Video by Robin Pailler | Still photography by Tom Hoy & Nate Lawrence
Julian Wilson is a name that really doesn’t need an introduction. But we’ll give it a stab.
From Australian longboard child prodigy, Julian’s leap into shortboarding represented an astronomical rise to fame. Where to begin. Beating slater at snapper as a 17 year old wildcard. Young guns 1,2 and 3. And yes, it’s widely acknowledged that 2 was the best. The last part of young guns. Scratching the surface. Stranger than fiction! Lost Atlas! Stable mates of Reynolds, Slater, Marzo and Craig. Sparring partners with Jordy. Head to toe on Nike! 10 years on tour. A Pipemaster FFS. Triple crown winner. 2nd ranked surfer in the world.
But this story starts in a parking lot in Costa Mesa, C.A. It’s the US Open (2022) and yes, it’s the omnishitshow you’d imagine. We’re at some event that by the time of writing this we can’t really remember, but the Palace crew are sat on the pavement (sidewalk) drinking beers and with them is Julian. Now this sparks our curiosity as Palace and Julian Wilson are somewhat from opposite ends of the action sports spectrum. Apart from they’re not, as his long-time best friend and filmer Jimmy Wilson used to live in London with the Palace guys.
Small world and all that.
That chance encounter with Jimmy and Julian spiralled into a three-day, Fireball-fuelled mutually assured destruction of Huntington Beach bender, as these things often do. And it was here that mutual olive branches of friendship were extended and it was decided we should work on a project together. A story. Julian was done with the tour and wanted a turning point. Being the upstanding surf interest/lifestyle publication we are, we decided that this was in fact the most marvellous of ideas and we were in.
We would go to Australia. (And Indo!)
“Transitioning from the World Tour, having major sponsors and support from the biggest brands, to have now started my own brand, my own little baby that supports me and what I’m about today, is very genuine to me, and purposeful. It’s not been easy to create this opportunity. But it’s been amazing to be a part of and from when I stepped back from the tour and the door opened to start my own brand and work with a really cool group of people on this journey, it’s been extremely rewarding.”
Our full feature and interview with Julian Wilson can be found in our upcoming print Publication VOLUME XIII, on stand December 1st.
