Man Day: Kelly Slater, King of Surfing, Turns His Hand to Fashion

I went through a 'surfer' phase once. I am not going to dwell on it too long. But let's just say I dated a string of surf boys at one point in my life. For about a year. And then, just as soon as it began, it ended and I left the sands and returned to my more familiar stomping ground of the mosh pit where I took up once more with drummers and lead singers. But somewhere along the line, I accepted the beauty and prowess of one Kelly Slater. And once you have witnessed this, you never, ever forget it.
Just last November in Puerto Rico he won his 10th world title, something unsurpassed in surfing. And at the age of 38, he became the oldest ever surfing world champion, 18 years after he became the youngest, in 1992. GQ listed him as one of the 25 coolest athletes of all time, joining Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Björn Borg and Arnold Palmer. Kudos indeed. And, let's be honest, he is so pretty.

Kelly Slater's main patron, surf apparel brand Quiksilver, has sponsored him for more than 20 years. In fact he now owns three per cent of the company and recently signed on for another five-year deal. In addition, Quiksilver has now asked him to design his own range for the company, which is still in development. I was relieved to hear that the dude is going to take a different sort of approach to the whole thing as he describes his personal style as 'trying not to smell and wearing things that match'. He says, "my input with the clothes is more about a lifestyle and a philosophy rather than me actually trying to style or design them. We're looking at organic and eco fabrics - mainly for travelling clothes, which is something I know a little about." I'll bet you do Kelly. Rock on.