Culture of Stoke

CULTURE OF STOKE

The culture of stoke, birthed
in the sea. A power that without
eyes to discriminate, doesn’t look
at your exterior, but feels your soul.
It feels the shape of your movements,
your ebb and flow, the consistence and
falter of your drive, your climbs and falls,
from your fear to your bravery to your
conquests. It unites those in search to belong,
to find a home undiscoverable on land. It brings together
those with a comon love for salty air, wrinkled skin and the
language of movement; it requires only passion and a soul in

adventurous pursuit.

THE CULTURE OF STOKE, WHERE SOULS UNITE.

CULTURAL SIGN // SHAKA

MEANING OF THE SHAKA SIGN

Also know as “Hang Ten,”
or “Hang Loose.” It can be used to say
“what’s up dude,” from far away, to avoid
that awkward ‘hi’ that no one hears or
“take care,” when you’re in a rush to leave.
It can be used to show respect when you
acknowledge that a wave isn’t yours or
understanding when you see a tourist who napped
their way into the form of a walking tomato.
It says “thank you” when someone lets you cut in front of
them in traffic or “THANK YOU” when someone gives you
extra cheese with your cheesy chips.
It says, “I’m alright” when you’re trying the whole ‘walk
away dramatically’ stunt. It expresses a silent friendship
and solidarity without any words.

ORIGIN OF THE SHAKA SIGN

The Shaka is a symbol of the
Aloha spirit and has become a part of

surf culture all around the world.
The most popular legend of the origin

of the Shaka sign is
about a man named Hamana Kalili.
Hamana was a worker who lost the
three middle fingers on his right hand during
work at the sugar mill, leaving him with only
a thumb and pinkie. After working

at the sugar mill he became a
security guard on the sugar train
where kids would jump on and make the Shaka signal
to communicate that Hamana wasn’t looking
their way and in the process make fun of him.

LANGUAGE OF SURF

ATE IT
(eyt it) verb
to bail on a wave so badly that people start
using eating to describe the pain

RAD MAN
(rad man) noun
an incredibly skilled surfer; over-achiever of the sea

STEALING THE BEACH
(stee-ling th-uh beech) verb
an act performed by a sand smuggler, so skilled in his craft that even
he doesn’t know he’s criminal… until of course, he soils the shower floor

WHITE WHALE
(wahyt weyl) verb
a surfer who surfs in the nude, also known as full moons, or the juicy
peaches of the sea; warning, not always ‘fantasstic’

TALK STORY
(tawk stohr-ee) verb
when someone starts telling you a story
about a wave that is irrelevant unless
you were actually there; usually done by a
silver surfer, talking about that one set in 84’

LAND LORD
(land lawrd) noun
the debt collector of the sea, he’s great and white; he’s a
lone shark, literally

MARLEY
(mahr-lee) noun
a name for a surfer who spent the whole day in the sea,
causing extreme happiness, hunger, exhaustion
and of course red eyes

LANGUAGE OF SEA

SPIN CYCLE
(spin sahy-kuh l) noun
refers to the sea taking the form of washing
machine with a surfer playing the part of that one
lonely sock

DUMPER
(duhmp-er) noun
a wave that dumps you so low you reach rock bottom;
it’s as if it broke up with you, on Valentines Day, over text

RIP TIDE
(rip tahyd) noun
water that rushes from the shore to the sea faster than a taxi
in the emergency lane; usually the cause of fleeing bikini tops
and sand storm butts; this tide is dangerous but when paddling
isnt an option, surfers catch a ride

GLASSY
(glah-see) adjective
when the sea’s surface is as smooth as your
fiberglass surfboard

TOMBSTONE
(toom-stohn) noun
when you get dragged to the under-sea-world and
your board sticks straight up out the
surface like a tombstone

CULTURAL DRESSWARE

BIKINI
A two piece swimming costume worn by
women and girls; underwear you can swim in.

