By John Philbin & Ben MarcusWhile teaching Kate <strong>to</strong> be safe in <strong>the</strong> ocean,Philbin had <strong>to</strong> be sure she w<strong>as</strong> safe in <strong>the</strong>ocean because an injury could <strong>have</strong> lead <strong>to</strong>Kate losing <strong>the</strong> part, or delaying <strong>the</strong> start <strong>of</strong>shooting. “I stressed safety in all <strong>of</strong> our sessionsand <strong>the</strong> number one thing I stressedw<strong>it</strong>h Kate – <strong>as</strong> I do w<strong>it</strong>h all my students issimple; protect <strong>you</strong>r head. Surfing is statisticallysafer than cheerleading, certainly saferthan riding a bike, or jumping a horse orsnowboarding or skateboarding, becausewhen <strong>you</strong> fall, <strong>it</strong>’s only water - unless <strong>you</strong> h<strong>it</strong>something hard.We would observe our surf spots at differenttides, and learn how <strong>the</strong> ocean bot<strong>to</strong>mforms <strong>the</strong> waves, we studied how <strong>the</strong> wh<strong>it</strong>ewater revealed <strong>the</strong> shape <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> reefs, rocksand channels, and we mapped out lineups.We worked on <strong>the</strong> b<strong>as</strong>ics- over and overand over again, like taking <strong>the</strong> boards <strong>of</strong>f<strong>the</strong> car and putting <strong>the</strong>m <strong>back</strong> on, waxing<strong>the</strong> boards, attaching and detaching le<strong>as</strong>hes,putting in fins and carrying <strong>the</strong> boards longdistances. The board w<strong>as</strong> a prop and a <strong>to</strong>ol,and familiar<strong>it</strong>y w<strong>as</strong> king. We entered andex<strong>it</strong>ed <strong>the</strong> water over and over and overagain. I usually tell students that this is <strong>the</strong>most dangerous part <strong>of</strong> surfing and <strong>to</strong> treatthis boundary - where <strong>the</strong> water meets <strong>the</strong><strong>land</strong> - w<strong>it</strong>h <strong>the</strong> utmost respect; <strong>as</strong> almost areligious observance.”PADDLE FOR YOUR LIFEWhen <strong>the</strong>re w<strong>as</strong> no surf, we paddled.“Through waves, over waves, under waves...I knew duck diving would be important sowe drilled one hundred duck dives in<strong>to</strong> along distance paddle and when waves gracedour sessions we’d practice catching <strong>the</strong>m.Making a comm<strong>it</strong>ment <strong>to</strong> catch a wave- thisis what usually separates respected surfersfrom all <strong>the</strong> rest and <strong>it</strong> is a qual<strong>it</strong>y that is veryhard <strong>to</strong> teach. Usually <strong>you</strong> just hear a surfinstruc<strong>to</strong>r screaming PADDLE, PADDLE,PADDLE!!!I w<strong>as</strong> out at Waimea Bay <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r day whileKelly Slater w<strong>as</strong> giving his bro<strong>the</strong>r and JonJon Florence a lesson on where <strong>to</strong> s<strong>it</strong> andhow <strong>to</strong> catch a good one at “The Bay”. ‘GO!GO! GO!’ were his <strong>word</strong>s <strong>of</strong> choice, but inorder <strong>to</strong> GO! <strong>you</strong>’ve got <strong>to</strong> PADDLE!, andwe mean paddle hard, harder, paddle <strong>as</strong> hardand <strong>as</strong> f<strong>as</strong>t <strong>as</strong> <strong>you</strong> can. Paddle <strong>as</strong> if <strong>you</strong>r lifedepended on <strong>it</strong>, because someday <strong>it</strong> might.W<strong>it</strong>h moms I change <strong>it</strong> <strong>to</strong>: Paddle <strong>as</strong> if <strong>the</strong> life<strong>of</strong> <strong>you</strong>r child were at stake.”WHAT ARE YOU DOING?Blue Crush ends w<strong>it</strong>h a climactic, two-womanheat at <strong>the</strong> Pipe M<strong>as</strong>ters. Anne Marie h<strong>as</strong>done well enough <strong>to</strong> make <strong>it</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> final,where she meets Keala Kenneally and facesher fears in big, gnarly, 10-foot Pipe, but afterwiping out, Anne Marie is s<strong>it</strong>ting on <strong>the</strong>shoulder, afraid <strong>to</strong> paddle <strong>back</strong> in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> p<strong>it</strong>when she is confronted by Kennally. “Whatare <strong>you</strong> doing?” Kennally says, <strong>the</strong>n guidesher opponent <strong>back</strong> in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> peak whereChadwick snags a perfect wave.It’s a nice ending – a true ending – becauseone thing Bosworth learned about thisstrange, new surfing world is <strong>the</strong> camaraderieshared by everyone paddling around onpieces <strong>of</strong> pl<strong>as</strong>tic.The art <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> movie w<strong>as</strong> Kate’s real<strong>it</strong>ywhile doing a session at Point Dume, “LairdHamil<strong>to</strong>n came by doing his stand up paddlething,” Philbin said, “and <strong>of</strong>fered Kate onetip. He suggested she stand up quickly, <strong>as</strong>soon <strong>as</strong> she could, <strong>as</strong> soon <strong>as</strong> she caught <strong>the</strong>wave. Who’s gonna argue w<strong>it</strong>h Laird? But hehad a point.We are all more coordinated standing on ourfeet than in any o<strong>the</strong>r pos<strong>it</strong>ion, so <strong>it</strong> makessense <strong>to</strong> get <strong>to</strong> our feet <strong>as</strong> soon <strong>as</strong> possible.Pop up drills, by <strong>the</strong> way, are <strong>the</strong> only drillswe can practice on <strong>land</strong> that really come inhandy in <strong>the</strong> water. I first use a line in <strong>the</strong>sand, across which both feet straddle, <strong>the</strong>n anarrow park bench. If <strong>you</strong> can stand up between<strong>you</strong>r hands and under <strong>you</strong>r body on anarrow bench <strong>you</strong> can do <strong>it</strong> on a board.”ALWAYS PROTECT YOURSELFJohn Philbin h<strong>as</strong> taught hundreds <strong>of</strong> beginners<strong>to</strong> surf, but Kate w<strong>as</strong> a l<strong>it</strong>tle differentbecause <strong>the</strong>re w<strong>as</strong> a $30 million dollar movieresting on her shoulders – which weregetting muscular and strong from all <strong>the</strong>paddling.The number one cause <strong>of</strong>injury in surfing is headtrauma caused by <strong>you</strong>rown board. If <strong>you</strong> caneliminate this, <strong>you</strong> maynever get injured surfing.Always protect <strong>you</strong>r headfrom <strong>you</strong>r own board, w<strong>it</strong>h<strong>you</strong>r hands or a helmet. If<strong>you</strong> lose control <strong>of</strong> <strong>you</strong>rboard, <strong>as</strong>sume <strong>it</strong>’s gonnacome <strong>back</strong> and h<strong>it</strong> <strong>you</strong>in <strong>the</strong> head. This way, if<strong>it</strong> ever does, <strong>you</strong>’re readyfor <strong>it</strong>, and can prevent anyserious impact.The o<strong>the</strong>r hard object is <strong>the</strong> ocean bot<strong>to</strong>m.No head-first diving or feet-first jumping; trynot <strong>to</strong> penetrate <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> bot<strong>to</strong>m. It’s best t<strong>of</strong>all flat or dive shallow, while protecting <strong>you</strong>rhead.L<strong>as</strong>t but not le<strong>as</strong>t: o<strong>the</strong>r people and <strong>the</strong>irboards. Tamayo Perry learned that <strong>the</strong> hardway at Pipeline and almost lost his scalp, butgetting h<strong>it</strong> by someone else’s board is a dangerfrom <strong>the</strong> beginner’s spot at <strong>the</strong> end <strong>of</strong>Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> tripleblack diamond Sunset Beach in Hawaii.”THE BIG BREAKPhilbin trained Kate for a solid month, four<strong>to</strong> six days a week, and while he wanted <strong>to</strong>see his <strong>you</strong>ng apprentice do well and get<strong>the</strong> part, he also had <strong>to</strong> be honest w<strong>it</strong>h <strong>the</strong>producers and direc<strong>to</strong>r. “Through <strong>the</strong> fourthweek <strong>of</strong> training I w<strong>as</strong> responsible for calling<strong>the</strong> line producer Rick Delago and direc<strong>to</strong>rJohn S<strong>to</strong>ckwell every day <strong>to</strong> report on Kate’s46 | womenssurfstyle.com | wSSm
