The Phillippines with TnT
I always love the beginning of the year because it gives me a chance to take a deep breath, let the worries of the year before melt away, and think about all the possibilities that the next 365 days hold. It was a short lived moment of rest. In the first few months of this new year, I’ve already been super busy with surf trips, week-long incline sessions, video premieres (buy Fun Boots!), and moving to California… I don’t know why they call winter an off-season.
First wakeskate trip of 2009. I got the phone call just before I made it out to Cali and I couldn’t have been more stoked. A Nike 6.0 wake team trip (raddest crew ever) to the Cam Sur cable (sickest wakeskate playground ever) was bound to be a trip I’d never forget. A few good days at my new place on the beach to relax and surf before the voyage was the rest I needed because after the flight, we didn’t sleep for 40+ hours. Manila is a wild city. With urban rail jams, grand openings, and big-time fashion show parties to be attended, there was no time for slumber. Plus, it’s not hard to stay awake that long when you know that you’re living the dream…
After using the hotel’s spa facilities to the fullest extent, we got a few good hours of sleep before heading off to the province of Camarines Sur, the location of the world famous CWC. This being my 3rd trip out to the CWC, I was already acquainted with the scenery and was looking forward to the reactions from the guys who hadn’t yet been. I smiled as I watched everyone’s jaws drop. Rolling up to a warm glassy lake full of perfectly built rails and boxes, surrounded by palm trees, and in the shadow of a giant volcano (complete with epic waterfall visible from like 40 miles away) will do that to you. The people there are so welcoming and nice that you feel comfortable as soon as you arrive, it’s a breath of fresh air right after dealing with airline employees for a few days.
It hardly took the rest of that day for everyone to start flowin on the water. Andrew, Ben, and Silas rocking their new Remote protos, Manzari getting his CWB dialed, Balzer on his SST double-decker, and me riding the same unkillable Integrity deck I’ve been on since last March; the wakeskate team was warming up for what would be some of the most impressive sessions ever had. Even legendary photographer Josh Letchworth and renowned videographer Matt Staker put down their cameras for a bit to shred the skate. I can’t even count how many doubles sessions went down on the cable on that first day. It was so true…
This crew, plus our wakeboarders, Eddie Valdez, Adam Errington, and Steel Lafferty, quickly adapted to life in a cabana. Each morning we would meet up at the cable-side restaurant for breakfast and begin to map out the day ahead of us. CWC also has a skatepark and the biggest man-made boat lake I’ve ever seen, so the options were definitely not limited to the cable. Matt Manzari even saw fit to rent a scooter for the week to get around from one part of the complex to the other. For a grand total of around $5, it was an obvious choice.
The next week saw countless hammers and wild adventures. Spending our time shredding the cable, the Sesitec 2.0, and going on winch trips around the province, tromping through the steamy jungles to find sick winch spots, we logged a metric ton of insane footage, unbelievable photos, and hundreds of memorable quotes. Unfortunately, I recently got into the vintage camera trend and accidentally picked up the first digital camera ever made. It takes good photos, I got about 120 “keepers” but it’s only compatible with the Apple II (1991) and they won’t be done uploading until sometime around June/July. Should’ve got a Holga…
Much thanks to The Gov for making such an epic place for wakeskaters to dance on the water and making sure we were taken care of, Nike 6.0 for sending us all on this wild adventure across the world, Letchy, Brett, and Staker for being so good at what you do and fun to work with, Anamie for taking care of everyone all the time, Buboy for always helping us out, Chip for keeping it real, all the guys on the team for being so rad to travel and ride with, and to Dean Lavelle for pumping the tunes.
I wonder what Nike 6.0 is going to do with all this mind-blowing wakeskate footage?
For now check out Josh Letchworth’s blog for some outtakes from the trip.
