Wheels & Waves with Jérôme Allé

Each year, adventurers from around the world descend onto Biarritz, the surfing capital of Europe, for an aptly named festival called, Wheels and Waves. A celebration of motorcycles, music, skateboarding, and of course, surfing, the festival was founded as a way to capture a certain timeless aesthetic and way of being — a seeming counter-point to our otherwise fast-moving society. After serving up some mezcal for the Wheels and Waves community in 2023 we caught up with festival founder Jérôme Allé to get more insight into his dream for the festival. The 2024 edition of Wheels and Waves starts June 12, so it’s not too late to book your flight to Biarritz.

Photos by Thomas Lodin

Of course! We have already experienced two events in Cayucos, California in 2016 and 2017, [and] in Japan on a reduced format. We are currently working on the possibility of doing something in Argentina, Bali and Australia. Returning to the west coast is also an option that does not leave our mind.

WHY DO YOU THINK SURF AND MOTORCYCLE COMMUNITIES GO SO WELL TOGETHER?&NBSP;

Although there are many different feelings in these communities, to which I would add skateboarding, and that a priori of these cultures may seem distant for some, the state of mind is exactly the same. It is the "Ride," with all that implies in terms of philosophy.

OVER THE YEARS, WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT AT THE FESTIVAL?

Quite paradoxically, on Sunday evening after its closure a few hours earlier. This moment when everything goes down, when we find ourselves with the Wheels and Waves Family in peace, without any particular objective, except to share these moments after we experienced, what felt like, a tsunami.

WHAT MUSIC ARE YOU LISTENING TO NOW?

The House of Love, Radiohead, Allah-Las, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Morrissey...

IF YOU COULD SHARE A MEZCAL WITH ANYONE, ALIVE OR DEAD, WHO WOULD IT BE AND WHY?

In 2016 in Long Beach, I bought a 1966 Ford truck from an older Mexican man. When I left his home, I turned around and saw his wife in tears leaning on a small gate looking at me. Then I understood that it was much more than just a car I was leaving with. I think of them every time I drive this truck. I don’t know what became of them but I would be so happy to share a mezcal with them.

Learn more about Wheels and Waves Festival here.

WHAT LED YOU TO LAUNCH WHEELS AND WAVES FESTIVAL?

Things happened without real plans at first, a group of friends who share different passions with different sensitivities. But everything converged towards an aesthetic enthusiasm based on culture, in the broad sense, that of our passions and it was only a pretext to go far beyond.

THE FESTIVAL ATTRACTS PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD - WHY DO YOU THINK IT IS SUCH A STRONG DRAW FOR THESE COMMUNITIES?

At the very beginning, the advent of social networks gave [us] the opportunity to connect everywhere and be visible worldwide. Our choice to speak to our community in english has amplified the phenomenon. So, the international resonance was on the move at a time when many people, and many brands were looking for benchmarks and values corresponding to the DNA of Wheels and Waves, the feeling of a “lost paradise found” or a timeless experience.

YOU HAVE ALSO EXPANDED TO ITALY, DO YOU THINK THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE TO EXPAND TO EVEN MORE CITIES, COUNTRIES, AND CONTINENTS?