Date of Birth: April 14, 1977

Best Known For: Occasionally flipping out

Local Spot: Hippos

My Crew: Wife and daughter

Board of Choice: Channel Islands White Dove Model

Dream Wave: Tavarua

Team Hurley (+Tom Curren) wins the surf division while Switchfoot rocks in front of 10,000 — all for a noble cause. Videos and Photos: PK

He sits alongside A-list celebrities for Gulf Relief effort

It isn’t often that a professional surfer finds himself in the company of celebrities such as Sting, Cameron Diaz and Faith Hill. But longtime Hurely rider Timmy Curran found himself shoulder to shoulder with these celebs and many more at the Larry King Gulf Oil Spill Telethon that aired Monday night on CNN. Curran was blown away when he got the call to be part of this event, and it couldn’t have been more fitting. He was the perfect candidate for “celebrity surfer guy” since he had been traveling along the Gulf Coast just before the oil spill for his Union Express tour. “Hanging out in that area, I got to know a bunch of the locals in town and saw on a first-hand basis how much their lifestyle revolves around the ocean,” Curran said, “To see this disaster first-hand makes you realize how devastating this really is — and how long it’s going to take to recover.” The two-hour event raised much public awareness and more than $1.8 million to aid in the Oil Spill relief efforts.

During the broadcast, Kathy Griffin joked around with Curran, asking him “What are you famous for?” Curran thought about mentioning his front-flip, but he stuck with “surfer.” “You want to say what-up to everyone because you feel like you know them because you are so used to seeing them on TV,” said Curran. “But then you remember that you actually don’t know any of them.” All jokes aside, Curran tells us that there were no egos involved and everyone was there to support the cause. He even joined Larry King and the star-studded cast for a cocktail reception after the telethon.

But Timmy’s a lot more about action than he is about cocktail receptions. He already has plans to make it out to the Gulf Coast in the near future and directly get involved with the relief efforts. If this doesn’t qualify as “A-List” celebrity status, we don’t know what does. — Chloe Barton

To bid on Timmy's board and other items, go here. Proceeds go toward Oil Spill Relief efforts, and the items are up for bidding until July 7th.

Timmy Curran tells us about his Union Express Tour, Castles in the Sky and how to surf with his left foot forward

Timmy has been all over the map lately, promoting Union Express along with his new album VerseS while also traveling to Iceland for Taylor Steele’s Castles in the Sky. We talked with him as he catches his breath before summer kicks in to gear. The 6th annual Bro-Am surf contest and music festival is set for June 26th in Encinitas, CA. Timmy will be surfing for team Hurley as well as performing live that afternoon for your listening pleasure. Also, watch Timmy perform at the US Open of Surfing in a few weeks. Hurley, Nike 6.0, and Converse are combining forces to create what is sure to be the week of the decade. Don’t miss it! —Phil Bannan

HURLEY.COM: ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO THE SWITCHFOOT BRO-AM NEXT WEEK?
TIMMY CURRAN: Yeah, I’ve been doing it for 3 years now. The Bro-Am raises money for Stand Up For Kids, an organization helping the homeless youth down in San Diego. The Switchfoot guys have done a great job turning it into a sort of festival. There’s nothing better than hanging on the beach, listening to music and surfing with friends. It’s a great weekend. I’m glad to be a part of it.

THE JUDGES COUNT TWO WAVES FOR EACH RIDER: ONE WAVE SURFED NORMAL, AND THE OTHER SURFED SWITCH. HAVE YOU BEEN PRACTICING RIDING SWITCH TO GEAR UP FOR THE CONTEST?
Yeah, I’m going to start practicing these next few weeks. My performance last year was a little rusty and I need to redeem myself this year. I didn’t know it was as serious as it is out there against all the switch-footers. So, it’s on!

GOOD LUCK HONING THAT SKILL. DO YOU LIKE THE BRO-AM’S TEAM FORMAT FOR THE SURF CONTEST?
Yeah. Anything with a team format is fun to watch. It makes you get extra competitive, rallying your team do well. It’s really fun.

Timmy finds Bjork's Bay in Castles in the Sky.

