Swell Season Surf Radio

Nick Hounsfield was introduced to surfing by his father Brian in the mid 1970s on his regular visits to Cornwall in the United Kingdom. He has been an avid surfer ever since. Nick became an Osteopath by trade and founded a successful family business with this wife. But as time wore on and when Nick’s father passed away in the late 2000’s, he started to think about the world a little differently. H...

Often overlooked for the warmer waters of its Hawaiian and Californian counterparts, the Atlantic coast of New Jersey has been home to surfing for 135 years, and in turn has held unsung influence over the history of the sport in America. -    Danny DiMauro and Johan Kugelberg.  Our Guests today are the contributors to the latest book from Rizzoli Publishing aptly names: I Heard There Were No Waves...

In this conversation, Kwame La Bassiere interviews Dr. Giovanni Martinez, a clinical psychologist in Puerto Rico who works with children with autism. Dr. Martinez started the organization Surf4Dem, which uses surf therapy to help children with autism improve their social communication skills, sensory processing disorders, and muscular tone. The therapy also has a positive impact on the families, a...

We have a very special episode for you today. We had the good fortune to be asked to host a live Q&A with the 5x WSL Women’s World Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist, Carissa Moore at PIlgrim Surf & Supply to help promote her new book with Rizzoli Publishing named Hawaii Gold. The book is stunning and is Carissa’s homage to her home islands of Hawaii. Our conversation explores her journey...

On this episode, we sit and talk with Stylist and Rockaway resident, Jesse James.  Our conversation follows her journey from Martha's Vineyard to NYC, reflecting on the fusion of community, identity, and the dynamic blend of culture and surfing. We delve into her evolving career and how her unique style and blend of thrift store savvy helped to lead her on an unexpected path. We tackle some of her...

On this episode, Our guest John Zator and Host Tyler Breuer explore the profound impact of Lido Surf and Sport on New York's surfing scene during the mid 90's. We delve into John's journey, highlighting the shops innovative approach to building a vibrant community hub. John also reflects on his personal triumphs, health struggles, and the transformative power of surfing, emphasizing the enduring i...

In this episode of the WeSurf podcast, Kwame LaBassiere interviews two female surfers, Berna and Beah, about their experiences in the surfing community. They discuss how they got into surfing and the challenges they faced as beginners. The conversation also touches on the importance of etiquette in the lineup and the gray areas surrounding who has the right of way. Additionally, they explore the u...

Patrick Trefz is a multitalented individual known for his work as a photographer, chef, painter, and filmmaker. Trefz has gained recognition for his documentaries, including Thread, Idiosyncrasies, Surfer's Blood, and Man in the Field, which have received acclaim and featured in various publications. In his latest project, Ode to Travel , Trefz's explores the world mixing the metropolitan and the...

Welcome to episode 7 of the We Surf podcast. Often you will hear surfers referred to as Wave Dancers. On this episode we meet wave dancers who are also ballet dancers. Mei and Shui Lee or as their instagram handle refers to them as The Lee Twins. Kwame discusses speaks to them about how and why they started surfing. How their dance background has helped their surfing. And some of the experiences t...

Welcome to episode 6 of the WeSurf podcast. This episode is done a little differently. Co-host Kwame Labassiere, recorded this episode while in Puerto Rico at the International Surf Therapy Organization conference. While there he interviewed professional surfer Chris Dennis from Trinidad and Tobago. Chris is the co-founder of Waves for Hope, an organization that runs youth development programs tha...

Sarah Aziza and Caleb Winship are two star crossed lovers, Sarah, is Palestinian and Caleb is Jewish. In the shadow of the horrific events taking place in the middle east, they provide a light and hope for the future. Sarah and Caleb share how they met and developed their relationship. Sarah, as a Palestinian-American, talks about her upbringing, struggling with her identity, and navigating the ch...

On this episode, Guest Host Toddy Stewart brings back onto the show, filmmaker, artist, publisher and all around amazing person, Mick Sowry. The two take a deep dive into his life as it revolves around his surfing experience, his career transitions and creative processes in art and photography. Mick opens up about his relationship with his wife late wife, Sue and how he coped with her loss, and hi...

On this episode of WeSurf Nigel and Kwame speak with documentary filmmaker and reborn surfer Mosiah Moonsammy. An award winning filmmaker based in NYC, Mosiah's last project “Last Bodega In Brooklyn” played internationally on the film festival circuit and was received with rave reviews. After meeting Nigel at Station RBNY, Mosiah became interested in telling Nigel’s story and showing the world wha...

