The surfing gazillionaire
Warren Pfeiffer
SEASON 1 - EPISODE 2
Watch the video to learn from Warren what it means to live a gazillionaire lifestyle.
“I really don't look at surf reports and stuff… If there's any sort of wave I'm just grateful for that.”
— Warren Pfeiffer
Warren Pfeiffer is a surfmat rider celebrity. That is if there is such a thing. The surfmat scene is super tiny, and he is the only (as far as I know) hardcore mat surfer who appeared in a more recent surf movie.
I was lucky enough to spend a few days with Warren and get a taste of his unique gazillionaire lifestyle. Not only did he inspire me to be more grateful for what I already have, but I also learned how to ride my surfmat more skillfully and with more speed. Both might appear unspectacular for the onlooker, but as Sean Penn in the movie "The secret life of Walter Mitty" says:
"Beautiful things don't ask for attention."
“My girlfriend, she was looking at me one day, and she said that the mat is just, it's unspectacular. Until she said that, I'd never had that thought because you just do it.”
— Warren Pfeiffer
“I've always enjoyed riding with other mat riders because you can actually share waves with one or more people on a mat, which is really not very successful with any other craft. ”
— Warren Pfeiffer
Surfing with George
Yes, that's the legendary George Greenough to the left of Warren in the image. Although many people might have never heard about George, he arguably is one of the most influential surfers of all time and the originator of modern mat surfing. Whenever Warren is in the area of Byron Bay, he meets up with George and a few other people, and they surf mats together. Warren and George have been friends for decades and share the same passion and love for the ocean.
Surfmat Virtuoso
The first time I watched Warren ride a surfmat was in the 2008 surf movie "Musica Surfica". At that time, I did not pay to much attention to this guy on the inflatable thing because all I wanted to see at that time was Tom Wegener with his wooden surfboards. Later, when I started to investigate surfmats, I soon saw pictures of Warren Pfeiffer and learned that he was one of the most highly skilled mat surfers on our planet. After having surfed with him, I am blown away by his subtle and skilful riding that results in the most amazing speed-runs on the wave.
“Being able to ride the swell and just skimming across on the power of the ocean and the wave hasn't even really broken, it's just the greatest feeling.”
— Warren Pfeiffer