Ain’t That Swell plunges deep into the freezing conjecture and robotic posturings of Mick Fanning’s win at the Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach. He is undoubtedly a master of the competitive format but is he, as they say, “boring as bat shit?”
And what about how rattled Kelly Slater looked (and sounded) after his quarterfinal loss to John John Florence? Does the fire still burn strong in the alkaline intestinal tract of surfing’s number one raw food advocate?
The “Brazilian Storm” is preparing to rain air reverses on the world tour at the Billabong Pro Rio later this week. Can the current world number one, Gabz Medina, break the country’s world title winning hoodoo? And how did they manage to skip, like, a 15-year evolutionary stage in surfing anyway? Feels like only yesterday Neco Padaratz was lighting up the WCT doldrums with his steroidal power hacks. Now they’re way up in the skies. What gives?
“We are especially looking forward to the possibilities of what Surfing and StandUp Paddling can bring to our citizens in terms of good health and all around stoke and happiness. While our country might be better known for our warm culture and rich food, we have a variety of reef and beach breaks that make Surfing and StandUp Paddling possible to practice year round and to help develop world-class competitors.” That comes from Ali Elamine, the president of the Lebanese Surfing Association, on their recent admission to the International Surfing Association (ISA). We welcome our Lebanese brothers into the fold. Well, may they look forward to all around stoke, and we a steady stream of world-class surfers and SUP’ers from this formerly war-torn country.
Honorable mentions: The forlorn tale of Umina’s favorite Irishman, Glen “Micro” Hall, who makes his return to the Rio Pro as a wildcard. Child Surf Stars: How young is too young and why is Mick Fanning so off ’em? The XXL pre-teen qwerty nipple awards; the release of the epic Cloudbreak cinema-spectacular, Thundercloud; and news of the latest plague to hit Bali. First, rabies; second, greedy developers; and most recently, the ghastly horror of Russian and Scandinavian surf schools. What could be next for our favorite Hindu paradise?
Catch Episode 4 in its entirety here and follow Ain’t That Swell on Facebook.