Set aside some time for this doozy of an episode! It could have happened anytime, anywhere. But our guest’s story takes place in Santa Barbara, California from 1980 to 1983. Four short years thatsaw a giant leap forward in the development of West Coast surfing, design, performance and image. It was set off by a rare combination of individuals, innovation and illumination,against a backdrop of some...

Nikki Van Dijk was a major threat on the women’s Championship Tour. Her best season on tour was in 2017 where she reached No. 7 on the Leaderboard after claiming her first CT victory at the Cascais Women’s Pro in Portugal. Her style is smooth rail surfing shaped by her years of honing her approach on Phillip Island, a remote little enclave that’s a day trip away from Melbourne, Australia. She inhe...

On this episode, we are joined with Author, Award Winning Filmmaker, Podcaster and Surf Trip Guru, Laurel Senick. She just completed her first novel, Foam, a surf adventure with a female protagonist, Casasandra Lee who is an out of work journalist whose life is in shambles and runs to Rincon Puerto Rico in hopes of realizing her dreams. It’s when she is researching a free diver’s death, she uncove...

If you live with the myths in your mind, you will find yourself always in mythological situations. They cover everything that can happen to you. And that enables you to interpret the myth in relation to life, as well as life in relation to myth. - Joseph Campbell Our guest is former pro surfer, writer, rescue and relief activist, Matt George. He is someone who helped to create and build the myths...

Our Guest is a trailblazer in the surfing world. On March 2022, Sasha Jane Lowerson placed ninth in the Noosa Festival of Surfing, becoming the first trans woman to compete in surfing at the professional level. Two months later, she placed first in the Open Women's and Women's Logger divisions at the Western Australian State Titles. This win garnered her a lot of attention and has provoked the sur...

Liam Tracy is a creative force. He has worked as a creative director with massive companies such as Peloton, ROC Nation, Burton, Faherty bros, Colling Media, Mr. Purple, Kachava and more… Under his alias, " Duppy" , Liam creates beautiful, poppy paintings that carry influences from skate and street art. His work is reminiscent of a beautiful blend of Barry Mcgee, Ed Templeton and Peter Webb. Liam...

For Rockaway residents, many of your are very familiar with our guest, a longtime Rockaway resident and an OG documentarian of the people in this community. You can sometimes find her surfing off the jetties uptown at beaches we will not mention. Our guest is none other than amazingly talented Susannah Ray! Her work on long form documentary projects, such as Right Coast , A Further Shore and What...

Beachgrit is notorious for their tabloid style content and click bait titles. Some more controversial than others but, always interesting to read. We started to notice about a year ago some articles coming out, covering the New York / Mid Atlantic Surf Scene. Our humble and sometimes forgotten-about community was getting some storylines and coverage in one of the most sensational surf tabloids. Be...

Listeners… Have you ever hand shaped a surfboard? Have you ever had the desire to try and mow foam with a planer and ride something you made? Or make a board that you might have seen but don’t have access to? Shea Somma is a shaper out of the central coast of California who started hand shaping boards in 2008, out of the curiosity to try new designs and shapes that weren’t as available to him at t...

Gina Jurlando used to joke about the group of women she surfed with calling themselves Yeasty Boys. What was initially a silly way to describe her surf crew, has expanded into a group of surfers of all levels, genders, backgrounds, and towns who want to learn, want to teach, or just want a buddy to paddle out with. Yeasty Boys was founded in 2021 after learning of how many femme folks were hesitan...

Letting go, surrendering into who you are, and finding flow. The art of comedy is the art of connection. On this episode of the Blackpool New York Podcast, Greg got to spend some time with Seth Herzog, a man whose story follows a trajectory of connection. From 5th Grade talent shows to the deserts of Iraq, to NBC’s “The Tonight Show,” Seth is plugged into the mycelium humanity. Plug your ears into...

In the current episode of the Art & Design Series on Swell Season Surf Radio, Chris Coffin and Chris Labzda sit down with Tripoli Patterson; Gallery Owner, Curator, Ex-Pro Surfer and East End Local. Born in Sag Harbor, “Trip” had youth full of travel and exposure to surf culture and art. His transient upbringing took him from New Zealand, to the North Shore of Oahu, and to Bali, but ultimately...