Soulful Conversations with Ash Grunwald

Tom Carroll - 50 Foot Death Slabs, Meditation and Addiction

February 13, 2020 Ash Grunwald, Tom Carroll Season 1 Episode 9
Soulful Conversations with Ash Grunwald
Tom Carroll - 50 Foot Death Slabs, Meditation and Addiction
Show Notes Transcript

Thanks to Otis Eyewear for sponsoring this Episode one of the proud sponsors of Soulful Conversations.

In this Episode Ash talks to Tom Carroll the two time world professional surfing champion and hero of pipeline. They spoke about Tom's surfing career, his championships, 'The Snap', The Party Era and substance abuse and the meditation yoga workshops Tom is running in Ulluahtu in June. Tom is now focusing on positive mental health through meditation, the power of now, remaining kind with an ethical focus on life. 

Here's what we chatted about: 

  • Surf-aid International in Indonesia
  •  Apartheid, Ethics and boycotting surfing events 
  • Negative Impacts in life and surfing and how to overcome injury in surfing 
  • World Championship and disqualification
  • Surfing Pipeline and rebuilding boards for pipeline 
  • 'The Snap' 
  • The party town era, drugs and your ego
  • Addiction, substance abuse and being able to ask for help and support in dark times
  • Life after competitive surfing 
  • Life threatening wipe-out on giant waves off the WA coast
  • Preparing for a non-breath hold and working towards CO2 tolerant 
  • Yoga, the journey involved in Meditation and the power of the mind
  • Your natural source: Mind, Body
  • Change in the world before it's too late, heavy plastic users 


Some of our favourite quotes from this episode.

"Now I release I can sit in a storm, back then i didn't release i couldn't sit in a storm. The time of my ankle injury it was the Universe putting me down on the ground for a bit. There is always a gift in the injury"

"Nothing kind of prepares you for when you get hit when you come off on a big wave. When you lose all of the air when you hit the water"

"The addict inside us is not the drug, it's the entity and the humaness that gets skewed towards destruction. We will destroy relationships, our surroundings degredate our health and give everything over to the drug and abandoned everything that loves us and ignore it."

"The mind starts with a thought..and it starts multiplying on itself" 

'When we act on a thought make sure it's going to be something that's going to serve you and others"

"Just go for consciousness" 

"Change has to happen...We have a lot of power to create better business, we are on a large ocean tanker and need to take action, otherwise it will be a tap on the shoulder for forced change"

"Be part of the solution"

"Be kind to yourself, look at the areas you're not so kind to yourself and make small changes. When you're kind to yourself you start to put it out to others."

 

Links

Tom Carroll Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/thomasvictorcarroll/

Otis Eyewear Discount Code
ASH&OTIS - 25% Discount at Otis Eyewear Online Orders
https://au.otiseyewear.com/

Otis Eyewear
https://au.otiseyewear.com/

Follow Ash Grunwald on Instagram here
https://www.instagram.com/ashgrunwald/?hl=en


Ash Grunwald Website/Show Dates
https://www.ashgrunwald.com/


Earth Bottles - use promo code ASHLOVESME
https://earthbottles.com.au/


Listen to Ash's latest album 'Mojo' here
https://linktr.ee/ashgrunwald

Speaker 1:

Hey people, welcome back to soulful conversations. It's Ash Grunewald here. And I know it's been a little bit of a while. People have been getting onto me. I'm saying, Hey, when we're going to get another, a podcast happening and I've just been touring and I've been doing a lot of songwriting, a lot of co-writing and um, I just really haven't had a chance but it's been for a great purpose. Um, and I've been too busy to even scratch myself. But here I am getting this other one out and this new one out and you are gonna love it. Um, but before I do get into the podcast, I would like to extend a massive thank you to the good people at Otis eyewear who are sponsoring this podcast and they are an Australian brand of beautiful, beautiful Sonny's. They even make aviators, which I love and they are made of glass, which is a very rare thing in sunglasses. And most of them are usually, most of the lenses are usually made of plastic. You know, at Grunewald H Q here and certainly at earth bottles HQ, we are no big fans of plastic. Where it doesn't need to be used. So thank you so much to Otis for helping us out. And thanks so much to all of you who have been sending positive feedback. It really does make a huge difference to me. I really do read all the comments and I really do appreciate it. So, um, thank you so much. In the same goes for people who've sent in so many positive comments about my book, surf by day, jam by night, which is really covering the same thing. Um, I really think my music, the podcast and the book are all about the same thing. You know, how best to live your life. You know, what ways every day can you date your mindset to lead to a more productive and, and happy life. You can always tweak it and you can always learn something new. So thanks so much to everybody who's becoming part of this conversation. Um, you know, benefiting from it, uh, listening to the staff reading this stuff, but also giving the feedback. It's just, it's such an amazing thing for me to be, um, a part of. And so thank you so much. Wow. It's a massive honor to have this next guest, mr Tom Carroll on this was a really candid conversation and I'm full of laughs and you know, he really has done it all. Um, you know, from the whole pro tour thing to charging gigantic mountainous waves with Ross Clark Jones amphetamine addiction, you know, these days being the hardcore meditator and he's now doing some meditation retreats. All the wire to I want to go. There's one in June. But um, yeah, this was just an amazing conversation. I was very, uh, thankful to Tom for, to, for making the time, um, on manly beach. He was surfing at a charity event there and he made the time for a chat and we also filmed it so you can check it out on YouTube as well. Um, so without further ado, mr Tom Carol, welcome to soulful conversations with Ash group

Speaker 2:

[inaudible]. In this podcast we interview

Speaker 1:

barring and amazing people, musicians, surfers and experts in mindset, creativity, health, wellbeing and making[inaudible]

Speaker 2:

[inaudible] I want to go deep and have a soulful conversation.[inaudible]

Speaker 3:

this podcast is brought to you by earth bottles at earth bottles. We are on a mission to end single use plastics offering a full range of beautiful double insulated bottles, reusable coffee cups, food and tea canisters, stainless steel straws, bags, and lots of plastic, great eco goodies. Earth bottles proudly supports the breast cancer network of Australia beyond blue. Hope for health, clean coast collective, 15 trees, Bali baby house, and the UN refugee agency. So head over to ww.earth bottles.com today you for a 10% discount using the promo code. Ash loves me. Together we can make a change and break up with single use plastic.

