Namiko Team Riders, Kaela Kamloops and Valent1ne Apogee, got a great mention in the March 2007 issue of The Seventh Sun, put out by Pollywog Press. Here’s the article… or download a PDF copy from Pollywog Press.

Endless Surf

By Surfdaddy Orca

CHI — The massive sculpture of the Buddha dwarfs Kiyotei Xi as he sits not so quietly meditating on his Greg Noll “da Cat” surfboard on the tropical Second Life island of Chi. “Awesome ride, Valent1ne,” he shouts. “Do it again!”

Kiyotei is dressed in a Zen monk’s robes and has horns and a halo surrounding his head. He offers me a test version of “da Cat” and says “Go for it, broh.”

Greg Noll was actually known as “da Bull” back in the days when he fi rst tamed the wild 40-foot plus surf at Waimea Bay on Oahu’s famous North Shore of Hawaii. But, “da Cat” is a fitting name for this totally tubular Second Life board. It is tribute to Greg, who appeared in the recent surf film “Riding Giants” along with X-treme tow-in master, Laird Hamilton.

On the horizon I see two of Second Life’s best women surfers, Kaela Kamloops and Valent1ne Apogee getting barreled by a large set of pipeline waves. “Barreling,” or “in the green room,” or “gett ing tubed” refers to having a wave break in such a way that it creates a hollow tube that encloses a surfer. It can be a timeless moment in which wave and surfer become one. This is what some call the Zen of surfing, and it is reflected in the Buddhist motif on Chi (“Chi” derives from the Chinese word for the positive healing energy that is directed through techniques like acupuncture.”)

Kaela and Valent1ne, I come to discover, are members of the Second Life Namiko Surf Team. Namiko, as described at www.namikosurf.com, is translated from Japanese to mean “wave” (nami) + “child” (ko). It loosely means “child of the wave.” Namiko’s surfboards, created by Second Life master boardsmith Sebastian Saramago with artwork by Keala Mimistrobell, are some of the finest in Second Life. Namiko’s stated charter is “to harness the healthy, positive energy and enthusiasm for surfing within Second Life and create a direct, tangible benefit in real life.” A portion of all sales made within Second Life is directed to Surfrider Foundation, a Real Life group dedicated to the protection of the oceans and coastlines. Namiko is sponsoring some of the first ever surfing contests within Second Life.

In Real Life, the bone-crunching Pipeline is one of the most famous waves on the North Shore. In Second Life, pipeline waves are scripted by “scripter extraordinaire” Heather Goodliffe. Heather says, “I love to create, I’m good with scripting.” In Real Life, Heather is a programmer who lives in San Diego, California, home of such famous breaks as Windansea, La Jolla, and Swami’s. Mathieu Basiat of Wave Labs on Bora Bora produces another popular wave.

My new “da Cat” board, like my Namiko “Bamboo” board, is scripted by Sebastian Saramago to work especially well with Heather’s awesome waves. It is a long board, typically a board 9 feet or greater in Real Life. When I click to Ride, I am laying prone — a nice touch — and my arms animate as I paddle toward the breaking waves. I feel the excitement build, just like in Real Life, as I get close to the breaking 30 meter waves. I turn around as my avatar sits on the board… darn, missed the fi rst wave. I then turn around and paddle into the second wave of the set and suddenly I am barreling toward the shore in a massive tube. “Eeeeyaaa!” I want to shout, but there’s no way I can type into chat and surf this fun, fun wave at the same time. I kick out to the side and I’m immediately paddling again toward the next wave. Unlike Real Life, there is no shortage of good waves in Second Life!

Some of Second Life’s premier beaches include Chi, Quan Li, and Bora Bora. Each beach has its own sim, and each surfing break is distinctive. Chi, in particular, has a style all its own. Talking with Kiyotei, still in his Zen-like meditation pose in front of the Buddha, I am introduced to Poid Mahovlich, an artist and co-creator of Chi. “I like how Chi evolves,” she says as she shows us her new Tibetan-style prayer wheel. By this time, Kaela and Valent1ne have joined us on the beach. “I would like an incense burner that has smoke,” Kiyotei whines to Poid. “Put me down for 10,” he jokes. I request an 11th. “OK,” grins Poid.

The vibe on Bora Bora is different, yet no less fun. Bora Bora is somewhat reminiscent of Fiji or Vanuatu with tikistyle huts, a volcano, and long stretches of palm-tree lined white sand beaches. It is a bit more commercial than Chi or Quan Li, although surfboards and surf-related paraphernalia can be found at all three locations. And all three locations are relaxing destinations even for non-surfers.

Endless surfing? There are many in Second Life, as in Real Life, who pursue the perfect wave like the surfers in Bruce Brown’s classic surf film, “The Endless Summer.” Surfing, the ancient Polynesian sport of kings, was almost exterminated by the missionaries who came to Hawaii aft er the famous voyages of Captain Cook (who himself was off ed by Hawaiian locals in the late 1800s!). It took the efforts of one brave Hawaiian Olympic swimmer, Duke Kanhanamoku to stem the tide at the turn of the 20th Century and reestablish the sport of surfing. The surge in surfing popularity today is directly due to Duke.

“The Surfer’s Path” magazine, as quoted by Keala Mimistrobell, the founder of the Second Life Namiko Surf Co., puts it well: “Surfers are dreamers. We ride waves through the day, then we re-ride them in our sleep and mindsurf them in our daydreams. These little flashbacks keep us going through the flat spells and dry times inevitably encountered in ‘real life’.”

Yes surf brohs and sistahs, surfing is here to stay in Second Life. And, as the Hawaiians say, Mahalo, “(May you be) in (Divine) Breath.”