Dear Badfish Crew,
In the beginning, Mike and Zack were sitting in Zack’s garage, launching Badfish over a couple of cold Tecates. Our crew was just the two of us. We had two boards that Zack had shaped and we wondered if other people would have as much fun as we were having surfing on a river in Colorado.
Mike Tavares lived down the street in Salida. We invited him to come surf with us one day — and we became a crew of three. Over the first few years, the crew grew to include Brittany, Natali, Spencer, Claire, Reta, Hannah, Heather, and Bradley.
One day we were scrolling Facebook and saw that some guys in Washington DC had tagged Badfish in some photos. They called themselves the “PBC” or “Potomac Badfish Crew”. Pretty soon, G-Mo, Cobra, Eric, John, and Jason were in the crew too. We met Yacu and Yuka and the crew became international with our new Japanese friends.Our kids became a part of the crew as Miles, Izzy, Chloe, and Maggie started coming along. We met other young people like Brayden and Bodhi who brought their youth and energy to the crew. We moved into a warehouse and Noah joined in too.
We brought Luke in as a partner in 2017 and then he was in the crew. Anna has brought so much enthusiasm to the crew. Ted and Spencer are the links between our crew and other crews around the Country. We opened a surf shop and Laura, Cheryl, Earl, Matt, Sabrina, Meg, Hal and Lennon became essential to our growing crew. The Scout Wave in Salida brought more people into our crew like Heidi and Jess and Brian and Titus. We could go on… but the point of this note isn’t to list a bunch of names.
We aren’t getting rich over here selling surfboards 7000’ above sea level.
The real rewards are the people. We are so grateful for the shared surf sessions, the multi-day self-support trips, the laughter around campfires, and introducing new friends to the magic of floating down a river. You have your own crew — friends and family that you love to share adventures with — and if something we make comes along on one of those adventures, we’re honored.
So as we head into the New Year here’s hoping that your’s is filled with green, fast, waves, glassy morning paddles, and laughter that echoes off the canyon walls. Thanks for being a part of our crew.
Happy New Year,
Mike, Zack and Luke