Speaker 1:

Wow. In this very special edition of soulful conversations, I am here at manly beach with the legend Tom Carol Ash. How are you going bro?

Speaker 4:

Oh, I'm, I'm, I'm doing good. Yeah. Doing good. I've been in the ocean. That helps. Yeah, yeah,

Speaker 1:

yeah. So, so there's a lot of, there's a surf comp going on here. What's, what's the deal here?

Speaker 4:

It's really cool. This is a, I've been involved with SurfAid uh, international to, uh, it delivers I to mostly to start it off in the Mentawai islands in Indonesia by dr Dave Jenkins. Back in the 90s. And he saw our Navy, he went surfing there with a whole bunch of buddies. He went on the islands and had a look with local people and met a few and so have that with living. And they saw that he had some basic, uh, you know, health issues. So we're quite, we're shortening their lives and, and also, especially on infant, uh, in mortality, you know, um, mortality rates were higher, I should say, and it was just needed to do a couple of basic changes and that was malaria and, um, you know, reduce malaria with, uh, mosquito nets. Um, change the way they cook their food, not, not cooking it inside with a fire. So they weren't getting gassed out by all, uh, all the smoke, which was giving them respiratory diseases and, um, also getting more nutrition through, um, you know, like planting vegetables, learning how to actually, um, build gardens and so on. So that was just very, very minimal, um, living. And now that's all changed. But, uh, he started off SurfAid international national going for a long time now. Can't remember what year they're in now. Both in 20th year maybe or something like that. So I've been involved with him pretty much the whole way. And we do an advantage each year called the corporate cup. It's where it's called the um, uh, the S surfing the corporate surfing cup that SoFi corporate seven cup. And they get to all the corporates come down as chains and surf a tag team event, sort of different than normal surfing events, which are more individual. You get a team together, you surf as a chain and that team, I turn up as one of the pros and they bid for you at the beating of the day to get you on the team and they throw their money down inside today they've raised, uh, to this moment, I dunno what there's, there's an update and the$182,000 just to die. Oh my God. And they ID 5% of that money goes to the people in Indonesia, you know, to the programs run and directed by SF certified in national, but actually run by the nation. So it's a real, it's a model was picked up by the UN and used in various, now it's used because it's more of a, some more of a leg up, sort of a, it's not giving to, it's not just handing out, it's legging up, um, and helping people up and, uh, and to help himself. So incredibly successful private program and still carries out today. And surfers, we just go up to up to these beautiful parrot places in paradise on boats and land camps. Take, take it for granted. It's all there. It's all, everyone's all healthy and everything's good. But on the back side of it, they just need all this help. And then, so as surfers, and there's a lot of corporate, uh, crew in your surface in the corporate world and Sydney, um, who join in Newcastle, few pay from Newcastle, Wollongong today, and they come in and get involved in the day and have a wonderful day, um, out of the office. Wow. What an amazing thing. And it's an amazing to feel

Speaker 1:

like surfing has actually made improvements because I guess we know around the world there's the, there's the old, um, haphazard way of, uh, like almost like surf ghettos starting up around the place. I mean, you would've seen a lot of that happening everywhere. Um, like people talk about Nass being a bit like that and stuff like that. It's really good. Have you seen any other models of surfing going into new places, but them trying to rethink it and doing it in a more ethical way that helps the locals?

Speaker 4:

Uh, it's in central America. Yeah. There's places that, uh, sort of built for, um, health and wellness, surfing kind of resorts that bring in the locals and educate the locals in, in certain practices, get them in employed within the structure of the, of the business and then then in support families outside that, um, I know that happens there. Central America is a real good surfing spot. You know, places like Panama, uh, Costa Rica, um, uh, um, Nicaragua. Yeah, yeah. El Salvador, places like this, a good, you know, good surfing spots that have this sort of going on. Um, some parts of Asia Pacific come. Um, so, you know, in smaller and, and, um, and all ends like that.

Speaker 1:

So, um, ethics have been important to you, it seems through the years, which is Epic. Um, actually my heritage is, I'm a colored South African from Cape town, but I haven't ever been there there. Um, but am I right in saying that you, um, boycotted a couple of comps because of apartheid?

Speaker 4:

Yes, I did. Yeah. I made a stand against apartheid in 1985 after I won my second world title. Uh, if I found it, um, a great opportunity to, as a world champion at that time was a real time. It was a time thing, like it was, you know, every time I went to South Africa and I saw what was going on there, the less I could get behind that, uh, so in myself, and it was a, um, and being seen as an, as a world champion Australian world champion supporting it. Yeah. Uh, the obligation to step up was, um, profound. So, uh, that also, you know, like along a lot of stuff comes along with, you know, the feeling of being up there in front of every on there's a world champion at that time particularly. And, uh, and actually I, the fact that I actually, you know, I look back on, I did that at 24 years old. I, um, I got, wow, that's, you know, today I still go. You are like, that's fantastic. You know, I really feel, uh, that it came from a real natural place within me to, or wasn't to tell someone they're wrong. It wasn't to tell this, this was just simply, I just don't support it. I can't support a apartheid. And if I can make someone just think that maybe it's not a good idea, just one person, uh, then all dumb, dumb a job and kind of how it sort of started to pop.

