarding Magazine.

“We’re doing the same thing the guys are doing,” says Beck. “We can’t jump as high as the guys. We aren’t as strong as the guys, but it doesn’t mean our surfing is any less worthy. Our bodies are just different. In other sports, like tennis, it’s a separate thing. I want to see surfing go that way too.”

Brooke says his magazine occasionally spotlights female standouts, “but we’re dedicated to showcasing a certain level of talent, and with male and female skaters, well, it’s the same difference as the NBA and WNBA.”

That general feeling translates to the other sports in the alternative world, too.

But, who knows, perhaps with more time and practice invested in their respective sport, women will one day earn major props for their own ripping ways. In the meantime, many don’t get involved because they want to compete. They’re in it for the camaraderie that comes with the territory:

“The purse for winning a women’s competition is less than half of that the top male wins,” says 19-year-old Lyn–Z Adams, who once landed the first kick-flip-indy-grab by a woman. “And our runs are consistently bumped from the television broadcasts. But ask any women why they do it and they say the friendships they make offer greater rewards than gold.”

“Yeah, so I made that up. Speaking of up…”

And while they’re bonding, the room for individual expression is large. Asked how alternative sports empower women and girls differently than traditional team sports, Nancy Coulter–Parker, an avid outdoor athlete for 20 years and managing editor of Women Outdoors, says “they empower women with independence, individuality, and confidence. In alternative sports, the desire to improve must come from within, not just because your team is pushing you. Yet, because these sports are so individual, and steps you do make, or goals you reach, can just be awesome for a young girl’s confidence, because the rewards are all hers.”

For the beautiful Malia Jones, a professional surfer turned model, who has a clause in every modeling contract that she can’t be away from the beach for more than two weeks, the rewards are all in the expression: “Surfing is an art. And I’m just a part of the canvas.”

Now, why should any art, beautiful or ugly, be segregated? Let it rip, baby, show us what you got.

“Um, OK.”

*

More action babes? Check out our latest Lingerie Bowl video from the opening night party for the 2008-09 L.A. Temptation. Read interviews with the players talking about guys and dating beginning here. Peace, and p*ssy.

Bennett Salvatore has been an NBA referee for 27 years. Needless to say, he’s seen it all.

TGR: Biggest changes you‘ve seen through the years?

BS: I think we went through a period maybe 15 years ago when we were a very physical game. And the league has gone to great lengths to make it more of a basketball game. I think that’s a good thing. It’s what the game should be.

TGR: Do you ever get complimented on a job you’ve done?

BS: Well, sure. Walking off the court, you always get a pat on the back from the team that won.

TGR: Do you ever get tired of the abuse?

BS: No, I think whenever you get into this profession, even on an amateur level, you have to know going in that that’s the type of game it is.

TGR: Before becoming a ref, you had expectations of how you’d be treated. How has that played out?

BS: There’s a learning process in becoming a referee. Like our boss Ronnie Nunn says: there are no LeBron James’s in the referee profession. You just don’t walk out to the court and become a star referee. It’s a process, it’s a learning process. And, the bottom line is: it is hard work.

TGR: Do you ever hang out with any of the players or coaches?

BS: Never. Never.

TGR: You see them at a bar and you’re walking the other way?

BS: Absolutely. That’s a rule, there is absolutely no fraternization. Common courtesy, politeness, OK. You see someone in a restaurant, of course you’re going to say hello. But you’re not going to sit down and eat with them.

TGR: Any rule changes that have helped your profession?

BS: The elimination of the illegal defense. Which was a very complicated rule for a referee to call, because there was so much fluid action going on on the court. The elimination of that, and the implementation of the defensive three seconds I think is better for all parties involved.

TGR: Because that’s pretty easy to call.

BS: It is. But it’s also accomplished what the league set out to do: to give a freedom of movement to the game. And that certainly has come forth, and it’s shown in the higher scoring.

TGR: Do you ever catch yourself reffing in real life?

BS: Not so much in a personal type of thing. But certainly, I have four children. All who are pretty athletic, and I would go to the little league games and high school games and the college games. And I learned early on, when they were playing young-timer’s basketball, little league and Pop Warner, to stay away from the main fan base: the parents. Because, what would happen would be, an umpire would make a call and everyone would turn around to see what my reaction would be. And, I’m over here, saying: “This poor guy is out here trying to make six dollars a night. Leave the guy alone.” So, I learned early that I had to go watch the games from center field.

TGR: With a hat and dark shades? Incognito Dad?

