Lightning Bolt Fanzine Spring Summer 09 - English Edition

EDITORIAL So here you are, in Europe, surrounded in uncertainty, bombarded with all kinds of news about the world crisis and unfortunate episodes, when all the time, less than a day away is an idyllic place that may save you from all this misery. There is a place where taxi rides cost 30 cents, the best mojitos of the world cost only 2 euros and on top of this you have amazing endless lefts with water at 25 degrees. Needless to say, you will only find out about this place if you read this edition. You may also be tired of hearing that Hawaii is surfing’s cradle: but what many probably don’t know is that the mythical Rory Russell, two-time Pipeline winner in 76 and 77, didn’t want to leave his beloved baseball to go and

live in Hawaii in the first place. Thank God that his father didn’t pay attention to the kid’s wilfulness and took him to the island of legend “where only the kings were allowed to surf ”. On top of that, we’ll show you Sérgio Rosário’s incredible photos featuring the latest trends of the Spring Summer 09 collection. It is worth seeing how the new team riders Joana Machado, Miguel Ximenez and Pekel try to overthrow Kate Moss and Ashton Kutcher as fashion icons. As Obama is currently the world’s main news topic, we’ve decided to offer prizes to those who will try to convince us that a surfer could be president of the United States. Go to BOLT4FREE section and find out how. Come on and make an effort to read this magazine from the beginning to the end. If you are not satisfied, we promise to give your money back.

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Lightning Bolt Fanzine – Free Magazine Periodicity: Seasonally Lightning Bolt Europe S.A. Rua Comendador Manuel Gonçalves nº25, S. Cosme do Vale 4770-583 V.N. Famalicão, Portugal Website: www.lightningbolt.eu.com Blog Europe: http://Lightningbolteurope.blogspot.com Email: [email protected] Promotion and Advertising: Maria João Nogueira [email protected] Editors: João Machado, Maria João Nogueira, Raquel Dias, Rory Russell, Bruno Rodrigues, Ratus Fary, Miguel Ximenez, Nicolas Pinot, Edu Prieto, Frank Van de Ruit, Brian Hart, Afonso Teixeira. Design: Goma www.goma.pt Photography: Sérgio Rosário www.euphotographo.com Ricardo Bravo www.ricardobravo.com, João Melo,Yves Sobansky © Copyright 2009, Lightning Bolt Europe, All rights reserved 8

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CONTENTS

- The trip: Peruvian Job - Collection: Spring Summer 09 - Events: Bolt Team Riders 09 - A Pure Source: Rory Russell Facts, Events and People, that created Lightning Bolt history during the past years. - Contests: ProJunior Lightning Bolt - Highlightning: Souls of Fire - Profile: Miguel Ximenez - Stuff: Short news pieces that you can read in the Metro, or when you’re waiting for your meal at the restaurant - Rookies: Surfing Life Club Have you forgotten that you were not born a surfer? This is a section dedicated to all of those that are starting out, where we talk about surf schools, surf instructors, and other events that might be interesting to rookies. - Bolt4Free: Do you want to win Great Prizes? In each issue we challenge you to be one of the best 3 participants - Coming Next

LB Riders Joana Machado e Pekel

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THE TRIP

LB Rider Zé Ferreira

Have you ever imagined that it is possible to find endless perfect lefts, water at 25 degrees, non-crowded beaches, taxi rides at 30 cents and, when night falls, fantastic dinners with the best grilled tuna fish in the whole world and great 2-euro mojitos at traditional bars? And what’s more, all together in one place. In addition, you may have the huge privilege of meeting Pulpo, the Octopus Surf Tours’ guide, who diligently points out the best surf spots for each swell and wind direction, avoiding any lost time. And, on top of this, what if I told you that you’d be anchored at the Kimbas bungalows, where you wake up every morning to a litre of tropical juice and delicious eggs? No, we’re not having a laugh. This place really exists, and is located in the north of Peru at a spot called Máncora.

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THE TRIP

LB Rider Miguel Ximenez

At the beginning of this year, David Raimundo (the Bolt Team manager) insisted on taking the team to Peru, as he had heard wonders about the surf spots up in the north. Unluckily for David he got injured and lost out on this amazing surf trip. The first to arrive were riders Miguel Ximenez, José Ferreira, Joana Machado and Pekel, joined by photographer Ricardo Bravo and cameraman Miguel Bacelar, who had the mission of recording for posterity the truth of what I’m telling you here. We had two weeks surfing the infamous Máncora lefts, Lobitos, los Organos, Pico Point and other spots nearby. A couple of days later, arriving straight from the USA, were our much anticipated celebrities: the mythical surfer Rory Russell and the charismatic Jonathan Paskowitz, who is today the international brand manager of Lightning Bolt and comes from the well-known surfing Paskowitz family. As we expected it turned to be loads of fun transforming our Bolt Riders into professional models to photograph the new Spring Summer 09 collection. The worst part of the surf trip was actually getting there. As Lima is quite far from Máncora, we decided to land in Guayaquil, Ecuador;

