Some think true Watermen appear in glossy magazine ads, on gigantic billboards and edgy television spots. While this may be true for a select few, most original watermen do not clamor for the spotlight. They seek what they know, the Ocean. Elite Watermen are not interested in proving themselves to the world; they are humble and let their actions speak for themselves.
A Waterman is not a rank; it is a lifestyle. Surfing started, with true Watermen, fishing, diving, living on coconuts and the ocean’s bounty. Watermen are connected to the ocean like mangrove forests. While many try to become what they consider one with the ocean, only those with salt water in their veins achieve aquatic greatness.
When a true Waterman spends too much time on land, they need the purification of water. The smell of the sea brings olfactory memories of sleepless nights sailing through heavy seas, big fish caught with small spears and possibly the very meaning to their existence.
They don’t need a fresh water shower. Watermen are comfortable with salt on their skin, hair and eyes.
The sea calls to everyone, but watermen speak the language of the sea. Surfing does not make Watermen. Watermen are of the sea. They feel strange on land, wish mermaids were real, and don’t tell fish stories, but live them. .
Marcus White-Waterman is how he introduced himself. “Really?” I replied, not quite realizing until after I spoke that my incredulity could cause offense, or at least an uncomfortable moment of silence. I doubled down: “Really? That’s your name?”
“Hyphenated, actually,” he said. “White and Waterman. Sometime in the past a proud woman refused to surrender her name when she married, but didn’t want to ignore her husband because his name—Waterman—meant something in the community.”
White-Waterman. The name fit his appearance. He looked like a creature of a white water ocean: bleach-blonde hair, deeply tanned skin, a lean almost slippery physique. He looked to be pushing 50, but as full of life as anyone I knew half his age. In my mind I tried to guess what it was he might have done in the water; clearly he did something there and completely infused his appearance. “So you seem somehow to live your name, Waterman. Do you surf?”
“Of course, I should call myself mainly an under-waterman these days. I free dive…deep.”
I couldn’t help but raise my eyebrows. I knew the world of free diving. I’d lost a close friend to free diving. We were two ordinary boys as kids, but as we grew up differences emerged. Unlike me he was a daredevil, always pushing boundaries. He was a natural waterman, seemed almost to have gills—until that one day he modalert online didn’t come back. It was a strange coincidence that I would meet Marcus White-Waterman this day standing in line at the supermarket. I normally don’t chat up people around me. Subconsciously I must have seen my friend in him.
“It was nice chatting with you,” he said as he grabbed his groceries. “If you’re interested I live on the sea and I offer classes near the Oceanside marina.” He pulled out a scruffy looking card and handed it to me. It looked like it had been wet. “First lesson is on me.”
I smiled. Me a waterman? I knew there was so much more to the word waterman then just free diving and surfing to be called a seasoned man of the sea. However, maybe somehow my friend found me. Maybe his spirit prompted me to start speaking to a stranger in line at the supermarket. Maybe he’s now another hyphen added to Mr. White-Waterman.
Come to www.originalwatermen.com for things a Waterman might need to engage the passion. Check out our big selection of waterman board shorts, 60’s swim shorts, and other watermen accessories and apparel.
Designed by watermen and ocean lifeguards for watermen and ocean lifeguards. Our Waterman/Lifeguard boardshorts sport clever key features that offer superior fit and unmatched comfort in the waterman industry. Original Watermen uses only the highest tech performance fabrics with all Waterman and Lifeguard clothing products…
Original Watermen promotes the newest 21st century fabric technology and take great pride in developing cutting edge fabrics and garments that are completely comfortable even after a 15 hour day in the surf, on the sand or in the tower. Our quick-drying lifeguard and waterman shorts are always cut from the finest cloth…. Ultra Light- weight fabrics that feel like cotton and wear like iron! All watersport shorts and uniform shorts are color fast, chlorine and sun resistant and last, almost forever.
Comfort and a perfect fit are key to performance in and out of the ocean. Waterman lifeguard boardshorts always perfect and are comfortable for days of constant use and abuse. All Original Waterman boardshorts are super quick drying and made from a durable combination of multifaceted fabrics, where often times, our customer’s comment that they feel like they aren’t wearing shorts. Our goal is to keep the average surfer and the most hardcore watermen comfortable and coming back to tell their latest tale. The design team spends time and money on boardshort detailing. Must have tools of the trade specific to the lifeguard and/or waterman industry include oversize sized pockets that can actually fit a wallet, wax or an ipod. The legendary lifeguard cargo pocket is large enough to fit a lifeguard radio or a CPR mask.