BS: Yeah. Kind of. You’d be surprised. I’ll tell you a story about my daughter. One time she was playing softball, 10-years-old. So I go to the game and they’ve got nobody there to umpire and they ask me to. I didn’t want to do it. But, it’s “we can’t play the game unless we have an umpire.” So I say, OK, I’ll do it. Bottom line, God’s honest truth: my daughter is up, two outs in the last inning, her team down by one run with the bases loaded and the count is three-two on her. And I’m the umpire behind the plate.

TGR: And what are you feeling inside at that moment?

BS: The only feeling I had is I didn’t want to be there. Of course, the next pitch is close. I call her out, strike three. With tears in her eyes, she turns around to me and says: “Dad, that was a ball.” Well, needless to say, her and my wife didn’t speak to me for two weeks.

TGR: And the moral of the story is always swing at a full count.

BS: I swore, I would never do an amateur game again. And I haven’t.

TGR: Tell us about life on the road. Does that get lonely?

BS: The travel is really the toughest part of the job. Since 9-11, with all the security parameters now, where years ago, we used to get on a flight five minutes before it left. You’ve gotta be there an hour and a half, two hours before the flight leaves today. It doesn’t sound like much, until you’re traveling almost every day. And there are a lot of times that you’re away from home for the holidays, or your kids birthdays, or a wedding. And that’s not fun on my side, for missing it.

TGR: And what do you do on the road?

BS: A lot of the referees are movie buffs. Some of our guys are soap opera guys. You fill your time in different ways. I’m a movie buff. I love movies. I’m mostly a cowboy/army guy. I like the action films.

TGR: Anything else?

BS: The computer can fill a lot of time, too. When you talk how things have changed over 27 years. Well, with the advent of the computer, we have become much more involved administratively. We have our own website for the league. We have to log on twice a day. The reason being is: they will take web plays, they will download plays from the night before that have happened throughout the league, and they will give their ruling on it. Ya know, it’s a training process, on how to bring the referees close together in what they call. We have weekly tests that we take.

TGR: You have weekly tests?

BS: Absolutely. You have no idea the accountability and the scrutiny that we’re under.

TGR: What kind of tests?

BS: Rule tests.

TGR: Still, after 27 years you have to do this?

BS: Yeah, but that’s a good thing. That’s not a bad thing. Rules are a very, very big part of our job. We go over rules on a daily basis. We may be tested on a weekly basis. But there isn’t a referee that doesn’t open up his rule book on a daily basis. That’s our bible.

TGR: How many questions are on these tests?

BS: There’s not a lot during the week. There may 5 to 10 questions on a test. What happens is we have web plays every day. And the web play will either be a direct answer from the weekly test, or it’ll be what we call a quick hair play. They will ask us how we would have called this play. In other words, they’ll show the play, and then they’ll ask us, again, more of a stimulation type of thing to see where the mindset of the staff is. And it is a tremendous training guide.

TGR: Take us through the rest of your work day.

BS: We have a meeting at eleven o’clock every morning. The referees who are going to do the game that night. And we will go over everything that we possibly can. We’ll talk about post-up, we’ll talk about our mechanics, on how we run the court, and where we are supposed to be positioned. And then, after the game, we have people at each arena that chart every call we make. In other words, at the 3:22 mark of the third quarter, Bennett called a travel. And then we have to review the game, and put down whether we made a correct call or incorrect call. Now, that helps in a couple ways. It’s great for self-evaluation, but it’s also good for our office, to look at our own critiques to see what we’re thinking on these plays. Perhaps, Bennett is calling a certain play, not the way the office wants him to call it. So, if they see a pattern, I’m going to get a phone call from either Ronnie Nunn, the director of officials, or one of our group supervisors.

TGR: How many of those phone calls do you get a year?

BS: You know, it depends. It could be a couple a month. You know, maybe I’m having a good month. But that fluctuates. Also, and I didn’t even mention this. Besides the person that does the charting, we have an observer at each game that observes our performances and critiques our performances. And then, our group supervisor cross checks the report by the observer.

TGR: There’s a lot of scrutiny there.

BS: There is. The accountability is incredible.

TGR: Does that put a lot of pressure on you?

BS: Again, it’s how you take it. For me, it’s not pressure, it’s a means of getting better. And a means of learning. And, I think, most of the guys take it like that. There’s no profession, that I know of, that there aren’t bosses and supervisors that rate you, and judge you, we’re no different. And we shouldn’t be different. We should be accountable for what we do.

*

Recommended reading:

Lakers Towel Man tells all
Maverick Mind: Interview with Mark Cuban

David West’s secret has been out for about a season-and-a-half now: the man can play some ball. Not sure if there’s any other player we’d pick if there was a competition to shoot just 15-footers. Our main Guy spoke to West recently about a number of topics. Oh, yeah, can you guess who the nostalgic Laker fan is?

