Surfear con una leyenda: Aprender a cabalgar las olas de la vida con Bill Hamilton

Los métodos del waterman se basan en un profundo respeto y sinergia con el océano. El legendario surfista y shaper de Kauaʻi Bill Hamilton es un ejemplo increíble de ello. Bill pasa sus días en las olas y en la arena desde la infancia, y se siente tan a gusto en el agua como en su propia casa, un signo revelador de un verdadero waterman.

El surf se convirtió en el centro de su vida desde una edad temprana, proporcionándole una estimulante salida para estudiar las aguas y profundizar en su relación con el océano día tras día. Con el tiempo, su amor por el surf empezó a trascender todos los aspectos de su vida, y pronto empezó a diseñar y fabricar con sus propias manos tablas de surf ultrapersonalizadas. Varias décadas después, sigue encarnando este espíritu, apreciando su tiempo en el agua y dando forma con sus manos a tablas de surf personalizadas con la máxima atención al detalle.

Nos sentamos con Bill para hablar de su viaje único como surfista y shaper, sus lugares de surf favoritos en todo el mundo, la inspiración detrás de sus diseños, el consejo que le daría a su yo más joven, y su increíble experiencia "Surf con una leyenda" en 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay. 

Entrevista con el legendario surfista y shaper de Kauaʻi Bill Hamilton

You’ve said that your early lessons in life were taught to you by the great outdoors and watermen. How did nature help to carve your career path?

I continue to thank my parents for providing an awesome environment to grow up in. We moved to Laguna Beach, California in 1950 and settled into a small apartment above the beach with a grand view of the ocean. I had salt water and sand on my body from day one, and I continue to have that to this day nearly 75 years later. The ocean and its surroundings became my teacher as did the people who frequented it. Fortunately for me, the epicenter of surfboard building and wave riding was just a few miles to the south of Laguna, Dana Point. In 1959, at the age of 11, I purchased my first used surfboard from Joyce and Dick Pettit, who happened to be a resin and fiberglass salesman with surfboard and sailboat magnate Hobie Alter and some of the boat designers and builders in Newport Beach, like Joe Quigg. I was surrounded by ocean people and quite naturally became one myself. As a diver and a fisherman, I learned skills that I would later use as a commercial fisherman on Kauaʻi. Probably the most pivotal experience of my life was traveling to Hawaiʻi when I was 14 to surf in the Makaha International contest in December 1963. I fell head over heels for the environment of the islands and discovered at a very young age that I wanted to spend the rest of my life as a lifelong surfer and ocean-born man.

What is your favorite memory of surfing and your favorite place that you’ve surfed? 

Surfing has a magical, almost mystical, and spiritual presence in the sense that you exist purely in the present moment and it's very addicting. The feeling of having saltwater on your body for hours on end also has an electrifying effect on your entire being. Having mastered the surfing technique over many decades of time, I find myself flying over the water with the freedom of a bird. The surfing experience when you reach that level is all-encompassing. I have surfed in many beautiful places throughout the world and discovered a few notable surfing locations. One of them is in France, called Hossigor, and also Nazarre in Portugal in 1968. But the best surfing memories are on Kauaʻi and the queen of all surfing locations, Hanalei Bay.

You’re known as a legend within the surf community for both pioneering the world as a surfer, but also as a shaper. Can you share what inspires your designs?

Making surfboards for good surfers and being able to ride the designs with knowledge of how they work, from small to Mount Everest gigantic. Hydrodynamic theory is constantly being explored. Right now, I am shaping the old surfboard designs from the 14th to the 17th century in Hawaiʻi. The surfboards are incredibly designed and crafted from native wood like breadfruit (ʻulu) and koa and the very light wiliwili. It's amazing to me how advanced the early Hawaiian surfboard designs were. I’m sure they were traveling sideways and at very great speeds. The water ski thinness of the rails and their square hard edges, combined with modern-day thickness and width, made for an exceptional craft. It became a lost art at the turn of the 18th century but was rediscovered in 2006 by a pro surfer in South Africa, who copied one he had seen in a museum in England.

What advice would you give to a younger you? Similarly, what advice would you give to a surfer coming to Kauaʻi for the first time?

Ask me this question 50 years ago, I would say follow your heart. But with wisdom, I will add a bit more. It's important to find and pursue the things you love. It's also important to take inventory of yourself. Who are you? Why are you? The fact that we are given a lifetime with a body to make it well over seventy years on this planet, you need to take care of yourself and check the oil now and then. Remember that the choices you make sometimes will change your entire life, for better or worse. My motto has been to leave this a better place than I found it. Never create chaos in thought or action, and maintain a high degree of light and happiness.

What advice would you give to a younger you? Similarly, what advice would you give to a surfer coming to Kauaʻi for the first time?

Ask me this question 50 years ago, I would say follow your heart. But with wisdom, I will add a bit more. It's important to find and pursue the things you love. It's also important to take inventory of yourself. Who are you? Why are you? The fact that we are given a lifetime with a body to make it well over seventy years on this planet, you need to take care of yourself and check the oil now and then. Remember that the choices you make sometimes will change your entire life, for better or worse. My motto has been to leave this a better place than I found it. Never create chaos in thought or action, and maintain a high degree of light and happiness.

Háblenos de su experiencia "Surfear con una leyenda" en 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay y qué la hace tan única.

Soy un sastre en la fabricación de tablas de surf personalizadas. Voy a hablar con usted a través de todos los detalles de su tamaño corporal, el peso y la experiencia en el agua a qué tipo de olas que usted monta, las medidas actuales de su tabla de surf, lo que está buscando en una tabla de surf, y su arte específico quiere (colores, diseños, etc). Dependiendo de tu nivel de habilidad, puedo llevarte a zonas que son amables y libres de estrés, o a territorio de diamante negro simple o doble. Habiendo estado en Kauaʻi durante 50 años y habiendo fundado la primera escuela de surf en Hanalei en 1974, me encanta enseñar y tengo la experiencia para hacerlo. 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay Bay está proporcionando un gran menú de ofertas de bienestar y, en general, si el tiempo lo permite, podría ser un día memorable. ¡Mahalo!

Surfear con una leyenda 

Pase un día memorable con Bill Hamilton con nuestra experiencia Surf with a Legend en 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay. Desde una sesión privada de surf de 90 minutos hasta una comida privada con el propio Hamilton, seguro que adquieres una sabiduría inestimable que va mucho más allá de las profundidades del surf.