Speaker 1:

That's absolutely amazing. And that was a, um, a huge sacrifice at the time, I'm sure. Um, would ha, did you win that year?

Speaker 4:

Uh, no. I ended up coming second to Tom Curran. Yeah. Yeah. He actually, he actually didn't do South Africa too. He followed suit. So it was kinda cool. We, we, we showed that we didn't need it to do it. Uh, so, and um, Tom Karen was, he was a real tough one. Um, uh, I actually had a, the reason I, I actually fell away that year is because I, I am, I hurt my ankle after the first two events. I won the first two events after making my decision on South Africa, uh, against apartheid. And then, um, going into the next year, I won the first two events of the year. I felt like I was on fire. I felt someone point am I came home on an injury medical, and I tell you, when you engineer ankle and surfing, it's like, it's, it's the hinge to your magic carpet. So, you know, if that hinge isn't just wild up and just go out, and I got a lot of range in my ankle and it just, just suck the confidence out of me. It took me six months to get back to form. So it was a brutal, uh, Brill timing. But it also gave me times space to sort of see how it was, uh, in regard to my decision in South Africa too and solidify it was quite unstable. Um, the response that I got from it, there was some really positive stuff and I wasn't ready for the other stuff. So being 24, I was pretty naive in that area. Um, yeah, definitely. You know, today I would bring a totally different thing for me, but, uh, thing young and you know, world champion guy and you know, like, um, and uh, the natural normal, the natural force where it came from was always there and always been there. But me on the outside, I'm like, Whoa. You know, I often

Speaker 1:

find that

Speaker 4:

now I have found that over the years when I've taken ethical stance on things and I'm totally up for it and totally mean it and I'm really proud of those things too. Um, but I'm never ready for the flack because I, you know, you, you don't even choose those things. It's like you'll find yourself in the situation. Then you have, you make an ethical choice and then when you get the flack, it can be really hard. Yeah. It's a storm, like it's a storm of sorts. So I'm now realize I can sort of sit in a storm, uh, I can sit in the middle of the storm and take the kind of the sand blast a bit today, whereas mm. Back then I wasn't ready for that. So I kind of got brushed around by the storm a bit. Um, and uh, before I sort of get my feet back on the ground. And I think that time that, that ankle injury was, uh, uh, kind of, uh, kind of the universe, God. Okay. Well, and it's gonna slap you down a little, just put you down on the ground just for a bit, just to figure this out and make sure you're right with this. And so that's what helped me. Uh, and that was the gift. And the injury is always a gift in the injury. You know, there's always a gift.

Speaker 1:

So I noticed that, um, I noticed in the way that you're speaking there, uh, attendancy I guess, um, do you use your, uh, way or belief system or way of looking at life sometimes to see, okay, when something negative hits you, like why did this happen? And sort of try and reverse engineer a positive out of it. I like that reverse essentially

Speaker 4:

his stuff. Um, although usually I'm, yeah, if I'm in the pine, I don't see it. Um, a, if I'm in the, uh, the anger and the res, the reaction to it, like I don't see it and it's usually takes a bit of time to settle that down, maybe sometimes longer than others. But, um, you know, life is, is, isn't, you know, times it doesn't seem fair. Like, and you're going to get hit. Um, we're all gonna get hit at some point. And so I think at some level, um, you know, having good support, having good crew that you're connected to, and now that's when the connections really help. Um, good, good, connected with really good people. Um, with love, you know, that sort of, that really old, powerful, uh, force kind of can kind of help us sort of ground out, ground down and, and um, and see it for what it really is the situation. And definitely turn it, make it turn, turning kind of you, you don't really like, and quite often it's, he kinda make a choice I guess, but it's a more of a turning of, of the, yeah, you kind of turn it. Oh, okay. Well, Hmm, let's get a perspective on this that, that may be a little different than you, you kinda kind of victim state or, you know, like what am I saying, the reality of the situation.

Speaker 1:

Cause I find that like, um, it's good to sort of try and flip situations in a, in like you get a shit situation happen, but I often try and flip it so that my way of looking at that

Speaker 5:

[inaudible]

Speaker 1:

serves me in my life and then somebody will come and tell you, Oh, you're just diluting yourself. You know, you're just trying to be positive thinking. And that's always somebody who's depressed as fuck.

Speaker 4:

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. They want to genuinely would like to see and not in a good spice. So yeah, kind of skip, just be wary of those pipelines I make. Um, yeah, and I think it's, uh, but that's, that's kind of strengthening up the boundaries for yourself so you can see that

Speaker 1:

I heard it being said, um, and I was just quoting it at my, um, book thing that I did yesterday, but it was like you are the summary of the five people that you hang out with the most. So you gotta really have a look around because you adopt those patterns, whether it is looking at things positively or negative,

Speaker 4:

that makes sense or that makes a lot of sense. I'm with you on that.

Speaker 1:

So I've got one of those key things I remember from reading your book years ago was I would, I'd be right in saying this, that you, cause I didn't look this up on Wikipedia yesterday or anything, but did you, you would have won a third world title if it wasn't for one pedal stroke. Is that right?

