The Hat Game with Bill Conner

Thoreau said something like, "My friends have come unsought." Sometimes, when luck is on your side, a nice person will come into your life, and it just fits, and you want that energy around you like sunshine and good waves. Each time you have a conversation, surf, or round of golf with Bruce Reynolds @surfinista, you'll feel some of this good fortune. His story and visual art share a sense of what it is to be a Floridian surfer who has returned from adventures in Mexico, Fiji, New Zealand, California, and more; he is a content and settled soul in Cocoa Beach, producing new work on the regular. Enjoy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From the skinny brine of Mosquito Lagoon to north beach’s relief at Ponce Inlet, Evan Geiselman has almost completed his back-to-the-sea, full-reptilian transformation. Fish-hunter, professional surfer, and... golfer? Yes, a damn fine golfer. The miracle at Pipeline rebirth-ed our very own stoked slayer of dragons back to life -- revitalized, refocused, and performing surface attacks and aerial artistry on our beloved stages, New Smyrna Beach. Enjoy this beachside chat with the one and only, Evan Geiselman.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Long-time shaper and Floridian, Randy Richenberg, joins us for a chat finally. A true technician in the practical nuances of fins, channel bottom, and other designs, Randy has put to use years of experience in the water, New Smyrna Beach's side of Ponce Inlet especially. He rides shortboards to this day to refine the biomimicry used on his proprietary fin designs, taken from marine life's evolutionary advantages. Listen in to Big R's rap with Kevin and John. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2012 during a Spring Break in Costa Rica, the Lundequam family checked a surf spot and opted for a zip line tour while the tide changed. Halfway across the canyon, the guide appeared to drop a hoodie, and then back on platform two, Brett and Anne Marie heard the echo of gut-wrenching screams. Thirteen year-old, Matt, had become detached and disappeared deep into the rainforest. Listen in on this paradisiacal vacation turned nightmare. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1995, John Ashley set up camp at a left point in Baja, where he met Kevin, and the bromance began. Based out of Imperial Beach, John camped, surfed, kited, sup'd, rode motorcycles, learned to fly fish, and now, shares those adventures with friends and clients. We reminisced a lot, so please excuse our nostalgia, but many of you may find some joy in these bits of Baja. Make your adventure happen. [email protected] Find him @adventuresofelmucho on instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Australian influence on American surfing, personified by the soul-arching Peter "PT" Townend, continues... PT talks early Florida competitions, Teahupo'o's Olympics, Big Wednesday, and his strategy for Timmy Turner's Second Thoughts. He's releasing a book soon to feature his ten favorite surf photos, full of stories and essays. The impact PT has had on the general stoke level of our culture, young and old, is truly immeasurable. He brings it, fully, in this podcast. We can't wait to have him out to the festival for a screening of Big Wednesday someday soon. Enjoy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Luke Manning has been a resident of the Queensland/New South Wales borderlands since his early 20s. His daily labors involve all types of home remodeling projects, mostly high-end residences. His water displacement power surfing dates him to the 80s of Gary “Kong” Elkerton, and when you meet him, you feel like you’re meeting an action movie star. The humility, charisma, and humor can’t possibly come from one individual, but it does. It’s pure luck he agreed to let us turn the microphone on and hear his story. Enjoy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rusty Miller's early, regular foot surfing had competitive roots with Duke finals in '67 and '68, but quickly went brand ambassador with a national Hamm's Beer billboard ad, bombing down a sunset monster. Earning a history degree and traveling the world landed him in Australia and Indonesia, firmly indoctrinated into surf cinema canon with a featured presence in Morning of the Earth at Uluwatu, by Alby Falzon. Teaching surfing in Byron Bay and hanging with his wife, Tricia (alumni of Surf Stories Podcast), and his two daughters' families, is his latest masterpiece. Enjoy this chat with Rusty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alabaman and Floridian, Bill Conner, started his career making leather sandals on the gold coast of Australia in the early 70s. At some point, he pivoted to hats. "Why make hats instead of sandals? Because you only have to make one." Paul Hogan supercharged demand for his craftsmanship unintentionally, or at least the costume designer on Crocodile Dundee did, when the movie came out. European demand surged when Matt Nicholson repped his skills to Herod's and Galleries Lafayette. He retired after 50 years, surfing Broken Head, wearing his white helmet (not a BC model). At times early on, he surfed from Byron to Burleigh by himself for years, ahead of the crowd. Enjoy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're happy to have factory kid, Simon Jones, join us for a conversation about his Sydney high school drop-out roots, to Bryon Bay, to finding the shaping room. Working next to Paul Hutchinson, Simon cold-called Albe Falzon to make Morning of the Earth surfboards a reality, which he rakes to this day on a handshake deal. It's now a specialty brand with limited releases, all the while keeping Simon Jones Designs a major part of his low-tone, relaxed life. It certainly didn't hurt that Torren Martyn found a personal shaping guru in Simon, applying his feet to rails, rendering the finest style on open faces and inside kegs since Curren and Merrick... Simon carved his existence to make surfboards, and it's now being felt the world over. Enjoy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices