Revealed: “The World Surf League is really, really protective of its intellectual property!”

Chas Smith

By

Watch out!

There is not much surf news this morning, nothing that really compliments your morning coffee. The Vans World Cup of Surfing at Sunset Beach, North Shore, Oahu was called off yesterday because the waves became too big. I suppose that’s something and has the World Surf League lost its nerve? That is two events called off due to an abundance of size in under two weeks. Has the World Surf League lost its sense of grand adventure?

I’ll tell you one thing the World Surf League has not lost. Its sense of irony for it was revealed today that the League is “really, really protective of its intellectual property…” and let’s dig right in to this juicy little contradiction.

The quote comes from a new story about an incident that happened last year during the Jaws event. You certainly read it elsewhere then but, as a refresher…

An “unauthorized drone” was buzzing around the Jaws, maybe snagging some video etc. The League had its lifeguards try to throw swim fins at it before knocking it out of the sky with a proper helicopter. Doesn’t that seem a little on the dangerous side? Like, what if the the thing got stuck in the helicopter’s intake and made it crash at Jaws, taking out Albee Layer?

I would have made sure that #WhoAreYouBlowingInTheJudgesBooth trended all year long, in honor of.

But the helicopter didn’t crash, Albee didn’t die and the drone was sent to a watery grave. All fine and good but why the trouble? In a story on drone fan site PetaPixel the reasoning is explained.

According to a tipster that wrote in to PetaPixel, the WSL is really, really protective of their events and of the intellectual property that might be derived from them; hence, the strong arm approach to what the tipster says was a DJI Mavic drone that decided to drop in on the event.

Tipster Andrew Grose told the publication, “Like most sporting organizations the World Surf League (WSL) has been known to be quite protective in terms of its intellectual property rights…This is especially with regard to its copyright laws, making professional filming or photographing within contest areas almost impossible unless directly contracted by the WSL.”

Am I the only one that finds the World Surf League’s intellectual property hilarious?

Yeah?

Ok. I’ll be at the bar ordering another.

Watch and Listen: A new hype track featuring an all-star surf cast sweeps Oahu’s North Shore!

Chas Smith

By

"Pyzel surfboard the swell peakin' at noon!"

Music has been inextricably tied to upping the passions since the beginning of recorded time. The ancient Greeks marched into battle to the deafening beat of drums. The ancient Americans sent fife players out front of militiamen to both inspire and strike fear in British hearts. Napoleon had his favorite composer, Paisiello, write melodies and perform them during decisive campaigns and the modern basketball player will refuse to enter a gymnasium without noise-cancelling, full-ear headphones playing the very latest 6ix9ine track.

And so it only makes sense that Oahu’s North Shore, seven-miles awash in upped passions, has its own.

Kahleo’s There That Boy Go is a modern masterpiece featuring crackling, surf-inspired lyrics, an all-star North Shore cast (the Rothmans, a Florence, Billy Kemper etc.) and enough Pipeline to send shivers up this grown man’s spine.

A sample:

There that boy go, looking back I know there’s much to see.
Aloha vibes, aloha vibes is how I prefer to speak.
Hey haole boy, yeah haole boy, would you like to try some beef?
I just got my lei chilling out on the beach, tryin to eat.
There that boy go, Reef boardshorts, no shirt, no shoes.
There that boy go Pyzel surfboard the swell peaking at noon.

If this is not the best surf song on the planet you tell me which one is and then I will call you a fool.

And I only have one quick question. Is John John’s younger brother Ivan Florence the haole boy that possibly wants to try some beef?

Breaking: Monster Energy changes Dusty Payne’s orientation!

Chas Smith

By

Does drinking The Claw make you goofy?

Identity politics are still the rage and how much do you identify with your stance? Like, are you a capital ‘R’ regular foot, a capital ‘G’ goofy foot or are you a little more fluid? I ain’t talking fluid like Jamie O’Brien, going both ways. Mere mortals like us aren’t bi but are you bi-curious and/or relatively unattached to how you stand on a surfboard?

I am a regular foot but don’t feel any great pride. My little one, when she first started kicking a skateboard, tested out both regular and goofy for a few weeks before settling on goofy, like her mother. It made me happy, to be honest, because I think of screwfoots like I think of left-handed relief pitchers in baseball. I imagine them exotic, much sought after and extremely valuable even though I know that stance has nothing to do with dominant hand.

