“I’d get up in the morning, eat breakfast, go
surfing, hang out, go surf beautiful waves again in the afternoon
and then go party.”
The Aussie surf legend Shane Herring, one-time
foil to Kelly Slater, and Australia’s oversized contribution to the
new school movement of the early nineties, died peacefully
in his sleep on Sunday, aged fifty three.
Herring had fallen down the stairs of his West Tweed apartment
block in the early hours of Sunday morning, complained about his
sore head, ravaged the fridge, went to sleep and never woke up.
As far as exiting this coil goes, it’s as peaceful as it
gets.
Herring, who was from Dee Why beach in Sydney’s north, burned
real bright before flaming out although not before famously
stomping Kelly Slater at the 1992 Coke event. It was Slater’s
first-ever pro final, and it put Herro, for half the year, in the
world number one slot.
In classic Herro style, to celebrate he bought the bar 55 jugs
of beer with shots of Sambuca in 44 of ’em.
Herring’s win over Slater at
Narrabeen was a defining moment, showcasing his muscular power.
During this peak, he rode innovative “banana boards” shaped by Greg
Webber, featuring extreme concaves and curves that allowed him to
execute turns in tight, hollow waves—designs credited with
influencing modern surfboard shapes.
Herring was on six-figure contracts with sponsors like O’Neill
and Insight, enjoying an international profile and a reputation as
a charismatic, good-natured talent.
Despite his success, Herring’s career unraveled quickly.
After 1992, he struggled with the pressures of fame and the pro
surfing lifestyle. His form dipped, and by 1994, he retired from
the WCT at age 23, just three years after turning pro.
His weaknesses, notably his discomfort with Pipeline on Hawaii’s
North Shore—a critical venue for the world title—hindered his
ability to sustain a championship run. He admitted Pipeline “scared
the shit out of me,” though he excelled at other Hawaiian waves
like Sunset Beach.
Off the water, Herring descended into a decade-long battle with
alcohol and drug addiction, beginning around 1994. This period saw
him living as a recluse on the Northern Beaches, losing
friendships, his health, and even his teeth.
“You had no supervision. You had opportunity. It wasn’t like it
is today. No coaches. No team managers. Racing from this place to
the next. Half the time you’d sleep in the contest tent and go and
get a baguette in the morning and do what you had to do to get by.
And eventually, people are inviting you to stay, local people. Then
you start to do well and you start earning some money. And then you
start to have fun because you’ve got the stamina, you’re doing well
and you think you can handle it. These days, it’s nothing like
that.
“I’d get up in the morning, eat breakfast, go surfing, hang out,
go surf beautiful waves again in the afternoon and then go party.
If there were drugs there you took them. Coke. Acid. Whatever. You
just didn’t think about it.”
Shane Herring cycled through psychiatric facilities before
entering rehab in 2010, where he stayed for nearly a year.
Post-retirement, Herring’s life has been a mix of recovery and
redemption. He worked as a ding repairer in Byron Bay and later
reconnected with Greg Webber in the 2020s to collaborate on a new
line of Shane Herring-branded surfboards, focusing on custom
designs with a team including Justin Crawford and Jimmy
Young-Whitforde.
He was a force, a cautionary tale and a funny and glorious
little man who was loved and who will be missed.
I called up Herro’s old Dee Why pal Justin Crawford about him
and he described a “classic little leprechaun. He didn’t hate
anything and never had a bad word for anyone or anything… except
for concaves.”
