Damn surfers. It’s always about them. Open a local glossy or the lifestyle section of a newspaper and you’re sure to see an article about surfing or an interview with a “famous” wave rider. On TV, you also see them in sports shows and commercials. What about boogers?! I mean… BODY BOARDERS. We want to be heard too! So in the next article get ready for an interview you’ve never seen or read before. Fed up with all the attention surfers have been getting, Gab goes one-on-one with a long time sponger. Yep get ready for really really really deep insights as I interview… who else but… MYSELF!
BOOGER
THE “SCHIZO” INTERVIEW
GAB:
Let’s start from the beginning… nung 31 year old grommet ka pa!
GAB TOO:
Yep, better late than never! Started mid October ’99. My friend and I went Daet to learn how to surf. But then we ended up bodyboarding dahil kay Cisco. I’m putting the blame squarely on Kuya Cis.
GAB:
Wow, that was like a century ago.
GAB TOO:
Yep, I have been hanging out long enough…. to see Kawkaw and the gang play with kalapati and RC cars… to eat at Anna Tricia’s, which was the original name of Urbiztondo Grill… to surf Pundaquit when it was still a so called “secret spot”… to experience a weekend in Baler out of touch with the rest of the world because there was no mobile phone signal then.
GAB:
And unfortunately, old enough to be called Uncle Gab.
GAB TOO:
Yeah… I may be older but I don’t necessarily set a good example hehehe. Also, at least I’m not the oldest. So a big thank you to the older longboarders out there.
GAB:
So how big is bodyboarding in the Pines today?
GAB TOO:
Really [CENSORED] big! Check the numbers… probably 2 in Baler, around 10-15 in Zambales, maybe 1 or 2 in Daet, around 4 in Manila. Laki diba? That’s why ang dami palaging stocks ng bodyboard sa mga surfshop. Hindi nauubos!
GAB:
Wow, ang dami nga!
GAB TOO:
Hindi lang yon! In La Union, bodyboards are the board rental of choice when you have nothing better to do in the water. It’s also good for skimboarding, doorstoppers, surfboard rests, and for just sitting on the beach if you don’t want gray sand up your ass.
GAB:
So why be a sponger when everyone else is a surfer?
GAB TOO:
Somebody has to do it!
Also… katamaran and practicality. Boogie boards are more portable. Just put it inside your bag [plug: salamat Bjorn para sa astig na made to order Fluid boardbag!], and throw it inside your trunk. Hassle kasi I-strap pa sa taas ng auto when leaving Manila. And when you’re in surfspot, hassle ulit to strap the surfboard again to go to another surfspot. Plus, when riding public transpo like a bus, a jetplane or a tricycle, boogie boards are easier to carry and store.
GAB:
Yun lang… babaw mo naman?
GAB TOO:
Kanya-kanyang trip lang yan pare. You get stoked too! Plus parang superman ang dating mo sa tubig. At eto pa… mas madaming radical moves ang bodyboarding kaysa sa surfing!
GAB:
So kaya mo mag EL ROLLO, TUBE, REVERSE SPIN, DROP KNEE, AIR ROLLO, AIR ROLL SPIN, BACK FLIP, GYROLL, etc?!
GAB TOO:
Unfortunately I only have 5 “awesome” moves, drop, drop-in [sorry surfers], left, right and wipe-out. The spongers of Barrio Barretto who surf in Pundaquit are better examples of body boarders with moves.
GAB:
So di ka puwede maging team rider?
GAB TOO:
Puwede pa rin! When Team Tanduay and/or SMB calls, I’m ready!
GAB:
So what do you consider your biggest achievements as a sponger?
GAB TOO:
Hmmm… let me see… too many to tell. Here are some: Drinking Tanduay from afternoon to night in LU… trying to survive drinking with some of the Baler boys… traveling alone on a non-aircon bus from Manila to Daet… writing a rap on my celphone while baked at a party in Zamba… surviving a weekend of un-surfing because I got hit on the lip by a longboard… drinking and getting wasted on a bus stop in La Union… drinking and driving on road trips… surviving a 9 hour bus trip to LU thanks to sleeping pills… inventing the recipe for Skyfish… discovering the JACAGA star in the LU night sky… Genesis bus getting stuck in the Sierra Madres on my first trip to Baler… being called “Kap” by surfers [pag tinawag ka nang Kap, yun na yun!]… and of course being one of the founding members of the Bodyboard Association of the Pines.
GAB:
Aba, may grupo pala kayo na parang MSA at LUSC. Ilan kayong members sa BBAP?
GAB TOO:
Madami! Kaming dalawa ni Ter plus mga honorary members. BUT they don’t know about it yet.
GAB:
So what do you enjoy about surfing?
GAB TOO:
A lot! Drinking, sound tripping, smoking and chismising on road trips… discovering secret spots like the German inspired Treats sa Petron sa may Pangasinan… tambay sa beach…
GAB:
Hello, I said so what do you enjoy about surfing?
GAB TOO:
But that’s all part of the experience!
I also like it when I’m with my friends in the line-up. I am the only booger among a school of longboarders, shortboarders… not to mention jellyfishers. It’s all quiet except for a few smart alecks cracking jokes and some people who sing or talk to themselves. There’s a soundtrack playing in your head… puwedeng last song syndrome like a Bonjovi tune… or your latest favorite hit. Then the sets come. And one by one they ride out. Finally, I catch one too and then you feel the plak, plak plak of your board against the wave. The ride’s so great and you get that rush… and paddle as fast as you can back to the line up. Getting back you see your surfer friends smile and give you a thumbs up sign. Yeah, it’s a great feeling.
And then you go back to the shore and enjoy your “stokedness” with a cigarette and a bottle of beer while the sun goes down. Nothing beats that.
GAB:
I had a great time talking to you Gab! Very enlightening. But we should not do this anymore or we might end up like that local attorney guy who hangs out around the beach in San Juan.
So to end this thing kasi ang daldal-daldal mo na… describe body boarding in just one phrase.
SPONGER GAB:
BODYBOARDING: Same shit. Different Board
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