FULL SWIMSUIT
A one piece version of the bikini, that covers the
torso and gives one a ‘ragretful’ tan;
worn by women and girls.

BRAZILIAN BIKINI
Refers to the bottom half of a bikini; also known as butt floss, the
kind of swimsuit that says “Hey sand, let me steal you.”

SPRINGSUIT
A short legged wetsuit, with long or short arms, typically worn in
the summer time. Says “not today,” to the sun and cold; cycling
outfit for the sea.

STEAMER
A full body wetsuit with long arms and legs,

usually worn in the winter. Turns you into
a polar bear at a hefty price, but makes you

diamond durable.

BANANA HAMOCK
Also known as an under the butt nut hut.
This male one piece swimsuit is good for tanning,

at home, on a private balcony.

BOARD SHORTS
The most popular and widely accepted form of surf dressware.

HI THIGHS
Board shorts that stop mid-thigh in attempt to show off that one does not skip

leg day.

CULTURAL EXPERIENCE

THE QUEST

It starts with bare feet imprinting the
beach with ready to find fossils, with traces of
life in the form of toes, heels, sizes and depths one
could read like a story of patterns. The quest meets
the ocean as toes dip in; signalling for shrills to
domino up your spine. You start to move deeper, your
instrument floating in front of you, trying to decide whether
to sway with you or the waves. You fully submerse in the big
body of blue, the only mirror the sky lends its reflection to. You
jump onto your fiberglass companion with balance your goal; you paddle
and paddle some more, pushing through the peak and crash of a force much
greater than your own. You rise up and duck under waves that wash your mind
of worries belonging to the land. Your bare feet, now clothed in salt, you’ve
reached the calm before your very own storm.

YOUR QUEST IS COMPLETED, YOUR REWARD IS EDEN.

THE CALM

You’ve completed your quest; you’ve reached
the oceanic Eden, its surface like a glass wall
separating two worlds. Your legs stretched over
your fiberglass companion, the kind you know so
well that breaking the silence isn’t necessary.
Your ears catch the ocean’s song, it’s surround sound,
you’re surrounded by sound, a crashing, a spraying,
a rolling back and forth, the presence of a seagull’s echo
through the atmosphere, a bubbling and no sound at all;
the absence of sound is sound in itself. You sit there, rocking back
and forth; I guess that’s why they call it a ‘sea’ saw. Like the salt flavours
the sky so you are flavoured, tastier and bettered by the calm. Embraced by the
perfected emptiness, it’s the kind of calm you don’t have to close your eyes to feel,
the kind that makes you aware of your involuntary breathes, the kind that turns up the
volume on your thoughts. You sit there between the two contrasting worlds of sea and
sky, and in the way they find calm in meeting each other,

YOU FIND SOME TOO

THE PLUNGE

In the calm, you spot a ripple becoming a swell,
becoming a wave becoming a water wall. Your body
pancaked on your board, you flip around with
movements drenched. You start to paddle with sloth
length arms, both your engine and your rudder. The
force pushes you out and drags you in, as if you’re a shell
and the shore’s playing peekaboo. You feel it, the gravity of
the monster from under the seabed. Hands high-five your
board, arms push up, chest to the shore, leap to sideways feet
with a solid hello to stubborn wax. Knees bent, you slide down the wave
like a raindrop on a windscreen, you’re a victim to gravity and wouldn’t have
it any other way. With a frenzied zoo in your stomach you fall into the feeling that the
world is so much more than your oyster. The monster that chased you becomes what
propelled you to your greatest height. Your wave exists for only a moment before it becomes
one with the sea, leaving foam as a hug goodbye, and you with the craving for more. As the
vanishing wave showers you with the realization that land couldn’t possibly be your true
home. Because if home is where the heart is you belong in the ocean,

YOURS IS THE HEART THAT BEATS FOR THE PLUNGE

CULTURAL PRACTICES

AERIAL
(air-ee-uh l) noun
a manoeuvre where the sea waves upgrade
a surfer to air waves and allow him to land back
on his feet, 9 lives style

