Two weeks in the Ments on one of the best charter boats in the biz? Or two days at the Pool? Same price!
Three days ago, the price structure for hiring the Slater-Mincham pool was revealed, $11.5k per person for two days of lake surfing. This included video, coaching, food and access to the Surf Ranch, a masterpiece of man-made bathymetry, in Lemoore, a lousy cotton-farming town four hours north-east of Los Angeles.
As Chas Smith calculated, at eight waves a day, it costs $718.75 per wave.
Today, pricing for this year’s charters on the Indies Trader III, one of the sexiest boats in the Mentawai island chain, was revealed. As a comparison to Surf Ranch, it makes for an interesting philosophical back and forthing.
To hire the whole damn boat, eight surfers max, for two weeks, with all food (“qualified chef with no expense spared on food quality”), all drinks (yeah, booze too), airport transfers and airport porters, staterooms with queen beds and ensuite for two of the surfers and three twin-share cabins for the rest, plus internet, dive gear, boards, fishing, kiting, SUP, whatever, is $US64,383.
Divide by eight surfers.
Each man, or lady, pays $US8047.
Two weeks. Mentawais. One of the two best boats in the chain (the other is the former Indies Trader IV, now the Ratu Motu) and, if you add in a biz-class airfare, it costs the same as two days at Surf Ranch.
Now. Let’s play fantasy surfer.
If you had eleven-gees, how would you spend it?
On a little drive to Lemoore and eight waves?
Or on an Indonesian odyssey? How many waves you going to catch in two weeks?
Two hundred?
Forty bucks a wave.
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For $11G’s I’d go to South Africa and stay for a few months. That’s better than either option.
heh. the problem is paying for the dream dude
This is possibly the most depressing article ever 😛
It does. Whatever you catch yourself in Indonesia, it’s up to you. You can vary the price of travel all you want, it ends up the same deal: paddle out where you want, when you want, catch as many waves as you want. At Surf Ranch, you are paying someone to actually make you a wave. Congratulations.
It depends on where your money comes from.
If you’re Bunker Spreckels, burn it up, it makes no difference – it’s not even yours anyway.
Now, if you’re a young and promising politician with great connections around senate and congress, rent the whole thing, invite your best friends, some of the finest courtesans, blow and fly first class.
Tell the good people to pay and vindicate as research for potential investment in tourism.
Then you got the Bull from Wall Street, reading an article about the benefits of surfing, missing the sarcasm, asking how much for a membership for 12 years in advance – 10 people.
One question,
Michelob Ultra only in da Ranch ?
Is a rub and tug included in the `indies price?
I’m so rich and hip that my last wave cost more than Chas’ shoes . FUCK THAT ! Waves should never become a fashion accessory .
Easy choice! So easy. But I dream of warm water surf like every night.
For $500 paid to the top-dog local in the parking lot, you could pick your favorite surf spot north of San Francisco and glide into whichever set waves you wanted uncontested for an entire 3 day weekend.
Got a mate getting epic mandiri now so am frothing way too much!!!
I am taller, younger, of same build tho, goofy footer frother too – but sadly no!!!!
Calm down mate. frother? stop it.
You sounds hot then, confirm or deny?
confirm
Lol the wave pool sounds bent. If i could catch infinite waves a day on it might consider. Seems to produce waves like a 80 year olds prostate produces urine.
I’m just gonna buy my own tropical surf island and install gun towers to keep the riff-raff away from my peaks.
Visitors will only be allowed to use my breaks if they hire one of my fleet of bespoke Yves St Laurent snakeskin air mattresses to ride.
For that kind of money you could do 42 days at a high quality land camp in the ments.
I’d catch fuck all waves if there was free piss. But I might finally land that sailfish.
Glad to see you contemplating going for big airs on the free beer. Dognuts lands “ The not so stalefish on the pissh “.
200 waves in 2 weeks that is 14 a day!!! if I am surfing 6-8 hrs a day and catch 14 waves I am a complete tool!!! I reckon I would be frothing so hard and catch 14 waves in first hr!!
I would be aiming for 50 waves a day minimum over 8 hrs surfing so 700 for 14 days for me at $11 bucks a pop
Going the boat!!!
fuck youd be so fun to go on a surf trip with
lets do it!!! I reckon we should somehow pull a beachgrit trip together somehow!! either surf or snow I don’t care but need a trip
yeah nah
Go solo, just don’t talk everyone’s ear off, but do talk to others just to let them know you are not going to murder them in their sleep.
Good advice. I always open with “hi, I’m not going to murder you in your sleep.” Breaks the ice quite nicely.
are you 8 Brazilians?
yes
I’d wager that the target market of both has more money than time. The appeal of a short drive inland with no time away from responsibility means the 0.1% don’t care much for the cost?
A surfer that has more money than time is right up there with one that has to get a pass to go surfing or permission to buy a board with his earnings. Do we spell it poser or poseur?
Derek please pay for me to do both and I will faithfully report the result to ‘Grit readers.
I’d be more interested in your faithless reports.
I’m off to the Mentawai in June on one of the worst boats for a hell of a lot less. I’m confident it will be better fun than the ranch and the other assholes you’d be lumped in with. Faithless report to follow
I know guys who go to indo with a grand for 2 months and catch a lifetime of sick waves everytime!!! If you are rich just do it nicer!! Pool is w!aaaaay to expensive! I got land on kauai croedfund a pool for the masses.
Those guys always have the best Malaria stories!
Were there any carve outs? Like would Kelly’s pool be any cheaper if you didn’t have to get bullshit coaching and eat their fucken health food? I’d rather live off muesli bars on a dinghy in the Ments than spend more than 5 minutes at a dinner table with any of Kelly’s mates/disciples.
2 weeks on the indies trader or 10 years in the ments living one beng beng bars and Bintang in a dugout canoe
I’ll take 10 so long as my girlfriend’s not invited.
Girlfriends are easier to get rid of than wives. You can have that piece of life advice for free my friend
Ha Ha, I actually laughed out loud …I’ll share this one with ya. What’s the difference b/w a girlfriend and a wife? About 40lbs
I think she’s got defacfo now I’m fucked.
When chia seeds decided to be a thing I once put so many in a smoothie I couldn’t shit for 4 days. The pain of dispensing a rock hard chia shit was so painful I almost called an ambulance.
https://youtu.be/8EjcUTueYNo
Interesting point. I was looking for some surf coaching and there is a very reputable surf coach outlet in my town. I enquired and the best price was around $1000 and this included diet, mindfulness and medidation workshops on top of technique. All I wanted was someone to video me and look at my body placement on turns. He simply could not/ would not offer it. I have no time and interest in hearing a failed professional surfer teach me how to meditate.
Diet and peace of mind have nothing to do with surfing. Occy is fucking tweaking and Clay is fucked in the head. Clay’s probably the best too.
‘mindfulness’ as a product is both the biggest load of horse shit and the darling word of the moment for marketing firms.