Few people can do what these guys do. Surfing in the world’s most beautiful locations and sharing waves with the world’s best surfers is one thing, but delivering the highest standard in broadcasting is another. It’s hard to imagine both worlds going hand in hand, as your stereotypical surfer might not be cut out for the screens… but the beauty behind the WSL is simple: this is a delivery by surfers, for surfers, and that core is fundamental.
Joe Turpel is the voice of modern surfing. It’s his voice you’ll hear when John John Florence gets spat out of a tube at Teahupo’o, his enthusiasm you enjoyed as Kelly Slater dominated the sport, and his energy you’ll feel throughout each WSL event. Joe and his team are sensational surfers and even better seducers to the millions of fans watching this beautiful sport.
Does he brag about it? Is he hard to reach or talk to? Incredibly not. Our chat with Joe was like two old friends catching up. Two people who love what they do: surfing and talking about surfing. It’s not every day a top-level pro accepts messages from a fan, it’s even more rare that they propose a video interview. And that’s what makes the WSL so special, the sport of surfing is so much more accessible than any of the high-profile sports. We’ve had pros share our artwork on IG of their surfboards, and we’ve had replies on comments. These people are real, their stoke is alive, they are one of us.
The intention here was to flip the mic on Joe and let him open up about his experience. Yes, habits die hard, as he wanted to ask me a few questions too, but this was about Joe, surfing days, WSL heats, and what goes on behind the scenes during events.
When the universe is listening
Joe’s early days were “crazy.” he opened. “It’s crazy how I think I made it up in my head when I was a kid and then it just happened. Maybe there is something about putting it out there in the universe. Because I do feel like that that kind of happened just then.” Joe’s wish was the world’s command and the perfect storm happened.
“I also think timing helped. I was just really being curious about a live broadcast and then at the same time being in love with surfing and in the early 2000s the webcasts were up and some of them are a little clunky, we were just figuring it out and covering surfing and remote locations and trying to bring it to everybody’s homes.”
“And then to see where it is today. It’s in this fast growth to a really top quality. The product is really, really fun to be a part of, the travel, the cultures you get to mingle with, and the waves obviously that you always dream of surfing. It’s crazy to be able to go to those places over and over again for all these years. It’s definitely a dream come true.”
Pre-heat energy
Despite decades of experience, since calling column scores as a younger adult, Joe still feels that tingle… and it simply does not come across as he sits in the booth with one of his many too-cool-for-school shirts.
As Pipeline kicks off the season in Hawaii, our excitement is unmatched, and we’re just fans logging into a live broadcast. For Joe, its his routine, but a new sensation has gripped him in his wiser years. “I love that event so much and all of a sudden, I can’t sleep… after all these years being such a good sleeper… now I’ve got all these ideas in my head, I’m just thinking of more and more things and I can’t put my mind off and it’s always before the opening night of any event in the last two years.”
Check! Joe Turpel is human, guys and girls…
“Once we get going I’m OK but to think I used to walk into a big set at the Australian Open and Manly Beach and there’d be the head of Billabong and Hurley standing there and I’d be sitting on this chair in my heart just beating through my chest and I was always ‘all right, man, just take a deep breath, sit high in the saddle’ and I always used to have my first three words memorized so I didn’t have to reach for them and I could just take a big breath and go. I don’t quite get nerves like that bad anymore… but now it’s a new feeling.”
Memorising the first three words is a master tip from the pro, helps you loosen up and just come across more naturally.
Getting the inside track
Delivering excellent broadcasting of one of the most beautiful sports in the world is priceless to us, and Joe’s calm, humble style on the mic makes it impossible not to love the sport. Having grown with the sport simultaneously, Joe’s research is his lifestyle. He shares waves with the pros before events and knows their styles, habits and pre-heat tricks. They all travel together, sharing life’s moments and therefore the comms team’s perspective is truly real.
Creating a bond with the surfers gives us viewers a deeper look in. “My first event was 2010. The tour has been pretty cool. There’s a lot of really good people and really different. Some surfers are more outgoing, while others don’t go too far past a five-minute conversation. Sometimes that’s the language barrier, but sometimes it’s just their quiet nature, but all in all there’s some really good people on tour and I think over the years you become good friends with certain personalities…”
Connections beyond sport
One surfer Joe really connected well with is Mick Fanning. The 3-time world champ has been through it all, including a shark attack while surfing on tour at J-Bay in 2015.
“For me, Mick Fanning was always really cool to me, and it was really fun to connect with him as a friend outside of the tour and he’s just like a fun person to hang out with. He became a guy I would bug on the Gold Coast if I needed something, just like you would with a buddy. So I always enjoyed connecting with him, Joel Parko (Parkinson) and Kelly (Slater) and all the guys today.
“In Joel’s and Mick’s case, they’ve retired, but it’s been really fun for me to text those guys and get their opinion on a heat that’s happening now.”
How’s that for a broadcasting trick up his sleeve? Messaging former world champs for the inside track. “And I feel really lucky that it’s gonna really elevate the broadcast if I can quote a three-time World Champ on the fly…”
And for Joe, that’s what it’s all about; the broadcast, the way the sport comes across to us. It’s never the Joe-show. It’s about the WSL, something bigger than anyone involved. Now imagine, the Sports Business Journal reported that in 2017 over 28 million hours of WSL digital video content was consumed… making surfing the third most-watched sport in the USA, behind NFL and NBA. 28 million hours, yet Joe Turpel still made time for us!
Now, we’ve discovered more about Joe’s connection with surfers and how he got started… stay tuned for part two where Joe gives advice to Malta’s surfers and shares his fave spot on the tour.