Speaker 4:

Pretty much. Um, it was, um, it was a technicality and for what they call an interference call, um, against me in hotline nine 98. Uh, and, uh, I was pretty, I wouldn't say I had a handle on my nervous system at that point. I was pretty sort of highly strong. Um, I was looking at every opportunity, uh, on the, in the[inaudible] on that, in that, at that moment and maybe too much. I didn't have a look. I didn't have a step back and the boys didn't, I didn't have a, uh, ability to step back. Um, I was just too hard on myself at that point. But, um, I would always just, I was, I was two heats away actually from a world title, so I need to just get through that hate. And another one, uh,

Speaker 1:

well you're winning in that heat.

Speaker 4:

I was, I was ahead and this guy was just jarring to hell for leather and was a man, Oh man. Um, hate. And um, it was, there was the first male man, uh, contest at pipeline, um, ever. So it was very odd just to be out there with one other person. But he was a vicious competitor. He just wanted, he was actually on a death wish. He was just gonna go for anything anyway, but he just, he, he saw the to any, any moment to sort of get me on an interference. And I wasn't clued into that. I was just looking for what I wanted and I didn't actually see how he was responding to the situation. So yeah, Todd Hahn, um, as is who was there with me, a competing, I just mean he saw the opportunity, uh, on this technicality. It was a ruling that they brought in. So the judges didn't have to, well, I could just call it interference if even if you paddling, if you didn't have priority, you have a surfer held priority and you paddled for a line of swell from one end of the beach, the other, uh, that could call you an interference call. An interference on yet. So it was a technicality. So I didn't, my hands, all I have to do is just look at the wave. And that was, it didn't have to leave. The rail didn't have to take off. So he, he actually pedaled in, I had a look at this wave. It was like a crazy one, but I thought, I don't want to miss something that's good. And he actually saw me go for it behind me and outside me and he just took it no matter what, just took off on golf match. Yeah. So yeah. And so he went, um, and then I got called interference. I still want him one judge's shape, uh, with two ways, against three ways. So at the end of the heat, so, uh, I was, I was so far ahead of him with the tone. I didn't need to do that. I could have just kicked back and relaxed and just allowed him to be that gung-ho, crazy guy that he was at that time.

Speaker 1:

And did you replay that over and over and all those details a lot in subsequent days, months, years.

Speaker 4:

In a way. I kind of buried it, you know, I went, I went for that bearing act. It doesn't really work, but I thought I let it out. You know, like I kind of came in from that. I was so angry. I came in, I made a super angry, so frustrated my team, super frustrating me. I was like really bombed. I mean that gun in Miranda car share the steering wheel for as far along as, I couldn't tell it back a little bloody. I was like, really? I was really angry, really angry. Alan don't do anger very well. Not like a, a really angry person, you know, like, and I never have had that in my life. I never had that example from a father. I never had that. He's only angry when we need it, you know, like it always saw that. But, um, but that was a kind of anger that calm I'd never seen in myself and uh, and that was pretty scary. So I just shoved it down yeah. For a while. And I didn't really see myself for what I really was for war. Right. Um, and I, it took me a while, but in that process I actually buried any kind of, uh, idea of getting back home, a tour and gun for another world title. I just buried it. I said, no, I'm not going to put that kind of energy into a system that literally only that night, six hours later when they had the annual general meeting, there is P abolish that rule. Oh my God. Yeah. And today you wouldn't say anything like that because it just doesn't go with the yeah. And, um, it's, um, it was just draconian. Uh, but it was what it was. And I, and, um, that pipeline has been such an amazing place for me. It's been that, and it's been like, it's been every kind of end of the spectrum for me that break and it's shown me and taught me all these incredible lessons and taken me to places I just couldn't do on my own. So, uh, I recognize that break as being a kind of place. You're like, my ashes will be spread, you know, that sort of place.

Speaker 1:

Definitely. And it's his stuff. It's the stuff of legend, your, uh, your, um, vibe at pipe and your understanding of pipe and how you serve it. And it must have been amazing to do that master's thing and have that sort and feel vindicated when you surf that in the way that you did.

Speaker 4:

Oh yeah. That was really cool. That was again, that was, that was really about, um,[inaudible] me, um, kinda get giving everything in a golf from that to charity and, and just going and having a surf and all of a sudden things just sort of friend, um, kind of allowed me to kind of get the exact wise that I needed to express myself.

Speaker 1:

Were you, um, were you back on, um, a replica boat or older equipment that you used to ride in that era that you were winning pipe all the time?

Speaker 4:

Yeah, so when they um, asked me if I'd like to do that heat, I thought, Oh, be really cool to get that Oh, board, um, get, get all the dims off it and try to make the file again. Um, I did that with Pat Rossen who was my shaper back in 80s and the nineties. There still is. And Pat and I actually saw him this and helped me work on the fall as well and uh, and get specific dimensions. Right. And by basically re rebuilt that board and I might a little bit thicker because back then it was rolled him so thin and narrow. It was just, it just didn't mold into how it was today. So I just sort of just pumped it up a little bit, made it a little bit easier for myself out there. And the board just went beautifully. Yeah. I hadn't written the board before the heat, so I was like going wow. And it just, it did everything I could love to do.

Speaker 1:

And um, and the way you rode on like, like that's longer equipment that would be used for the foot pipe now. Um, or is it because you can, you can fill me in on that. Is it a different line that you took?