Miguel Ximenez, Pekel e Joana Machado

LB Rider Joana Machado

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THE TRIP Rory Russell

LB Rider Pekel

it was a 12-hour-flight from Madrid. And worse still, we had a 6-hour journey by van ahead of us, on a road that was not exactly a motorway. It was however incredible to view the different landscapes. In Ecuador, typical for the time of year, it was literally pouring down with rain and the ride was very wet, with bananas in full bloom everywhere. Even at gas stations, bananas would struggle for visibility against the Matutano displays. The only unpleasant moments were when we had to change van at the border and the uncountable border controls and police inspections we had to go through. As soon as we came into the vicinity of Máncora we started to notice a change in the landscape, transformed into a much more dry and arid sight. Despite the arduous journey, we arrived raring to go, and desperate to get in the water. 16

We were staying right next to top WCT surfer, Sofia Mulanovich’s house, at Kimbas, in a very cosy bungalow, with extremely nice people and a delicious breakfast. Máncora is a small tourist destination characterised by its rustic architecture, very typical in Peru, and visited mainly by American, Brazilian, Argentinean and Chilean tourists. On the first week, waves were not as good as expected, but on the second week, the Bolt Team was rewarded, scoring the famous lefts at between 3 and 5 foot. Good enough to show Pekel flying and Miguel Ximenez cruising with style, performing unbelievable off the walls, in preparation for this year’s WQS. And what if we told you that Juanita Machado left the Peruvians completely dribbling over her wherever she went? As a matter of fact, one day we were all having dinner 17

THE TRIP

Lightning Bolt’s international brand manager Jonathan Paskowitz

LB Rider Zé Ferreira

LB Rider Miguel Ximenez

LB Rider Joana Machado

Rory Russell and the european Lightning Bolt riders

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LB Rider Miguel Ximenez

when, politely, instead of asking her what she wanted to eat, the waiter invited her out to dinner! Waking up very early, around 6 a.m.; surfing; resting a bit, and then surfing again; having lunch, taking photos, surfing some more until late afternoon, drinking a beer watching the sunset, eating some grilled fish and, later, going to bars to party: this is what life was like in Peru. And how we wished life was always like this, especially when we are in the company of the great Rory Russell. Rory was one of the first surfers ever to be sponsored by Lightning Bolt during the golden 70’s and, although he is in his fifties now, he continues to spread a contagious happiness and friendliness and to leave everyone absolutely delighted with his presence. In Peru, Rory went surfing on his 7’8” swallow tail, twice a day, religiously. A special thanks to Marco Ravizza aka Pulpo, our tireless guide who helped us in preparing the whole trip and its logistics, which was never going to be easy with all our boards and luggage. 19

LB Rider Miguel Ximenez

LB 71 Hoodie Parrot Dress

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LB Rider Miguel Ximenez

LB 71 Hoodie Parrot Dress

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MENS COLLECTION Funky Surf // Surf and street pop iconography, rough sketches, hand drawn. Pasted ideas onto 80s graphics and gadgets inspired the raw and irregular expressions that characterise all items. 80’s moods and electric fluo colours combined with light-pastels are this season’s features. Music, mythical brands, objects and graphics are reinterpreted and printed on a street wear and urban collection, with a mix and match attitude. Tees and board shorts are the key items.

LB 71 Hoodie Parrot Dress

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SPRING SUMMER 09

Lb Trance Boardshorts

Flower Bolt Long Dress

Camouflage Boardshort

Organic Boardshort

Exotic Top Balls & Bolts Boardshort

Broken Glass T-shirt Jahbolt Boardshortdshort Big Bolt Hoodie

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Sunset stripes sweater

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SPRING SUMMER 09

Lightning Bolt Gun Surf Board shaped by Rory Russell

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Block stripes sweater

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LB Rider Pekel

MENS COLLECTION Soul Surf //Here classic elements of surf take on a different face. Traditional surf iconography is fused with stripes, geometric designs and vibrant colour combinations, keeping a comfy and loose fit. Tees, board shorts, pants and walk shorts feature a classic surfing approach, with accurate fit and high quality materials. The collection expresses the free state of mind of those who are dedicated to surfing for fun.

Men’s Tee Mermaid Men’s Pelican Short

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SPRING SUMMER 09

Men’s Pipe Short

African Night Boardshort

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Capulana Boardshort

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SPRING SUMMER 09

Men’s Tee Multi Bolt

Men’s Tee OG Bolt

Men’s Sanded Pelican Short

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WOMENS COLLECTION Fun, passion and self expression were the inspiration for this collection. As always drawing from the Lightning Bolt spirit with its laid back attitude, and pure surfing roots. For this Spring Summer we bring you as key items; tees, tops, long dresses, swimwear and boardshorts. Regarding, colours, we used retro colourways and several neutrals from the seventies but to brighten up your mind we’ve thrown in some fluo colours that are great if you want a more urban look

