Hung out this morning with the Surfrider Foundation San Diego Chapter and Barefoot Wine to cleanup Mission Beach, as part of the Barefoot Wine Beach Rescue Project event series. In just an hour I collected over 100 cigarette butts and SO many random pieces of plastics. It makes me so sad to think that people think of the beach as their own personal wastebasket. It makes me super appreciative that groups like Barefoot Wine work with Surfrider Foundation in order to fund these amazing cleanups that take place throughout the country.
My Newfound Respect for L.A. Traffic
Two trips to Los Angeles in a month - ugh, traffic on the 405 is BRUTAL! At least I get amazing gas mileage - two roundtrips to LA and no need to refill the gas tank :)
Accompanying me on my trip to L.A. were Angela (Surfrider’s Legal Issues Manager) and Steve (the Director of Development). They were headed up to some really nice office buildings with fancy (and clean!) parking garages to meet with some attorneys in hope of getting them more involved with Surfrider. With summer in full swing, there are lots of different things going on at Surfrider, including a unnecessary gate blocking beach access in Dana Point and lots of potential bag bans throughout the nation.
No word yet on how the meetings went, but at least Steve and Angela got to ride to and from the meetings in (hybrid!) style.
Beach Access for All
These past two days have been a blur - I did a marathon up and back trip to Half Moon Bay with Angela (Surfrider’s Managing Attorney). We drove up to San Mateo to speak with the local chapter and have a community forum on an important beach access issue in the area.
In addition to the meeting, I got to tour around the Half Moon Bay area with Surfrider’s Central Coast Manager, Sarah, who showed Angela and I all of the important spots in the wharf and surfing beaches.
Half Moon Bay is a beautiful area and the surf looked realllllly fun. After the day wrapped up Angela and I stopped for dinner at Sam’s Chowder House and had a delicious feast before heading back to San Clemente.
Hanging out with Celebs in the Hollywood Hills!
Today we hung out with our friends from Cali Bamboo to interview one of our coolest celebrity supporters Martyn LeNoble (former bassist for Porno for Pyros and engaged to actress Christina Applegate). We’re gearing up for Celebrity Expression Session, taking place in Malibu, CA on Saturday, September 10th, and were taping some interviews with Martyn to promote the event and to investigate his backyard renovations using Cali Bamboo’s sustainable materials. Needless to say, the whole day was so much fun and Martyn was a pro at the interview. Check out the interview here and for more information about Celebrity Expression Session click here. Check out how good I look below!
Decided to go for a lunch-time surf sesh today! Here I am in the parking lot at North Beach, San Clemente. Waves were super fun. A quick trip to the ocean was exactly what I needed to recharge for the week.
Drove up to Huntington Beach this past weekend for the Barefoot Wine Beach Rescue Project. Surfrider and Barefoot teamed up to host a beach cleanup, followed by an after-party for participants. The chapter picked up lots of trash on the beach, but I have to say that the majority of the trash were small pieces of plastic and cigarette butts. So bummed that people treat the beach like an ashtray, but so glad that we host clean-ups like this to ensure that our beaches stay clean!
International Surfing Day!!!
I celebrated this year’s International Surfing Day with Surfrider and Surfing Magazine at our beach house in Newport Beach!
There were so many fun events as part of this year’s celebration. We even had some news crews visit the beach and promote ISD. Our friends at Surfing gave the news anchor some surf lessons, and of course tons of people showed up to pick up trash and show the beaches some love.
In addition to our event in Newport Beach, there were 160 other locations that hosted some sort of International Surfing Day event - stoked to see so many people celebrating our oceans, waves and beaches!
Rocking out with KROQ
Wow. Just wow. Working at Surfrider Foundation, you get to go to some really cool events and witness great things – but tonight would have to be one of my favorites. Surfrider Foundation has been teaming up with KROQ for over a decade to participate in KROQ’s Weenie Roast, and through ticket sales, KROQ has donated over $300,000 to protect oceans, waves and beaches. Pretty amazing.
We get to host a booth and hand out information to all the concert attendees in addition to stoking them out with some really cool Surfrider gear (check out the pics below of the awesome sunglasses and the highly demanded temporary tattoos that were given away)! We must have met and talked with over 2,000 people that day! After all the giveaways and talking to people about the awesome work that Surfrider does we got to actually take in the concert. Awesome bands like the Strokes, Rise Against, and Linkin Park performed but the highlight of the night had to be the surprise set by the Foo Fighters! They totally surprised the audience and the whole place erupted. My ears are still ringing and I’m pretty sure I’ll be tired for days, but I can honestly say that tonight was some of the most fun I have ever had.
My Trip the the San Diego Supreme Court
Today I took four people to a Surfrider trial in San Diego’s Supreme Court, concerning the contentious Strands Beach Access issue in Dana Point. Surfrider Foundation is trying to fight for maximum beach access for all people!
If you’re interested in learning more about the Strands Issue, check out this blog.
Attending the hearing (and hanging out with me in the car) were Denise and Rick Erkeneff from Surfrider’s South Orange County Chapter, Chad, Surfrider’s Environmental Director, and Angela, Surfrider’s legal eagle. The trial went on for a LONG time, so I hung out in the parking lot and worked on my tan.
After the hearing, everyone came back in good spirits because the judge seemed to favor our side. Apparently, the Dana Point attorneys did a “not so good” job of defending their bogus access restrictions, and the group talked about press outreach and talking points the whole way home.
I was really glad to be a part of such an important day, and hopefully beach access at Strands will soon be open and accessible to everyone.
The news coming in from Japan is absolutely devastating. I imagine that everyone is racking their brain, trying to figure out ways to help the people of Japan. We’ve all felt the power of the ocean. Maybe you felt that power of the ocean when you were a kid playing in the shorebreak and not paying attention to an incoming wave. Or maybe you’re a surfer and you’ve been held under water for one, two or even three waves. Japan’s tsunami should remind us, again, that the ocean is a formidable force. Last week, two leaders from Surfrider Japan visited the HQ offices. As it turned out, Ryo and Masuo were in Hawaii visiting friends and family when the earthquake struck in Japan. They met with our CEO Jim Moriarty and Environmental Director Chad Nelsen to discuss what we can do and shared thoughts on the evolving situation in Japan. Check out this video of Masuo that Jim was able to capture during the visit.
About Me
Follow the adventures of Cam, a Toyota HSD Hybrid Camry as he embarks on his first year of his dream internship with the environmental non-profit Surfrider Foundation.
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