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In this episode, I sit down with Gold Coast free surfer and content creator Blake Neka to talk style, boards, and the mental side of trading competition for free surfing. Blake breaks down how switching from a standard thruster to asymmetrical boards and quads completely changed the way he rides, why he'd rather surf chopped-up, onshore junk than a perfect point, and how obsessively studying surfers like Julian Wilson, right down to individual hand placement, helped him develop his own style. We also get into just how physically demanding his home break really is: with crowds packed shoulder to shoulder, and how he surfs best when he’s most relaxed and tired, around 2 hours into his sessions.
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Chapters
01:27 Welcome to Blake Neka & board shorts talk
02:52 Growing up surfing between Bali and the Tweed
03:54 What it's like having a pro surfer dad
04:43 Fixing a "crabby" style: Julian Wilson and Matt Banting
07:46 Skating, rugby league, and surfing like a skater
09:17 How asyms and quads changed his style
10:58 Why he loves crappy onshore waves over perfect ones
12:05 Surviving the Snapper crowds and localism
16:40 Leg burners and sweep on long point waves
18:36 Competing through the Pro Juniors and QS
23:11 Pickle forks, the shark tooth, and custom asyms
27:46 Lessons from competing and surfing best when tired
35:06 Fitness and training in the gym
37:42 Rapid fire: favorite surfers, fins, board sizing, and training tiers
44:03 Upcoming film and what's next
Subscribe for more interviews with pro surfers, coaches, shapers, and everyday surfers like Tom Carroll, Zeke Lau, Victor Bernardo, Matt Parker of Album Surf, Matt Meola, Ryan Lovelace, Eric Arakawa, Noel Salas of Surf n Show, Parker Coffin, Dane Gudauskas, Kassia Meador, Clayton of Ombe Surf, Dylan Lightfoot, Derek Dunfee, Magnum Martinez, and more!
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