Hoodie Longsleeve Polka Bolt Boardshort

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SPRING SUMMER 09

Rainbow Flower Dress

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Splash Flower Bolt Dress

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SPRING SUMMER 09

Arabic Longsleeve Gathered Bikini Bottom Flower

Backless Top African Night Boardshort

Pixel Nightlong Dress

Gathered Top

Women’s Classic Cali Short

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LB Rider Joana Machado

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SPRING SUMMER 09

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Triangle Bikini Top Coconut Palm Boardshort

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SPRING SUMMER 09

Capilana Boardshorts

Women’s Tee Bolt String Bottom

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In the beginning of the year in Carcavelos beach, Lisbon, Lightning Bolt team manager David Raimundo had a tough task. Mission: Join all Lightning Bolt Riders, and manage to put all to surf early in the morning with a freezing day Not happy with that, he decided to make a paintball game to see who was going to be more injured Fortunately there was a great reward. After all that the team riders were eating the delicious “picanha”, a delicious steak original from Brazil, and drinking lots of “Sangria” For 2009, Lightning Bolt reinforced the Pro Surfers team with Miguel Ximenez and Joana Machado The free surf team has now the brazilian Nuande Silva aka Pekel, Pumas, Bruno Rodrigues, Joel Pereira aka Papu and Angela Coco In Music we are now supporting Ratus Fary from Souls of Fire and Tiago Campos and Nuno Cardoso, both from Nubai Soundsystem

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1- The boss. The Obama for Lightning Bolt Riders. David Raimundo 2- Zé Ferreira showering the wave 3, 4- Miguel Blanco on the left and João Kopke on the right. The rookies 5- Nuno Cardoso from Nubai Soundsystem 6- Pedro Soares took his inspiration on Platoon from Oliver Stone 7- LB Babes, Joana Machado, Maria Abecasis and Angela Côco 8- Be careful boy, I am Pekel 9- Miguel Ximenez 10- “That was damn cold”, Papu 11- Peeking the Tube, Xaninho 12- Papu making the approach

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TEAM MANAGER: DAVID RAIMUNDO PRO SURFERS TEAM Joana Machado Miguel Ximenez João Kopke Alexandre Ferreira Miguel Blanco Kristian Sousa Maria Abecasis José Ferreira Pedro Soares

FREE SURFERS TEAM Nuande Silva aka Pekel Nuno Côrte-Real aka Pumas Ângela Nunes Côco Joel Pereira aka Papu Bruno Rodrigues João Diogo

SOUND TEAM Ratus Fary Tiago Pitaça Nuno Cardoso

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A PURE SOURCE

After more than 30 years, Rory Russell is back again with Lightning Bolt, a brand that never really left his heart. The Pipeline Surf Legend moved to Hawaii with his family in 1964 and lived on Oahu’s famous North Shore for 38 years. He has won several world class surf championships including: two Pipe masters, 1976 and 1977, Waimea Pro in Brazil, 1975; All Japan pro in Chiba Japan, 1976; and Oahu North Shore Lightning Bolt Surf Championships in 1977. Besides his great achievements in contests, he’s also famous for his entertaining character. Rory has co-starred in such surfing films as five Summer Stories, Sundance, Red Hot Blue, Hot Lips and Inner Tubes, Surf Superstars and he has also made numerous TV appearances including on ABC’s wide world of sports, ABC’s American sportsman and many promotional appearances in TV and magazines (surfing, surfer, surfing world). Rory has been involved with teaching people how to surf for 20 years and his students have included Bill Murray who he taught to surf while in Indonesia. Rory’s surfing exploits are legendary and his students have a great time in his classes.

THE TAKE OFF: FROM BASEBALL TO HAWAII AND THE FIRST BOARD

IN THE SEVENTIES

“In 1964 I turned 11 years old on the voyage over from the Mainland (US). I really

In the early 70’s surfing was largely frowned upon. The beach was considered to be a

didn’t want to come to Hawaii, I wanted to stay on the Mainland and play baseball.

place for kids and students; If you were over the age of 18 you were either in a proper

Well, a couple of weeks after we got here the five of us (mom, dad, older brother, older

job or in the military. As the decade progressed so did surfing. A few people envisioned

sister and myself) went to Barbers Military Recreation Beach (coincidentally the same

that there was a lot of money to be made and as far as I was concerned having these

beach Jock Sutherland started at).

contests for money in my backyard was just fine with me.

My dad rented a board for us and my brother paddled out, I guess his timing was bad

We were now Bona Fide Pro Surfers. Thank you Fred Hemmings and Randy Raryck.

because the sets kept coming and he just got pummelled. He passed the board to me, I guess I was between sets. Then the first wall of white water

BEYOND THE SPORT

caught me from behind, I stood up, rode it all the way to the beach, stepped off on the

The one thing everyone needs to understand is what a tremendous healing power

beach and the rest is history.

surfing is.

The first surfboard, I could call my own was a 9’ Phil Edwards model from Hobie Shop

How many times you really didn’t feel like paddling out, but you did??

(which ironically later became the original Bolt shop and Jack Shipley was the manager).

And then when you came in, how would you feel?

