Ok, so it's not the cover of some cool surf mag. Actually, there aren't any surf mags anymore. And it's just the cover of a website, but it's still pretty cool. I have worked with the Southern Ocean County Chamber of Commerce since 2015 and learned so much from Executive Director, Lori Pepenella. Last year, they redid their website and used a photo of me for the front page of ...
I have written about David's Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation since day one and on occasion, done some volunteering. It has always been an honor to work alongside David Caldarella. With the coronavirus pandemic and the economy in a tailspin, Caldarella selflessly asked the board of directors of his own nonprofit to lay him off. He will try to collect unemployment to save his nonprofit through these tough times. I ...
As the reality of school closings and curfews hits week two, I wrote this piece on Pandemic Parenting for Men's Journal, based on what we're trying to do and some advice from the LBI Consolidated School District Counselor. This is pretty idealistic. Don't think I'm pulling it off myself as easy as this sounds.
Courtesy Vail Resorts "...All right, let’s get the Vail jokes out of the way: ones ribbing the fabulous fur coats seen on Bridge Street, the $18 old-fashioneds, the Wi-Fi connected gondolas and designer oxygen bars to combat altitude sickness. To understate it, there’s nothing chintzy about this Interstate 70 gem with its luxury veneer. Nearly 60 years into the roadside resort town experiment (literally named after a highway ...
Who are the characters that thrive on LBI during the long winter? In Just Beneath the Surface Season Three, Episode three, we meet Brie Fagan who talks about the beautiful extremes of the off season. We also explore sailing, from our historical vessels to the AJ Meerwald to the young sailors competing for the yacht clubs locally. This is Long Beach Island as we are certain you have never seen ...
There are few things more exciting than a sea lion pup playing with your kid underwater. Coen/Todd family trip to Baja for Mick and Sandy’s anniversary. They instilled in us a sense of adventure and we got to all spend a week together on Bahia La Paz, cliff jumping, finding little waves on the Pacific, exploring pristine beaches, watching Uncle Brian hunting in his underwater element, eating 100 tacos...oh and diving with ...
DIY board-building is one of the most time-honored and creative aspects of surf culture. For a lot of salts, going deep into the garage and emerging with something that may or may not resemble a surfboard is a bucket lister of the surf experience. Imagine doing a stylish mid-faced turn or making an impossibly fast section on a sled with your own signature on the stringer. I spoke with John ...
Cody DeGroff This was one of the more important stories I have written in a while, focusing on the Great White Shark problem on Cape Cod. Granted the water off Massachusetts is a bit colder than New Jersey, but I am trying to imagine how we would handle this on Long Beach Island. “My son is about to turn 14. I started him surfing when he was about ...
The Jetty Coquina Jam has always meant a lot to me and I have been the announcer from the very first year when it was a little weeknight contest up in Harvey Cedars in 2009. For the last decade, the money raised has gone to David's Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation, who directly distributes funds to families in our area battling a cancer diagnosis. I've been working with Jetty on ...
I recently did a quick trip up to New England with a few LBI locals that turned into a fun little travel piece for Adventure Sports Network. Ryan Johnson took some awesome photos and it was a reminder of how wonderful and basic a trip to Vermont can be. "....A mint on your pillow is nice. And a crafted hot drink by a gas fire pit, a high speed gondola, ...