Speaker 4:

Yeah. So that those boards are probably about, well, mine's seven eight, that board that I was writing today, they'd be running six, six, six, six tens maybe on that sort of, you know, like secondary pipe, maybe seven. Oh, these guys are on real short boards dropping out from the NIC. The way they're turning in it, like they're just playing with pot now. Like it's, I could still do wife. Oh cha always wanted to do so, but I was so came from this school of you've got to have a longer board, you've got to have this big long gun, you know, they're quite beautiful boards, slick like spews, you know, and uh, but to ride them, demand a different line, be taken on the wave. But I used to definitely try to take them as light as I could get out underneath it. Um, which those guys are doing regularly today. Like it's nothing for these guys today. So they are really taking it to the next level and um, uh, and writing short equipment. And it's, it's tricky to surf short equipment out there. Um, I could paddle into it. I'm a bit further out. I had a lot more confidence in my equipment, um, on anything I could be confident riding a six, six or 16 out there at that size, you know.

Speaker 1:

But with that length, you were still able to do the snap?

Speaker 4:

Yeah, yeah, I could because I used to train on the longer boards. I used to go at an eight foot board, was the big brother to that board and just surf that for like two weeks in all kinds of conditions. So I knew that I'd be ready for my seven fours and seven eights and seven hours. If I was riding and training on something bigger, longer, Lynelle could come back and listen up. So that's how I, that's how I used to play it. Yeah. Wow. Hmm.

Speaker 1:

Um, and yeah, so people check out the snap all the surface will know what we're talking about. Then when did you do that? Was that crazy vertical turn you did in the barrel and that was in a final, wasn't it?

Speaker 4:

Um, actually it was a preliminary around the day before. Yeah. Um, uh, and that was, um, in 1991 to, yeah, the seminar. Any wine and it's, uh, the pipe masters, uh, the seminar only one, you should be sponsored by this Japanese. Um, uh, I think it was a, a department store chain called Marie and they used to give out these amazing samurai helmets when you won that event. And, and that was so cool. I got a, I got a hanging out at home. It's so cool. Yeah,

Speaker 1:

that's cool. So I mean, I can imagine, um, it was like potty town in, that was the, I mean to me, I see it is that era was the height of Coke and all that that kind of carry on. Um, so you sort of documented a lot about that era. Like how was it in those days?

Speaker 4:

Well, it's kinda like it was potty town or it like, it was, you know, we didn't have social media, we didn't have any of that stuff, sort of wheels. It was pretty free flowing. Um, whatever was going on and it was, it was hardcore to those. There was some things going on that we didn't really need to be involved in, you know, um, as athletes particularly. But it was just, their stuff was flying and it was fun until it wasn't fun. You know, it's, that stuff is, you know, it's cool but fun for a bit. And then, uh, and the reality of it, it's quite different. But, um, uh, and can get a grip on us. It's like, uh, cause I like the adrenaline. I'm an adrenaline junkie, so anything that matches the adrenaline, um, was like, I just lock onto it. And I love that stuff. Particularly anything, it kind of boosted my ego. Like, you know, I cut kinds of definitely the ego drug. Like, you know, it's like you can almost not have to do anything. And do you think in your really good, well you can't. Yeah. It's like, yeah, I am killing it like differently. Everything I'm saying right now is the best thing that's ever been said. So, uh, it can happen that way. So for all of us, and at that time it was, it was free. Flying goes a lot, a lot of action going on. Uh, you know, like I said, it was someone, it was a lot of fun and I wouldn't change any of that stuff for anything. It was, it was a huge adventure.

Speaker 1:

So you got to the stage like after a while and probably after pro days and whatever, and then getting into, did you get into ice for awhile there? And that got really heavy. Uh, how did you cause people get the way I see it. I mean, I hate ice, like that epidemic has swept and especially the youth. Um, but it must be just so hard to get off.

Speaker 4:

Well, it's super, it's so sad that it's a, it's like this for us humans, a human experience is such that, uh, you know, if we feel like we're trapped in some sort of way, if we feel like we haven't, if we're really, really challenged in life and we're Delta HOD blow and then someone sort of validates that with something that I'm gonna blow up, bikes is feel better about ourselves. Yeah. Substance of anything. What? It could be alcohol, it could be anything. That's somebody that matches that part of us that kind of wants more. Um, which we all have. There's no, no one skips that one except part of the human experience. Right. So, you know, sugar take sugar for once. Troy, that's a tricky one. But the, um, uh, that all eyes, the crystal methamphetamines, I like love it. It's such a good drug. Like it's, you know, it's, it's like I recommend, yeah. It's like, Oh, I thought that it's that good. I can't, it's, it's, it's not, not a good, not good for me to match that up. And it's not good for PR, not good for us to trade hours, you know, a system in such, um, it can make us do some of the weirdest shit ever. You never think of this stuff, you know, like really, uh, where it's going to take you. If you continue using it. It's like, uh, it's gonna it's actually our, uh, the, uh, addict and saw it as, it's not the drug, it's the, it's the entity, the humanist inside us. It gets skewed and towards just destruction. And so we will destroy relationships. We will destroy our surroundings, we'll take, regain our health, will just give everything completely and utterly over to the drug and abandon everything that's good to us or for us and around us that loves us and ignore it for the drug and or whatever it might be. It could be something else. But, um, and when we kick out addict off in[inaudible] with such a thing, um, entity such as a drug or, or an I behavior or a or an active, anything, um, man, where, where opening account wounds our self and others and there's a ripple effect. It's so damaging. It just, but the reverse can happen if, if you turn around and ask for help because what it does is the addict goes off on its own and, and on its own mission of disrupted self-destruction. And it's always a downward Hill.[inaudible] might have a little illusions. It, it's always an illusion. You, you might be going up Hill, you're going down, he gives kind of guy down. It's going to get ugly if you continue. So the coolest thing is as soon as you just open a, you know, if you're in a really bad, bad spot and you just reach out and it makes no sense at all for Hill, he just, that's another turning on. I'm talking about, it's kinda turn, we turn and ask for help, let's move in a different direction. So all of a sudden all this help comes like, it's just crazy. It's so cool. Like just make that move and uh, and, and there's so much help for us. I like, I was flabbergasted. And how much actually support there is once we tap into that power, um, that's the only power that could actually, I could get before I could get the power, you know, start building that strength up in inside me because I can't do it on mine.

