malibu mpa blue ribbon task force…oct 21…

MPA Malibu..Blue Ribbon T

participate...oct 21...

Task Force Meeting…

surfmonk.com …free shipping all usa orders….

surfs up…surfmonk.com…free shipping all usa orders…special international shipping rates available…

free shipping all usa orders….

Hanging with the legends, Monking the Champions

The 2009 “Battle of the Paddle” was a gear-heavy festival of super-fitness and fun! Sparky, Rainbow, founder and creative director, and surf-legend Jerry Lopez both told us how much they love their SurfMonks. Jerry lives up on Hood River, and said- ” Surfmonk is a forever thing”

Our booth was busy- we sold many pieces to tourists and competitors alike- Jericho Poppler..arguably the women’s all time pioneer in surfing and U.S and World Champion is pictured here in her sky mid legnth- 8 time Molokai Channel Race Winner , big wave surfer World Champion Paddle Surfer Jaimie Mitchel rocked out in a sky full length, and the 14yr old Slater Trout who is undoubtedly going to be a force to be reckoned with rocked out in a coco hoodie…there were SurfMonks everywhere in the crowd watching the action..

SurfMonk’s Stand Up Paddle relay team consisted of Claudia ( founder, Rob, co director) Phil (coach) and Seth ( the ringer)…we gave it our best…it was a tough crowd…and lets just say we finished ahead of Sparky and Jerry…wind, waves, …a beautiful day!

join SurfMonk…October 3rd and 4th, 2009
Doheny State Beach, Dana Point, CA

• Stand Up Paddle Races and Relays for all levels

• Stand Up Paddleboard and Paddle Manufacturers Expo
• $25,000 Prize Money

• Music, Food, Family Entertainment & Kids Activities

• Battle of the paddle Luau Saturday Evening, Oct 3

• Proceeds Benefit the Doheny State Beach Interprative
  Association

October 3rd and 4th, 2009
Doheny State Beach, Dana Point, CA

Battle of the Paddle- Doheny State Beach Oct 3 and 4

SurfMonk is proud to be a co-sponsor with Rainbow Sandals… Join us in OC at Doheny Beach State Park October 3 and 4. Our Surfmonk relay team is scheduled to race at 4p.m. on Sunday…could be choppy, but we’ll give it our best! ck www.rainbowsandals.com

Tsunami update- Sumatra

SurfMonk checked in on our friends based in Padang-  thankfully, Martin Daly of the Indies Trader and his boats were at sea during the earthquake…his home in Padang will need to be rebuilt…but he and his surf-exploring vessels are safe as is his crew. To get the update on the Mentawai relief efforts…please got to www.surfaid.org

How American Chefs are Making Sustainable and Traditional Sushi

Tuesday, May. 19 2009 @ 9:44AM

Since I’ve been thinking about sustainable seafood lately, and lamenting that one of my favorite foods, sushi, is a big part of the problem, I was interested to find an article in this month’s Atlantic on a new wave of sushi chefs who care about sustainability and the authentic sushi experience. The surprising thing about these sushi chefs is that they’re American. Not Japanese-American, but American, and of every stripe.

The author, Trevor Carson, who also wrote The Story of Sushi, recounts that when he came back to the US after living in Japan, he was perturbed to find that, even when he sat at the sushi counter, Japanese sushi chefs in America didn’t really chat with their customers about what was available and seasonal, which he says is an integral part of the authentic sushi experience in Japan.

Not only that, but the fish served was totally unsustainable:

“…most sushi chefs in the U.S. have neglected the Japanese style of eating and force-fed us simplistic menus that feature the least environmentally friendly–and least healthful–items: at the high end, bluefin tuna; at the low end, fatty belly cuts from lesser tuna; along with fatty industrial salmon, and factory-farmed shrimp and eel saturated in sugar. Until the latter half of the 20th century, none of these was considered suitable fare by connoisseurs of traditional sushi; none adheres to the Japanese practice of highlighting local, seasonal ingredients.”

But there is a growing number of American sushi chefs who are serving sustainable fish, and also creating the close chef-customer relationship that’s integral to sushi. At Fin Sushi in Lenox, MA, a young Caucasian sushi chef runs his restaurant with an emphasis on sitting at the counter where chef and customer can talk, and won’t serve bluefin tuna, because it’s going extinct. He serves fish such as mackerel marinated in a bit of salt and vinegar, which is not only delicious and sustainable, but also traditional.

Then there’s Marisa Baggett, an African-American chef in Memphis who uses local ingredients, and educates her customers about sushi etiquette by drawing parallels to Southern manners, and a sushi restaurant with a Caucasian chef in Portland, Oregon, that has just had its menu certified sustainable by conservation groups.

If it feels odd to you to be served sushi by non-Japanese, consider that many of the sushi restaurants in New York are actually owned by Chinese folks, and that Latin American chefs are ably cooking virtually every cuisine imaginable. There’s no cooking DNA. And sometimes, a relative outsider, like an American sushi chef, is the one who is able to make needed changes.

[The Atlantic]

SurfMonk Haiku

The shadows of the pelicans are the gods of the small fishes…

SurfMonk supports Marine Life Protection Act Initiative

 

get involved! send email to MLPAComments@resources.ca.gov

the MLPA is a state law that requires California ’s system of marine protected areas be redesigned to better protect California’s marinelife, habitats and ecosystems.