“I wanted to find a way to experience the feelings of travel and adventure, right here in my hometown.” Boom. I was sucked in. My chord was struck.

I was on a weekend getaway in Ojai Valley, CA with my boyfriend Ryan and on our stroll to dinner we passed a crowd of energetic folks and a live band strumming along at the local bike shop, the Mob Shop. I looked back curiously and then we carried on to dinner. When we walked into the restaurant I turned to Ryan and said, “Hey, let’s go back and check out that thing at the bike shop.”  His response was, “I trust your instincts more than I trust that the sun will rise tomorrow.”  Indeed it was a good choice. We walked into the shop and there, mingling, sipping on craft beer and relaxing was a crowd of locals intently listening to the indie sounds of the band playing in front of a projector screen radiating the most epic surf clips.

We soon discovered that it was the premier of a documentary called ‘Slow is Fast‘. So we stayed a bit longer and the producer of the film and well known surfer Dan Malloy stood up to share some words about this work of art.

Surfing was life. Dan reminisced about his experiences as a globetrotter, traveling the world through surfing. When he eventually returned to Ojai, California, he realized that there was much more right in his hometown that was being over shadowed by the wanderlust of a new country. After a bike trip with two of his friends traveling from northern California down the coast to Ojai, he found his passion and gratitude for the people who are truly making an impact on his everyday life – the farmers who grow the food we eat to fuel our bodies three times a day. He realized that there was much more to life than surfing.

“In the last month i have learned more about the people and places along the California Coast than I had in 34 years and a thousand trips by car.” – Dan Malloy

When you are getting itchy for adventure, step out of your front door with a new perspective and explore by foot, appreciating the beauty all around you.