Rob Machado Entertains The Idea Of Being A Magazine Editor, Prepares For Baldness

SW: You can surf one session as any surfer from history in their prime. Who is it and where?
RM: Tom Curren. J-bay. Experienced every feeling you could feel riding a surfboard. Speed, flow, power, tubes, perfect lines… Or Gerry Lopez at the Pipeline. One of those sessions in the 70s where he got blown out of a stack of 10 footers all day long.

Bald on top with ponytail or thick black curly hair all over your entire body?
Always been a fan of hair but not body hair. I’ve shaved my head and I’ve had a ponytail but I’ve never had both at the same time. Might be kinda sick.

You’re the editor of the New York Times for a day. What’s tomorrow’s headline?
NO BAD NEWS TODAY! TAKE THE DAY OFF AND DO SOMETHING FUN.

Kelly Slater doesn’t exist and never has. Describe the world we live in?
11 other dudes have World Titles and surfing isn’t anywhere near where it is now.

You can only surf one board at one wave for the rest of your life?
Uluwatu has so many vibes and I love it. It’s consistent. It handles anything from one to 20 feet. All tides. Tubes. Turns. Or maybe Desert Point? Could you ever get sick of getting tubed? Wait, G land. Another amazing option… so much variety in the wave. The board would my Greenough inspired twinny. Maybe a 6’2”. The thing needs foam cause I’m gonna surf until I’m 100.

You can go back in time and re-surf any heat from your career. Which do you choose and what’s the result?
I honestly wouldn’t change a thing. Everything happens for a reason. That heat with Kelly at Pipe in 95 was a true blessing. It reminded me of who I really am and what surfing is for me. The waves were absolutely pumping… Perfect 8 to 10 foot and it was just me and a friend trading waves. The fact that there were people scoring our rides and that it was for a World Title became irrelevant to me. I cant even imagine how different my life would be if I would have won that World Title, and when I think about it… I’m glad I didn’t. It made me into the person I am today. And I’m really content with that. That moment showed people a side of professional surfing that you rarely see.

Which number is better 12 or 37?
I like em both.

You were born in Sydney but your folks decide not go back to the states. What are you doing with yourself today?
I’m in a band called “Goons of Doom” surfing all over Oz and Indo
loving life.