The Last Issue of Transworld Surf #RIPTWS

Jul 18 2013

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The cover of the last issue of Transworld Surf has been released along with Chris Cote's last Editor's Note. Party's over.

Following the news that GrindMedia bought out all Transworld titles in May, we found out in late June that GrindMedia has decided to stop all print issues of Transworld Surf. It was a shock to everyone in the surf community. So many talented writers and photographers have been working for that magazine for years, a lot of them our good friends. It's a shame to see the magazine go, but we have no doubt the TWS staff will move on to bigger and better things in the industry. Their last cover has been released with an appropriate brutal wipeout on the cover with the words "Party's Over" painted red across the front. With the last cover came the last Editor's Note by TWS legend Chris Cote... "Every month, I looked forward to sitting down at my computer and writing my Editor’s Note, but on this occasion it’s a heartbreaking endeavor, as this will be the last one I’ll ever write for TransWorld SURF. After nearly 15 years of success, growth, and 150 or so great issues—business and bureaucracy have dealt a deathblow to the world’s best surf magazine—this is the last issue of TransWorld SURF, ever. At least death came quick, this last issue was 99-percent done when word came down from the top. When the news of our demise broke online, the outpouring of love and support shown to the magazine and its staff was and continues to be incredible and I cannot begin to tell you all how much we appreciate it. When we started this magazine, we had a goal to make surfing fun again. We wanted to shake things up and progress the sport. We wanted to break barriers. We strove to introduce and celebrate new heroes and respected legends. We made it our goal to make fun of ourselves and everyone around us. We were excited at the prospect of pissing people off. Mostly, we wanted to change surfing—and we accomplished all of this and more. Am I bragging? F**k yeah, I’m bragging. In our relatively short existence in the surf media landscape, we changed the game completely—becoming the leader in photography, design, forward thinking editorial, and yeah, d**k jokes and plenty of cussing. We invented a whole new way to look at surfing. We even invented a whole new bro-nacular (*Broisms). Unfortunately for surf fans all over the world, an empty space on newsstands and in mailboxes will never be filled in the same way again. TransWorld SURF defined a generation. The hardest part of closing our doors is leaving behind an entire group of young surfers who were literally raised reading TransWorld SURF. I could go on and on, but I won’t. All I can say is TransWorld SURF left the surfing world a better place than it was before we were in it and at the end of the day, that’s where our legacy will stand—TransWorld SURF changed surfing for the better. We are proud of the indelible mark we left on surfing. Thank you to all the readers, writers, surfers, photographers, designers, critics, haters, subscribers, and all the people behind the scenes who made this magazine possible for the last 14 years. And on behalf of the whole staff, past and present … you’re welcome." -Chris Coté TransWorld SURF 1999—2013

GALLERY