Coterie de Surfeurs Pelagiques Hoodie.

I came up with this graphic as a way to identify the folks that surf offshore. The people doing sweeping turns and roundhouse cutbacks two miles out, on space aged foiling equipment that even ten years ago was not comprehendable. The word pelagic is derived from the ancient Greek word pelagos or 'open sea'. In other words everything outside the intertidal zone, where all the crowds -and the issues that inevitably arise when large groups compete for limted resources- live.

Through advaces in hydrofoil technology over the last decade or so all those talks about "Wouldn't it be insane if we could surf those unbroken swells out there?" have become reality. If you dont know what I'm refering to here just go to Youtube and search "Downwind foiling". 

The stuff thats going on is, by every definition, state of the art surfing. Full power "rail" turns, speed lines across the faces of unbroken waves at close to 20MPH, and rides potentially lasting HOURS.  Its nothing short of mind bending.  Its like riding a 5'0" that has the glide of a 12 footer, but three times as fast and slippery.

Every native French speaker that I have encountered while wearing this hoody has said basically the same thing, " Where deed you get zis oodie?"  After I explain to them that I made it, they go on to tell me that the word coterie is not really used anymore in modern French culture. Sweet! That makes it even cooler and more confusing, which is what this whole Banh Pho thing is all about. Noodles and surfing? 

 I came across the word Coterie when I translated "group of pelagic surfers".  It means “clique” or “small group of people sharing a common interest”. Apparently Google's langauge models didnt get the memo that the word is a dinosaur but sometimes the meaning doesnt really matter as much as the visual impact of lettering. I think thats why I'm so drawn to old signs and japanese katakana. 

* Pixie not included.