Don Balch

Loving the surfing life since the 1960's, Don Balch works as an international photojournalist and has contributed for years to a variety of publications including Sports Illustrated for Women, Outside, Photographic and Aloha magazines, plus all the major surfing-related magazines and a number of books. Don also covers local news and features for the La Jolla Village News and its sister coastal publications. He has successfully competed as well, placing in the U.S. Surfing Championships in 1975 and has traveled the world in pursuit of adventure and quality wave-riding experiences. "The most amazing, unpredictable and bizarrely memorable things happen when you are out on the road, and this tale of madness in Baja Mexico pretty much epitomizes all these things, wrapped up into one wild, good fortune and horrible luck episode."