Fights Are a Part of It

Name: Jason Sporer

Age: 24

Lives: P.B.

Surfing: O.B.

Pre-Surf Music: Tool

Post-Surf Food: Smoothie

“Fights are definitely part of the surf culture. I’ve never been directly involved, but new surfers should stay out of the way.” Jason Sporer’s advice to beginners is, “Don’t be a kook. Not to be mean, but new surfers need to learn in the right spot — like, Tourmaline in Pacific Beach. They shouldn’t overdo their boundaries. There are people who should stick to their areas and it would be fine. You have to deal with situations where people do not belong out in the water; not because of their personality, just because of their skill level.”

Sporer has surfed since he was nine years old. In that time, he’s traveled the world in pursuit of his hobby. His “trippiest experience” came while on an excursion to “the south island of New Zealand last September. There are so many cool things to see, but you have to hike to a lot of the surf spots through miles of sheep ranches and stuff.”

Over the past nine years, Sporer has worked with board shapers and shops. When conditions are tempting, he says coworkers understand if he blows off work to go surfing. As to the future of surfboard manufacturing in the U.S., he says, “As long as we can stick together and keep the Chinese boards from getting in and people from buying those, it will be fine.”

Sporer’s worst surfing injury occurred three years ago.

“I sliced my foot open with my fin. I went up for a floater…when I came down my board was upside down and my fin went right into the bottom of my foot and split it wide open. I came in and got rushed to the hospital; I ended up with 12 stitches.”