"Affirming that I declared that surfing happened in China ‘Thousands of years before Polynesia’ is blatantly false and casts a bad light on my professionalism."
Three days ago, it was reported, here, that an Italian historian had made the stunning discovery that surfing began in China “thousands of years before Polynesia.”
Wrote Chas Smith,
Nicolla “Nik” Zanella stumbled on his discovery in 2006 while visiting a Buddhist temple in Kunming in the southern Yunnan province. There he saw a 19th century bas-relief depicting a group of arhats, or those who have reached Nirvana, out amongst the waves.
One, in particular, stood out.
“The guy was standing up, his pose was exactly what we teach – back foot flat, front foot at a 45-degree angle, looking 5m in front of the board. And his face – he looked stoked,” Zanella told the South China Morning Post.
It was so captivating that he climbed down 5000 years of Chinese literature, finding Song Dynasty poet Zhou Mi’s work on the way. Zanella translates, “Hundreds of brave watermen … with unfastened hair and tattoos, holding coloured flags, race to the water … they paddle towards the oncoming waves … then they leap up and perform a hundred manoeuvres without getting the tail of their flags even slightly wet. This is how they show off their skill. Hence the nobles reward them with silver prizes.”
In a lengthy email to BeachGrit, received today, Zanella has eviscerated Chas Smith, the celebrated and much loved author of best-selling books Welcome to Paradise Now Go To Hell, Cocaine and Surfing, a Sordid History of Surfing’s Greatest Love Affair and Reports From Hell.
Zanella writes,
Who did it first was not the scope of my research, but this time frame is almost simultaneous with what was happening in Polynesia. Affirming that I declared that surfing happened in China ‘Thousands of years before Polynesia’ is blatantly false and casts a bad light on my professionalism.
I hope you have the decency of erasing that article and learn to investigate what you publish in the future, what you stated was not in the SCMP article, nor in my book, nor in any interview that I ever gave to the many media, all more professional than BeachGrit, that covered my book and research. A simple google search would have clarified it.
As an avid surfer myself and a former surf editor I understand your need for click-bait titles in a starved out surf media environment.
But this time you passed the mark and put false words in my mouth.
I ask you to erase the article. I’m willing to send you a copy of my book so that you can read it and understand the scope and direction of my research.
The author of the story is yet to respond to the claims.
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Nah… she hasn’t got Covid. She was smashing buckets in the laundry. She got the munchies lost track of time and missed the plane. Now E-lo is cashing in on Covid
OK, how have any transgender athletes affected your life? or is it another one of fake news boogie men. If you are worried about getting beaten by transvsites on the track, get a life.
Pretty much. Hang the infidels from the goal posts on the soccer field. Good times
Sounds like fast Eddie got to him.
You have to question “as an avid surfer myself” if he doesn’t know that BG doesn’t fact check or Google or take down stories. If we wanted real reporting we’d find it somewhere else.
F him. Maybe him and Chas will get in a fight at the next SurferNeedsAttention get together.
I knew that sooner or later you woud have written something about nick zanella. The guy is mad!
If Nicolla Zanella is right—and it looks like he his—the mistake needs to be corrected. As a writer, Chas, knows this. Aloha (which was originally the Chinese word for kook,) ph
There was this one guy who liked to paddle out first at a particular beach, he was out there first every morning. Then one morning I woke up early and beat him out there. Someday someone will write a book about it.
And, equally, some surf journalist will write an article proposing the opposite
I think chas is being unfairly treated here. He didn’t put words in anyone mouth he simply drew conclusions from the published information and reported it.
Kinda his job….duh
There are euro surf historians ?
Hahahar – that’s VAL af.
Charlie you are SUCH a little bitch.
Making this guy out to have written what he done wrote.
Let’s concentrate on the real issue here…that photoshopped picture of ELO getting beautifully covered.
Give the creator a raise.
“nor in any interview that I ever gave to the many media, ‘all’ ‘more professional’ than BeachGrit, that covered my book and research”.