The board was $100 and my father immediately dismissed any notion of me riding

Like a f****n million bucks, huh?

that beauty.

Call surfing a religion, cult, faith, etc.

Night after night falling asleep thinking, then dreaming about sliding down the face

The bottom line is the healing power! That’s what bonds us, that’s the mystique of

of a Pipeline Monster like Jock Sutherland on the cover of the first Surf Magazine I

our lifestyle, that magical, invisible, cleansing power, mentally and physically, that

ever bought.

is surfing.

I was relegated to the fact that I was going to be riding my first Pipeline waves on my sister’s 9’ Hobie Clunker, which I did on a small sloppy day, but hey it was Pipeline, I

SPORT OF KINGS

even hung five on a sloppy little two foot wave. For a twelve year old that’s a big deal.

It is easy to tell who is surfing for the spiritual aspects, and those that want the fame

But that Christmas, Santa brought me the unthinkable. Underneath the Christmas tree

and fortune. The latter usually never succeed. But the ones that are spiritual and

with one piece of wrapping paper around the middle was the 9’ Phil Edwards.

talented, like Kelly and Andy will always shine and be rewarded.

Wohh!!! Double Wooh!!!

As far as ancient Hawaii, surfing was a part of their religion as it comprised all aspects

And yes I did slide down the face of a Pipeline wave, not a monster, mind you, and not

of life and was only allowed for royalty, punishable by death. Hence “Sport of Kings”.

like Jock Sutherland, mind you, but like Rory Russell

To me the act of surfing is a very spiritual experience. Paddling out at 10’-12’ inside pipe on a low tide and raising swell, it’s just you and God baby!!!

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A PURE SOURCE

Rory Russell, Pipeline, 1972

LIGHTNING BOLT AND RORY

LIGHTNING BOLT AND THE GROMS

Reflecting back, that was a time when Gerry figured out exactly, after many different

To the Kids Lightning Bolt just meant “To be the Best”.

designs and sizes, what would fit to the curve of the sucking out face of the wave. Yet able to hold its edge and make long drawn out turns when needed.

WORLDWIDE RORY

So when we were really opening up and exploring what we could do and how deep in

Hawaii will always be my home, but I feel at home everywhere I go

the tube we could get on these boards with Lightning Bolts on them, the Lightning Bolt became synonymous with Pipeline and Pipeline became synonymous with Bolt.

FOR THE LOVE OF IT

Eventually Lightning Bolt became and remains iconic, as the international symbol

People surf nowadays for the same reason as decades ago-for the love of it!

of surfing. I just found a contract from Doug Warbrick owner of Rip Curl. I did their first ad in Surfer and the first Quiksilver ad in Surfing Magazine. So I got this contract offer from Doug and said “You gotta choose Rory: Quiksilver, Rip Curl or Lighting Bolt?” Being ever the loyalist, I chose Lightning Bolt and a couple of years later the Bolt self destroyed from inner power struggles and Quiksilver and Rip Curl went huge. Oh well, but I never lost faith and look what happened! You know there’s just not enough faith in this world today. THE SURFTRIPS Basically, I really wanted to go on tour. I was only on the tour in 1976-78 and only on the Hawaii and Australian contest and was number 5 twice and 12 without going to the other 6-8 contests. I did really well in small wave contests. Even though I didn’t go on tour, we decided to advertise in a different way. Several pages on the life and adventures of Rory and the team Bolt, blazing around the planet, exploring new uncharted, unsurfed waves, meeting new fascinating people and sharing the bolt experience and Aloha was more advantageous than the tour. I’ve been blessed, that’s for sure. As far as one trip being better than the other, that is an impossibility, as long as there are good waves and good people you can’t go wrong.

Rory e Ximenez just having fun

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From left to right: Kikas (Frederico Morais), Josch Scmeltzer and Vasco Ribeiro

The second Portuguese Lightning Bolt PRO JUNIOR Championship is about to start. This is the most important under-20’s boys and girls event. This year, the championship has 4 events (weekends) with the first in Porto (April), then Ericeira (the surf mecca of Portugal) on June, then Praia Grande (Sintra) on August and the final event will be in Costa da Caparica in October. Besides the new Portuguese groms that will certainly impress, there’ll be loads of leisure activities so you can’t just lie on your beach towel: Free Surf lessons, Yoga, Skate Park, Concerts, and disco parties are just some of the things that you can do. Last year, South African Josch Schmeltzer, sponsored by Lightning Bolt, was the winner in mens division, after a breathtaking final, defeating Kikas (Frederico Morais) in the final heat. Francisca Sousa, the new Portuguese hope, got the title at the third event, and had the privilege to go to last event without much pressure

