Surfing has been my lifestyle and love since 1962, when I first learned how to surf at a place that doesn’t even exist anymore called Dana Point.

I became very familiar with just about every surf spot from Baja to Santa Cruz over the years, and always dreamed of sailing off to a far away place, as most surfers do. Someplace with uncrowded surf, and palm shrouded beaches.

The dream came true in the early 70’s, when I joined up with my best friend and sailed from Puerto Viarta to Cocos Beach Coasta Rica. It was a four month Odyssey, and it was all any surfer could ask for and more.

Many years passed as I climbed up the economic ladder chasing the almighty dollar. As my surfing time diminished, so did my contentment, and I soon realized that I did not wish to become what I was being groomed for.

Life’s Opportunities are all around me, and one in particular opened up in 1982. I purchased a video unit, and with camera in hand, set off on a new career. My first entrepreneurial exercise was a television show known as "The Surf Preview". The show was broadcast on channel 52 at eight A.M. and five P.M. Monday through Friday. I would drive two to three hundred miles a day to show the surfing conditions from county line to Huntington Beach. The insane pace was wearing me out - not to mention my car.

It was a Thursday in late August, and as I hiked up the trail to shoot third point Malibu for the show, I was confronted with hundreds of people. A scaffolding was set up, and a frantic Joey Buran was saying "Are you from the press? Great! Come over here, this is a great place to shoot - Can I get you a coke? Hey, we’re stoked to have you here!"

Driving back to the studio, I realized another door was opening. Once again, a change in my life course was unfolding before me. I quit the show that day, and rejoined my new found friends. Shortly after I began my first movie - a documentary on the "Professional Surfing Association of America".

P.S.S.A. was completed nine months later. With master in hand, I started looking for a distributors. Unfortunately, the only one interested was a branch of a porno company that offered to take my movie - and re-box it, re-edit it... re-everything it, and "Just sign here!" ...Yeah, right.

To prove a point, if only to myself, I created 50 copies of the film and threw them in the back of my truck. I drove to north county and started calling on all surf shops and video stores I could find, the big question was is their a market for surf movies? By three that afternoon I had sold half the videos their definitely was a market. The water was warm that afternoon and the waves were perfect, my stoke was over flowing, I new I had found my niche and career.

The rest is history as they say, the Surf Video Network went on to distribute all the surf movies to all the surf shops and video stores for over a decade before we ever had a competitor, but we were also the first to distribute snowboard movies, remember "One Track Mind" or "Western Front"?. How about a little skate movie called "Bones Brigade" or "Animal Chin"?.

Time passes on and now on our twentieth anniversary, August thirtieth two thousand and two I want to thank you! My customers and friends who have made me the happiest guy in the water.

CHRIS DARLING