The Family Jules shot by Pete Daly

We asked every surf company to deliver to us their most iconic piece; the one shoe or short or watch or leash or bag or pair of sunglasses that represents everything awesome about em. Here’s what they coughed up…

Photography by Pete Daly

Filthy Habits t-shirt. By Billabong.

Worn by Taj Burrow as a sun deflector while free surfing and preparing for tour’s opener on the Gold Coast. Filthy Habits, of course, is the 1988 movie old hipsters claim as the greatest performance movie ever. Stars Occy, now retired, Ronnie Burns, now dead, and Matt Branson, now gay.

USA Promo. Not available to the public.

The Advantage boardshort. By Hurley.

Hurley

Hurley, owned by Nike (important to know because I’ll refer to that later), were hot to make a pair of performance boardshorts that could stand being repeated range after range. These were to be light, fast to dry and were to feel great wrapped around your cods. As fate would have it, the wonks at Hurley found the material they needed in the Nike materials library, developed by the sportswear giant for the 2004 Olympics.
$120

Retro Stud boardshort. By Insight.

The Sydney based company Insight pours a significant percentage of their marketing budget into sponsoring and promoting the surfers of Jamaica. If you know your Rastafari history, you’ll know the importance of each of these colours. Black for Africa, green for the homeland of Ethiopia (what, Ethiopia? Yep, long story), red for the blood shed by Negroids in the fight for liberation (also the colour of the Church Triumphant) and yella signifies “the wealth of the homeland”. Read about Marcus Garvey if this kinda stuff turns you on.
$70

Superfreak boardshort. By O’Neill.

Here’s the quote we got about the Freaks: “Our belief in creating superior boardshorts is built into the Superfreak Series. Using newly developed perforated neoprene panels makes it lighter, faster drying, creating greater flexibility and combined with Dryflex, four-way stretch, and new styling, the performance is unrivalled.” Whatevs, all I know is Jordy Smith chose em over Nike and a dozen other companies so something’s cookin’ up there in Santa Cruz.
$90

Banana Bones t-shirt (art by Sam Smith)

We lifted this quote straight from the VZ handbook: “VZERIES is a project from the feel good peeps at Vonzipper, showcasing the artwork from truly talented friends of VZ. Creating an artistic explosion is no first, ever since 2001 VZ has been collaborating with the best and most creative artisans in the jungle.” Awesome!
$50.

Colonel Thacker sunglasses.

A classic aviator that “exudes” the Electric rock n roll ethos. What’s classic about this classic is that Colonel Thacker is an ex-air force pilot and, as he tips over into his nineties, he’s still up there in jets. This is the sort of eyewear the bomb-carrying jocks used to wear when they were tearing up Dresden in World War Number Two, bits of Korea in the Capitalist vs Communist stoush in Korea and enemy boats on the Mekong Delta in Nam.
$180

Airliner sunglasses. By Odyssey 20/20.

Odyssey

Face it, Odyssey make a good pair of sunglasses, whether it’s out of nylon or metal. This is their take on the never-say-die aviator.
$170

Escobar sunglasses. By Anon. (image above)

Pablo Escobar, you probably already know, was the Colombian drug king-pin who made billions, killed billions, and who single-handedly fuelled more good nights in LA than any other human in history. This sleek, all-metal sunglass is a tribute to that gentle man, may his soul rest in peace.
$150

Frogskins sunglasses. By Oakley.

Frogskins

This is Oakley’s version of the Wayfarer, originally released in 1985. If the fashion curve is the rollercoaster you enjoy riding, hop aboard.
$150

Konspire Mono Series shoes. By Kustom. (image above)

A little something for the man tired of the objectification of colour and a world gone mad for fluorescents.

$100

Monterey shoes. By DC.

We received such an all-encompassing letter with these shoes that’s it would be churlish of us not to reproduce it in its entirety: “The Monterey shoe is one of our ‘hero’ products. It’s been around for a few seasons and has sold extremely well through our core skate accounts. It was originally designed by DC’s skate team as they wanted a super comfortable shoe to wear after a hard day’s skating. It’s always been one of our premium, high-end shoe and one of the most expensive in DC’s range. It’s just kept evolving with the constant injection of input from our team riders who elect it as their choice of shoe to wear when they’re not skating.” I feel it!
$180

Pulp68 deck and Crazed Ape t-shirt. By Zoo York.