Speaker 1:

Right. So that was the turning point. It was asking for help and then that,

Speaker 4:

yeah, and usually you gotta for us willful competitive, uh, you know, motherfuckers who just, you know, like, I'm going to do this. No worry. I've got it. I've got it. You know, that willfulness, it's so powerful that it just takes us down. And, um, and until that gets broken and snapped and cracked the crack foams, you know, uh, Glenn Cohen talks about that a crack, you know, that forms and it lets the light in, you know? Yeah. Yeah. It's a beautiful song and, and still come back. Everyone has the crack, you know, the cracks that you gotta let the light in, into the crack, you know, and the cracks are forming any imperfections. And so, uh, and then we, then the help, you know, then you start getting this, this incredible support. Um, but we definitely have to be in a fetal position. I needed to be in a fetal position crying mommy sucking my thumb or whatever it was in a nude, I don't know. Oh, it's like things, things weren't too good. Like I love him, but now, thankfully,

Speaker 1:

yeah, I mean, that's lucky. It's just such a shame that we always have to hit bloody rock bottom before you that crack foams. Speaking of the fetal position, I love, I love asking these question. Um, so you, um, after competitive surfing, then you thought, okay, now I have to start chasing gigantic waves and do massive toe ins to 50 foot deaths labs. Um, so can you just share for us punters a scary kind of situation where you thought or if not, if it never happened. Wow, this is pretty heavy. I think maybe mommy,

Speaker 4:

I don't know. Mom. Me not me. Well, I did a series of shows and a movie with Proskauer Jones, um, called storm surfers. And I think some of the moments I had with Ross, uh, during that show were kinda pretty old time. Like it's, it's, it's all time, you know, certainly with Ross kind of thing. Um, yeah. God bless him. He's such a good guy. Like we has such a good, you know, we've had such good times together. He, he, um, but we kinda got that sign kind of energy when it clicks on and we kind of get understanding without words, you know, you get that sort of feeling with someone. You probably haven't any music, you know, you're on stage and you've got musician gun, you kinda don't need to do anything. You kinda, it'll kind of, it moves along. And he of get frustrated from Tom Tom if that's not working right. And it's kind of just my shit, whatever. But yeah, but a Merz is energy chemistry had kind of pumps it all along and pumps up. Well that's what happened with Ross and iron. But it used to get us in as much as crazy situations. Like we were way out of Western Australian coastline. Like, Whoa. Like, like thankfully I had a lot of stuff around us, but we'll, why aren't there, um, 70 in order Kamala's off the Western certain coastline in this one brief we'd never been out to, where were these mad cry fishermen? One was, his name was Skiles and Skiles Skiles vape. We, we, we started a 2:00 AM star Geraldton, uh, hit it out from there. West towards is a riff on this big swell and ugly wind. And, and he was already smoking joints. Yeah. Drinking cans, you know,[inaudible] cycles on, you know, and we added these heavy suit and we got out there and we were shooting a three D and we're shooting heli, we're shooting all kinds of different stuff. We've got two big boats, but no one, nothing kind of prepares you like, um, for when, what happens when, when you get hit, like sometimes when you come off on a big wave, you don't, this is why we try and empty lung hold downs is that you lose all the air when you hit the water. And this is what happened for me. I lost my air as I was halfway down the face, hit the water last Summa air and I couldn't get a breath. I got lifted up by the wife and then thrown out by the wives, said sort of skip this whitelists kind of spin with no hair and then shoved down down and then rolled on, rolled on for, I don't know how long it was, but it was scary. I didn't think my, I actually took a breath before I got up in the whitewater because I couldn't take it any longer. But I've been down for way too long and uh, I had this, we got these really cool, um, inflatable vest now gives you a bit of confidence, uh, to kind of be able to come up. But we actually had Mike shift funds, we've kind of made ourselves or we got someone to kind of stitch together and it blew out on the walkout so I couldn't find the rip cord. So I had a gun. I've spent too much time trying to find this cord and I only had seconds so, and I spent too much time using my nerve on that cause it's kind of, yeah. Or thinking to yourself. Ah, it'll fight. That'll get, that'll get, I'll be able to get up cause it felt date cause I opened my eyes, open my eyes in it and it was dark, you know, and it's dark and an atheist and you know, you deep so you kind of open up, Oh it's dark. I'm like can't see light right now. So I was underneath a lot, a lot of white water getting roll and blacked out. And so I'm like okay, which way is up down? And I'm getting rolled and rolled, getting rolled. And I couldn't tell. I just had to let go and try to find this thing. I had enough nerve to do that, but I kind of ran out on that, you know? So, and then I had to kind of make my way, no matter what to some sort of light, which I could just start to see. And then you start seeing the threads of light through the whitewater and then you kind of start going towards them. And I started going towards them and I was felt like I had drag on me. Now this thing, you know, I like getting up, trying to get up and I felt like forever and I'll kinda, I might not make it and, uh, but I'll have to keep going. I've got to keep pushing and I've got to near what felt like near the surface and it took a little breath, the white water, and then I popped up, like literally like did that, and then I came to the surface. So I was already moving upwards towards the surface with a buoyancy of more wet suit and the vest. Um, so I've got the surface and I was just coughing and carrying on and thankfully it was know otherwise. And Ross was able to pluck me out. That was sort of the most recent, really tough one. And did you think you were done for yeah. Just got that feeling. Well maybe I'm going to go here. I don't know. Yeah, I have that can get you there. I had a bunch of people around that would've pulled me. Yeah. But then you only got few moments to do with, you know, with resuscitation and stuff. So resuscitation is super important at that point and uh, making sure, yeah. Getting to safety and getting, um, the air back in there. Yeah. Getting any sort of circulation to might be compromised, but yeah, that was, I was felt lucky that I came up that time. Yeah.

