SURFERS -- Andy Irons...

 to make a long story short. Andy Irons is still alive and his name is Gabriel Medina.

 the old Surf Champ is the new Surf Champ. his new brazilian alter is a bit younger. but he always was a fresh and youthful character so it fits him.

 probably Mr. Irons also has access to some controlled or uncontrolled substances that help him act the part. I dont know. its not my job to judge.

 but this ear is a money shot and its not just in this picture its in every picture. so Andy irons you can cross off as Gabriel Medina, thats one Surf Legend down..

 both have the same protruding ears..

 and the lobe is precisely the same.

 here a closeup

with all this travel to exotic surf locations on all continents, not to mention the ASP pro tour, who now has morphed into the world surf league, it should hardly be impossible to learn some portuguese..

mark also the same taste in hats..

 the funny thing is that the before the world surf league (WSL) was there and it was the ASP (pro circuit) and the WQS (world qualifying series that allowed you to qualify for the ASP). the same crowd of people surfed both events just using different names. when you go to a surf contest. theres a beach area with the party stage, the DJ, and the whole photographers and crowd flocking the beach, and when the surfers come out to first warm up, wearing their color lycra, and then paddle out for their heat, lasting probly nlike 20 minutes or half an hour. you dont really see where they come from.

cause theres like in every rock concert a backstage area where you have no access only journalists, trainers and other special people like event organizers. so you dont really see whats going on.

 surfing became a big sport in the 70s, where the first paid surfers emerged. the movie "busting down the door" i think falls into that time. there are many surf movies, tehy have becoem a culture of their own.

with everything from pure skatestyle small wave chop surfing with fish boards, or contest movies running on MTV etc, to stuff like rob machado and his latest spirit travel to india, with lots of psychedelic music and empty lineups...

surfing has become an expression of hedonism, its a sport very close to nature but the materials used in surfboards are toxic as ever, now there are greener surfblanks, but they are still only 50 % recycled.

some surfers in the 80s and 90s went through dozens of boards in a single year. contest boards were so thin you would land one nice air on them and they were gone.

surfing has changed a bit, lineups now are often crowded, but it still is a great sport and I hope there will be more greener surfboards in the future. some people make boards from wood only, either balsa or hollow ones from hardwood...

so that was gabriel medina but we have more... lots more...