Did you know that Zoo York was originally called Soul Artists of Zoo York? And, further, did you know that Zoo York was an artistic style pioneered by the New York graffiti sub culture of the seventies? Wow, how many times can we say York in a paragraph!
Deck $135, t-shirt $45.

Sabaton shoe. By Globe

This is Chris Haslam’s pro model. He is 28, comes from Canada, and skates because “it’s the sweetest thing ever.” His sleds even come with in-built toe foxing for “extra ollie grip.” Toe foxing! Wow!
$130

Undercover sunglasses. By Arnette.

Do you suffer from a modicum of fame? If so, you might want to shield yourself from the glare of the paparazzi with these classic oversized frames.
$160

Ace Buchan tail pad. By Gorilla Grip

Says GG: “The high-performing aztec groove now features multiple layers to match the variety of pressure placed on the pad by the surfer." Ace Buchan knows how to throw the tail and, generally, his feet stick. Maybe it’s the grip.
$50

H2 fins. By FCS. (photo above)

“The most hydrodynamically evolved fin on the market,” say FCS. But that’s not all! “Unbelievably fast and free with incredible hold and drive while on rail. These things work so well it’s almost cheating!”
$145 (small, medium and large)

The Player. By Nixon.

This is the single most iconic watch from Nixon. A great-looking piece made from stainless steel and featuring the dramatic flourish of a single diamond at six o’clock.
$400

Artist Network Program tees. By RVCA.

Ed Templeton, you know of course, he of pro skating/photography/writing and art fame. Ben Horton, however, is a little more obscure. He is from San Diego and draws these dark realist portraits. He real good.

Two-faced t-shirt by Ed Templeton $56, Firing Squad t-shirt by Ben Horton $56.

Head Zip hoodie. By Stussy. (photo above)

Like a classic car marquee, Stussy keeps movin’ with the times. IN Stussy’s case it’s with prints that hark back to its beginnings in the eighties but without drowning in the molasses of old man nostalgia.

$120

The Original. By Havaianas

Says Havs: “This is an updated version of the very first Havaianas style, created 45 years ago. It is the most traditional, recognisable and popular Havaianas style in Brazil, with two in three people owning a pair. We streamlined the shape and added a coloured logo, which is all that was needed to update a classic. Originals are exclusive to Australia.”
$25.

Surfboard. By Rusty.

(6’2”, square-tail, single-concave 18 ½ x 2 5/16”)

What do these dimensions bespeak? It tells me of a surfboard for the above average surfer with little or no paunch. It’s pedigree, from the house of Rusty Preisendorfer, lends it an obviously superior air.
$700

Time Square watch. By Rip Curl.

Victoria-based Rip Curl have been in the watch game for 20 years now. So, as you’d expect, they’ve got the mechanics down right. This watch, according to Rip Curl, is “a revolutionary and unique new dual time style, using a digital display for either a second time zone or date. It is a striking design in solid stainless steel case and strap with hidden clasp detail.” Striking and revolutionary. Hotter than Fidel Castro, comrades.

Shaun White V1 shoes. By Adio.

Any company that convince the former child genius to ride for it must have, a, a phenomenal marketing budget and, b, some impressive chops when it comes to sleds. Gold shoes from a solid gold skater/snowboarder.
$150

Travel bags. By Gravis.

Bottom line. If you spend a bit of time standing around luggage carousels, you’ll know the importance of a bag that stands out among the black Samsonites. Here’s what Gravis has cooked up for carousel watchers in 08. (Complete with all-over map prints of the world in case you lose your hand-held GPS.)

Jetway bag $260, Shadow backpack $140, Terminal case $40

Trevor Andrew hoodie. By Analog.

Analog are famous for original all-over prints. Keen followers of such things will have already swooned over the sushi boardies and their classic all-over boardshort print featuring black panthers (the animals, not the revolutionaries) and war planes. This hoodie is “a snapshot of the top drawer contents of Trevor Andrew (famous snowboarder and also of the band Trouble) belongings. A mish mash of tapes, pins, records and pens.
$150

Lotus wetsuit. By West.

A premium wetsuit built with “no compromises,” says West. If you were to journey to Western Australia you’d see a lot of surfers in West’s suits. They may not be backed by a top-tier pro team, but the suits are good, strong and they do last.
From $500.

2x4 denim. By Volcom

If you read Stab, you’ll know we fell in love with the shape of these dungarees many months ago, even awarding Volcom the mantle of Best Denim. Wear red if you’re horny, white if you believe in God, black if you’re from Africa and raw if you like sushi.
$100

Stab Magazine