Get with the times, fellas. You’re losing our interest.
Professional surfing’s a bit stale at the moment. It’s musty. It’s outdated and passé, like a grandmother’s home. And no matter how many times the grandkids come over and suggest that it’s time for a little renovation, Nana, fearing change, shuts ’em down with an iron fist. Soon enough, the kids are gonna get sick of coming over. This is more or less professional surfing of today.
My concern regarding the future of professional surfing lies not within the governing body itself, but in the utter disregard of innovation in the WSL’s judging criteria. It’s making World Tour competitors surf too safe and it’s shaping a mundane fashion in which aspiring Tour surfers forge their way to the elite level. This outdated barometer of what “true surfing” is hinders the progression of the sport. Above all, surf fans from all over are losing interest fast.
In order to gain a better understanding of where I’m coming from, let’s jump back to Bells last March. This, of course, is just one example among many.
Following his heat-winning wave in round four against Julian Wilson and Nat Young, Italo Ferreira pulled a maneuver that I absolutely loved (6: 27 marker). But the way it was accepted (or rather not accepted) boiled my blood. Most people would call it a shove-it, but it was a little more than that. Our skating brethrens would likely agree it was more of a backside big spin—a shove-it with a backside 180. But that’s really beside the point.
“Italo Ferreira just having a little fun,” said Martin Potter in response to Italo’s big spin. Joe Turpel continued, “This is just fun to watch as a finishing move because he’s having fun, but it didn’t really have any part of the 7.5 score.” I cringed at the following 19 uses of “fun” to write off Italo’s maneuver as something that obviously didn’t fit the WSL’s definition of surfing.
My immediate response to the commentators’ ridiculous words was, “Why the fuck not!?” Why is it that a simple tail flick at the end of a wave is rewarded, but a backside big spin is not? Look, I’m not asking for a maneuver like this to make a 5.7 an 8.5, but I think it should at least be considered in a wave total. The truth is, there’s so much more to be explored, in terms of maneuvers, if the WSL encouraged it. These maneuvers should no longer be considered as just “fun,” because the fact of the matter is that this motion, and others like it, is extremely difficult. Hell, the commentators even acknowledged it: “He’s one of the only guys who can do that maneuver on Tour,” said Joel. If that is true, Joel, and if commitment and degree of difficulty – not to mention innovative and progressive maneuvers – are the primary elements in calculating a wave total, shouldn’t this maneuver be considered in the score? You would think so, right? Turns out that it doesn’t. Not as long as there’s a bunch of dinosaurs sitting up in that judging booth.
With the rapid proliferation of wave pool technology being disseminated around the world, this topic will only become more and more relevant. Professional surfing needs more Gabriel Medinas and Italo Ferreiras. It needs more risk takers and more versatility. It simply makes for interesting surfing. Three to the beach ran its course over a decade ago and many people are over it now. At best, this rant will serve as a catalyst to begin healthy discussions regarding the future of profession surfing. At worst, the WSL will continue to judge the same old redundant maneuvers, and, in turn, influence groms everywhere to surf like their grandparents. Get with the times, fellas. You’re losing our interest.
