We, each of us here, know that surfing is not for the faint of heart. Injuries can come in many, many forms. Shark, stingray, stray longboard, angry and recently unemployed Erik Logan, aggressive local, adult learner paddling toward shoulder, adult learner going over the falls, Brazilian, angry seal, angry seagull, surfboard fin, surfboard nose, jellyfish, aging, saltwater crocodile, people from Florida, riptide, undertow, urchin, surf school student, sexism flying fish and now we can officially include saltwater.
And let us travel to the tropical surf paradise of Costa Rica where we find the pop superstar Shakira participating in her new favorite pastime. The Waka Waka songstress is no stranger to this surfing life. She utilized to heal her broken heart when Spanish footballer Girard Pique made an indiscretion upon their married life. She often travels to Wavegardens and she even enjoys wake surfing.
But it Costa Rica, potential disaster struck. Shakira was in the water, surfing, when eyewitnesses say she “fell off her board” and came up rubbing that dastardly saltwater out of her eyes, looking distressed. Thankfully, a handsome surf instructor was nearby. He comforted her greatly and even though her pupils must have been dreadfully stinging, elicited a smile from her attractive face.
The two later walked to a waiting car where onlookers spotted possible ecchymosis on her leg.
Bruising.
Though I am only an amateur virologist, I know that bruising can be a sign of something very serious like massive internal bleeding or organ failure.
The five-time world surfing champion Carissa Moore, the living embodiment of the famous Aloha spirit, says she was “violated” and “handled inappropriately”by Houston airport security earlier today as she made her way back to Hawaii from Brazil.
In a story to her more than half-a-million fans the thirty-year-old Olympic gold medallist who finished third in the Vivo Rio Pro wrote,
“Went through security at the Houston airport, felt violated and disrespected when I was searched. No one had the decency to listen and treat me with kindness. I’ve never felt so alone and powerless. I’m fine but pretty shaken up. I don’t think I deserved to be treated that way. No one does. Trying to have some empathy for them. Maybe they are going through something, how knows. Let’s try to be a little more patient, kind and understanding with each other.”
A few hours later Moore continued,
“I really appreciate all the kind messages. I’m truly grateful for the loving community around me and support. I definitely don’t feel alone.
“What happened to me was unacceptable and I just hope to encourage some improvement. I am more than ok. I realise how fortunate I am that I don’t ever have to deal with these types of situations and others have been though or have had to deal with way worse situations of being handled inappropriately or feeling powerless.
“We all have the power everyday to choose the kind of person we want to be and the kind of energy we want to share with the world. To those working TSA, I hope to encourage more patience, kindness and empathy towards travellers. I feel fortunate to be able to travel a lot and have a decent understanding of the flow at the airport but others do not. Some people move a little slower than others, don’t know what to take out of their bags and put in a bin or how to stand in an X-ray machine.
“Pat downs are uncomfortable and an invasion of personal space but we all do it for the safety of each other. I’ve had more than I can count and all have been pretty fine. Please proceed with care, be gentle and sensitive.
“You as a trained officer have the power to make this experience for someone a positive one, to ease someone’s anxiety and send them on their journey with your love and kindness. You matter and make a difference.”
Ain’t that the sweetest takedown ever? A lesson in conflict resolution, a model for all Americans?
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Elo, Taylor and the deleted Tweet.
Freshly exhumed tweets reveal dumped WSL CEO Erik Logan’s wild blood feud with Taylor Swift, “Your power is fading, your shine is dull”
"Your (sic) lying. Stop it…your mistruths and lies about what happened are just that – lies… this is one area where you're (sic) attempt to rewrite history won't work."
As music fans move heaven and hell to get a seat at one of the Taylor Swift Eras Tour gigs, a three-hour show that covers each of Swift’s studio albums, freshly exhumed tweets from dumped WSL Erik Logan have revealed the wild blood feud between the two cultural giants.
Logan, now fifty-two, you’ll remember, was disappeared by the WSL mid-event at the Vivo Rio Pro, no reason given, only a curtly worded press release that neither thanked nor exalted their high-profile CEO.
“Today, the World Surf League (WSL) announced that CEO Erik Logan has departed the company, effective immediately. As the WSL begins the process of identifying a new CEO, Emily Hofer, WSL’s Chief People and Purpose Officer, and Bob Kane, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Legal Officer, will jointly lead the company and continue to drive the WSL’s mission to showcase the world’s best surfers on the world’s best waves as the global home of competitive surfing.”
You’ll remember the contrast with his predecessor Sophie Goldschmidt’s presser.
In the deleted Tweets from four years ago, Logan, in the words of BeachGrit’s Chas Smith, “came swinging in on a dispute she has with a man named Scooter Braun. Scooter Braun is a manager who represents or represented Kanye West, Justin Bieber etc. He somehow gained control of Taylor Swift’s back catalogue and she wrote an angry missive on Tumblr (the “lemon squeezey” Instagram) declaring, “I learned about Scooter Braun’s purchase of my masters as it was announced to the world. All I could think about was the incessant, manipulative bullying I’ve received at his hands for years.”
According to Elle Magazine… “Erik Logan, the former president of the Oprah Winfrey Network and a board member of Big Machine, wrote a scathing letter to Swift on Twitter that he has since deleted. In the message, he said, “For someone who draws such power from being the ‘voice’ and against all the things you talk about, I’m watching you violate what you allegedly stand for. You’re the real bully.”
