It’s a miserable day during an otherwise warm winter in South Africa. Kanoa and I sit on the balcony of his small but cosy apartment, meters away from the contest site in JBay. His filmer arrives and surreptitiously starts shooting our interview. “He’s cool,” says Kanoa of his filmer. “He’s just going to get a few shots of us.” We riff a little about the Championship Tour, about the year so far, about the back half of the year. Easy-going and intelligent, Kanoa speaks freely and has a measured thoughtfulness behind much of what he says. He delivers a rare style of old-school wisdom, a refreshing element to come across when interviewing a professional surfer, and especially one as young as Kanoa.
Born in 1997 in Southern California to Japanese parents, Kanoa and the Igarashi family made their home in Huntington Beach. Having left Japan for a brighter future, they struggled at first, with Kanoa’s dad, Tsutomu Igarashi doing whatever he could to make ends meet, including driving a limo and working as a tour guide for wealthy tourist visitors from Japan. “I was desperately trying to get by every day,” Tsutomu recalled of those dark days in a recent interview for The Asahi Newspaper in Japan.
Growing up as a Japanese kid in the United States wasn’t all fun, and had some disadvantages. As he started showing more talent and surfing skills, his dad entered him in all of the amateur events, and he was winning many of them by age eleven. In those early years, however, spectators often booed when a young Kanoa won a contest, and let out huge cheers when he lost.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة Issue 198 من Carve Surfing Magazine.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة Issue 198 من Carve Surfing Magazine.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
2020 Wetsuit Guide
If the recent boom in wetsuits sales is anything to go by, the best bit of advice we can give you is make swift decisions and invest quickly. To help you, here’s the lowdown on the best wetsuits on the market right now.
CEYLON STORIES
SERENDIPIDITY IN THE INDIAN OCEAN.
ENGLISH NATIONALS
TOLCARNE TAILSPINS IN THE LAST COMP FOR A WHILE . . . MAYBE
THE ST VALENTINE 'S DAY MASSACRE
ROB MILES AND CALLUM DAVID THOMAS MIX IT UP WITH THE WORLD’S BEST AT ALL TIME SAFI.
BARBADOS
FAMILY FRIENDLY SURF TRIPPING TIPS
GENE GENIE
FROM PAIGNTON THROUGH VARIOUS PROFESSIONAL KITCHENS WITH A SOJOURN IN THE SCOTTISH ISLES EUGENE TOLLEMACHE NOW CALLS INDO HOME AND IS LOVING LIFE
*OCCIDENTAL DRIFT
THE BLEEDING EDGE OF SURF EXPLORATION IS A HOT, INHOSPITABLE PLACE. BUT WORTH THE MISSION.
TASMANIA ART CLUB
BRENDON GIBBENS AND DION AGIUS EXPLORE THE LITTLE CHUNK HANGING OFF THE BOTTOM OF AUSTRALIA AND GET CREATIVE
Mr Smith
THE GENIAL ED SMITH IS ONE OF THOSE SURFERS THAT HAS A TON OF ABILITY AND TOYED WITH THE COMP SCENE BUT SOON REALISED A REAL TRADE AND SURFING FOR HIMSELF WAS A WISER OPTION. WE BUMPED INTO HIM ON OUR MISSION TO SCOTLAND, AND HE WAS KILLING IT EVERY SESSION. SUPER STYLISH, ALWAYS DEEP, A PLEASURE TO SHOOT. HE 'S A GOOD BLOKE TO GO FOR A PINT WITH TOO.
SETH MOZ
SETH MORRIS IS A YOUNG PRO FROM A QUIET PART OF WALES. HE JOINED US ON OUR WINTER MISSION TO PORTUGAL, WHERE HE IMPRESSED ALL WITH HIS STYLISH ATTACK. READ ON FOR A PEEK INSIDE HIS HEAD.