The Mako Board

January 7th, 2009 @ 01:21pm

As most of you know already I've been fascinated by sharks for most of my life. I started dealing and drawing them years and years ago. I've been in the water and interacted with most of the famous sharks out there.
I have to say that one of my favorites, if not my favorite, is the Mako shark. You hear people talking about the Great White so much because of its size...but the Mako is right there. Only Deadlier. The Mako is Stronger, Faster, Meaner, and an overall incredible hunter.
I did a lot of filming with some huge Makos and the whole time they were around it was like a chess game. I would hand feed one, and he would eat, but he would do it differently than other sharks I'd fed. He would be really slow and calm, acting like he was just happy to be around. He would act like he wasn't paying attention one second, then suddenly, he would quickly turn and try to bite one of my legs. He was actually trying to outsmart me.
I tell most people that I meet that the Mako is the sports-car version of a great white.

So, with all of that in mind, I decided to make a Mako logo. It's on my truck and I've used it for a few things that I think fit. I recently met a super cool kid named Karl. Karl is a surfer, but like me, he doesn't drink or smoke or do anything...and I think that's cool as hell. Anyway, when Alex introduced me to Karl, he was telling me how great he was. And when I saw his videos and saw that he is amazing at getting really high in the air, I thought about the Mako.
Not only is the Mako a predator that hunts other predators (something that's extremely rare), but it's the highest jumping shark in the world.
When I saw what Alex and Karl were doing, I talked to them, and we designed a board just for them. We had a surfboard shaper named Kent Senatore design a Mako line for Alex and Karl. That way everyone knows what they're there for.

I just always thought that was cool. I got to tie in what I love with what someone else loved.