How do they compare to a teenage Kelly Slater in 1990, for instance? Are they even close?
A few hours ago, Stephanie Gilmore, the 26-year-old five-time world champion, won the Swatch Pro at Trestles.
Gilmore won because she took it to the rim and didn’t pull back. How can we ever forget how pretty and pure she looked on those four-foot Lowers rights? She even took a 10 on one wave! A gleaming blur!
But for all the ecstasy surrounding Gilmore’s very good surfing (and Lakey Peterson’s passable fin throw earlier in the event), how does it compare to the men? Not the men of 2014, that’d be cruel, but the men, say, in 1990? That’s a quarter of a century ago.
The women are better than the men of 1990, surely.
Surely.
Let’s compare the women’s final of 2014 with 18-year-old Kelly Slater’s final at Trestles in 1990. Click on the photo for the gal’s final. Dive in below for KS many, many years ago.
Who wins? Tell me, who wins?
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DEREK REILLYS OVERUSE OF THE WORD “GAL” MAKES ME WANT TO KILL.
If you’ve had kids, a boy and a girl, physical differences are obvious from even before the first pee wee soccer game. There’s no reason to compare women to men. That said, pick someone other than slater from that era and the result of the exercise may be different. Steph versus an old Wes lane? Steph.
…the Bitchy Crab respectfully disagrees and believes women are limited only by paternalism such as yours. And is it not sexist (that word!) to say gals are incapable of high-level performance?
Comparing the best surfer in the world (even if it’s 20 years ago) to womens surfing today isn’t a great debate. Yes, they don’t rip as hard, but you’re just coming off as a sexist douche with a lame, invalid argument. Slater still surfs like that, and he still wins everything… so really you’re saying mens surfing hasn’t come that far either.
I think 1990 Slater has the possibility of winning some mens heats in 2014.
…are you suggesting 1990’s still a dream away, Charlie Conway?
“Spread your love and fly, fly”- Sugar Ray
“Not the men of 2014, that’d be cruel”
It’s still cruel.