ep. #29 - The Man in the (demo) Van: Chuy Reyna

If you grew up in California in the 80's or 90's you saw Chuy Reyna on TV. In magazines. In surf videos like Blazing Boards alongside Mark Occhilupo. If you're growing up today in California you've seen him beachside with more surfboards than you've ever seen fit inside a Mercedes Sprinter. He's the man in the van and to put it bluntly in pidgeon - 'Chu surf mo' bettaa dan u' today and yesterday and probably for a lot of tomorrow's to come. He's 50 and his turns look as fun today as they looked in 88'. In addition to managing Firewire's Demo program in the United States, Chuy also stays on the front lines of product development alongside Rob Machado, Daniel Thomson, and Kelly Slater. He's talented at fine-tuning shapes and surfboard building technologies because he hasn't just surfed every surfboard shape and surfboard building technology in Firewire's history, he also surfs at the most important level of talent when it comes to deciding what surfboards will land at surf shop racks and which ones won't - he shreds hard enough to hang in a lineup with professionals, but he's not a freak, he's normal. He bridges the gap between everyday surfers and sponsored surfers, and his opinions matter to everyday folks. That's why he's the man in the (demo) van.