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HIGHLIGHTNING

This Portuguese band from Porto first performed for a group of friends on the last day of the year 2000. Their goal was to use music as an instrument of social intervention. After getting over the usual difficulties in finding a music publisher, they managed to release their first album in 2006 ‘Comunicar’, which turned out to be a great success. Reggae, Roots, Ragga and Ska, sang in Portuguese are the different music styles that embody the sound of this band. They are especially known for the energy and vitality they send out in their numerous live gigs, performing alongside the likes of The Waillers, Ijahman, Alpha Blondy, Capleton, Gentleman, Patrice, Ponto de Equilíbrio, Groundation, Black Uhuru, Natiruts, and Skatalites. Now they are back in March with their second album, ‘Subentender’ and their diary is already packed with concerts for the coming months. All with Lightning Bolt support! One of their most charismatic band members is Ratus Fary. He is the percussionist and second vocalist of the band. When not playing with the group, he is a DJ, a surfer and body boarder. When trying to find out the meaning of your nickname on Google, I saw at Wikipedia that ‘El Fary’ was a very famous Spanish singer in the 90’s. Did the inspiration for your nickname come from here? I must confess that I’ve never heard of him…I’m curious enough now, so I’ll check it out. The first attempt at coming up with a nickname happened a dozen or so years ago, at the beach. Thanks to Jomi and to Giga, everyone used to call me Ratinho (little mouse), then I became Ratus until I made it to the Souls of Fire. This was when I was baptized Ratusfari by the great T-Bass. You are also known for being a self-taught person. Did you really believe that you would become a superstar just from practising? I strongly believe that we are all able to become better and better everyday… But have you never felt the need to take a music course? All the time… but luckily I know that I can always count on my brother Romano, my bro Márcio and many other friends to push me forward. From what we know, Souls of Fire came out of your will of organising small parties. What was the most important: the party or spreading the message through your music? The whole thing that spawned out around the party scene was in itself a strong message; small parties that achieved extraordinary proportions in the blink of an eye. People liked Reggae and wanted more. We liked Reggae and wanted to play it, which is exactly the message: it is a social intervention kind of music!

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The first album was the result of looking forward. Everything was new. Curiously, the Souls of Fire’s desire to record an album came together with EMI’s desire to go forward with a first LP ‘Comunicar’. What you refer to as the market forces; it’s true that it exists, in music as much in all areas… It is important to be aware of that without ever loosing self-determination, especially when there are attempts against your fundamental values You sing in Portuguese. Don’t you think that if you sang in English you would probably sell more copies? Money is not important, it is just a need, nothing more. The most important thing is to be able to communicate in a direct and clear way. We don’t turn our back to the world, we travel a lot and we have some tunes in other languages. It is quite natural to have songs written in English included on our new record, which is ready to hit the streets. I read on your MySpace that you are able to resurrect the dead at your live concerts! What is your secret? I hope so! I think there are no big secrets; everything can be worked out in time. If you have the energy and joy… we also have been very lucky in always having a great audience.

Who are the artists that influenced the Souls, from music and other backgrounds? The Souls of Fire are a band of nice, easygoing and ordinary people. Naturally, an endless passion for culture and for all artistic movements in general lives among all of us. Music holds a special place, but there would be too many artists and personalities to mention.

You’ve probably got some amusing situations to share with us. Tell us about one that makes you laugh. Well… it is true that there are loads of situations that come up when you’re on the road, but I do remember one in particular. At our first concert in Lisbon, my good friend Luís Vareta, our guitar player, had to leave the stage because there was absolutely no sound coming out of his guitar. At the time I only felt like crying, but today I laugh until I cry…

The first album took some time to be released. What happened? Was it laziness or just hard to break into the market? Man needs to build himself to support himself.

Anonymous sources say that you are completely harassed by girls in the audience… Ah!.., that ‘s quite natural, otherwise how would I explain the beautiful girlfriend I have, with her honey eyes. 55

HIGHLIGHTNING

Do you also get letters from your fans for reasons other than your musical talent? I have more idols rather than fans; I send more letters than I receive… And to rest from all the noise of performance, you go surfing? I simply do not live without surf and body board. What is the relation between surf and the Souls’ style of music? SSouls Of Fire=Reggae, Reggae=Jamaica, Jamaica=Heat, Heat=Beach, Beach=Surf. Surf and reggae meet in heat. A lot of people may be jealous of your lifestyle: surf, music, parties… Do you regret any decision you have made in your life? La dolce vita! Who does not regret having postponed something forever and ended up never doing it or of having done something he shouldn’t have done? Learning goes along with growing up. So, keep on going! When the Souls are not on tour or recording, you work as a DJ at the major clubs in the north of the country, Are you faithful to the Soul’s style or do you transform yourself? When I’m playing music, things change a lot… I travel from ethnic music to the memorable Hit’s that some mythical previous generations have offered us. Mixing some hip-hop and its derivatives! In Portugal, reggae concerts have grown amazingly these last years. Would you like to perform in other countries? Which countries are you thinking of going to, to become global? Reggae invaded Europe more than 30 years ago and is in very good shape today. Everything tends to arrive in Portugal a couple of years later. Thanks to producers and reggae lovers, concerts began appearing slowly in Portugal and then Reggae spread out quickly throughout the whole country. We’ve already had the pleasure of going to Bilbao (2008), but unfortunately due to the bad weather we had to put off our concert. Of course it would be a privilege and a great challenge to play abroad. Any country with the same language would be easier to approach, but our ambition is to play everywhere, for the biggest number of people… 56

