Hiding from TMZ in the Tube with Tyler Stanaland

Peering out from my fourth story balcony in Cabo, eyes bleary, strong black coffee in hand, I see someone take off on a bomb. It’s the biggest day of the swell. The mystery surfer has Monuments all to himself; everyone else is sleeping off last night’s tequila.

It’s Laguna Beach native, Tyler Stanaland. And he’s riding something that looks more like a boogieboard, rather than a traditional chunk of foam and fiberglass. The board is about four-foot, maybe less, a turquoise hue matching the Baja water, and it’s finless. No grip to catch him as he drops down the face, knees clenched, and holding the rail for dear life on the bottom turn.

Quickly, Stanaland launches into a ferocious frontside reverse. Then he caps it off with a couple pop shuv-its for good measure. Who needs fins? Not when you grew up on a skimboard.

Tyler’s a tough guy to pin down. Every morning, it seemed, he was the first one in the water. Then, he’d escape the sun, gearing up for yet another session throughout the day. Sometimes with fins, sometimes not. But during the annual Switching Gears event, hosted by Cabo’s The Cape hotel, I finally get him during a bus ride for a mountain biking excursion. No place to hide.

During the bus ride, we had time to kill. So, we yakked about a number of things – from his stint on reality TV, getting recognized by “fans” outside of surfing, real estate side hustles, the cult of soft-tops, and charging monstrous pits at the Wedge. Keep scrolling for our chat.

What's your surfing life look like today?

I feel like I’m surfing less, now that I’m working in real estate more, but my surfing depends on the swell. I’m less motivated to go grovel than I used to be, but I haven’t lost that love. I’m still surfing a lot, just maybe more in better waves, and less often.

If I’m home, I’ll wait around for swells. But I’ll still try and strike down to Fiji, or to certain spots in Mexico…at home, I really just surf the Wedge when it’s good. [Laughs.]

When you’re not surfing, and outside of your real estate gig, what do you do to stay sane?

I fish a lot. It’s nice, because when there’s waves, I surf; when there’s not, I fish. From growing up in the ocean, those two skillsets overlap. So, pretty much my sanity revolves around the ocean. I’m not sure if I’d consider myself a “good” fisherman, but I’m learning. And it’s fun.

"They’re just fun, soft-tops; they’re like a swiss army knife. You can use ‘em in pretty much any conditions."

Describe growing up in Laguna Beach. What’s the surf community like?

The surf community in Laguna is pretty core. Despite not having a lot of really good waves, there’s a lot of really good surfers. It’s very fickle. Most of us grow up skimboarding, because that’s the most common thing to do. That’s where it was invented. And you can do it when there’s practically no waves. But overall, Laguna is pretty core.

You were a top skimboarder at one point. Any regrets not further pursuing that?

I think skimboarding is super fun, but there wasn’t a lot of opportunity. Especially when we were growing up. There’s more opportunity now. Just look at guys like Blair [Conklin]. You can make a full career out of it. But no, I don’t really skim anymore. It’s super hard on your body, too. If I tried, I’m pretty sure my legs would just snap. Longevity in that sport is really tough. Fitness and health is a huge priority for me, because I wanna be surfing as long as possible.

What percentage of your quiver is soft-tops vs. regular boards?

I’d say probably 50/50.

What do you like about soft-tops?

I surf the Wedge a lot when I’m home, and soft-tops are pretty much indestructible. I like that they don’t hurt as bad when they hit you. Although, ironically, the most hurt I’ve ever gotten by a board was from a soft-top fin. It hit me in the back of the head at Wedge and I got 19 staples.

They’re just fun, soft-tops; they’re like a swiss army knife. You can use ‘em in pretty much any conditions. In terms of progression, I think there’s a lot of potential for progression when it comes to fun. I don’t think they’ll ever compete with a high-performance shortboard, but at a wave like the Wedge, you’re seeing guys get just as barreled on soft-tops.

Speaking of the Wedge, on any given swell, you’re one of the top guys out there. What draws you to big, sketchy, shorebreak tubes?

Maybe it comes from skimboarding, to be honest. We don’t have a lot of big waves in Orange County, and not a lot of waves with legit barrels. The Wedge is kind of the only one. When you grow up skimboarding, you grow up hunting these shorebreak tubes. So, the Wedge is like a big version of that. And plus, I just really like getting barreled. It’s what every surfer dreams about doing, and that’s the best place to do it in Orange County.

What about the beatings? You like ‘em?

That’s what makes it exciting. We had a swell this past spring that was really big, but it wasn’t very good. It was just really exciting. Everyone was almost getting the wave of their lives. And that was just as exciting as the real thing – it’s all about the pursuit of what could be.

Talk about the real estate gig. Is that a side hustle? On your résumé would it be “surfer” or “real estate guy” at the top?

That depends on the surf forecast. [Laughs.] It’s hard to discern which one’s the side hustle, but surfing will always be my main passion. And I’m 34 now. I kind of need a real job. But the cool thing about real estate is that it allows me a lot of free time. I’m able to surf, still chase swells; there’s a lot of opportunity, and it gives me a paycheck to get on a plane and hunt waves.

"I just really like getting barreled. It’s what every surfer dreams about doing, and that [the Wedge] is the best place to do it in Orange County."

What about the reality TV stuff? What was that like?

That was a super strange experience. I’ve since walked away from it. It’s not my cup of tea. I’m inherently pretty introverted and shy, so to be on display and at the mercy of production, people editing, the public…it was a lot. It was a whirlwind. Cool experience. Would I do it again? Probably not.

Did they craft your persona, or were you able to be yourself?

On those shows, you’re pretty much in a box. And they have a certain amount of boxes for that TV show, and they have these characters they want, whether that’s who you are or not. They’ll find a way to make you who they want you to be. That’s another tough thing – you don’t have the freedom to show who you are. There were a lot people making assumptions about my personal life that I had no interest in sharing publicly. Then, the drama. Too much drama. Life is pretty awesome, and I don’t want to sit here battling internet trolls.

Do people recognize you on the street?

Yeah, that’s been a weird one for me. I’ll be, like, on a flight or something and getting recognized from the show. For the most part, it’s fine. But again, I’m pretty shy. And the whole selfie thing…that’s just weird.

Back to surfing…what’s next for you?

I just really wanna get tubed. I’ve been lucky enough to travel a lot throughout my life, but work is taking over quite a bit. So, there’s a handful of trips I still wanna take. Fiji is my number one spot. I’ve been lucky enough to go down there quite a bit, and I really think Cloudbreak is the best wave on earth. That’s the only wave I really wanna surf.