Speaker 1:

And obviously you've gone in heavy on the breath stuff. Like you can hold your breath for a very long time. Uh, I, it's not hope, but it's not breath holding that you do though with breast training. Is it? It's, it's uh, preparing for a non breath hold kind of thing. It's

Speaker 4:

getting CIT tolerant. So it's, um, so that's what we work towards. So the body works under stress, um, better. And actually the nervous system gets toned by that work. Similar to when we did meditation, but this is a different style. It's actually working with the breath. Um, we're tapping or this crazy chemical makeup in our body that's already sitting there. It's pretty, pretty phenomenal actually what we can tap into just with our breath. Yeah. So once we kind of started work with the breath in that way[inaudible] uh, it gives us, it gives us a, a confidence[inaudible]

Speaker 1:

have you got wacky with the breath? If you've got shower manic with the breath?

Speaker 4:

A couple of moments where I definitely felt like I was getting lifted out of my body. Um, and looking back. Oh, and that was after, that was after heavy breath work. Like really heavy breath work, like the Wim Hoff stuff.

Speaker 1:

People on this podcast. Uh, no stranger. I froth on the half every time. I love doing Wim Hof breathing and I love, I like, I like trippy stuff too, so I like, um, uh, I really, I feel like your buddy gives you a little reward. Like last night I did, um, a whole lot of Wim Hof stuff in the hotel room and some pushups and then some more half and um, put on different YouTube clips on my phone and just listen to them and, and do, and I started to get some really good purple lights going. Oh, there you go.

Speaker 4:

The natural stuff come in. It's you, it's you. It's Ash. It's Ash sort of popping[inaudible]

Speaker 1:

I honestly high on your own supply. Yeah, man. You're doing great man. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's great. So you got some, um, retreats going on. You're going to be doing one in June, which I would love to get to if I can. What's going on with that thing?

Speaker 4:

Uh, so, um, I'm getting together with, um,[inaudible] fillers, uh, and I've got my partner, Mary has helped me and she's the backbone of stuff, you know, she's awesome. And, um, and all the current surf we've got. Um, uh, Philly, she's a beautiful, a yoga teacher. I mean, just an amazing, uh, human, she really delivers a beautiful, beautiful class. It's a, an extraordinary why she, um, delivers her her classes and actually explains, eh, with, with beautiful, uh, uh, dividing knowledge. It's the Vidas, you know, she pulls out of the Vedas and, and works with all this beautiful knowledge and delivers the cost in such a, a seamless fashion, uh, instead of Texas all on a journey in, during the class within ourself, which is, uh, like I've never felt with a yoga teacher before. So I'm really happy to have Philly on board. We've got, um, uh, my, my daughter Jenna Carol, she's, she's, um, really finely tuning her, um, uh, her own healing, um, strengths around healing strengths through natruopathy. So, uh, yeah, and her bringing her insights along. So helping with nutrition and, and um, and natruopathy also, I'll be taking everyone through the Vedic tape, uh, meditation technique. So, um, and if, if you want, I can give you your mantra there and, uh, and take you, you know, in get, you mean on a good routine on the practice twice a day throughout the six days. So, yeah. And that's, that's the, that's the aim to actually get people in on the practice meditation. I think meditation is a real need of the time. It's, um, it seems to be becoming a lot more bold, more popular. But it's something that, for me personally, I know it's really helped me a lot in the last 13 years of practice. It's, it's given me, it's particularly this kind of practice twice a day, 20 minutes, twice a day, and using the mantra, a mantra is, man is his mind trial, car, mind, car. So we're hopping inside the vehicle that takes us to tourism, transcend the mind and the minds. Yeah. Full of thoughts. Right. And you know, and everything starts with a thought, you know, look at these earth poles, right? They start with a thought, one thought. Yeah. You know, and uh, and it's, it's a beautiful thought that had to start with one thought. And then it starts multiplying on itself. So we, we've got an urgent, urgent, I think, um, responsibility to that. The, you know, to understand that for the first thought that comes to a head just to, that might get big, just a lap to come and go. But when we act on a thought, make sure that that thought is, is going to be something that's going to serve you and others so that we really, so this is what the meditation is about. Look, no one's perfect. We're not going for perfection here. It's like chess making progress towards making a preference to keep a system, this incredible body, this, this thing that we kind of hanging out with it's ass to hang out. It's going to have the last side by, it's going to have the last sight, right? Getting the, the, the mind, the body and the nervous system between just to sort of move together in a really nice, uh, uniform movement so it's not fighting itself. But that's the key, uh, with the meditation, you know, um, you know, tapping into your, your natural source too. I think, um, that's within us. And going in for in a referral. So we're not really, you know, looking in with, um, going for consciousness all the time. Just go for consciousness. So that's what we do with the practice. That's all it is really.