The band’s been going for 8 years and now you’re releasing the second album. Can you tell us a bit about your future plans? For the near future we are going on a tour: Sub-Entender (2009), with totally improved concerts, full of new songs, alert messages and party, a lot of party! ALBUMS: COMUNICAR (2006) SUBENTENDER (2009)

PROFILE

XIMENEZ

Competing on the WQS tour for the second year at only 22 years old, Ximenez already has some great achievements in his short career. He was National under-18 champion, European under-18 runner up, National under-20 champion and also won the men’s category at the Eurosurf 2005. Besides that, Ximenez was two-time champion for the National team in the World Surfing Games in 2005 and 2007. We caught up with him in Cascais, his hometown, and asked him some questions after a freezing day surfing: Please don’t tell us that you’ve surfed since you were three…… Not really. The first time I grabbed a surfboard and stepped into the water I was 10 years old and it was at Guincho. It didn’t go very well… but at that time I didn’t have my own surfboard. My first board was a gift from my father when I was twelve. I used to go to the beach a lot with my friends and they all surfed, that helped me to carry on! And you realised early on that you weren’t surfing just for the lifestyle and to meet girls… I began competing when I was a kid… I used to read many surf magazines and always dreamt of being in one of them one day. It only happened at the age of 19, when I won the Eurosurf. As I developed my surfing in national competitions, I started thinking of going international, and when I was 20 I decided to dedicate 100% of my time to surfing. I was admitted to the Communication course at university but I gave up and went surfing! What do you like the most at the contests? I enjoy pushing my limits further and beating the tougher adversaries. And when you’re not «working»? I like to keep on having fun free surfing! Beside, when I’m at home and I’m not surfing, I like being with my friends. Though, these last two years my life revolves only around surf. Who are your surf prophets? There are a couple of people I really admire… Saca (Tiago Pires) and Kelly Slater. I admire the fact that they combine together work, dedication and talent. We already know that you spent most of your time travelling and you surely have a thousand favourite spots, but can you vote for just one? Guincho Beach. I’ve always lived just around the corner and I love it!

Where would you like to go now? Recently I did one of my dream surf trips. I went to Peru with the Lightning Bolt team. It is still not a known destination for Europeans. The north of Peru, in the region of Mancora, Chicama and Pacasamayo, has fabulous surf spots with very long consistent lefts. Though we didn’t catch waves at their maximum potential, we could get the feeling! Sponsors are essential for you to keep on surfing. This year you’ll be sponsored by Lightning Bolt. How did it happen? The proposal came through David Raimundo, the Lightning Bolt Europe team leader and a very good friend of mine. I weighed up the pros and cons and decided I had a lot to win by joining the brand and I’m really happy now. What about your biggest ambition… I’d like to win this year’s National Open and to achieve good results at a world level. Life motto? With hard work, you can make it! How do you see yourself in twenty years form now? I imagine myself married with kids, with a stable life and surfing. I don’t know whether I’ll have a future surfing at a professional level, but I’ll definitely be surfing.

WHO? Miguel Ximenez WHEN? Since 1986 WHERE? Cascais, Portugal and all over the world wherever the best surf spots are WHY? New Lightning Bolt Team Rider WHAT? Pro Surfer competing on the World Qualifying Series

Of all you’ve done, can you choose one surf trip that has a special meaning for you? I loved the surf trip to Australia, but Indonesia was also a place that I will never forget, as it was my first journey. 58

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STUFF HISTÓRIA DO SURF EM PORTUGAL How did surf start in Portugal? Who were the first surfers? How was this sport seen in a very conservative society? Where were the first championships? This amazing edition tries to resume and illustrate the relatively short surf history in Portugal between the 60’s decade and the beginning of the 80’s. The first events, the lifestyle, the first boards and other adventures from a generation that is considered pioneer for Portuguese surf Coordinated and directed by João Rocha, we highlight Pedro Lima’s delicious stories, considered the first Portuguese surfer and nowadays the PR of Lightning Bolt in Portugal A book that deserves its price, not only for its texts, but mainly for its images that are authentic rarities in the surf history.

While our team riders were behaving like the kings of Peru, surfing and knocking back the beers to relieve themselves from the hot weather, the Lightning Bolt marketing and design team was freezing in one the most important sportswear trade fairs in Europe, Bread&Butter, in Barcelona. This time, the idea was to show the Autumn-Winter 09/10 collection. And we could say that it was a huge success. More than 1000 visitors during the 3 days. We highlighted the new Style Masters line, that promises to revive the true spirit lived in the seventies in Hawaii, where the Pipeline Masters, Gerry Lopez and Rory Russel were spreading their class. Also, in this fair, USBOLT, the new Lightning Bolt USB Pen, made its first appearance. Those who visited us at our booth got one for free. Bread&Butter will return to it’s home city, Berlin in July.

