Coastsiders Michael Joshua and Skylar Banner began their journey to take up the mantle of local surf icons like Jeff Clark and Ion Banner, Skylar’s father, as they paddled into their first Mavericks waves on the morning of Oct. 25.
“It was a beautiful day,” said Tim West, an El Granada resident who surfed with the boys that day. “The sun was out, sheet glass conditions on the water – the perfect opportunity for the kids to get some waves.”
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“It was a much heavier experience than I’m used to,” Joshua said. “It’s something completely new, and you gotta approach it that way. It’s like a whole different game … such a different wave than anything I ever surfed.”
The boys were coached by longtime Mavericks surfers, 28-year-old West, and Ion Banner, 39. They “finally reached their time,” Ion Banner said, to test their abilities against the famous breakers.
“You could see the kids’ eyes were bug-eyed,” West said. “It was a big, big step for them.”
Sophomores at Half Moon Bay High School, the boys spent the summer preparing for the event with West’s “gun,” a type of surfboard engineered for big-wave riding by Mavericks Surf Shop owner Jeff Clark, who also manages the annual Mavericks Surf Contest. Both boys said they had anticipated the Mavericks moment for years, learning the ropes at local haunts like Surfer’s Beach.
“I don’t know what is better than surfing,” Skylar Banner said. “My dream is to get as good as I can, surf Mavericks, and then see how far I can go.”
That dream, Banner says, is rooted in childhood memories watching his father conquer big-wave surf recreationally and competitively. Raised in El Granada among the surf community elite, Banner said he feels no pressure to compare board sizes or wave counts with anyone, including his friend Joshua, who Banner said is the only one of his peers capable of taking on Mavericks at present.
“Michael has got the heart for this sport,” said Marye Joshua, Michael Joshua’s mother. “He lives and breathes and dreams about surfing. It’s his passion.”
Overcoming her maternal instincts, Marye Joshua said surfing has “transformed (Michael), soul, body and mind” into a “mellow, wonderful kid.”
“I’ve seen it with my brother and with his friends (whom Michael surfs with),” she said. “They’re mellow, nice, good-hearted people and I see Michael falling into that same mold.”
Skylar Banner seems born of that mold, seasoned in the lifestyle and mentality of the surfer by his father. Surfing Mavericks, Ion Banner said, is as much a milestone of personal growth for Skylar as it is a benchmark of his ability and athleticism.
“There’s an age where you come into your own,” Ion Banner said. “When you have a passion to surf and you go somewhere like Mavericks; it really puts things in perspective. It’s just you and the wave.
“I see the look on his face, and without him boasting at all, he looked proud — like he grew a couple hairs on his chest,” the elder Banner said.
The two boys, heading the next generation of local Mavericks masters, say they can’t wait for their next chance to get up close and personal with the notorious wave break.
Clark said he encourages that kind of die-hard attitude and looks for it in the surfers he selects for the annual surf contest at Mavericks.
“If these guys got the heart for this stuff, bring it!” Clark said. “That’s the awesome thing about it. It’s the spirit of Mavericks. If you’ve got it, step up.”
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