◎ Hanging LOOSE - A Day in the Life of a Taiwanese Surfer <2009-08-03>

The islandnation ofTaiwan isblessed withseveral surfbreaksdottedaround itsoftenrugged andbeautifulcoastline.Whilstplaces onthe east andsouth coastof the mainisland aremorepopularlyknown assurfingdestinations,the northcoast — lessthan anhour fromthe capital,Taipei —offers somedecentwaves forboth theserioussurfer andthosewanting tojust playabout.

Hanging

LOOSEA Day in the Life ofa Taiwanese Surfer

By Jay Acton

In Jinshan, Subee is not always onthe beach. He also works on surfboards at his shop and informs othersurfers about current surfingconditions on his blog

Surfing allows Subee to live a laid-backlife that offers him the freedom

to do what he loves

he town of Jinshan is the top spot on the north coast in terms of wave size andconsistency, and this is where you will find Subee, a local Taipei-born surfer, surf-

shop owner, surf teacher, surf blogger, and founder of the North Coast Surf Club.

Subee's Tube Factory surf shop, North Coast Surf Club HQ, and home stand right onthe coast looking east over the Jinshan break and the sparkling Pacific Ocean. The threeare all housed in the same building. He is often up early to see the sun rise over thehorizon and check out the prospects for the day's surf. If it's looking particularly good,he'll post a quick note and maybe a photo on his blog (http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/tube-tw) before getting out into the water to test the waves for himself.

Of his one hundred or so club members, more than a dozen or so may turn up fromTaipei in the early morning if they see a favorable report on Subee's blog, and a lot moreif it's on the weekend.Club members store their surfboards with Subee and are able toshower and relax at the club HQ after they've finished their morning surf, the unluckyones reluctantly rushing back to the city for their work obligations.

T

Subee sees surfing as a lifestyle. For him it is an opportunity to escape from the 9 to 5existence that traps so many of us. While there may not be a whole lot of money to bemade in surfing, it's a laid-back approach to life that offers him the freedom to do what heloves.

Subee has a number of surfboards he rents out from the beach, so in the busier summermonths he will often be at his beach “office” supplying boards to the board-less. Fromhere, he will also offer his services as a teacher to those looking for a little help in gettingstarted. On the day of our visit we are transformed into a couple of aspiring surfers he canteach, and he takes us along the beach to where the waves are a little gentler and lays thesurfboards down on the sand. Subee instructs us as to where on the board we should lieand takes us through the three steps to catching a wave.

The first step, after paddling hard as the wave approaches, is to place your palms downon the board next to your shoulders, your fingers stretched out over the edge of the board.The second step, explains Subee, is to stand up with your favored leg toward the back endof the board and your other leg near the middle of the board. This is quickly followed bythe third step, which is to turn your feet from facing the front of the board to a side-onposition. “And that's it, you're surfing!”

Well, we're not really surfing; we have to get into the water first. It's time to get wetand put the theory into action.

The Basics Before going in thewater, every beginner has to practicethe "move", from lying on the boardto standing up, on dry land.

After opening his surf shop, Subee hasdedicated himself to surfing full-time

Once in and floating in anticipation, Subee advises me on a suitable wave, and as itdraws near I start paddling. With a helpful push from Subee, I've caught the wave. I feelits power pushing me along and see the water rushing past me. I put my hands down onthe board and stand up. I'm wobbly, but I'm up! I lean into and away from the wave,making a few small turns, before I lose my balance and fall into the water, grinning.

Subee took the first step on his path to becoming a surfer when, as a teenager, hewaded into the water one day on the north coast's Green Bay. He felt the raw power ofthe waves and was mesmerized. After finishing his studies, while working for a softwarecompany he had the opportunity to travel to Hawaii on business. Hawaii is the home ofsurfing, and after playing around in the waves there, Subee became obsessed. He beganreading surfing magazines, and he took the first opportunity he had to learn how to surfon a 4-day course at a surfing school at Honeymoon Bay, another surf-break close toTaipei, on the northeast coast.

From then on Subee didn't look back. Surfing became his life, and he started the SharkRange Surf Club in 1999, a collection of surfers based in Taipei who would hit the wavestogether. In 2003 he opened the Tube Factory surf shop, dedicating himself to surfingfull-time. Subee has watched the popularity of surfing in Taiwan grow rapidly over thelast ten years, reflected in the growth of his surf club, which has evolved into the present-day North Coast Surf Club and has around 100 members.

The waves at Jinshan get bigger in the winter, with northerly winds hurtling downalong the coast of China and running headlong into Taiwan. The beach crowds getsmaller due to the cooler weather, which means Subee has more time to be in the waterdoing what he loves doing most of all. The winter also offers him a chance to get awayoverseas for a surfing trip with his friends to Bali or Hawaii or anywhere the waves aregood.

Subee divides his time between being down at the beach and back up at his shopupdating his blog. On the really busy summer weekends and holidays he might be at thebeach all day before heading back up to the shop to get the barbecue started and have afew beers with the club members and anyone else lucky enough to be around.

Upstairs above the Tube Factory, Subee has simple, comfortable accommodation forthose wanting to stay overnight and make the most of the early-morning waves. Herecommends that overnight guests call in advance to make a booking. An afternoonarrival offers time to settle in and get in some play at the beach before the barbecue isfired up, or for heading into town for the famous Jinshan duck or some fresh seafood.Then, if the conditions are right, there might even be time for a moonlit night-surfingsession.

Besides being peaceful andclose to nature, surfing is,

above all, just fun

TUBE FACTORY / Subee(波管工廠)

TEL: 0932-395-165ADD: 91 Haixing Rd., Jinshan

Township, Taipei County

After a good night’s sleep there are more waves tobe had in the morning and, if you want a change ofscene from the beach, there's time to explore thearea. Ju Ming, Taiwan’s world-famous sculptor, hashis beautiful Juming Museum in the mountains closeby, where one could easily spend a day wanderingaround admiring the art and the naturalsurroundings.

For those with a more spiritual bent, themonastery founded by another of Taiwan’s mostfamous citizens, the late Master Sheng-yen, is alsonearby. This mountain-side retreat, called DharmaDrum Mountain, looks out over Jinshan and thePacific and is truly a place of spiritual cultivation.Visitors are welcome but should call first.

When asked what he likes about surfing, Subeehas a simple answer: “It's fun! Of course you can talk about it as a ‘soul sport’ like theydo in Hawaii, and the peacefulness of it and its closeness to nature, but at the end of theday, no one would do it if it wasn't fun.”Although he insists on reducing the experiencedown to the basic element of fun, Subee does see surfing as a metaphor for life. “In life,opportunities come like waves,” he says. “There's no time to think about it, we have to beready and willing to catch it when it comes because it may not come again.” Luckily, thewaves are consistent enough at Jinshan that if you miss one you needn't worry; there'll beanother one coming soon.

A Way of Life In surfing, opportunities come as waves,and when they come, it's a whole lot of fun.

(台北縣金山鄉海興路91號)WEB:http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/tube-

tw (in Chinese)JUMING MUSEUM

(朱銘美術館)TEL: 02-2498-9940ADD: 2 Xishihu, Jinshan

Township,Taipei County(台北縣金山鄉西勢湖2號)

WEB:www.juming.org.twDHARMA DRUM MOUNTAIN

(法鼓山)TEL: 02-2498-7171ADD: 14-5, Sanjie Village, Jinshan

Township, Taipei County(台北縣208金山鄉三界村七鄰半¿-14-5號)

WEB:www.ddm.org.tw