Nride: Noah Shimabukuro

Interview by: Steve Thomas
Photos by: Moonwalker

Noah Shimabukuro the man the myth the badger. One if the most sold Longboarders of our current time. He is regular seen in the magazine or in longboard surf flicks. He is commonly placing in contest and his humble friendly approach to surfing and life makes him accessible to all. He is a true professional. Noah will surf both big and small surf with no complaints and with raw talent. Those who know his humor would say it’s dry, subtle but funny. It is my perception of Noah’s surfing that his goal is to get as barreled as possible. He just likes doing it on a Longboard. Its what I call the “Driving a Cadillac on the Autobahn” effect. I caught up with the Hawaiian Samurai and asked him a few questions to let the world know what’s going on with badger.

Get your board out of my face. Photo: Moonwalker

ST: Currently do you have a beard or no beard?

NS: No beard. I used to have a really good beard until this girl told me I would look amazing if I shaved it off. I did and never saw her again. I keep it off just in case I do.

ST: I like you better with a beard. That chick is dumb. You look like a Japanese samurai warrior and Samurais are the most badass warriors of them all. I will say it again that girl is DUMB!!!! All the fly honeys like the beards YO!

ST: Describe your surfing in three words.

NS: blah, blah, blah
ST: OK fine I will describe your surfing in three words:

BACK HAND MADNESS

Noah lip hater. Photo: Moonwalker

ST: Why don’t you speak pidgin like everyone else in HI?

NS: My parents never really talked like that so I guess that's why us kids never like try.

ST: Oh well Noah your not a kid anymore so you talk anyway you like. HAWAIIN!!!!!

ST: Is it True that you were at one time the unofficial SUP champ of the world? How do you figure?

NS: Well, in 2008 I got really lucky and won like 3 big SUP contests. Puerto Escondido Tuberide event, US Open SUP Division, and Rainbow Sandals Dog Patch event. My friends started calling me the SUP World Champ.

ST: I would always tell girls, “Hey I have this friend Noah he’s the Unofficial Sup World Champ. How many fucken world champs do you know?”

ST: Describe your perfect Longboard world tour.

NS: 3 Events. One at a spot where you can get barreled like Puerto Escondido. Another at a perfect point break like Malibu or something where you get judged at nose riding and style. Then, one type of wave where you could surf hi-performance like a beach break or something. To me, that would be the best all around longboarder who could call himself World Champ.

ST: I would have to agree 100% that sounds like a good well rounded tour.

ST: Why do they call you Badger?

NS: It's a long story but a long time ago at a Halloween party I didn't really have a costume. So this girl put a bra on my head and all my friends said I looked like a badger.

ST: Oh that’s why. I thought it was cause you had the characteristics of a Badger. For example, the badger is a stocky animal with short but extremely strong legs. You are stocky and have extremely strong legs for shredding. Another fun fact is Badgers are quite solitary mammals that prefer open planes, farmlands, and edges of forests. Your always saying how you want to go home to Maui. I rest my case.

ST: It seems like you can’t just be good at surfing/Longboarding. You have to have something else going for you like art, music, or just a really good dresser. Which one of those things are you?

NS: Yeah, I would like to think I'm a good dresser but it's something I'm constantly working on.

ST: You are an excellent dresser, which is really important in Longboarding.

ST: What Longboarders are blowing your mind lately?

NS: Good question, Tommy Witt for his creativity and style, Oliver Parker cause he has a good style and can switch stance really good, Pickle is like a regular foot Joel, Eli Gillis, JJ Wessels is good, Cody Simpkins, Andrew Logreco is super underrated I think, he charges and tuberides really well. I dunno there are so many good kids coming up right now and it's really cool.

ST: I for sure thought you were going to say me that was the whole point of that question. Thanks a lot. Seriously Tommy Witt is a freak on a longboard. It’s unreal some of the shit he pulls. Andrew “Kitty” Logreco is defiantly underrated, probably because he is a moderate dresser at best but nobody can deny he is one hell of a model American.

Noah SUP. Photo: Moonwalker

ST: What would you like to see kids doing on Longboards in say 10 years?

NS: I would like to see more switch stance stuff, kind of like how skateboarding is.

ST: I’ve been seeing you switching it up a lot. Do you think as a goofy footer you’re just destined to learn how to surf switch more so than some one who surf regular?

NS: I see a lot more surfers who are goofy that are able to switch better than regulars. Maybe it's just cause I'm used to surfing a lot of rights where you sometimes want to be front side.

ST: What are you three favorite boards right now?

NS: Donald Takayama Pig its fun because the wide point is pulled back so you get the stability of a wider board with a narrower width, a true log for that time period. Donald Takayama Scorpion, it’s like a mini nose rider plus a fast loose shortboards combined in one. My Donald Takayama model the Noah Kakoi its like comfort food for me I know that board like the back of my hand.

ST: Thanks Badger Buddy your one hot rippa!!!

Noah tip riding. Photo: Moonwalker

Photos:Daniel Franks
Words&Photos:Steve Thomas

This week Noah and I stepped it up and had a little BBQ. The Guys at Ocean and Earth Let us use their EZ Up tent and Noah brought a Q. I went to La Tendita in San Clemente and got this bomb marinated chicken and carne and we had tacos and BBQ quesadillas which Dustin Franks and his life partner Heather Rose showed me how to make. Daniel Franks came down and took some photos and my buddy Jorge Salas (super bad ass photographer) came to the beach with his two little buddy’s River and Zane. Steve Newton came to the beach to surf and just started destroying it out there. Man that kid can Longboard. What’s more Bonga Perkins was at the beach surfing, which was pretty cool to watch. The surf was fun and the food was great. God I love beach Days.