Buttons Kaluhiokalani is a surfer from Hawaii whose energy and rad­i­cal maneu­vers in the ‘70s set the stage for mod­ern surf­ing. After trou­ble with drugs, he has kicked out those demons and is super-charged with a mis­sion: to give back, surf, and enjoy every day.
What was it like grow­ing up in the Islands?
My fam­ily was orig­i­nally from The North Shore and we moved to Waikiki, where I was raised by my mom. I was six years old and my Uncle Buddy had this 10 footer at the house and every day he would walk to the beach and I would watch him surf. He had served in Vietnam and he had super long hair. I would fol­low a few feet from him as he walked to the ocean and I would sit on the sand and just watch and be amazed at what he could do on a surf­board. When I was eight, I used to hang out at Waikiki with my friends and I taught myself how to swim, got my first paipo board and it was on after that, baby!

Who did you look up to and admire as a young man?
Where I grew up, Reno Abellira lived down the street from me and Barry Kanaiapuni used to surf in town. As I got older, 12 or 13 years old, my idols were like Jock Sutherland, Sam Hawk, Gerry Lopez (of course), and Rory Russell. And let’s not for­get Eddie Aikau. Those guys were my heroes.

What was it like when you first stood up on a surf­board?
To tell you the truth, I was a nat­ural at it. I started stand­ing on my paipo board and then learn­ing to do it on a surf­board. From that day on, I was like, “Whoa.”

Even when I was a kid, I did these crazy things that pretty much no one was doing at the time on a foam board or paipo board—360’s, spin­ners, switch­foot. As I grew into a teenager, I was doing even more crazy things on my surfboard!

How is it you were able to pull off such rad­i­cal maneu­vers in your career?
I’ll tell you this: I am half-Black and half-Hawaiian. So I guess it was my genetics.

Where did the name “Buttons” come from?
When I was born, I was pre­ma­ture at 4 lbs. and my hair looked like lit­tle but­tons. So my Grandma named me “Buttons.” My given name is Montgomery Kaluhiokalani. My mom named me after her favorite actor, Montgomery Clift. Buttons fits my per­son­al­ity (laughs)!

Of all the places you’ve trav­eled, what was the most mem­o­rable and why?
I got a chance to go to Tahiti. It was only my sec­ond time with the tow­ing in. And for me being 51 years old and being towed into Teahupo was the gnarli­est thing I have ever done in my life. It’s this wave – this pit that is to da max! That was def­i­nitely the most insane thing I have every expe­ri­enced. And I’d do it again!

What period of surf­ing holds the most cher­ished mem­o­ries for you?
When I was 21, I did the Pipe Masters and the Sunset World Cup. I did the Sunkist Malibu Pro and won. Being in those con­tests were the best surf­ing times of my life. I was doing moves that were ahead of their time.

How do you choose to live your life?
I just cher­ish life more—to live one day at a time, and to go out and fun. Cherish it. I love life – I have a nice beau­ti­ful child, a nice lady. I just don’t take life for granted anymore.

Who /what inspires you?
My fam­ily, the ocean, my sur­round­ings. I have 7 kids and 7 grand kids. And I couldn’t ask for any­thing more beau­ti­ful than where I live. I have a beau­ti­ful life and a beau­ti­ful fam­ily. Those are the things I cher­ish the most. Most of all, God inspires me. He gives me hope – he’s my sav­ior. He’s pulled me out into the right direction.

What mean­ing does surf­ing hold for you?
The love and the pas­sion. That love, pas­sion, and mana of surf­ing. I’m the kind of per­son that lives and dies for surfing.

Who do you think are the peo­ple that are shap­ing the path for surf­ing today?
You know, surf­ing is a Hawaiian sport. And it’s a his­tory that has been passed down to every gen­er­a­tion that comes after. It all started in Hawaii since the 1700’s.

It’s those up and com­ing kids, man, kids like Mason Ho. You know, Michael and Derek Ho and myself, we all have kids. Those kids and oth­ers like them are the next gen­er­a­tion that will bring surf­ing to a whole new level.

How impor­tant is it to be Hawaiian?
The Hawaiian tra­di­tion has to live on. We can­not for­get where we come from. I cher­ish what I am and who I am and my Hawaiian blood. It’s really impor­tant to me that the cul­ture lives on from one gen­er­a­tion to the next. I get my power, or mana, from the Hawaiian gods. I am so proud to be Hawaiian and there are not a lot of us out there.

And I would tell the next gen­er­a­tion of Hawaiians that you never for­get where you come from. Know where you come from. Don’t for­get the culture—go to school and learn the Hawaiian lan­guage. Keep the mana, keep the Hawaiian spirit, and keep the aloha going—and the Hawaiian cul­ture will live on.

What is you favorite board in your quiver?
My favorite board right now is a twin-fin from Nelson Sadoy. And a quad shape Tim Bessel that is the bomb, bro. In addi­tion I also have a quad fish shape from my new spon­sor, Cote de Azul.

What is your favorite surf spot?
Sunset. Backyards. It is such an epic right, bro. It’s one of the coolest waves. It’s awe­some. And also Waimea Bay. I just love that drop! I love the feel­ing and the rush of that place. I still surf Backdoor Pipeline, too. At 51, I am still charg­ing. It’s like I’m a lit­tle kid.

What’s your favorite meal?
Oh man, for me it would be sashimi and rice. Ahi is what I love the best. And I would wash it down with a nice glass of juice or water.

What would you say to peo­ple who are think­ing of using drugs?
I am not embar­rassed to say that I am a recov­er­ing drug addict. And I have been sober for almost 3 years now. In life, we have to make the right choices. The devil is all around us. Stay around good, pos­i­tive peo­ple. Do not use drugs because it will take you out. Live life to the fullest and make the right choices—and give it to God.

What else are you doing?
Well, I have a surf camp called Buttons Surf School. We’ve been in busi­ness for three years. It keeps me going, to see the stu­dents’ faces, to see their smiles. And every first Saturday of the month, I take phys­i­cally and men­tally chal­lenged kids surf­ing from Access Surf Hawaii. It makes me happy to see them catch waves and makes me feel good inside for what I do.

What’s next for Buttons?
For me it’s just stay­ing healthy, surf­ing, send­ing out mes­sages to schools and shar­ing my tes­ti­mo­nial of my life. I am sure I have touched some hearts and have got­ten a lot of friends out of it. It is impor­tant for me to give and share my strength with others.

Find out more about Buttons Kaluhiokalani and his surf school here. Access Surf Hawaii can be con­tacted here. Top two pho­tos cour­tesy Jeff Divine. Other pho­tos cour­tesy of Gary Miyata.