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Monday, May 16, 2005

Goleta beachbreak king, "Yellow Board Bobby" as pope likes to call him, has a write-up in the South Coast Beacon. In case the link goes away, it is mirrored here:

"Bobby Morris surfing on top of the world

Goleta native enjoys wearing wetsuit to work

BY KAREN LEE STEVENS
BEACON CONTRIBUTOR

The moment I sat down to talk with surfer Bobby Morris, the lyrics to the 1963 Beach Boys song, “Catch A Wave (and You’re Sitting On Top of the World),” popped into my head. The song is apropos as this Santa Barbaran is indeed living the life of his dreams.

In 2004, Morris was ranked the No. 1 Amateur Surfer by the United States Surfing Federation and has also had the opportunity to compete at a multitude of exotic surf spots around the world — courtesy of one of his sponsors, LX Eyewear (formerly known as Legend Sunglasses).

The third of five children born to Bob and Sherree Morris of Goleta, Bobby grew up surfing the waves at Haskell’s and Goleta beaches.

“I started surfing when I was 11 years old,” Morris recalled. “I grew up surfing by myself — no one taught me. I just fell in love with it.”

An individualist with a drive to succeed, Morris never lets a little thing like inclement weather deter him from the sport he loves.

“I was always the kid who was out there just nonstop surfing. I didn’t care if it was windy or rainy,” he said. “No matter what the weather is like, I’m out there.”

Morris’ big break came when a rep from LX Eyewear discovered him at Campus Point, a popular surf spot near UCSB. Chris Willingham was attending a surf contest when he happened to strike up a conversation with Morris that day.

“I started talking to Chris, not knowing who he was,” Morris said. “I told him I didn’t have enough cash to enter the contest, and he said he’d get me in.”

Morris ended up winning the contest. Faster than you could say “Boogie Board,” he found himself regularly traveling to locales as far-flung as Florida, Hawaii, Australia, Costa Rica, Portugal and Spain for surf competitions. When he’s not shredding the waves, Morris is honing his craft as a wildlife photographer. He’s captured an amazing array of creatures on film, including the Australian crocodile.

This self-described “mellow” 22-year-old says he doesn’t have plans to attend college in the foreseeable future.

“I see surfing as a career,” he said. “Everyone says I’m doing really well and I just want to keep doing better. I can always improve.”

Oh, and ladies, Bobby is also single … and searching.

When he isn’t on tour, Bobby Morris can be found hanging out at his parents’ restaurant, The Cantina, in Isla Vista.

link to this


Santa Barbara Surfing. Created by Tim Maddux. Continued by Pope.