LAYBACK
(ley-bak) noun
a manoeuvre where the surfer uses the wave’s
momentum to lay his back on or in the wave, using
it like a jacuzzi jet

HANG TEN
(hang ten) noun
a manoeuvre where a surfer riding a long board puts his
feet on the nose of the board, cliff over waterfall style

BARREL
(bar-ul h) noun
a hollow wave you surf in; that one waterslide
that always has a qeue; the doughnut of the sea

360
(three siks-tee) noun
a manoeuvre where a surfer spins 360 degrees
on the face of a wave; surf panaroma

Hang Eleven
(hang ih-lev-uh n) noun
a manoeuvre where a male surfer surfs in the nude… I’m sure
you get it

CULTURAL GROUND
KWADUKUZA

It stretches from the Zinkwazi River to the
Tongaat River of the South, dominates
that North Coast of KwaZulu-Natal and
occupies both a coastal and inland area

of 629 square km. Decorated in canes of sugar
and evidence of our diet’s misfortune, it is home

to Tongaat Hullet Sugar, one of the largest
productions of its kind in the world. The well-developed
railways and roads ensure we get to have one or seven
regretful tastes. The land’s wildlife includes money animals,
the big five. The bird’s that occupy the sky are the rare kind,
so be sure to let that one bird lover friend of yours know. Plant life covers
the area like an over priced knitted blanket. An exploration of the land brings
the discovery of the smaller kingdoms Zimbali, Blythedale, Zinkwazi, Darnall,
Groutville, Shakaskraal, Umhlali, Stanger and Ballito, with a loyal population of
170,000 and an extra 300,000 sun seekers during peak season.

This land is drenched in a cocktail
blend of Zulu, Indian and British culture,
with eastern cuisine almost as famous as
King Shaka himself, as it fights its own war
of the taste buds. This land is home of
historics, the big Kahunas.

THE PEACEKEEPER

Africa’s first Nobel Peace Prize receiver, Albert
Luthuli, is of the land, receiving this award for his
struggle against Apartheid. A man with a national
monument in his honour, a museum making use of his original
home, giving the curious an opportunity to step into the place
where his passion for change brewed. With the restoration of
his grave and the church of his death his legacy lives on.

THE WARRIOR

The Zulu Kingdom is imprinted on this
landscape with one of the best war

leaders in history a local. King Shaka Zulu
took the land as his battle ground,

claiming over 100 chiefdoms for his Kingdom.
Shaka was called Nodumehlez meaning

“the one who when seated, causes the earth
to rumble.” Though the location of his grave is
unknown, there exists a memorial site with the rock on
which he was assassinated included. Shaka day started as
a way to remember his legacy and transformed into the
national holiday, Heritage Day. Nelson Mandela stated, “Our
rich, diverse heritage has the power to build our nation.”

THE EDUCATOR

Professor Kader Asmal was a young boy
when he met Chief Albert Luthuli and was
changed forever. He studied English, Political
Science, History, and Economics both locally
and abroad and started the British and Irish
Anti-Apartheid Movements. He became the
Minister of Education and made the education
system more accessible to all. He was known as one
of the best Ministers in South Africa.

Home to history makers, and one of South Africa’s greatest
Heritage sites, with summer overtaken by one of Africa’s most
popular Matric festivals. Reserves dedicated to nature and wildlife,
twelve different beaches lining the coast, sites overpowered by history and culture,
outdoor activities like hiking, canoeing and kayaking for the adventurers and popular
accommodation and restaurants for those with a passion for luxury.

Built on Dukuza, King Shaka’s Royal Settlement, the land of surf - KwaDukuza.