On competition in the west:

There’s no weak team in the NBA southwest division, so we know we’re going to be fighting some of the best teams in the NBA every night. We just have to match their challenge, and understand they bring the same edge as we do.

On team philosophy:

I think: just play hard, that’s about it. When you put maximum effort forward everything else just falls into place. You won’t lose a game based on effort.

On explaining the Princeton Offense For Dummies:

If they don’t have some form of basketball IQ I can’t…All right:

1) Always move.
2) Don’t stand still. That’s the biggest way to kill the offense.
3) When guys, or the ball, are coming toward you, look for the backdoor.

On coach Byron Scott’s running him harder than any coach he’s played for:

I think it’s all relative. I think what he tries to do is make sure we stay in shape. But he does run us. But again, it’s about us making sure that we’re prepared to play. Especially for guys not playing in the actual game, because they can get out of shape. And if you’re not getting up and down in practice…

On Coach’s style:

He says what he wants, in terms of how he feels about guys. But basically, he puts it on you to perform. Everybody’s got a job to do and we need everybody to do their job. At the same time, one of the things I do appreciate the most is the opportunity to play. There’s a lot of coaches in the league that will bark you down, you know, standing up every play, every time down the floor calling plays, and be completely in your face. Coach allows your ability to take over. He allows what you do naturally well. He’s not going to try to limit you. He just wants you to be constantly aggressive, be on the attack all the time. That’s one thing I can appreciate, because I know, just from talking to guys around the league, that’s something you don’t get everywhere.

Does Coach rob people?

I will say that he still can shoot and he does take guy’s money. In shooting games, he will take your money if you think you can shoot better than him.

Coach vs. Peja:

I think they’ll battle each other. I don’t know who I’d put my money on. If one guy gets hot, man, it could be anybody’s show.

On the leadership of Chris Paul:

I think he understands what’s needed in order for us to be successful. He’s understood that from day one. He’s just going to continue to push the teams limits in terms of how willing we are, and how much we gotta keep up with him, how much it’s going to take for us to keep up, so he has options. With his ability to always play at that speed and that pace, it’s something you gotta be prepared for. And he’ll let you know if you’re not running with him.

On the strangest thing about Tyson Chandler:

I don’t think he’s strange.

On David West’s game:

I just want to bring improvement to my game. I don’t want to take any backward steps, everything is going to be moving forward. I always think there’s room for improvement and to get better. That’s what I’m trying to do this year. I just want to be able to play at a high level for a long period of time. Again, just being that consistent threat on the floor.

On his mindset in crunch-time:

Having the confidence to not be worried about the outcome. It’s always just having the confidence to be in that position, to be man enough to take that shot.

*

Coolest interview with Lamar Odom you will ever read. Mean it!

Water can be the great purifier, the immaculate teacher. As we learn to tap into the flow, not only does the ride become more liberating, but ultimately we find ourselves at one with the rhythm of the world.

Someone who has consistently found that freedom — be it on waves, snow or dirt — is legendary surfer Gerry Lopez.

Since dropping out of college in ‘69, and quickly becoming the hero for the short board hippy-generation of the 70’s, Lopez’s journey has taken him to points far and wide — from being the all-time master of the Banzai Pipeline (the contest is now named after him), acting in films (Conan the Barbarian, Return of the King, North Shore), to being named 1999’s Waterman of the Year in recognition of his efforts to the stress the importance of the ocean and its environmental preservation.

TGR: How did you get into snowboarding?

GL: My wife’s family lives in Redding, California. We went there one Christmas from Maui, where we were living, and she went down to a local store and rented us both equipment. We drove up to Ashland in Southern Oregon and on the first run down the hill we knew we were both hooked. That was in December of 1990.

TGR: And now you live in Bend, Oregon, home of Mt. Bachelor. How did that come about?

GL: My wife and I came to Bend with another couple the summer of ‘ 92 on Harleys. We were touring the Pacific Northwest and really liked the place. We came back that winter, which turned out to be one of the biggest winters in recent history, and bought a house. Been here ever since.

TGR: At 60 you make a 20-year-old look wimpy. How do you maintain such a great physical presence?

GL: When I’m not snowboarding or surfing I swim and paddle in the river. I do a lot of yoga every day, and I try to eat right.

TGR: How do you divide your time between snowboarding and surfing and what are your favorite spots?

GL: I snowboard as much as I can and probably get in over 100 days a season. Most of the snowboarding is at Mt. Bachelor.

TGR: And the surfing?