Frank van de Ruit has just started to represent Lightning Bolt in both Holland as Belgium. Although these countries are not famous for their great waves there is reasonable surf, and the surf community is small but fanatic. Frank is a former dutch snowboardchamp who started surfing about 20 years ago. After his snowboard career he worked for Burton for a few years before he moved to Costa Rica where he has lived and surfed for some years before coming back home. Although his surfing time is not comparable to back in his CR days he still tries to be in the water as much as possible. He represents LB from his showroom in Noordwijk where he invites all shops to come and see the most mythical surfbrand ever. He is also the proud owner of one of the most beautiful Lightning Bolt surfboards ever made. Frank Van de Ruit Rotterdam, Holland [email protected]

LIGHTNING BOLT FRANCE

GADGETS- US BOLT We didn’t make up USB Pens, neither the 2GB memories, but we invented the Lightning Bolt shaped USB Pen 2GB They are not for geeks that want to save more than 500 illegal movies. These are for stylish surfers. As it is made of rubber, it can be used as an Anti -Stress toy. Available in red or yellow.

LIGHTNING BOLT GREECE Gerasimos Avramidis says: “We, at MicroXtreme use the following ‘’motto’’ for our company: ‘’Skateboarding and Snowboarding since the beginning’’. Our founder and owner Gerasimos Avramidis is sliding street and snow since 1978 and the waves the last 5 years. Probably is the best person in Greece to represent the Lightning Bolt attitude in our small country, GREECE. Surfers are a new species for our seas and as long as MicroXtreme is the most core shop in board sports, we promise to keep the surfing flag always up, and we invite you to join the Greek style waves. The… ”newest’’ and most fresh waves in southern Europe!” Gerasimos Avramidis Thessloniki, Greece [email protected]

LIGHTNING BOLT UK Brian Hart is delighted to have secured the UK sales and marketing agency for Lightning Bolt. Based in St Agnes in the heart of the Cornish Badlands, Brian has a long history in the surfing business world, and is looking forward to the new challenge. “I bought my first pair of Lightning Bolt boardshorts in California during the early 80’s, and I’ve been a devotee ever since. I’m so stoked to have the opportunity to bring this amazing brand back to the UK. It just means so much. Who knows maybe one day I’ll be able to afford an original Lightning Bolt Pipeliner shaped by Rory Russell” Brian Hart St Agnes, Cornwall, Reino Unido [email protected]

NUBAI NO HAWAII Photos: Yves Sobansky

LIGHTNING BOLT ITALY Since the first launch of Lightning Bolt in Europe, Davide Bertelli trusts in the natural source of the Bolt. This Natural born salesman is located everywhere in Sardinia and he will be pleased to show to all Italian retailers the story of Lightning Bolt and the new collection, from Sicily to Valle d’Aosta... Davide Bertelli Cagliari, Sardinia [email protected] LIGHTNING BOLT SPAIN Directly from Vitoria, Basque Country, comes Edu Prieto, that since the beginning of the year is the Lightning Bolt sales representative for Basque Country, Asturias and Galicia. Edu Prieto Vitoria-Gasteiz, Espanha [email protected]

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In Portugal, Lightning Bolt already has 8 own inline shops and 2 outlets in the two main urban regions of Portugal (Lisbon and Oporto) In Lisbon, you can visit our shops in Colombo Shopping Centre, Vasco da Gama Shopping Centre, Alegro Shopping Centre, and in Ericeira, the Portuguese surf mecca and Tiago Pires’s hometown. In Oporto, we are in Arrabida Shopping Centre, Mar Shopping, Norte Shopping and Matosinhos South Beach. The brand has been renewing its shops image since 2007, and the last opening was Mar Shopping, in the end of 2008. The outlets are located in Freeport (Alcochete, Lisbon) and in Nassica (Vila do Conde). The Sales representative for surfshops and other multibrand shops is Cia Brasil, that is also representing Havaianas, the famous brazilian brand. Cia Brasil Manuel Gouveia [email protected] www.ciabrasil.pt HOLLAND AND BELGIUM

In January 2009 Nicolas Pinot was crowned as the Lightning Bolt sales representative for all the French territories. This natural born surfer is located in the French surfing mecca, Biarritz and he’s right now presenting the new Autumn Winter09/10 to the French surfshops and streetwear shops.... So if you are in France and you want to sell Lightning Bolt, remember this name. Nicolas Pinot BIARRITZ, França [email protected]

STUFF

LIGHTNING BOLT PORTUGAL

BREAD AND BUTTER AW 09/10

Apart from spending most of his time in parties and in Nubai Sound System concerts, the great Tiago Pitaça is also a body boarder sponsored by Lightning Bolt. He joined the best Portuguese body boarders and flew to Hawaii (Ohau) for a whole month. Among them, was Manuel Centeno and Hugo Pinheiro. Tiago shared the experience with us: ‘Above all, I’d like to share with you that going to Hawaii has always been my dream trip since I was 18 years old, and finally I was able to fulfil this dream and I don’t regret it for a moment! The Northshore is everything I imagined, but with even more waves, heat and a lot of localism. Though you can surf at ease in several spots, at Pipeline you have to be careful with some attitudes, mistakes will cost you... Beyond the Hawaiian cliché, there was something that surprised me a lot; in Hawaii there are only two kinds of music among the surfer community: Reggae and Hip-Hop. Also, it is funny to see the power of the Jamaican culture on the island, which goes further than music… I would like to go there again, because there are so many unbelievable spots and one month is not enough. So, next year, you’ll find me there again! Mahalo Hawaii (thanks in Hawaiian).