THERE WILL BE SOME INTENSE RIVALRIES OUT THERE. ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO PERFORMING AFTER THE SURF CONTEST?
Yeah, I’m excited to share the stage with all the bands that are playing. It will be cool to play with bands like OK GO and my buddy Chris Shiflett. There are a lot of good bands and so many people down there. It goes off.

HOW WAS THE EAST COAST TOUR FOR UNION EXPRESS AND YOUR NEW ALBUM?
We had an amazing time hanging out with the locals at each spot and surfing with everyone. It’s fun because the film is only 35 minutes, so we get to perform for 45 minutes to an hour after. The whole trip was a blast and we keep getting offers at new venues, so we might be doing some more stuff with Channel Islands at surf shops around the country.

WERE THERE ANY MOMENTS THAT STICK OUT FROM THE TOUR?
We actually hit a turkey vulture down in Cocoa Beach. We were driving by this pack of twenty of them feasting on something on the side of the road. Me, trying to be funny, honked the horn as we drove by and they all scattered and flew away from us except for one. This one with like a six-foot wingspan did this big bank and went straight into our RV’s windshield. The thing blew out the windshield, there was glass flying everywhere, and everyone was screaming. The next thing I know we’re all stunned, sitting there looking at each other, realizing we just ruined a turkey vulture’s day. That was kind of heavy.

Timmy gets raw somewhere near the Golden Gate.

WOW, SOUNDS LIKE THERE WAS A BIT OF EVERYHTING ON THAT TOUR. CHANGING THE SUBJECT TO ANOTHER ONE OF YOUR RECENT TRIPS…DID YOU LIKE THE END RESULT OF YOUR ICELAND SECTION FOR CASTLES IN THE SKY?
It was a great trip. I definitely want to go back there at some point. It was really cool getting to use the song that my friend, Andy Smith, and I came up with for the part. We recorded the song in my bathroom and then Andy came up with some cool beats and noises to go along with it. We showed the song to Taylor and he said it was a done deal and put it in the film. I was really, really excited to have that song in there. I feel like that’s the direction and sound we’re going to dabble with now in our music.

CAN’T WAIT TO HEAR WHAT YOU GUYS COME UP WITH. WILL WE SEE YOU AT THE US OPEN?
Yeah, I will be there. Hopefully I can get into the surf contest. I don’t have any points to qualify right now, so I might start doing a few contests here and there to try and get in that way. My little brother Nathaniel still has the bragging rights over me with his win in 2008, haha. He’s a super competitive grom, but I’m so stoked for him. But, yeah, this year is going to be awesome in Huntington. Hurley and 6.0 are promising it’s going to be even bigger than last year. They’ve done such a great job simplifying the event and showing what people want to see; it’s at a whole new level now. I’ve also heard the names of some of the bands performing on the beach throughout the week. It’s going to be a massive music festival. I’m excited to see what happens.

For more on Castles in the Sky, go here.

Back East for his Union Express/Verses tour, he scores some great waves in New Jersey. Check the story here.

This week: Timmy Curran performs songs from VerSes and talks about his new movie, Union Express. 

All aboard for Timmy Curran's new movie. Watch the trailer here. 

After two years of filming and recording it was finally here, the premiere of The Union Express and VerseS at the historic Elks Lodge in Ventura. With over 700 people in attendance Josh Landan and I were thrilled that so many people were excited to come out to the show. Looking forward to the next two months of touring!

Come join us at one of our premieres. Looking forward to seeing you. — Timmy Curran

PS: We'll be live-streaming the La Paloma event at 7 p.m. Be sure to log on to www.hurley.com/live on April 17.