I envy goofy footers, I suppose, but I know a man who forced his little one into a regular stance at first sign of goof, possibly stunting years of progression but maybe not. Maybe he saved her from years of lackluster style.

In the case of Dusty Payne, Monster Energy, his drink sponsor, flipped him from a regular to a goofy and plastered him all over town. Like a real sassy thing.

Do you think he cares?

Would you?

Identity politics are, after all, still the rage.

From the teenaged-girl Dept: The World Surf League releases a Snapchat-esque photo filter!

Chas Smith

By

Wanna look like Johnny Ringo?

It was only a matter of time before the World Surf League rolled out a Snapchat-esque filter and you know what I’m talking about. The Snapchat-esque filter. A filter for your phone where you can take a picture of yourself  and then look like you are a reindeer or a woodland fairy and I’m not talking about “you” but your teenaged daughter.

Or Jared Leto.

Or Jared Leto.

They are very popular, anyhow, and the fact that it took the World Surf League feat. Oprah this long to shoot out their very own Snapchat-esque filter in an honest to goodness miracle.

But miracle no longer! Let’s meet the new WSL PURE Facebook (not Snapchat) Camera Effect!

Try the new WSL PURE Facebook Camera Effect!

We are on a mission to inspire, educate, and empower our global surf community to protect our oceans so we collaborated with Facebook on a camera effect to help raise awareness and make it easier to talk about the biggest challenges facing our oceans. Like the WSL Facebook page to use the effect and rally friends to protect, understand, and respect the ocean.

Submit your video to the WSL’s Fan Facebook Group for your chance to be featured on the LIVE broadcast.

You wanna look like Kaipo (above)?

You should. I know it was probably for shitty Movember but Kaipo looks exactly like Johnny Ringo in Tombstone and I don’t know why you’d want to look like anyone else.

Wait. Is that what the World Surf League feat. Oprah’s own Snapchat-esque filter makes you look like?

Sold

Buy here!

Live like Chip! Luke Farquhar

Rent: Chippa Wilson’s Enchanted North Coast Ranch!

Derek Rielly

By

Live like the great Australian jibber!

Two weeks ago, BeachGrit joined Chippa Wilson, the world famous aerialist, for a Sunday of late spring A-frames.

The conjoining was to create a short film called Twenty where Chip would attempt to nail twenty tricks in a morning on twenty different soft boards.

Chip flies for director Luke Farquhar, on location for Twenty.

Hell of a good time etc.

Anyway, I was asking Chip about his pussy palace out the back of Cabarita, near Byron Bay there on Australian’s north east coast. It’s been featured in various shorts by What Youth, Stab etc.

“Wanna rent it?” he said.

It turns out, ’cause he travels so much, air shows, sponsor trips etc, that the Clothiers Creek ranch (here on Instagram) is open to the public.

It’s a gorgeous place to behold: you can sit under the trees and write stories about animals, paint landscapes, kiss as the sky darkens and thunderclaps explode in summer storms, spend warm nights with a frail little sleeper at your throbbing side, and you can chase funny chickens all around the yard.

And if you want to get a piece of Chip himself, ride one of the Drag softboards he keeps in the garage. 

From Air BnB. 

Designed for the Australian lifestyle, with elevated views over the local farm lands, a modern farmhouse style home with acreage / simplicity at its best.

Within 15mins drive from Salt Village Beaches and Cabarita Beach, this hosue is also minutes away the M1 Motorway giving an easy direct access to the Gold Coast Airport. It’s a real treat!

Spend your stay relaxing by the pool or chilling on the verandah enjoying the lush green views forgetting about near but distant city lifestyle.

Front doors opening to a entertaining deck with a selection of native trees surroundings brings total exclusivity with a indoor/ our door living flow throughout the home.

Also feel free to collect some fresh eggs from the chooks for breaky, coffee and tea grown from the fields across the road from the property!

For the whole joint it costs around $US300 a night. Chip will swing a twenty percent discount to the first three guests who book a trip between now and February 18.

Book here! 

Photo: Justin Jay/@justinjayphoto
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