Thanks to a degenerative disease called Stargardt’s disease, Pete Gustin can only see about as far as his hands extend. Stargardt’s macular dystrophy (SMD) is inherited from parents who have recessive genetic traits for the disease, and central vision loss tends to start early in life, getting worse as time passes. This meant by the time the Massachusetts native decided he was going to learn to surf where he now lives in Carlsbad, Gustin was already legally blind.
For obvious reasons, it’s not the optimal set of circumstances for a person to learn to surf. But he’s navigated the challenges in the past three years with techniques like wearing a hat to narrow his field of vision. That helps him distinguish between the darkness of the water and the light of the horizon. He also always surfs with a friend and coach nearby, who directs him around the lineup and gives him instructions where to paddle to get in position for incoming waves. And of course, being legally blind, he has to find areas to surf where he’s clear of crowds. All this before even setting his feet on a board.
Gustin recently started sharing how it all comes together on a YouTube channel, something he explains came somewhat organically, after a group of high school students wanted to share his story on their school news show, which eventually made its way to the local Fox affiliate. So he recognized the intrigue and took the chance on starting his own channel.
“I never really set out to do it, but the response has been really heartwarming,” Gustin tells The Inertia. “Each of the stories we post are meant to be both fun and inspirational and so far, so good.”
This week, Pete decided to look into how much technology he’d need to free himself of the in-lineup surf coach altogether. Instead, his friend Josh Servi stays on the beach, relaying the instructions they’d normally use side-by-side in the water, from the sand. Pete straps a smartphone and waterproof case to his arm, blasts the volume, and Siri reads voice texts relayed from Josh. Pete then uses his smartwatch to communicate back to shore. It’s honestly pretty incredible to watch him refuse to use blindness as an excuse. And all that stuff actually works.
