Southern California disappears from pro surfing due greed!
Ok. I’ve done my due diligence for you, for us, for we the people and have figured out who to blame for professional surfing leaving southern California and moving to a pool in a central California cow town that happens to be surrounded by a fence.
The World Surf League.
I asked an almost too handsome source at Hurley who responded, “This is a loss for the people to be sure. The WSL determines the stops on tour. We participate where we can.”
It is my understanding, through further digging, that the WSL does, in fact, control all decisions and the value for each stop, which leads me to believe the WSL overcharged for Trestles, with Lemoore in their back pocket, and Hurley called their bluff.
For shame. For shame. For the people, who only want Famous Stars and Kolohe Andino, are left to suffer and suffer we will.
Stab, copying BeachGrit format, posted:
Breaking: The @wsl’s 2018 schedule: Cloudbreak and Lowers are out. They will be replaced by with @kellyslater’s wavepool in Lemoore, and Keramas. The title will still be decided at Pipe. Hit the link in our bio for a full run down of what we know.
Kelly Slater, because he loves commenting on social media, added:
It would go far to do a story about how events and sponsorship for them is determined. Nobody on tour or at @WSL wants to lose Cloudbreak or Lowers. It wasn’t a choice to have these events instead as is assumed by people. Fiji has been on and off tour over the years so people may have short memories in that regard. And it’s a logical choice to fill a missing event spot with a wave that’s better than most waves most days of the year and guaranteed. And keramas ain’t too shabby either. Brasil stays most likely because it has good sponsorship and govt backing and a third of the tour is from Brasil. Not having Brasil doesn’t automatically mean it is replaced with another event necessarily.
Stab, copying The Inertia’s backbone, responded:
Agreed!
But let’s really think about it. Let’s really really think about it. Nobody on tour or at the WSL may want to lose Lowers but if the powers decide the value of Lowers is ridiculously higher than it is and then put that price tag on it whose fault is?
The WSL has made sport, with the dearly departed ex-CEO Paul Speaker, of spouting silly numbers, projections and possible scope.
And now there is no more Lowers. Fuck the “spot with a wave that’s better than most waves most days of the year and guaranteed.”
People, it is time to raise our fist! It is time to put our Comme des Garçons panted knees onto the ground and raise our double stripe sleeved fist to the sky!