[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]It must be pretty tough being a surfer from Italy. For most of the year, the surf is flat, cold and there are limited spots to choose from. But one of the best spots to surf in Italy is a reef break place called Banzai, just 60 minutes drive from Rome.[/vc_column_text][vc_video link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXZsoZG_kkc"][vc_single_image image="7200" img_size="full"][vc_column_text]Banzai is home to one of Italy’s most stylish surfers named Tommaso Geraci. He’ll be out there when its pumping and when its not, he’ll be practicing on his SmoothStar. Due to a lack of consistent swell from the Mediterranean Sea, Tommaso uses SmoothStar to simulate and strengthen his surfing skills.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="7230" img_size="full"][vc_column_text]The similarities in his surfing are unbelievable, both on his back hand and forehand.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="7236" img_size="full"][vc_single_image image="7224" img_size="full"][vc_column_text]So when the swell does arrive at his local break, he enjoy more of what he loves, feeling the energy of the ocean and the energy that it gives him, just Tomasso, his surfboard and the ocean. Simplicity.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="7212" img_size="full"][vc_column_text]Tommaso has been riding SmoothStar for over 2 years now. He is a qualified surf coach and provides coaching on land with students that want to improve their surfing from beginner to intermediate. Its a rewarding job because he makes people happy.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="7206" img_size="full"][vc_message message_box_style="solid" message_box_color="blue" icon_type="monosocial" icon_monosocial="vc-mono vc-mono-googletalk"]
“you have to think about being constantly on a wave, surf more time than you can on your SmoothStar when you are not in the water and you will feel the results”
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Portuguese Surfer and SmoothStar Teamrider Mariana Rocha Assis just dropped a bomb of a video. Its an inside her life surf training and travelling to various surf destinations. (more…)
Introducing the new SmoothStar Holy Toledo model, the pro model of surfing superstar Brazilian Filipe Toledo. Filipe and SmoothStar combined to create an amazing surf skate. With almost 6 months of development and refinements in the nose, tail, wheel base, the Holy Toledo is now the premiere surf skate that helps improve your surfing and keep your surfing flow out of the water.
Professional Female surfer Johanne Defay has joined the SmoothStar team. Finishing 2015 in position #8, she joins SmoothStar’s fellow top 10 surfer Filipe Toledo.
Johanne first became a fan of SmoothStar in February 2015 after receiving a 33″ Holy Toledo from France’s best Surf Coach Yann Martin. As SmoothStar is the closest to surfing outside the water, Johanne rode it exactly like she was surfing and loved it.
Johanne Defay is a professional surfer based in Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean and rides under the French Flag. Johanne is one of the most powerful surfers on the planet and is known to have the best big wave backhand manoeuvres on the Women’s WSL.
Johanne is 22 years old and has been on the professional Women’s Tour since 2014. She has a big heart and gorgeous smile outside the water but lethal and savage turns in the water.
Career Highlights
SmoothStar has created a new model for Johanne where she has a direct impact into the design and specifications of her model. The new model is 32.5″ and it fits in between the 32″ Flying Fish grom board and the 33″ Holy Toledo. The model has a deeper concave for better rail to rail turns, just like Johanne’s surfing. The tail is extra wide so this helps adults not just groms do radical snaps and not have the toes drop off the back of the tail. Johanne’s board is suitable for groms over 155cm and adults under 181cm.
Featured on the centre of the board is a Travelling Palm called a “Ravenala” which is representative of her surfing sole. Similar to her life and career, ocean waves take the seed of the travelling palm to other parts of the world. They wash ashore, grow their roots and explore the ocean and the land.
SmoothStar has a long history in Australia with young up and coming surf groms. Some of these groms grew up to become surfing superstars on the WSL tour. It is testimony to the SmoothStar product and that it is entrench into Aussie surf culture. Owen and Tyler father Rob Wright is still using SmoothStar on a weekly basis in Lennox Head, NSW on the same boards that his kids used. We’ve of course updated his SmoothStar quiver to include Filipe Toledo’s pro model “Holy Toledo” into the mix.
Here is old video of Owen and Tyler Wright using SmoothStar when they were just teenagers. Apologies for the really annoying music, 4:3 resolution and camera work… it was filmed in 2007 …. a long time ago.
Laura Enever, the glamour queen of female professional surfing was also a SmoothStar teamrider, ripping it up on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, not far from SmoothStar HQ.
The there is the ever so consistent Sally Fitzgibbons, who has been 3 times runner up the WSL World Title.
SmoothStar receives many requests to become team riders, it is almost daily and from countries all over the world. SmoothStar has had surf groms who are now competing in the world top surfing tours in both Men's and Women's ASP. So what we have done is provide you with the information you need on how to become a SmoothStar team rider.
Once upon a time in 2013 Alex Broumbas and creative photographer Sebastian (Sebbo) Emmert decided they would take a trip into Lisbon, Portugal to test our Alex's new SmoothStar 32" Flying Fish at the new skatepark. (more…)
Ben Collison is born and bread on the surf rich coastline of Gold Coast, Australia. You can't get anymore typical "Aussie surfer" than Ben. Young, free and athletic - Ben is also a great surfer.
What is most interesting, is that Ben never really liked skating, he wasn't into it. But SmoothStar is not like a skateboard, its more like surfing - perfect for Ben.
Ben first came across SmoothStar from a surfer friend of his. They worked out pretty quickly how to get the best out of SmoothStar in order to help their surfing. Ben put a video together of some of his SmoothStar antics and sent it in. We were blown away with not only the critical turns he does on his SmoothStar but the amount of G-force he puts into his turns. We couldn't help but ask Ben if he wanted to join the SmoothStar as a team rider.
In between surfs, work and the Gold Coast night life, Ben is seen in the various smooth driveways and skateparks throughout the Australian Eastern coastline. Ben's favourite board in skateparks is the 32" Flying Fish, the for cruising the streets, he jumps on the 36" Cruisers.
Oh and yeah, Ben can do some massive punts.