Japan Surf Legend Kohei Chiba
December 8, 2009

Kohei Chiba has been a big influence in my life. Ever since i was a little guy i would come to Shikoku island in Japan every year for the contests. So we became close over the years. He has helped me in everyway possible . I remember my 1st winter on the north shore he would come to our house to make sure i was gonna surf backdoor and pipe . When i would come to Shikoku he would always take care of me and my brother Yosuke. The crazy thing that ive learned over the years is people take care of you because they need something from you. And that was far from how Kohei was with me. I surfed for other companies that had nothing to do with what he was doing. I always could see that and respected him for it. Ive learned from him not telling me what to do but just watching him and how he handled himself. Theres so many surfers out there with such big egos that they forget how to be human, he was never like that .
I also learned that theres a big world out there and theres other ways to live your life, he always dressed different and had such a unique style it was never the surfer style. It was original, so seeing one of my heroes opening up his mind to the rest of the world lives made me realize that i also could follow what i was into and not feel strange to wear what i liked. He has influenced me to find my own style. I have to say i owe Kohei alot to who i became....THANK YOU KOHEI SAN!