GL: I surf Indo between 2-4 weeks a year, a week in Mexico, a couple weeks in Hawaii (between Maui and the North Shore), and the rest on the Oregon Coast. I go to Pipe for the contest, but don’t get to surf it much any more.

TGR: Speaking of the Pipe, if getting barreled is the ultimate in surfing, what’s the ticket in snowboarding?

GL: Probably jumping or launching off a wind lip, like I wish I could on a wave. The good surfers nowadays can, but I’m not that good of a surfer to do it with any consistency on a wave. I can do it on a snowboard.

TGR: What gives you the biggest rush when snowboarding?

GL: Powder is the best, the deeper the better. It can be too deep, but those days are rare.

TGR: And in surfing?

GL: In surfing, at this point in my life, just getting any at all is a rush. It’s all good.

TGR: Any other surfing legends that you snowboard with?

GL: Laird Hamilton, Darrick Doerner, Derek Ho, Michael Ho, Sunny Garcia are all fun to board with and good snowboarders.

TGR: Do you see boarding (surf and snow) as an artistic expression?

GL: I do. Most people see it as sport and mostly physical, which they are. But I think both can be very spiritual and the emotional aspects are very deep.

TGR: How would you characterize your style in terms of your personality?

GL: Trying to be a natural part of the wave or the hill and not to impose myself on either. I’m not much of a dancer, but if the wave or the hill were the music, that’s what I’m trying to find the rhythm to.

TGR: How has your style evolved through the years, and did the jump to snowboarding influence your surfing?

GL: My style has evolved through a better understanding of the music I’m trying to dance to. I’m hearing and feeling it better. Snowboarding made me appreciate the surf even more than I did already.

TGR: And how has the surfing influenced your snowboarding?

GL: Snowboarding is like being able to surf a mountain. All surfers look at a mountain as lefts and rights. The banks and wind-lips on skiers left are all left slides, and on the other side, they’re all right slides. One side is backside and the other frontside, depending on if you’re goofy or regular foot. Guys who don’t surf have no idea what we’re talking about.

TGR: How would you grade the current generation of surfers?

GL: They’ve taken the sport to a level that we never even dreamed of. I marvel at what they can do and wonder where it can go next. The caliber of surfing on the pro tour is only a few steps shy of Jesus walking on water.

TGR: Which you’re not so bad at yourself. How has your knowledge of Eastern philosophy fed back into your board riding?

GL: I believe that surfing and snowboarding, to a certain extent, can create a space where we can contemplate moments in a pure state of mind, where our spirit is free to soar and head towards its true nature. Surfing, snowboarding and Yoga are all ways to stay in shape and be healthy. Physically to begin with, but when pursued with discipline and dedication, one can benefit mentally as well as spiritually.

TGR: Any particular stream of Eastern Philosophy that you have gravitate to?

GL: Zen seems to relate to surfing in a lot of ways. The level of concentration necessary to surf successfully is very Zen-like. The empty mind you seek when you sit zazen is the same empty mind you have when you surf best. Surfing is meditation, pure and simple.

TGR: How has the Hawaiian culture influenced your spirituality?

GL: My spirituality is based in a large part on my surfing lifestyle. Surfing was a sport that’s totally Hawaiian and maybe practiced as long as 1000 years ago or more. Hawaiian history is unrecorded and, like the American Indian tradition, it’s handed down through each generation by story telling — so we really are uncertain about surfing, except that it held a very special place in that history.

Obviously surfing has to do with a natural spirituality about being in close touch with the elements of the sea. It somehow relates to everything else that happens in life, as well as outside of it. The concept of waves are what most of life is based on, from the simple idea of our own birth, life, and death relating to the same life-cycle of the waves we surf.

TGR: When did you get into Yoga and why?

GL: It was 1968 and I was a surfer-hippie. Everyone was looking for a path to some enlightenment or at least: something enlightening. I also thought it fit with the lifestyle I was into, especially the surfing part. It has maintained my surfing at a level that would have been impossible to keep, had I not been doing Yoga. Flexibility is a key element of long-term surfing, and Yoga is the ultimate for staying flexible.

TGR: What else have you learned from Yoga?

GL: If one questions the why of it all, Yoga has answers. Life, as we know it, is never complete in happiness or satisfaction, and not without pain and suffering. But the Yogis tell us there is liberation beyond these limits and all of us have this lifetime as an opportunity to seek out this path to enlightenment. They call it “self-realization.” I think I’ve found a way towards this goal, I call it: “Surf Realization.”

TGR: Can you sum up our first lesson for us?

GL: It’s always easier to ride the horse (or wave) in the direction it’s going.

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