LIGHTNING BOLT ISRAEL Yoav Teveth is the first Lightning Bolt sales representative in the Middle East, but only for Israel. He will be responsible to present the new Autumn Winter 09/10 collection to all retailers in that country. Yoav Teveth Tel Aviv, Israel [email protected]

Photos: João Melo

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ROOKIES

ROOKIES

Surfing Life Club is one of the major surf schools in the north of Portugal located in Matosinhos, near to Porto, the country’s second biggest city. It is also one of the best spots of the region. We wanted to find out how the school works, from both the surf instructor’s and the pupil’s points of view. How will their views compare? Bruno Rodrigues, a surf instructor sponsored by Lightning Bolt and one of the most talented surfers of Portugal, has been giving lessons at Surfing Life School for two years now. What do you need to be able to train with this group? You have to be able to swim. You can’t have any health issues that prevent you from practising sports and you must have a lot of will power! How many hours of training per month do you recommend? The best thing is to surf everyday. Surfing is a sport that requires loads of persistence. The minimum is 3 hours a week, though the truth is that some people end up doing it only once a week. Nevertheless, it is always better to surf once a week than to sit in the couch. Is there specific training for physical condition and for theory? Yes, we swim in the sea, we do several surf-oriented exercises and, when, the sea is too big to go in, we have indoor classes. Everyday we evaluate the sea condition together with our pupils, before entering the water. How many learners do you have in a group? It depends on the conditions, but we try not to go over 6 students per instructor. What kind of training and preparation must a surf instructor have to teach at this school? Besides the surf instructor training course, we like to go surfing a couple of times with the instructor before hiring him, to get to know his water experience and ease. We don’t trust the lives of 6 people to someone we don’t know. What kind of critical factors are needed to succeed? Self-determination and focus. You must understand that while you’re training, you are not free surfing, you have to achieve specific goals that are previously explained to you by your instructor.

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And what about discipline? Sometimes I have to draw the pupils’ attention to the fact that they are there to learn how to surf; otherwise they might as well save their money and surf on their own somewhere else. So I ask people to be totally focussed. When they start wandering, I steal their waves to wake them up! How long do your pupils tend to stay at the school? We teach them from beginners, right up to competition level. We have had students here for more than 3 years.

ROOKIES

Afonso Teixeira is sixteen years old and has been coming to SLC for more than 3 years. He has already been through different training programmes. How were you admitted to Surfing Life Club? What kinds of requirements were asked of you? Well, I had to know how to swim and have a strong motivation to surf. How many training hours per month do they recommend? For athletes in competition they advise a minimum of 4 training sessions per week. Is there specific training for physical condition and for theory? Yes, when the water conditions aren’t safe for training, we have theory lessons. Also, there is a great focus on our physical condition, including exercises in the swimming pool. What is the maximum of trainees per surf lesson? The biggest group I was in had eight students per surf instructor. When there are more than eight, we have two surf instructors in the water with us. What kind of characteristics do you think surf instructors must have to improve your development? MAbove all, systematic training and willpower, as there are moments of stagnation. I believe that there are people with an inborn gift, but if you keep on practising and keep your motivation to be better everyday, you are able to overcome your own limits. 64

And what about discipline? Do you think surf instructors are too boring? No, the instructors have a strong and close relationship with us that make us feel completely at ease in their presence. Of course during lessons they establish a certain discipline, which is essential for us to concentrate only on the waves. Have you ever thought of changing school? No, everything I have learnt was at Surfing Life Club. There is a great team spirit that bonds us, and I’ve experienced real development. I feel very good here, it feel’s like “home”. Who would you recommend this school to? I am at an intermediate level and I’m very happy with the applied training programme, so I think this school is an excellent option for any surfer at this level. It is also a good choice for beginners, because I experienced a very fast learning curve. As for the advanced level, I really can’t speak about it because I am not familiar with the training programme, but I hope I reach this stage soon.

COMING NEXT

Some experts rank Nicaragua’s Pacific surf as the best in Central America. Playa Maderas, Playa Escondida, Santana and Colorado are just some of the spots that they talk about to back up their theory. Well, Lightning Bolt Team Riders are going there to check out for themselves. We’re off to Alentejo to shoot the Autumn-Winter Collection 09/10. In Alentejo, the most typical southern region of Portugal you can find countless dolmens, menhirs, and burial mounds and impressive Roman relics mixed with the legacy of the Moors; In August we’ll be back again so you can find out why we chose this place. There are no coincidences.

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