Post #212703 by Chongolio on Sat, Feb 4, 2006 7:01 PM

I missed this post the first time around thanks for bumping and sharin' the Candian stokage Tikiwahine.

Hey Vern! A day late and a clam short for what it's worth here are my thoughts. I too have lived in California all my life and grew up in the late sixties heavily influenced by So Cal surf and pop culture. I have lived a pebbles toss away the ocean most of my life and have been surfin' through most of it. Tiki has been there since the beginning and has gone hand in hand with surfin' . For me. tiki and surfin' have always been deeply connected because of they have always been together in my vision of a what a tropical island paradise would look like. As I went through life my definition of tiki was broadend and it grew too include more things from authentic Hawaiian culture and California pop culture. surf, exotica and Hawaiian music, car culture, 50's nostalgia, restaurants, rum, mugs, dune buggies, shrunken heads, etc etc. But for me the center of it will be always be surfin' and the beach. Obviously the ancient and spirituals roots are much deeper when you talk of the Hawaiian connection between surfing and tiki. Although, I can still get a strong sense of being good with the gods here in California on a warm sunny day with a nice swell runnin"

and now onto your questions...

1. Are surfing and tiki more closely connected in California and Hawaii, and less so in other parts of the country?

I would say yes, There is a strong influence of Hawaiian and beach culture in every day life in costal California and in Hawaii. People who don't surf or even go to the beach have surf stickers on thier car and surf company logos on their clothes. I think its safe to say that in Californina and Hawaii surfin' is much more a "way of life" than in other parts of the world. You can't deny tiki's omnipresence inside the surf shops and around the beach communities which are numerous in California and Hawaii.

2. Which is stronger, the pull of the perfect wave, or the pull of the perfect mai-tai?
   I am with Lucky Designs and the Big Kahuna on this one too. If you call yourself a surfer and would rather sip a drink than slide into a perfect wave. Your priorities are obvioulsy all askew.

3. How much overlap is there between the tiki and surfing crowd?
   To some degree there is an overlap. I tend to think more often than not tiki is simply cosmetic and there is not much understanding or interest in the culture behind it. To many iIt's just another icon that says "Beach Culture" Most surfers know what a tiki is and like the way they look, but very few are concerned about tiki culture or Hawaiian history. I would go so far as to say I bet there is a lot of surfer that are unaware of a tiki community.

3a) Will an average joe-surfer feel comfortable in a midwestern tiki bar in the middle of winter?
Surfers were a fairly recognizable and distinct group of people, now I think there is mostly just a bunch of people who surf. They also play golf, rollerblade, do crimes, fight fires etc. There really is no such thing as an average Joe surfer anymore. Most of the time the only common thing between me and the guy or girl sitting next to me in the line up is that we both want the next wave that comes through. I would say most of the time that is where all similarities stop. I am not sure when surfing transformed into a lifestyle that now includes thug, pimp and ho culture.
Back to your question, It well really depend on the person. One dude might relate to a tiki bar in the mid west because it's warm, the rum is working and the bar speaks to him on the level of tiki equals surfing, Hawaii and the beach. It may remind him of what he enjoys so he relates. Another surfer may wander into a tiki bar full or fez wearin' people sippin' fruity drinks and think who the hell are these geeks? He then gets pissed cause "these idiots don't know the first thing about surfing" and start a fight with Jungle Trader. Well JT kicks his ass and it's the talk of TC how he saved everybody from the crazy jarhead. My point being, the guy didn't look like what many think a surfer looks like and don't mess with Jungle Trader.

3b) Will a midwesterner, (especially one who can't swim), fit in at a surfer beach party?
Once again it really depends on the crowd of people. If your everyone is cool and then yes shouldnt be a problem. But if stumble across a bunch of drunk locals getting pissed by the fire after fightin' for waves all days with the tourist kooks. Then you may end up with some glass, blood and surf wax stuck to the side of your face. Unfortunately, there is a lot of aggression in the surfin' world and quite a few egomaniacs with chips on their shoulders who not the kind of people I want to be around. I get along better with the old timers out on the longboards and the tiki people. They are way more genuine and don't seem to take themselves so seriously as the new breed does

3c) Isn't it nice to have tiki as a possible link between the two groups?
There is a link but I don't believe most people in either group thinks about it as much as we obviously do.

The End

On 2003-10-27 23:49, bananabobs wrote:
Surfing is life
TiKi is Art
Life without Art is boring

Good Stuff BB.

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[ Edited by: chongolio 2006-02-22 04:28 ]