The deleted tweets are something, Logan telling Swift “your power is fading, your shine is dull and this is what bully’s do, they lash out – especially when they are called to stand in the truth. Your (sic) lying. Stop it…your mistruths and lies about what happened are just that – lies… this is one area where you’re (sic) attempt to rewrite history won’t work.”
The main takeaway from the old tweets, I suppose, is Logan’s struggle with the concept of your and you’re.
The confusion between “your” and “you’re” often arises due to their similar pronunciation. However, as Logan must know, they have different meanings and uses.
“Your” is a possessive pronoun that indicates something belongs to or is associated with the person or group being addressed. For example, “I like your pussy” means that the pussy belongs to the person you are speaking to.
“You’re” is a contraction of “you are.” It combines the pronoun “you” with the verb “are” to express a state of being or an action. For example, “You’re going to get sacked” means “You are going to get sacked”.
The confusion often occurs because both “your” and “you’re” sound the same when spoken, making it easy to mix them up in writing. Logan may not fully understand the grammatical rules or may simply have made the mistakes while typing or writing quickly, perhaps too furious.
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New controversy engulfs under-siege World Surf League as live broadcast misses rare perfect ride only days after dumping CEO and confidante of Oprah Winfrey Erik “Elo” Logan!
“They’re targeting toxic dopamine hits instead of showcasing great surfing in great waves.”
The World Surf League has backed up the sudden disappearing of its very public CEO Erik “Elo” Logan mid-event with another controversy, this time missing only the second perfect ride of the season on the final day at the Vivo Rio Pro.
If you were watching the contest live, instead of being gifted the sight of Brazilian Yago Dora’s beautifully executed frontside 540 you were being shown a panorama of spectators on the beach, not untypical of an organisation that regularly misses key moment in its broadcast.
Aside from debate over whether or not the air should’ve been given a ten (“At least the judges get out of Brazil’ alive”), fans on the WSL’s own account were furious they had to watch it as a reply and not live.
Terrible broadcast, at the time of the most important wave they cut to commercial. No one saw Yago Dora’s 10 due to WSL incompetence. Shame!
wsl doesn’t know how to make entertainment. that doesn’t happen in the NBA.
What kind of broadcast takes breaks in the middle of sets?? Like “here’s 1st and goal for a game winning touchdown, let’s take a quick commercial break”
just like the JJF vs Yago heat. 2 min left in the heat with JJF needing a 6.6 and they cut to introduce Simmers and Wright for literally no reason.
They’re targeting toxic dopamine hits instead of showcasing great surfing in great waves. It sucks.
they have gotten REALLY bad at missing live action with fluff bullshit. It’s beyond frustrating.
Yes,and thank you,watching it with my grandson,and that happens, we’re like what! Then,they do it again! Go to the taped commercial and keep running it,we’re stoked and wanting to see Yago coming out of the water and his chair up,but no! then the post show does not show up either! Seriously, why?
it was unbelievable. They strive for viewers and they f@ckd us right in the best part to show the crowd???
"But perhaps it’s time for a return to someone on the inside."
The reemergence of once-proud Surfer Magazine, founded by the legendary John Severson, helmed by Nia Peeples’ ex-husband amongst many other icons, as a retreaded kook machine is one of the funnier bits of our current surf era. That and the World Surf League’s most wild implosion.
Two weeks ago, the casual observer would have imagined everything was just plain wonderful. The momentum of professional surfing, the extremely popular Chief Executive Officer of the World Surf League declared, was real.
But then, overnight, the charismatic Oklahoman, who had a magical wetsuit of armor, was ruthlessly and brutally fired right in the middle of an event. No information was given in the terse press release and none from the booth, where Joe Turpel instructed those listening that if they wanted to know what it felt like to surf like a professional, they should play a video game.
Yikes.
But who could replace the man known as ELo?
Who could?
Currently the WSL’s Chief People and Purpose Officer, Emily Hofer, and Bob Kane, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Legal Officer, are at the helm but they will clearly not stay long. Chief of Sport Jessi Miley-Dyer seems to have been angling for the top job for some time now and could slip into ELo’s vacated office fairly easily. Other’s feel the International Surfing Association’s Fernando Aguerre would be a nice fit.
Kelly Slater? Some seem to think the greatest of all-time might be able to take a break from making turtle sandals and inspire.
(Dave) Prodan would be a good call, someone the surfers know and trust. The WSL took a big swing with E-Lo, an outsider to the industry with strengths in certain areas (broadening surfing’s appeal to the masses) and weaknesses in others (knowing much at all about surfing or surf culture). But perhaps it’s time for a return to someone on the inside.
Dave Prodan has been in the room for decades now, polishing the apples of this or that leader. He has survived at least five different regimes and that sort of knack means… something. Who are some very famous lackeys that have survived regime change besides the universally adored Dr. Fauci?
Currently, Prodan runs a podcast that is the most effective World Surf League propaganda machine around though does it mean he can lead?
Who would there be to polish his apples?
More as the story develops.
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Jon Pyzel and Matt Biolos by @theneedforshutterspeed/Step Bros