Speaker 1:

Well, that is so cool because, um, I don't know if you know, but like in this podcast, that's what I've been, everybody has been asked about meditation and what they do and also the breath work and stuff. And I didn't know you were, I'm so deep into that. That's very, very cool. Yeah.

Speaker 4:

We'll see things like this, pull people together. Right. Yeah. That's no surprise to me that we're here today talking. So that's so cool. Uh, and by the way, thanks for coming on board.

Speaker 1:

Awesome product. We're trying to address the plus. Oh yes. Earth bottles. Yo. Yeah, it's really cool. It's really cool. What, um, you know, all the thing, you know, that, um, anything that there's so much that can be done these days, um, to fix, to help fix the planet and redress the problems that, um, have been created. And, you know, to some extent as massive corporations, we could go on a side thing about that, but it's business that got us into this. But it's kinda like be cool business. They can get us out of this to some extent.

Speaker 4:

Yeah. And I think changes, it has to happen. And uh, it's funny how the universe, uh, you know, I love when it's explained to my universe, uni one verse song, one song, the one song that's playing, being played out and vibrating between every single living thing on the planet right now, like that water went in my mouth that wanted to join it. It, um, it's, it's, it's going to have strong feedback, you know, um, it's already having profound feedback. We don't quite sure about it yet. Uh, we want, we have a lot of power to act, to create better business. Uh, we've got a lot of power. We can actually take action to, um, steer it and it is a big, big ship by give a, try to steer one of those thousand foot tankers. So like, where am I, where am I like a 50,000 Mol tanker? We need to, you know, start turning this baby right now and making, taking action. Otherwise it's going to be like, it'll be a tap on the shoulder, warmed on him. Yeah. It happens to us a little wise in our body. He got something wrong. Tone, you know, like you got to saw a knee, Tom T T uh, Aw, he's really hurt. Not, not, you know, I couldn't do it. Bang, bang. There's gonna be a slap in the head. There's going to be a baseball bat over the head until you like, you know, again, you're on the ground. Uh, and then the body's gone. You have to do something about this time. So, and that's the way nature is. We are nature and that's what nature's going to do. Taking action like this that you've done with earth bottles and just small actions on a daily basis in Tai, you're reducing our plastic usage, uh, uh, individual by actually educating the next person about it. Just say, look, this is what we're doing. You know, this is what we can do. Just try to, you know, try to pick this one back. It's a, it is a song suffocate or because I was just in a mommy Island in Japan, which is just above Okinawan. It's got Taiwan, it's got China, it's got Korea, it's got Japan all around it. It's got in an Asia, Oh, heavy plastic uses. I'm unloading the rivers and uh, the systems, uh, trying to deal with all this plastic all out there. And the Pacific ocean just revolving around the microplastics on the beach that I saw were just really sad. Um, it's very sad and it's really disheartening. But, um, humans, we're pretty good at coming up with good stuff I think. And uh, and, and well, I hope we can start to work towards, cause we got a big one coming to it.

Speaker 1:

That's all I know. Yeah. Yeah. And we just can't yet, the hopelessness and the paralysis is no good. You know, we just need to get into it, enjoy, you know, have a good, have a good time while we do it and like enjoy being part of the solution and making a solution.

Speaker 4:

Perfect. That's, yeah. Let's be part of the solution. Yeah.

Speaker 1:

So in closing, um, is there any advice? I mean, I think a lot of my stuff, um, including my book was about this too. I said at the start of it that it was, I was hoping for anybody stuck in a rut that it would serve as the philosophical spatula to get you unstuck. Um, and then somebody suggested at gigs, I have a merchant item that, a philosophical spatulas that, um, yeah. Do you have any of those just yeah. That you, that you think, you know, people could use or you know, to make a change or any, anything you would suggest that something you've found in your life that just is a key to happiness or joy or, or

Speaker 4:

anything like that? Um, I think just being kind to yourself. Uh, first I think, um, look at the areas where you're not, so kind to yourself and just sorta make small changes where you can, a big, if you can, but really sort of, uh, towards being kind to ourselves. Uh, and towards itself, uh, we start to sort of put that out there to others. So it's just a start of something a lot bigger, um, and do that slowly but methodically if he can. Um, don't beat up on yourself. Um, be very kind to yourself. And I think, um, the great book to read, I think it's kind of, uh, been a real strong one for me and I pick it up from time to time and just read bits of it and it always repeats itself. It doesn't, but I somehow always take on something different. Every time I read something even it's the same thing. Uh, and that's, um, echo tells power of now. I love that. Yeah. We, we, we, we, we got up, moved towards, well, you don't have to, it's nice to move toward that stuff. And uh, he's got a book called practicing the power now, which is a wonderful little book that you consider carry around. It's not as chunky. Um, but that, that also practicing the power of now is Cracker. Yeah.

Speaker 1:

My last album was called now and it featured a now clock on the front and it was just like now, now, now, now. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Wow. I love. I love a cat. He's the man, isn't it? He has a way to plastic, you know, like so slow. You got, what's it going to say? Eh? Well, thank you so much, brother. What a great podcast. Thanks so much for that. It's a pleasure. My pleasure, Ash. Really love it. Cheers. You too. It's an honor. Yeah.

Speaker 2:

Every stupid day.

Speaker 6:

[inaudible]

Speaker 2:

[inaudible][inaudible] stupid thing.

Speaker 6:

[inaudible].