Captain, OCEARCH

A dedicated mariner and waterman, Brett McBride has spent the majority of his life surrounded by or in the water. Throughout his junior high and high school years, he spent weekends and summers working on open party and long-range sport fishers, before transitioning to private yacht-fishers and broadening his exploration horizons. Growing up in San Diego, McBride spent a few seasons fishing along the coast of Baja, California before permanently relocating to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico where he called home for the next 21 years.

Mary Blasius, Coordinator | Robert Ellis, Professor | E. Durazo, A. Nguyen

Animal Care Specialist, Aquarium of the Pacific

Leslie graduated from San Jose State University with a bachelor’s degree in Marine Biology. During her undergraduate studies, she volunteered at the Marine Mammal Care Center where she found her passion in animal care and conservation. She later accepted an internship with Reef Environmental Education Foundation in 2022 where she focused on education and citizen science. Leslie first joined the Aquarium of the Pacific as an African American Scholar in 2021, and she now works there as an Animal Care Specialist. Leslie also takes pride in actively being a voice for underrepresented communities in marine science by supporting, promoting, and leading various programs and events that promote diversity in this field.

Director, South Coast Water District

A dedicated and passionate member of the South Coast Water District (SCWD) Board, Rick represents Division 2 (Del Avion/Del Obispo, Dana Knolls, San Juan Capistrano). SCWD serves approximately 40,000 residents and two million visitors a year in Dana Point, South Laguna Beach, and portions of San Juan Capistrano and San Clemente.

With a BFA from CSULB and previous roles including Art Director at Roxy Surf Company and co-founder of R&D Design, Rich has honed his skills in simplifying complex issues for clear communication. Recognized with the Gold Award from the Ad Club of OC and the Surfrider Foundation Wavemaker Award, he is inspired by diverse teamwork and is an unwavering optimist. In his free time, Rick is passionate about surfing, hiking, and gardening.

Head Surfboard Shaper and Designer, Hobie Surfboards

The definitive Dana Point, CA local; Gary Larson’s shaping exploration began with Infinity Surfboards in 1996. A few years down the line in 2008, Larson joined the ranks of Hobie and, more importantly, the discerning eye and benevolent demeanor of Terry Martin. In tandem with Martin, Gary honed his technique into the quality craftmanship it is today. G-Lar has a close relationship with all of our team riders, but his relationship really glimmers with Rilynn Baker and Bucky Barry. Together, Baker and Barry have developed some of Hobie’s most progrressive logging designs to date; the Rilynn and Uncle Buck.

Forecaster, Surfline

I studied at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and achieved a B.S. in Meteorology with a minor in math. Between growing up in, around and on the ocean, and becoming quite the weather nerd in my college years, my career as a Forecaster at Surfline is extraordinary. I can combine two of my biggest passions.

As a Forecaster, I am responsible for surf reports and forecasts along the West Coast of the U.S. and Hawaii, as well as various international locations. In addition, I perform statistical analysis of historical surf reports, and model data for use in long term forecasts and climatological studies.

Research Engineer, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego

I build tools (sensors and robots) to measure ocean chemistry—especially changes to ocean chemistry resulting from pollution. Right now, my favorite instrument to work on is called Smartfin; it’s a surfboard fin with sensors embedded in it to measure temperature, wave motion and position (GPS). We distribute Smartfins to surfers around the world to study their local home breaks, and become more engaged in stewardship and protection of the waves they love.

I would like to help scientists learn how to make stronger connections with their communities. There is so much scientific information that most people don’t know—partly because we’re learning new things all the time, but partly because scientists don’t always know how to connect with non-scientists. I think it would be awesome to help a few more scientists, especially those doing environmental work, to figure out what they have in common with their community members outside of the lab.

People come up to me all the time to ask why my fin is blinking and if it scares sharks away. I do not know about the second part but to the first, I tell them it’s because I’m collecting data while I surf!