Last night at the Billabong Off The Wall House, we played host the official retirement party for surfing icon, Joel Parkinson.
Tapas, cocktails, wine and beers kicked the night off, while invitees piled into the backyard of the iconic Billabong house on the North Shore.
Host of the night, Ronnie Blakey, took to the stage to open up the party and the formalities began. Joel’s family got up on stage to deliver very heartfelt messages that will be remembered for a lifetime by everyone lucky enough to be there. Close friends, Mick Fanning, Makua Rothman and Keiren Perrow followed suit, expressing their gratitude to the retiring icon, sharing funny stories of their friendship and good times on tour.
Joel finished the formalities by thanking everyone who was part of his career, and his finished the formalities with “I just want to say that I’m proud of myself,” Joel stated. “I take pride in what I do and what I’ve achieved. It’s not until I made this decision to retire that I’ve been able to appreciate all of that. And I feel happy that I can say this in front of you all without sounding like a big headed pig. I’m fucking proud.”
Following the formalities, the party began.. Crowd pleaser’s ‘The Wedding Band’ rocked the backyard party for hours on end. Parko took to the stage to sing part of a song then partied the night away crowd surfing and enjoying himself.
Here's a look at what went down.. Parko’s blowout was nothing short of all time!
Photos by Duncan Macfarlane (@duncanm)
#OnyaParko
