World number 1 delivers stunning rebuke of wave pool!
Yesterday’s Pipeline would not have been considered “ideal” by the lofty standards the North Shore’s premier wave delivers time and time again but I do believe it was one of the more entertaining round 1s this season. Of course there were the various storylines, Josh Kerr’s last event in a remarkable professional career, Kelly’s return, the title race, but mostly there was the wave, shifting this way and that, opening then closing, keeping the competitors on their toes.
The sand, as the announcers reminded us time and time again, is off for this time of year do an atypical early season that failed to distribute it evenly across the reef and so odd things happened in the water but how fun was it to watch? Knowing that traditional Pipe tactics no longer applied? I thought very fun and John John Florence agrees, telling the World Surf League’s Chris Mauro, “I feel like a little kid again doing this event, just getting to surf Pipe with no one out. I was just getting so many waves like, ‘This one might barrel!’ I like it when it’s like this, it changes it up, a peak here and peak there, you can kind of sneak underneath ones.”
I read the quote and realized instantly it was a subtle yet stunning rebuke of Kelly Slater’s Surf Ranch. Again, “I like it when it’s like this, it changes it up, a peak here and peak there, you can kind of sneak underneath ones.”
Variety. The Hand of God. Chance. Knowledge. Skill. It was John John’s reading of waves during his heat was wildly entertaining yet that element would disappear entirely when perfect ones are pumped out time and time again. When the only variable is physical ability. I suppose, at next year’s Surf Ranch event, we will see how much pleasure the uncontrollable ocean brings to professional surfing but I think it is a lot. I think maybe even half the fun.
Well, tomorrow or maybe the next day will see Gabriel Medina vs. Dusty Payne, I think, and it’ll be very exciting. We will also see the world’s 4th favorite surfer Frederico Morais.
Get ready!
“it was a subtle yet stunning rebuke of Kelly Slater’s Surf Ranch”, entirely unintentional ‘rebuke’, if at all. He was frothing on the joy of days like this where it’s all mixed up and you have a dig on everything with the hope/anticipation that it’s a gem, that or get axed.
Your fixation on twisting everything to your objective, is transparently tiring.
It’s only what journalists, researchers and politicians have been doing forever. Jesus.
Right, it’s fucked, but it’s what we do, so why change? Lame.
I’m all for change. Jus sayin’!
I must be getting too old for this trolling business. You are trolling, aren’t you?
If not, I recommend you avoid reading Chas’ other work. Exhibit A: http://beachgrit.com/2016/0…
You still haven’t uploaded those pictures
Imagine rocking up to your local and it’s the same wave, day in day out for 10 years. Your petrol bill would be outa control. Variety is the spice of life. Predictable perfection is the devil. Horns and all.
Fuck, outa only has one t? I have been using two t system to keep relevant with the kids on social media for years!
Stick with the two t system mate, I’m not a kid and this is my only source of social media 🙂
No
If there is one thing wave pools manage to do very well, it is to make getting barreled boring to watch. Having sex with a robot might feel good, but it just looks lame to the outside observer, no matter how freaky.
I think that is why Shane Dorian was the one who surfed it best so far. He didn’t bother to go for the shallow, zero difficulty initial barrel section and just belted it a few times.
hacking the mid section of that pool is way more fun than getting semi barrelled in it.
oh shit! I shouldn’t have said that should I, it’s not January 31 yet
You set that up so nicely to knock it out of the park! Then you just flared it into shallow right field for a crummy base hit. Hang in their champ. You had a big day with Sam yesterday.
To be quite honest, calling it a “base hit” is generous. It was a straight pop up with the infield fly rule in play. An out with no runners advancing.
At least you can sleep at night. Sam may have a higher thread count sheets
Fredricos “popularity” is a perfect example of how pro surfing is more entertainment than sport. The judging is a charade. These guys are payed by companies to entertain people and subconsciously draw them into purchasing merchandise shilled by their favorite entertainer. A WSL contest is sort of like watching a snake oil medicine show.
Thank you for informing us! And here i was thinking …
thinking is not all that its cracked up to be
Chas you are the Ellsworth Toohey of the surf world.
Pretty sure Chas just said that God made Pipeline. That conflicts with Ellsworth’s belief that nothing gets done without the sanction of Central Planning. If Charlie didn’t surf then surely Central Planning didn’t either.
Maybe Joshie will consider coming out of retirement when the WSL, in the midst of an artificial wave frenzy, decides to add the Surf Diva Wakesurf Pro to the Tour schedule in 2019…
He’s pretty good behind a boat gotta give it to him although after being dropped by rusty I don’t think he’ll own that mastercraft much longer.