Joel Parkinson is retiring. He’s one of the last men standing from the old guard—sure, Kelly is still there, but he’s got so many other irons in the fire that the tour no longer seems to be his motivator. Parko has been around the block more than a few times, and his surfing shaped the way surfers wanted to ride for decades. He epitomizes the term power surfing, and although that’s still very much an important part, pro surfing as a sport seems to be moving on.
Since he’s been around that block so many times, he was part and parcel of most of surfing’s important moments. Take Andy Irons, for example. Parko and AI were as close as brothers, and in this third installment of Parko’s Last Lap, we get a few glimpses behind the scenes. “You couldn’t be a slouch when you paddled with Andy,” says Rainos Hayes. “Because Andy was out to take every session. It was good to see those guys push each other.”
Just because he’s retiring from pro surfing, however, doesn’t mean he’s retiring from surfing. Much like Mick, we can still expect to see Parko’s distinctive style in lineups all over the world—but now, without the pressure. And who doesn’t want to see that?