CULTURAL KING

Duke Kahanamoku was born in Honolulu,
Hawaii in 1890 and grew up in Waikiki

where he spent his childhood in the sea.
Duke is well known for the longest ride on
a wave of his time, where he road for 1 1/8
miles in Waikiki. In his lifetime he broke 3
lifestyle world records at the first swimming
races in Honolulu Harbour at the age of 21,
in his various 100-meter freestyle events in his life
he won two Olympic Gold Medals and one Silver Medal and
as a part of the U.S. relay team he won another Olympic Silver
and Gold Medal. With his last Medal, at the age of 42, an Olympic Bronze

as part of the U.S. water polo team.

In 1914, Duke introduced surfing to the U.S., New Zealand and Australia and popularised
the sport. In 1918, he raised money for the war effort by swimming in 30 cities at
exhibitions and used this platform to recommend surfing as an Olympic event.

In his thirties, Duke acted in over 28
movies in Hollywood, during which he
was praised for his board rescue of 8
drowning men in California. By the time
he reached his forties, Duke became the
Honolulu Sherriff, where he was re-elected
into the position 13 times over, and in his
seventies he was appointed Hawaii’s Official
Ambassador of Aloha. He was later named a
U.S. Representative at the Melbourne Olympics and
an official guest at the Tokyo Olympics.

Duke was the first person to be inducted into both the
Swimming and Surfing Halls of Fame and after his death he was
also inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame and a statue was erected in his
honour in Waikiki and Sydney, Australia. In the same year his name was added to
the Huntington Beach Surfer Walk of Fame and Biarritz, France Surf Festival was
named in is honour. Perhaps the most unique attempt to honour him was in 2002,
when the U.S. Postal Service released a limited edition first-class stamp displaying
Duke in his youth, the beginnings of the Culture King.

SURFING IS ABOUT

DISCRIMINATION

It’s about discriminating between the force
of waves and the calm of the flat. It’s about
preferring a dance with the sea over a dance
with more feet, wrinkled skin over preserving
tight perfection. It’s about choosing horses that
swim over horses that gallop, salt on skin over salt on
food, gardens of coral over gardens of flowers, bubbles of
air over bubbles of soap, pearls in oysters over those
adorning necks. It’s about discriminating against shoes on your
feet for foot prints etched in sand, loving sun over shade, water
over dirt, sand in your pants over everyday clothing and flying over walking.
Surfing is about discriminating against normal life and available bliss, the life
that has you and the life that wants you, the place you are and the place you
belong, the home you were given and the home you were meant to have. Surfing
is about discrimination, of the ordinary and the magnificent.

SURFING IS ABOUT

RACE

The race to your feet when your alarm
clock rings, the race to dive in with feet
burnt. The race to duck under and over, under
and over, breath held and released again and
again. It’s about the race to flip around to face the
kissing shore, the race to catch the force before it
passes you by. It’s the race to go from belly to hands to
feet to fall to start all over again. It’s the race to catch as
many waves as freckles on your face, as wrinkles on your skin,
as rays on your body, as salt on your form. The race to abandon
everyday thrills to savour the greatest of them all. The race to stand up, to
look ahead, to be brave, to tremble, to fall, to sink and to be caught by bubbling
foam. Surfing is about race, the race for all.

SURFING IS ABOUT

COLOUR

It’s the colour of the sky when you wake
up at dawn. The colour of your hair from the

sun’s careful watch. The colour of the sea
glass that stencils the shore. The hue of the
sky that the ocean takes on for the day, the

white fluffy foam that signals the peak of
force. It’s the colours you see with eyes as
goggles under the pressure of crashing force. It’s the
darkened sky that forces you to acknowledge you
live on land. The colour of the sand as it’s drenched by the sea, the
colour of board shorts in and out of waves, the colour of your skin to signal
a good day. The colour left over of the picture you see before you go under,
the blurred hues of the spin cycle you can’t find yourself in. The colour of sea
gardens that harbour fin life. Surfing is about colour, all of them.

IN SUPPORT OF SURFERS
NOT STREET CHILDREN

SHARE CULTURE

REFERENCES

BOOK REFERENCES

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(Mockup World, 2016)



IN SUPPORT OF SURFERS
NOT STREET CHILDREN

SHARE CULTURE