Concerns about quality clothing might be the last thing you'd expect from a guy who goes to work dressed only in surf trunks.

When that guy is Laird Hamilton, however, and he's just put his name on a clothing line that sells trunks for $9.98, you better believe that durability is on his mind. The big-wave surfer from Maui doesn't want them to disintegrate the next time he wipes out.

After teaming up with clothing retailer Steve & Barry's for a surf and skate collection, Hamilton is convinced he's found the perfect trunks — and a whole lot more. His Wonderwall line for men went on sale last week at the retailer's Mainland stores and will hit the company's new Waikele store on Saturday.

Wonderwall is Steve & Barry's entry into the lucrative world of surf and skate clothing. The collection includes 30 graphic T-shirts, board shorts, cargo shorts, lightweight cotton polo shirts, woven button-down shirts and an array of necklaces, sunglasses, hats, belts and sandals.

The wrinkle here is the price: Every item will sell for $9.98 or less.

QUALITY AT VALUE PRICE

Hamilton insists the price tag is no reflection on the worth of the item, because the trunks are as good as any he has ever worn.

"For some people, I think it is really confusing for them," Hamilton said. "You know why they are confused? They are overpaying for things. They are equating a certain value to a certain quality level because they have been educated that way."

The 44-year-old Hamilton is best known for his daring rides on waves with 70-foot faces and bone-crushing power.

He regularly tames the high-rise-sized waves at Maui's "Jaws." But in August 2001, he stunned the surfing world when he rode a wave at Teahupoo in Tahiti that was so thick with menace, it didn't even look real — until you saw the video.

Hamilton has also pursued exploits that made him a stud in the world of extreme sports. He biked and used a standup paddleboard to get from London to Paris in a two-day effort to raise awareness for autism in June 2006. A few months later, he and a friend used the same tools to complete a 430-mile trip from the Big Island to Kaua'i.

In the process, Hamilton has become the envy of men everywhere. At 6 feet 3 inches and 215 pounds, he has the body of Hercules and the square-jawed face of a model. That's him on the cover of this month's Best Life magazine. And that was him Thursday, standup paddling around the Statue of Liberty to promote Wonderwall.

Still, as he spoke of his new line of clothing, calling by cell phone as he drove along the California coast, Hamilton said he drew on his experience as a garment industry worker. During the 1980s, he learned to cut and sew clothing in downtown Los Angeles as well as market it at trade shows.

In the end, he felt consumers were paying too much. It's why Steve & Barry's low-cost approach appealed to him.

"Honestly, it's like a dream come true," he said. "I have been waiting for something unique and special like this for a long time."

The timing could be excellent for Hamilton's line.

The surf and skate industry is riding a wave of mainstream acceptance worth more than $7.48 billion a year, according to the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association. With surfwear-selling retailers in every state, even board short-wearing teenagers in Kansas have heard of Hamilton — and that's something Steve & Barry's is counting on to bring in customers.

Steve & Barry's is surfing its own swell of success, too. It operates more than 260 stores across the country, including a 24,000-square-foot outlet at Waikele Center that opened in April.

Established in 1985 in Pennsylvania by childhood pals Steve Shore and Barry Prevor, the company has generated sales with inexpensive clothing.

Much of its growth comes from the same business model that appealed to Hamilton: Low-cost lines of clothing endorsed by professional athletes and celebrities. In 2006, the company hooked up with basketball star Stephon Marbury to sell basketball shoes for $14.98 instead of $100 to $200, generating a tsunami of admiring publicity.

It has similar arrangements with NBA player Ben Wallace, tennis star Venus Williams, actress Sarah Jessica Parker and golf pro Bubba Watson.

'NO ONE BETTER' FOR LINE

Steve & Barry's wanted to tap into the lifestyle created by the surf and skate movement, said Howard Schacter, the company's chief partnership officer. And according to Schacter, Hamilton's devotion to surfing made him the company's only choice.

"He is the greatest surfer in the world," Schacter said. "He is an epic waterman who stands for everything this lifestyle is about and so as a part of the surf and skate line we could think of no one better."

Hamilton is immersed in every aspect of the line and everything in it has to meet the surfer's standards for quality, Schacter said.

"This not only had to look cool and he be proud to wear it, but it had to deliver on the demands he needs — and they do," Schacter said. "This is high-end stuff. Laird gave the Wonderwall product the ultimate test of durability."

Creating a collection, from naming it to coming up with "Lairdisms" — catchy slogans, such as "Ride to Ride Another Day" — has given Hamilton balance in his life, he said.

"This touches on the artistic side of things but in a more intellectual manner, which I don't have a lot of in my life," he said. "It's a great opportunity for me to be able to explore that."

The toughest part, maybe tougher than riding a moving tower of water, was deciding on a name for the line, Hamilton said. He wanted something with multiple meanings.

"For me, Wonderwall represents a giant wave, a wall of wonder," Hamilton said. "I wonder if I will catch it or if it will get me. Or coming down a giant mountain. Or the wall of hope when you are searching for someone."