Surfing in trunks is one of life’s greatest joys. Want comfort, simplicity and freedom? Apply trunks and feel the vibes rise. Boardshorts are far more to a surfer than material. They are a symbol of good times, of summer, of living high; for many, they represent vacation, for others they are simply associated with freedom from the shackles of employment.
Arguably, those who enjoy the most intimate relationship with trunks are those who are best at this sport (professional surfers) – if for no other reason than they spend the most time in them. And because it’s no secret we adore that boardshort lifestyle, we wished to syphon a whole lot of trunk talk from some of our favourite surfers. What do they most love about trunks? What are the rules of boardshorts? What length? Zip or velcro? Pockets or no? Do’s and Don’ts? And, much more. Let’s raise the temp a little and ride the summer breeze, shall we?
First to take the Trunk Talk stage is virtuoso of the twin-keeled craft and ambassador for the Rhythm family, Asher Pacey. Both are renown for their celebration of the full spectrum of surfing culture, a hint of retro and a whole lot of soul. Keeping things above the knee, avoiding abrasion and minimising eye-catching (or shark attracting?) colours are on the list of trunk requirements for Asher. Length being of most concern for comfort an functionality reasons. Though, if you turn back the clock, you'll remember attitudes were a little different:
“I was in that era of the early two thousands and what not, and there were some people running some wildly long boardshorts," recounts Mr Pacey. “I remember Kerrzy wearing ones that were almost to his feet. If I could dig up a photo of him wearing those, tell you what, it’d be priceless!”