Pho<strong>to</strong>s by: John Philbinprogress and learning curve – what skills she w<strong>as</strong> acquiringand her determination. While we were swirling around in<strong>the</strong> ocean, <strong>back</strong> in Hollywood <strong>the</strong>re w<strong>as</strong> a swirl <strong>of</strong> decisionsabout looks, money, studio approval and <strong>the</strong> direc<strong>to</strong>r’s beliefin <strong>the</strong> ac<strong>to</strong>r’s talent for <strong>the</strong> role.”Blue Crush and <strong>the</strong> part <strong>of</strong> Anne Marie w<strong>as</strong> a big deal forKate. It is a miracle when any ac<strong>to</strong>r gets any role because<strong>of</strong> all <strong>the</strong> compet<strong>it</strong>ion, but a starring role in a Brian Grazermovie had <strong>the</strong> potential <strong>to</strong> launch Kate <strong>as</strong> a movie star. It w<strong>as</strong><strong>the</strong> part <strong>of</strong> a lifetime really, for a <strong>you</strong>ng Hollywood hopeful,“Kate got <strong>the</strong> job after <strong>the</strong> fourth week, and we were boths<strong>to</strong>ked,” Philbin said. “Kate’s dedication <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> training hadreally paid <strong>of</strong>f and <strong>it</strong> w<strong>as</strong> rewarding for me <strong>to</strong> help a <strong>you</strong>ngactress get her break. She continued <strong>to</strong> su<strong>it</strong> up and show upfor ano<strong>the</strong>r two weeks before she flew <strong>of</strong>f <strong>to</strong> Hawaii andin<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> capable care <strong>of</strong> Brian Keaulana and Brock L<strong>it</strong>tle - <strong>the</strong>most respected big wave ocean safety team in <strong>the</strong> world.”E X C E L L E N TR AT E DDAILIESAs Kate whirled <strong>of</strong>f <strong>to</strong> Hawaii for a graduate course in Hawaiianpower, Philbin stayed behind in California, wonderinghow his <strong>you</strong>ng apprentice w<strong>as</strong> doing on <strong>the</strong> North Shore. “Idid not see Kate for qu<strong>it</strong>e a while,” says Philbin, “after ourintroduction <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> ocean in California, Kate got pulled in<strong>to</strong><strong>the</strong> big time in Hawaii. I heard that Brock L<strong>it</strong>tle <strong>to</strong>ok her in<strong>to</strong><strong>the</strong> shorebreak at Waimea <strong>to</strong> give her a t<strong>as</strong>te <strong>of</strong> Hawaiianpower, and I heard she did great.Four weeks after I handed her <strong>of</strong>f <strong>to</strong> Brock and Brian – and10 weeks after she had taken those first small steps at Malibu- I flew <strong>to</strong> Hawaii <strong>to</strong> vis<strong>it</strong> <strong>the</strong> set.Kate showed me some dailies <strong>of</strong> her paddlingout in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> lineup, at 10 foot Pipeline. Thatsame footage made <strong>it</strong> in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> movie, and whenI first saw <strong>it</strong> I w<strong>as</strong> shocked. At first I thought <strong>it</strong>w<strong>as</strong> fake, or someone w<strong>as</strong> doubling for Kate.I <strong>watch</strong>ed <strong>the</strong> scene over and over again, andfreeze framed <strong>it</strong> and still I w<strong>as</strong> incredulous.But <strong>the</strong>re she w<strong>as</strong>, no question, that pale equestriennefrom Connecticut w<strong>as</strong> now a tanned,determined surfer girl.Her <strong>back</strong> muscles were ripped and rippling <strong>as</strong> she paddledout in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> lineup at 10 foot Pipeline. These were life threateningcond<strong>it</strong>ions, but she looked powerful and focused and,most importantly, completely natural <strong>as</strong> <strong>the</strong> awesome Pipelinebombs exploded on <strong>the</strong> shallow reef beside her.The one thing I noticed most <strong>of</strong> all: she w<strong>as</strong> paddling hard.”Sun Protection When Your Skin Needs It Most!www.sundayafternoons.com1.888.874.2642wSSm | womenssurfstyle.com | 47
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