Luis Guzman - Free Surfboard and Wetsuit Essay Contest Winner - 4/3 Men’s Hotline Wetsuit and Booties
I selected Luis for both his dedication to keeping used equipment functioning and his passion for surfing that drives him to share that love with others. Nobody wants the crowds to increase, but Luis is introducing people to surfing the old fashioned way: person to person, no profit motive, take em’ out and see if they make it. His story rings very true. My first day out I got worked. I swallowed a ton of water and dragged myself back to car after an hour completely exhausted…and I loved it. At that moment I was hooked for life. Now on to his winning essay.
Luiz Guzman, Winner of 4/3 Hotline Wetsuit and Booties
Exposing your friends to wipeouts, panic attacks, and hypothermia-inducing freezing water may not seem like the kinds of things one friend does to another, but I consider it my duty. The fact is that a little bit of abuse is inevitable when you’re teaching your friends to surf.
I can tell you early on who will return for lesson number two and who will never look at a surfboard again. For example, I recently gave a first lesson to my friends Jose and Angela. By the time we had paddled out I knew who would be back for another lesson and who wouldn’t. Jose, though clearly stunned by the cold water and struggling to paddle, eagerly looked my way and peppered me with questions. “How do you turn on this thing?” he asked, quickly followed by “How do you sit up on the board?”, and “When do I stand up?” Angela on the other hand looked like she had just faced down the Grim Reaper during her paddle out. Her unblinking eyes were like saucers and she was breathing so fast I thought she was going to hyperventilate. I had to talk her as if I was talking someone down from a bad drug trip. I recall saying at one point “You’re going to be OK; you’re not going to die; we’re going to get throught this.” After that, the only question she asked was whether she could go back to shore. Surfing isn’t for everyone and that’s OK. But there’s something special about finding an eager student and letting their inner surfer out.
I’ve taken many friends out for a surf lesson and of those only a half-dozen have gone on to learn how to surf and surf regularly today. Its a small number but I’m proud of it. Hopefully, Jose will be added to this list.
I think I deserve the Twinzer and three of your wetsuits because I love to surf, and more importantly, I love to share my love of surfing. Currently, I wear a 10-year old 3/2 wetsuit that isn’t enough to keep me warm. I would use one of the 3/4 wetsuits for myself and the other two wetsuits would be used to take additional friends out to surf. You would be instrumental in allowing others to discover their inner surfer by helping me teach more people how to surf.
Cheers,
Luis Guzman
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