David Weare

Izimvo has the pleasure of introducing professional surfer, David Weare.

David, who grew up surfing Durban’s New Pier, dominated South African competitive surfing as a junior and has since become a respected international competitor. He first qualified for the WCT in 2006 and later won the 2008 Quicksilver Pro Durban.

David is currently competing on the ASP World Tour. The final event of the season, the Billabong Pipeline Masters, starts in Hawaii on the 8th December.

Blog: http://www.davey-weare.blogspot.com
Location: Durban

David was kind enough to answer the following questions for us:

Personal

Q: The all important personal profile. How would a close friend introduce you at a social event? i.e. Name, age, company, interesting fact etc.

A: One of my close friends would introduce me as Dave Weare, in the surfing fraternity, probably as Davey Weare and at a Formal function as David Weare. I’m 29 now, I surf for a living and get to travel the world a lot!

Q: Tell us something that not many others know about you. This could be anything from a phobia to your favorite movie.

A: I always enjoy watching comedies, from the Wedding Crashers, Old School, Happy Gilmore to the Hangover etc. I hate driving over tall bridges and would love to be able to skateboard and play the guitar properly.

Q: What do you enjoy doing when you want to get away from it all?

A: Go surfing, even though it’s my job, it’s still my hobby and my passion!

David Weare (by Reg Joiner)

Professional Surfing

Q: What advice would you offer any young surfer wanting to turn professional?

A: The more you put in, the more you’ll get out. Practice A LOT!!!!

Be dedicated and committed, study what the top guys are doing, start competing early so you get the knack of contest surfing, travel as much as you can for experience in other waves and always have fun!

Q: Surfing on the ASP World Tour is something most surfers only get to dream about, can you describe a typical day on the tour?

A: When we on tour at an event, normally I’d surf early, wait for the call to be made on the event for the day. If on, then prepare for my heat and that’s the focus for that day. If not on, then probably a little bit of cross-training and another surf.

On the road, I usually surf at least twice a day, sometimes more if it’s firing. Everything revolves around the event for each day, it’s usually an 11 day waiting period so there are a few lay days which you can do a bit of sight-seeing etc in the country you’re in.

Q: As a father and a husband, how do you cope with being away from your family for extended periods of time? Are there many professional surfers with families?

A: It seems like there are a few of the guys now on tour who have wives and children, a lot of them travel with them too. We said that on the longer trips we’ll travel together, and on the shorter one-off events, I go alone just so it’s not too disruptive for our daughter and all her activities she has going on at home.

Obviously it’s hard when I’m away and the family are at home, not just for me but for my wife and daughter too, not the normal scenario you’d usually have with a family but we try do the best that we can and make the most of the time we do have when we are together.

That is definitely one of the cons of being a professional surfer, the amount of time you’re away from your loved ones. I’m very fortunate in the fact that my wife is very understanding and supportive of me and my career and has been from day one.

Q: Which young local surfer impresses you the most and do you think that a South African will ever become World Champion again?

A: I think Jordy Smith definitely has the potential to be World Champ! I also think Shaun Joubert from Mossel Bay has a bright future.

Q: Common concerns of the average office worker include traffic, running out of printer toner and getting their reports submitted on-time. What are the daily concerns of a professional surfer?

A: Where the best waves are, working on getting the best equipment, doing cross training and preparing for upcoming events.

Life in South Africa

Q: Have you or any of your immediate family been affected by crime? If yes, has it changed your perception of the country and the way you and your family live your lives?

A: Yip, I’ve had family members affected by crime in a big way and it really just makes you disappointed cause it’s not the majority doing the crimes but just a small minority who are ruining it for the whole country.

I live in a gated community and it seems like that’s the nom here now which is quite pathetic cause I travel a lot and see how safe it is in other places I go to. I don’t see why we can’t be like that.

Obviously the unemployment, lack of education and poverty has a lot to do with the state of the crime in this country. I hope that we can get it right.

Q: Have you ever considered emigration? If yes, where do you think you would emigrate to?

A: Yes I have, just cause when you have a family, it’s not about you any more, you have way bigger responsibilities now and safety is probably priority no. 1 , The States would probably be my destination if I ever did leave the country.

Q: Besides your home beach, which South African beach do you consider to be the most enjoyable to surf?

A: JBAy is always amazing, such a good wave, I love the variety we have north and south of Durban , and I enjoy surfing in Umhlanga now-a-days.

Q: To which three attractions would you first take an international visitor?

A: In Durbs, uShaka Marine World, Gateway with it’s wave pool and the beaches/restaurants/hotels of Umhlanga.

Life in Durban

David and his daughter Liberty

Q: Which local restaurant do you consider to be the most family friendly?

A: Spur of course, it’s the only way with kids…

Q: How do the Durban beaches and conditions match up with the great surfing locations such as Hawaii?

A: Durban can produce world-class waves with the right swell and winds and does deliver waves of consequence from time to time. We have very consistent waves in Durban year-round which makes it a great destination for events and surfers from abroad and local.

They’re busy revamping the beach front now so hopefully when they’re finished the beachfront will be safe and great for the families…

General

Q: Do you have any routines that you like to follow before a big event?

A: Do my training , get my boards right for that event and practice a lot.

Q: Favorite South African sporting moment of the last 10 years?

A: South Africa winning the Rugby World Cup in 2007.

Q: Which surfing personality have you most enjoyed meeting?

A: I’ve been fortunate to meet many greats of the sport but always enjoy talking to Shaun Tomson and Martin Potter, both former World Champions from Durban.

Q: Which service due you personally use to check the current surfing conditions when you in South Africa?

A: usually use windguru.com and also call my friends who are in the loop with swell predictions…

Q: Which South African bands are in the music collection that you travel with?

A: I like Seether, probably my favorite.

Q: Who would you most like to read about on Izimvo?

A: Probably Butch James or John Smit.

We’d like to thank David for taking the time to answer our questions and wish him every success for the Billabong Pipeline Masters starting in Hawaii on the 8th December.