"Hip works."
Four days ago, the 11-time world champion Kelly Slater shocked surf fans with his sudden withdrawal from the MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal, an event notorious for the number of crucial heats held in the ghastliest conditions due its proximity to Atlantic Ocean storms.
Kelly Slater, who just turned fifty-two, blamed his no-show on the slow recovery from surgery to repair the ring of cartilage that lines the rim of the hip joint socket.
The pelvis of Kelly Slater has been an ongoing issue with the star, his hip real bad ever since he did the splits on a wipeout at Sunset thirty-two years ago when he thought he’d snapped his femur. A few years later he was towing in Tahiti and doing flips off the back of waves when he landed weird, hurt his hip, and then in the summer of 2000 he went in for surgery to clean up the mess.
Announcing the withdrawal Slater wrote,
“Still dealing with hip recovery and still in pain with basic mobility. thanks for the messages from Portuguese fans and apologies I won’t be seeing you in Supertubos. Hoping to feel better for Bell’s (the first event I surfed as a full time tour surfer in 1992). Fingers crossed the World Surf League scores some good waves in Portugal and good luck to everyone.”
Portugal has never been kind to Kelly Slater. A couple of world titles were pulled from his grip after losing to local wildcards in awful low-tide conditions. At the time it seemed an undignified end for the greatest of all time, like an old-aged In-N-Out worker slinging burgers and fries in his eighth decade.
In a subsequent Instagram story, Slater admitted “I may never sue there again.”
Anyway, surf fans were delighted to see the injury hasn’t slowed down the champ who was filmed by his anti-woke crusader boy-pal Peter King digging a fjord on a broad Hawaiian canvas.
“Hip works,” quipped Parker Coffin to which Kelly Slater replied, “Hip hurts but not twisting much or doing airs and she goes a little. Still quite a bit of pain.”
(Can’t post on BeachGrit ’cause PK blocked us etc.)
Maybe ’cause of this or this, this, this, this or this.
Commented on Disqus? Log out, tap the Disqus button, and your old name and comments come back. The box is ours.
Your comments are still here. Every one of them.
Twelve years of BeachGrit comments came across from Disqus. Connect and we will show you how many are yours. We get your username, nothing else.
Connect Disqus to reveal.
Wouldn’t lose any sleep being blocked by a guy who uses Toto
It’s a cutback 🤷♂️
That was the most amazing, edgy rail carve of the winter.
PK and BG largely occupying the same lane — freely speaking up on topics that others have deemed taboo. Seems disingenuous to block good ol’ BG :../
Let it go Kelly. Like easing into a boiling hot bath..
Kel is going to retire at Bells. Its all there in his comment about “back to where I started my pro surfing career”.
totally, unless he gets knocked out early
That turn the Burleigh girl did yesterday has to be a contender? 2024 is for the girls!
It’s for the fucking girls!
It’s the Senior Citizen’s Turn Of The Season, Hawaiian Edition
Just landed back in Brisbane after a week in paradise.
Seriously, I saw local crew do that turn harder and with way better style ( wats with the hands Kelly, was ya swapping away fly’s,?)
Anyway if a non pro surfers surf better than a pro surfers.
You can guarantee the surf media will freak out and Go into protect our products captivity.
BC is isn’t any different
Come on brah. That was pretty sick.
He may never sue there again
The local sardines got him a couple of times with dodgy guts and it was reported he has sued restaurants in Portugal in the past.
Reality is at 52 he rips better than every single chick on ( and 95 % of the dudes) CT including the current world champ and Olympic gold medallist , yet they scream for equal pay 😑 , this what is wrong with proffesional surfing it’s not for real.
No, this is definitely not what’s wrong with pro surfing.
It’s the waves dummy. Surely watching Portugal vs what we just saw in Hawaii would make it obvious.
Ramjets never quite been the same since Women were allowed to vote.
Haha, woman are the EV antidote to the angry white man’s gas guzzler
edit:
clithipI said a few weeks ago that womens surfing is at 1988 levels. I actually think they have improved and probably at 1990 levels. Mind you male pros from 1990 on modern surfboards would rip way harder than they did then.
those bad bad hungry women
Hes56
Even more so then
haha – nice.
He’s 52
But he’s LGBT+ ever since he scavenged some cartilage from a female cadaver to replace his own?? Anyhow he definitely doesn’t rip better than 95% of the men. More like 5%.
Jordy anyway
Haha, I guess he has to live up to his androgynous name
He’s not doing airs !
astro rolls on floor convulsing with laughter… Good one, kell
If the word ego
Is replaced by the word hip
It makes so much sense
It’s always hip to skip Brazil and Portugal! Nothing lasts Forever! Including Hips!!
Farrrk how good is in n out burger!?
Their fries are always cold. Dammit, I wish they’d follow Mc’D’s lead and put some beef bone broth in the oil.
Mmmmm bone broth 🤤
Gotta eat them fresh otherwise its a no go.
It’s ok. It was a bit better before it got big and started expanding. Still good for fast food though.
If you can’t BBQ the best burger you’ve ever had at your own home, why BBQ.
Last partook 16 years ago. Is that pre or post expansion?
we’re now in scotland in a pub…feeding JP, free beers…next stop NZ where we’ll shearing sheep. Carnival Cruise/B&B
Grinning like a Cheshire Cat
don’t litter…
That is post-expansion. Mid nineties they started reaching outside southern California.
If that’s the turn of the winter, surfing is doomed.
At this point Kelly names his turns like a last born child. That turn is named “You’re Blocked”.
The Pelvis Summer
picked up his guitar and sings…
sings while the guitar (gently) weeps
wah wah (another GH song)
caught the legendary Albert Lee in Ventura on cam and replayed it last night after watching a partial YT of The Concert for George. AL was one of a dozen of the greatest guitarists also on stage.
https://scontent-sjc3-1.xx….