stoke: happy surfers

What does the word stoke mean?

Stoke /stəʊk/ Listen (in different accents)

The official definition of stoke:

verb

  • add coal or other solid fuel to (a fire, furnace, boiler, etc.).
    “he stoked up the barbecue”
  • encourage or incite (a strong emotion or tendency).
    “his composure had the effect of stoking her anger”
  • consume a large quantity of food or drink to give one energy.
    “Carol was at the coffee machine, stoking up for the day”

In a surfing sense, The Encyclopedia of Surfing offer the following:

  • Enduring surf slang expression meaning excited, pleased, happy, thrilled.

We would like to add one more definition of stoke

  • A sense of exuberance felt by surfers during and after an excellent surf session. Stoke can be experienced before a session, based purely upon anticipation of how good the waves will be.

But a picture tells a thousand words, and a video tells far more. So enjoy this montage that travels through surfing history and back again.

Nothing says stoke like the faces of our friends, heroes, mentors, and idols. This is the essence of surfing, of why we do what we do.

Enjoy.