THE UNION EXPRESS/VERSES TOUR DATES

Apr 10 2010 7:30P Santa Monica Surf Shop Santa Monica, California

Apr 15 2010 7:00P, 9:30P Lido Theatre Newport Beach, California

Apr 17 2010 7:00P,9:30P La Paloma Encinitas, California

Apr 23 2010 8:00P Downtown Brew San Luis Obispo, California

Apr 24 2010 8:00P Rio Theater Santa Cruz, California

May 1 2010 8:00P House Of Rock Corpus Christi, Texas

May 5 2010 8:00P Phineas Phogg’s @ Seville Quarter Pensacola, Florida

May 6 2010 8:00P Landshark Cafe Jacksonville, Florida

May 7 2010 8:00P Orpheum Tampa, Florida

May 9 2010 8:00P Backroom Orlando, Florida

May 12 2010 8:00P Guanabanas Jupiter Beach, Florida

May 13 2010 8:00P The Culture Room Fort Lauderdale, Florida

May 14 2010 8:00P Rusty’s Seafood & Oyster Bar Cape Canaveral, Florida

May 15 2010 8:00P Beachside Tavern Smyrna Beach, Florida

May 16 2010 8:00P Hirams Sebastian, Florida

May 18 2010 8:00P Live Wire Savannah, Georgia

May 19 2010 8:00P The Windjammer Pine Knoll Shors, North Carolina

May 20 2010 8:00P Soap Box Wilmington, North Carolina

May 22 2010 8:00P Jewish Mother Virginia, Virginia

May 29 2010 8:00P Surflodge Montauk, New York

May 30 2010 8:00P Surflodge MONTAUK, New York

Jun 3 2010 8:00P Channel Islands Surfshop Santa Barbara, California

The first of our Phantom Sweepstakes winners is announced at ZJ Boarding House. Check the video highlights here. Video: PK. Photos: Michael Lallande

What a weekend for a barbecue. Eighty-degree temps, slack winds, decent little waves...and a healthy Spring Break crowd looking for some fun. A few hundred found it at ZJ Boarding House on Saturday afternoon, as the first of our Phantom True Performance "Upgrade Your Boardshorts" events kicked off in style.

Great day for a barbecue...and some boardshorts. PHOTO: MICHAEL

Peter King kept us entertained on the bullhorn, Timmy Curran, Bob Burnquist, Curren Caples and crew served up gourmet burgers and dogs for free. And, best of all, throngs of people lined up to trade in their old boardshorts (which will all be donated to a local charity), buy a pair of Phantom with Nike Flywires at half price, and be entered for a chance to win a trip to Kandui Resortwith Rob Machado and the Hurley Team.

Of course, there wasn't just one winner. Everyone who attended had a chance to customize t-shirts and boardshorts at our Phantom truck or try their luck at our Phantom Fortune machine. But those who purchased Flywires hung around ’til the very end to find out their fate with the Indo Dream Trip. Keep in mind this trip — which will take place in late October and will host five winners plus one friend each — is no Publisher's Clearing House odds. In this case, it was about 1:150, which would beat a trip to Vegas any day. Just ask Marina Del Ray resident Chris Hardt, who went to Sin City last weekend and had a shocker. "It wasn't a good trip for me," he said.

A few good men: the ZJ crew and the Hurley Team. PHOTO: LALLANDE

But he attended our "Upgrade Your Boardshorts" event, had a burger, then bought a pair of Phantoms with Nike Flywire. When the evening wrapped up, Tim Curran stuck his hand in a plastic bin, pulled out a stub and announced the winner. "Chris Hardt!" he said.

Hardt was in disbelief. His buddy, standing right next to him, is also going on the trip, and they immediately started texting their bros. "This is real, right?" he said. And then, when he was assured he wasn't about to be Punk'd, he said. "This is the best 100 bucks I've ever spent."

(Special thanks to ZJ Boarding House for making it all happen. Keep track of our Phantom Truck, coming to a beach near you.)

His sophomore album has a lot of soul mixed with a little bit of flare. Check the full album here.

Flip pioneer talks about his upcoming album, "Verses," and upcoming film, "Union Express."

Timmy Curran is evolving. Yes, he remains one of California's greatest talents. Yes, he still dreams of new variations on the flip. But he's also expanding his horizons. He talks all about it in a recent interview on ESPN.com, so be sure to check it out.

For more on his new album, "Verses," go here.

For more on his new film project with Josh Landan, Union Express, go here.

PHOTO: CHRIS BURKARD

Timmy Curran finds a special left sandbar while filming for his new movie, Union Express. Video: PK