Ouch!
The inertia. He means the inertia.
It’s impressive he called BeachGrit “professional”. Albeit in a minimalist way, but it’s still got to be a first.
I China know what’s being discussed here and I’m China disgusted.
Let’s lynch Charlie. This, lack of focus with lodgegrit and that Mariah Carey story has pushed me over the edge.
He needs to be canceled.
I totally second.
I turd!
Pretty sure that’s Chas’s job
Proof is in the poodding.
Who would’ve thought cut and pasting could have such consequences.
Does this mean I get a regular slot writing hyperbolic bullshit?
Beef Europe. Beer Iran. Beer and ‘Beef’ Hawaii.
Free book! Score!!!
The Chinese did EVERYTHING first.
The start of Mardi Gras feels like paradise, but the end definatly resembles hell.
Just found out you can buy legal shrooms in Oakland now. You just have to fill out a form saying it’s for religious purposes. Go Dems!!
Reality is enuff of a trip these days.
You have a problem with making money and taking shrooms? well that’s your fault
The money bit is easy.
You would learn something about yourself.
They used to grow in the paddock nextdoor to the piggery I worked in near Ballina as a young fella.
What I learnt was buy for a dollar, sell for 5
He might, if he doesn’t have a bad trip.
Bad trip.
The beginning of the end….
You remind me of when my parents dragged me to all the churches and museums in England, and saw every kind of torture device you can imagine, all in the name of Christianity.
I don’t believe those were done in the name of Christianity.
Don’t like doing cut and paste but here you go.
The Church taught that any deviation from orthodoxy amounted to lèse majesté against God, and therefore treason again the King of Kings. This meant that in contrast to civil society, treason and therefore torture were common in the Church.
That was the Catholic church I believe that was responsible.
God says to follow Him, not an institution.
England broke free from the Catholic Church, thats why it’s called Protestant.
Interesting, I still believe it was the Catholic Church that was responsible for those things you mentioned during the Inquisition.
Protestant or not, God says to follow Him, and not an institution.
The Catholic Church was responsible for the Spanish inquasition but not England. Spain and England were bitter enemies. It begs to say that humanity in general is cruel by nature no matter what religion it follows.
Ummm, I don’t know, but humanity can also be very compassionate and very kind. And God isn’t a religion, He’s a reality.
I guess it goes back to who we are. Are people inherently good or bad? Nobody seems to follow what the bible tells us to do, so have changed my opinion think that people are selfish shitheads through and through .
I used to think differently but my own experience changed that.
Well, yes, we are born with a sinful nature, which causes us to be selfish and self centered.
But when we ask, God can forgive us of our sins and change our hearts to be more forgiving and to care about others, and to actually step out and do something to help others and make a real difference in the world.
So we are all bad people when we are born and having faith in god will put us back on track to be good again? trying to be open to new ideas if they make sense.
Well, yes, we are all born with a sinful nature. But if a baby dies though, they do get a free pass into heaven, but when you reach an age of ‘accountability’ and you can make your own ‘choices’, the Bible says everyone has sinned and fallen short, if it’s by telling a lie or stealing or lusting, basically breaking one of the ten commandments.
There’s no one on this Earth that has led a sinless life except Jesus, the son of God. He did die on the cross for the sins of the world (and to save us from hell).
But to be forgiven
we have to ‘realize’ we have sinned, made mistakes, and repent, and ‘ask’ to be forgiven.
If we are ‘sincere’, God ‘promises’ that we will be forgiven and that we can be born again and have a new heart and a new spirit.
And when God’s spirit lives in our heart, he can give us the power to live above our sins and the heart and willingness to help others.
It’s awesome, the true meaning of life.
Thanks for taking the time to write a response, I appreciate it and will look into it.
Your welcome, hope you get some good waves this coming week too.
So should I follow Chas and not BeachGrit? Interesting.
Church of England considers itself as both Catholic and Reformed(Protestant).
It broke free from the Roman Catholic Church.