Let's get ready to Lululemon!
It’s been a minute. I left you somewhere in
Portugal and I hope that you found your way home safely.
You seem like smart people who can handle that kind of thing.
We are currently two weeks out from the final event of the
women’s championship tour. Carissa Moore still leads the rankings,
but Lakey Peterson is very close behind her. Thanks to her win at
Portugal, Caroline Marks sits third.
I will do the world title scenarios when we get closer to the
start of Honolua. If I do them now, I will forget all of it by the
time Honolua starts. This defeats the purpose entirely. Also, I
have the memory of a freshly hatched fruit fly.
Olympics, yes they matter
Australia has its Olympic team set (provisionally) with Sally
Fitzgibbons and Steph Gilmore heading to Japan. But the two U.S.
slots are still totally in play. Moore, Peterson, and Marks hold
the top three spots on in the world rankings, and only two of them
can make the team. That third place is definitely going to
sting.
And yes, “real surfers” (whoever they are) may not care about
the Olympics. But for women athletes, the Olympics matter a great
deal. At least in the short run, making the Olympic team promises a
nice bump in sponsorship. An athlete can more easily the notice of
mainstream sponsors, which typically have deeper pockets.
As an “Olympic hopeful” Peterson has already picked up a deal
from Toyota. Expect more of that in the next year. It’s not the
kind of thing that lasts forever, but neither does a career as a
pro athlete. Get it while you can, girls.
Same as it ever was, 2020 CT schedule
In the meantime, the WSL released next year’s CT schedule.
Same-same. The only change is G-Land for Keramas, a switch we have
discussed at some length on the men’s side. Tati West and Caroline
Marks will be frothing. I am a fan of adding a left to the women’s
Tour, so G-Land is a good decision, from where I’m sitting. But I
also liked Keramas. Why can’t we have both? Related, why doesn’t
money grow on trees?
Similar to 2019, there is no women’s event in Tahiti. Should
there be? During my brief visit to Lemoore this September, I asked
this question to several of the CT women. Enthusiasm levels varied,
though none of the women I spoke to were opposed to the idea of
competing at Teahupo’o.
Characteristically, Gilmore took a cautious approach. “I think
women have some kind of like, commonsense button in their brain
that goes, ‘boop, boop,’ I don’t think it’s a good idea,” she said.
“But in saying that, I think if we have an event there, the women
will go there and train and make that happen.” (As an aside,
Gilmore is not the only female athlete who has told me that they
believe women approach risk differently from men.)
Gilmore would like to see a standalone event for women at Tahiti
as a first step. “Then we can pick the conditions that we know will
challenge us, but kill us,” she said. This last bit came with very
Australian deadpan humor, which I deeply enjoy.
You will not, I think be surprised to learn that Courtney
Conlogue would go for it. “I feel like it’s in my blood,” she said.
“It’s not that I would be careless about it. I prepare myself in
every aspect and I know the risks I’m taking.” Conlogue says she
always looked up to women such as Chelsea Georgeson, Rochelle
Ballard, and Melanie Bartels, who competed at Teahupo’o when it was
still on Tour.
“There’s just something about a barrel,” said Conlogue. “It’s so
special. And all the spots like Tahiti are the view of a lifetime.
And the adrenaline. I feel like those sensations you get in barrels
like that are amazing. There’s probably moments in other sports
where you experience that same feeling where everything slows down.
But there’s nothing like being barreled where nature is like,
hugging you. It’s like this nice little cocoon in the barrel. But I
feel like, I would embrace going to Tahiti, for sure!”
Here’s Conlogue in Ireland, recently, going for it.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B4aAkIZHgy5/ She looks mighty small on
that wave, doesn’t she.
Eventually, the question of a women’s event at a spot like
Teahupo’o or Cloudbreak brings us back to the question of money
growing on trees. It’s a sport, not Unicef. Sending the women out
in giant Teahupo’o probably won’t make the sport look great in the
short run. In the long run, though, raising the level means pushing
boundaries and making friends with fear.
Casey Brown, one of the top women in freeride mountain biking
says it well: “There’s never going to be stories from comfort and
security. And there will be fear out there, but you’re going to do
it anyway. Because you’re best friends with fear. Fear’s your
buddy.”
lululemon, your favorite new surf brand
The Maui Pro starts on 25 November and yes, yes, of course, I
will write about it. I did not mean to wander off during Portugal.
Sometimes, things happen over here! I love Honolua the most and
will have my eyes glued to every heat, while also chewing my nails
down to nothing over the world title race.
For the 2019 edition of Maui Pro, clothing brand lululemon has
stepped in as the title sponsor. lululemon Maui Pro. And yes, the
brand does not capitalize the first letter. Don’t say you never
learned anything here at Beachgrit! It is so educational. As you
all know, because you watch her heats obsessively, lululemon
currently sponsors Malia Manuel.
What could lululemon possibly have to do with me, I ask, eyeing
my teetering pile of color-coordinated sports bras and work-out
wear. Yes, yes, my gym clothes have to match. I blame the part
where lifting involves standing in front of an assortment of
mirrors for two hours. Honestly, it’s amazingly distracting if your
sports bra does not match your tights. And socks! If my socks don’t
match, it’s totally over.
Also, the plates must be reracked by size. But really, I’m not
at all OCD. It’s fine over here! It’s totally fine.
Okay, let’s all watch the lululemon Maui Pro in two weeks and
you can hold my hand when it gets too stressful! I get so nervous
when the title race is super close. Please come hold my hand and
watch the scary heats with me!
