Kelly Slater has been called the Michael Jordan of surfing. His nine—count ’em, nine—Association of Surfing Professionals world championships, including five in a row from ’94 to ’98, shattered the previous record of four, held by his idol Tom Curren. He was both the youngest, at 20, and the oldest, at 36, to win a world title, and at 38 is ranked third in the world. He’s also a gigging guitarist (who jams with Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder) and a philanthropist, supporting various causes, from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to environmental organizations, via his Kelly Slater Foundation, which he launched in 2007. We caught up with Slater, fresh from the US Open in Huntington Beach, where he was shot for today's story by Skye Parrott. Brimming with a surfer’s Zen and a champion’s equanimity, he’s still at the top of his game, and, thanks to mom, keeping it all in perspective.
 

You reached the quarter finals at this year’s US Open. Is anything less than a victory a disappointment?

You like to win but I definitely don’t mind seeing the hometown hero [Brett Simpson of Huntington Beach] win. He’s going to get married and he’s struggled in his first few years on the tour, so you definitely like to see a guy like that get the money.

Why are you such a champion of your competitors and other generations?

I’ve always tried to be pretty levelheaded. My mom hammered it home not to be an egomaniac when I was a kid. It helped me to stay grounded and be nice to people. Otherwise she’d kick my ass.
 
Are there any up-and-comers out there who are doing things that are freakish and awe-inspiring even to you?

Yeah, there are guys out there who are good, especially at the maneuvers that are happening nowadays. I’m not quite sure who will be the next guy who is absolutely great at everything. It might be Kolohe Andino. There are a lot of techniques you need to know—from maneuver-based surfing, to power-based surfing—and that takes a lot of time because you have to surf all these different types of waves around the world. It’s a pretty complex thing really.
 
You have a big tournament coming up in Tahiti (The Billabong Pro in Taehupoo). How do you prepare for that?

You rely on watching film—not only of yourself, but of other people on the wave—and time spent out ahead of the contest.
 
Do you ever get to take time off?

It’s pretty much full time.
 
How do you keep the balance of riding full time, championing the sport (and being recognized by Congress for your efforts) and representing your foundation?

There are a lot of people doing a lot more than I do. I definitely have my causes. If you have a specific cause that you want to raise money for and you have connections and can raise money, a foundation can be a great thing.
 
You seem to have done everything—what are you dreaming of doing now?

I’d really like to make my own album, just by myself. But I find the more I talk about something the less I end up tending to do it. I got to play with Pearl Jam a couple of different times. I got to do an acoustic song with Ben Harper in Santa Barbara, which was nerve racking—it was just the two of us in front of 8,000 people and Eddie Vedder’s brother was there and he called Eddie while it was happening and we were playing a Pearl Jam song…
 
Oh God.

Yeah! Eddie listened on the phone to Ben and me play one of his songs. And he still likes me, so I guess I did all right.