Keep my name outta your mouth.

In my time here on this earth, I have noticed a general pattern when it comes to announcements of very unpopular things. The public initially revolts and screams extremely angry words. After a few days, a counter-narrative begins to take hold with silver linings, other perspectives finding purchase. The extremely angry words soften to a low grumble. The rose colored lens-wearers smugly nod and everyone waits for the next bit of outrage.

The World Surf League’s recently-announced 2023 Championship Tour, however, has bucked this trend, the fury growing, growing, growing with no end in sight. The bitterness, exasperation bouncing back and forth between the crown being decided at Lower Trestles, again, and Surf Ranch being pulled from its shallow grave.

Pure vitriol.

Now, I don’t know how this deluge is being dealt with beyond the World Surf League’s patented Wall of Positive Noise. I’d image the early hours of frenzy were met with paternal “understanding” but its unrelentingness must now be disquieting.

Or maybe not.

CEO Erik Logan has taken the proactive step of limiting those who can speak his name in Instagram comments.

Will this turn the tide? Allow the counter-narrative to finally take hold? The Best of Maroon 5 once again re-filling the heretofore sad spaces of Logan’s mind?

Or maybe not?

Currently more questions than answers.

The Curse of Adriano de Souza?

Los Angeles-area surfers harboring dreams of driving east for two hours, instead of north for four, and ending up in a postmodern architectural wonderland, as opposed to a dairy apocalypse, to surf Kelly Slater’s patented wave-generating technology woke up deeply depressed this morning.

After much debate, public hand-wringing, back and forths, La Quinta’s city council, last night, unanimously rejected the Coral Mountain citing community concerns that the surf club would bring “the wrong element” i.e. people still alive.

The project, announced two years ago, promised, “hundreds of houses, a hotel and a high-tech surf wave basin” to be built in the shadow of the glorious Santa Rosa mountains. Concerns about building a wave tank during a historic drought were raised, though the developers promised it would take less water than neighboring golf courses. The footprint was shrunk to alleviate stress but there was no alleviating the stress of “surfers” coming to town.

Kelly Slater’s wave technology is as fun to surf as it is awful to watch but, after all these years, we are still only left with the cow stink.

How did all that happen?

How is there not one more plow on earth?

The curse of Adriano de Souza?

Ahhh.

"Losers."

The World Surf League released its 2023 Championship Tour schedule but days ago unleashing a torrent of vitriol so full-throated, so purely grouchy from fans of professional surfing to make even the grumpiest of surf journalists blush. The issues twofold. Holding Final’s Day at Lower Trestles yet again thereby gifting the world’s greatest little wave surfer Filipe Toledo his second crown, yes, but mostly the reintroduction of Kelly Slater’s Surf Ranch Pro.

The tank hosted two contests before, much to the chagrin of… everyone. While very fun to surf, it is absolutely painful to watch, pure torture, and fans of professional surfing rejoiced when it was disappeared last year.

But it is back and rage.

RAGE against that machine.

Being serious about my craft, though, the aforementioned grumpy surf journalism, I purposed to find but one positive perspective about the Surf Ranch Pro, digging through hundreds upon hundreds of comments, thousands even, on the World Surf League’s usually tepid platform, on CEO Erik Logan’s, on Head of Competition Jessi Miley-Dyer’s but nothing.

Not one ray of light.

So you can imagine my utter shock when visiting BeachGrit’s lightly-trafficked Instagram page, earlier today, I stumbled upon the one, the only, happy take.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by BeachGrit (@beach.grit)

Joao Luna, who writes under the name jpluna05, penned, “I don’t get all the buzz about the surf ranch. Such a great place for the fans, sponsors and much more. It’s just one stop there FFS! The pool can be such an important part of social inclusion, especially in places that are miles far from the ocean, but it needs to be much publicized to make an impact for thousands in the future. Now, I believe the format can be changed to add a bit more action to it. Some behaviours like a local trying to keep their beach point untouchable. Losers.”

Kelly Slater’s Surf Ranch Pro a beacon of ethical responsibility!

I cannot wait for the World Surf League’s Logan and Miley-Dyer to stumble upon this message and broadcast it right.

Planting justice in the desert.