Parker is 13 years old and is a 7th grader at Oak Crest Middle School. He told me he has been surfing for eight years, but that number goes up substantially if you count the fact that his father, Chuck, put him on a surfboard in Hawaii at the ripe, old age of three months with Parker’s mom “Debbie” watching as a spectator, still till this day.
Parker comes from a surfing family. His father, and older brother are also surfers. His father has been involved in the sport for decades, both competing and working in the industry at Surfer Magazine back in the day and currently working for Reef. Thus, it was natural for Parker to follow in their footsteps. He is also a multi-sport athlete. He enjoys skating, bodyboarding, mountain biking and Hawaiian Kenpo Karate. He has been practicing the latter for nine years and is currently preparing for his black belt test; a significant achievement for a 13 year old in a discipline that involves both physical and mental toughness.
Parker told me he likes surfing for fun and for the social aspect of spending time with his friends and family. He is also a competitor. He works with a variety of coaches and has placed in a number of surfing (short/longboard & bodyboarding) competitions. His competitive spirit doesn’t stop at the water’s edge however, as he also competes in karate tournaments placing second in his division in his last outing.
During his interview Parker struck me as a little shy, something his dad assured me was completely out of character. However, when we got to the surfing portion of the session I think the real Parker showed up. Dressed in his wetsuit and carrying his board he walked confidently into the surf. He paddled strongly out to the reef, sat back and read the waves, and stood up and rode well on three good ones while I was there shooting.
I enjoyed meeting Parker and his dad. They clearly have a strong bond, the fabric of which is reinforced by their mutual love of surfing, mountain biking and martial arts. It was easy for me to see that Parker is doing an awesome job of carrying on the family tradition of excelling in these action sports.
Written by Nicholas Paoni
