DOWN THE LINE Surf Talk Radio

November 18, 2012 — Surfing News : DANE REYNOLDS BIG MOVE REEF HAWAIIAN PRO – Scott Bass Host Surfer, Jeff Baldwin Host Surfer

SEGMENT 1: Segment Sponsor Quiksilver Waterman Collection is presenting next years’ Surfing Heritage Vintage Surf Auction presented by Quiksilver Waterman Collection which takes place May 11, 2013 in the brand new state-of-the-art building at the OC Fairgrounds called The HANGAR. Quiksilver Waterman Collection and their brand ambassadors on twitter Mark Healey @healeysurf, Shayne McIntyre @ShayneMcIntyre, Jamie Mitchell, Peter Mel @peter_mel, Mel Pu’u: Robby Naish

emails/news/notes:
Hi Bassy n Baldy,

Best wishes from Australia, love the show, I listen every week. my question is …… have you or Jeff had much exposure to the Von Sol boards and are they a fun replacement for a summer fish ?? Do they rip or is it just more of the same ?? Hope to hear back, sorry to disturb, please keep up the great work, best wishes to Jeff !!

PS It’s so refreshing to listen to a radio show by hosts who are really tuned into what we are as surfers and what we find interesting and important, it’s amazing how similar our thoughts are even though we are on the opposite side of the planet. It just goes to show that surfers are the same the world over – we all know that surfing is such a great lifestyle and your show really celebrates it, well done !!! Kind regards, Peter
____________________________

TOP 5 STORIES OF THE WEEK POWERED BY SURFERS VILLAGE:

#1 THE TURN
DANE REYNOLDS busts an acrobatic, mind bending turn, if you can call it that, during a rather ho hum heat at Haleiwa and immediately remings us all of what we are missing.
1) THE TURN: Biggest wave of the heat; head high wave. full speed, full rail, dual arm layback, fin bust, nose pick to half-rotate to whitewater chaos to recovery. Maybe that’s it. It wasn’t as clean as it could’ve (or should’ve) been? (Watch it above)

Will THE TURN, DR’s move at Haleiwa, hold a place in history like Tom Carroll’s The Snap at Pipeline? or no? email us: surftalksandiego AT gmail DOT com

2)The judging:
The wave was scored a 7.3; Dorian and Machado both would’ve given the wave a 10 or high 9. Do you trust their judgment? How can you not trust the judgement of Dorian and Machado? Machado was rightfully calling out the judges. Right or wrong, this is what color commentators need to do — be honest and forthcoming with their opinions. John McEnroe/Johnny Miller. This, as much as the Dane Reynolds turn – THE TURN, progresses the sport.

What if nobody in the commentating box had said anything? We, the audience, would be spewing.

What we were told during the webcast is that the judges can only see the replay in real time speed. They can watch the super slo-mo, but are not allowed to have super slo-mo sway their opinion/judement.

WTF? We’ll give you the evidence, but you are not allowed to use it. That seems a bit ass-backwards, no?

#2 REEF Hawaiian Pro

SLATER ADVANCE
SUNNY ADVANCES AND WINS CLASH OF LEGENDS
KOLOHE QUIETLY ALREADY IN THE ROUND OF 16
Nathan Hedge making a push to re-qualify
John John moves on

#3 I went surfing and saw a dinosaur
A group of surfers in Santa Cruz County, Calif. stumbled upon a surprise Thursday. Sticking out of a rocky outcrop that is usually covered by water, even at low tide, was a giant set of fossilized vertebrae.
One of the dumbfounded surfers snapped a photo of the six to eight feet of bones, which were sticking out from a rock formation at Pleasure Point, a world-renowned surfing destination (home to the surf legend Jack O’Neill) that is one of only four dedicated “World Surfing Reserves.”
The surfer, under the name Donkahones, posted his photo of the fossils to Reddit, the Internet message board, with the explanation that the group could see the bones because of an unusually low tide. The post was titled “So I went surfing and saw a dinosaur.”
Experts disagreed.
“It is not a dinosaur,” Gary Griggs, director of the Institute of Marine Sciences at the nearby University of California, Santa Cruz, told ABCnews.com. “The vertebrae are in what is called the Purisima formation, which is from the Pliocene, so they’re three to five million years old. Which is relatively young. This is from way after the dinosaurs.”
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/11/surfers-find-giant-fossilized-back-bones/

#4 Nat Young heard he officially made the ASP World Tour on Friday, joining the ranks to the top 34 surfers in the world. But Young, 21, wasn’t celebrating. And he won’t until an ASP official delivers the news to him directly. Young, ranked No. 20 in the world, has reason for skepticism. Last year he thought he had done everything necessary to claim a World Tour spot, only to see it yanked away.

SURFING HERITAGE VINTAGE SURF AUCTION
We are producing a premier cultural event. More than an auction, a place for the relevant, the swank, & the surfing intelligentsia to gather in a celebration of craftsmanship, art, music, and surfing lore. The Surfing Heritage Vintage Surf Auction has a ten-year history in Hawaii and is for the first time ever being produced on the mainland USA in gorgeous Orange County California.

The theme of the auction is “California Gold” and the Surfing Heritage Foundation is focusing on just that, boards and memorabilia with California flair from the ’20s through the ’70s. We’re anticipating 50 unique & rare vintage surfboards for the live auction and at least 50 items for the silent auction.

Event Info
• 100 Live & Silent Auction items, unique & rare vintage surfboards by Lopez, Curren, Noll, Rawson, Hynson, Cole, Lis, Schroff, Frye, Velzy, Kivlin, Stussy, Harbour, Quigg & many others.
• Art from the ilk of Thomas Campbell, Matt Beard, Damian Fulton, Art Brewer & others
• Acoustic jazz by Neon Stiletto Groove & others
• California Gold vehicles including VW Bus, Porsche, Ford Galaxy, Hot Rods, El Caminos others, tbd
• VIP area for QWC ambassadors, legend shapers, cultural icons, gorgeous athleticas, honored guests
• Roadshow appraisals, vintage marketplace, California Gold timeline, autograph signing, short films
• Expected attendance 800 – 1200
• May 11, 2013; Auction preview begins noon; VIP cocktail reception 3-5pm; Live auction 6-9pm
• Benefiting the Surfing Heritage Foundation a non-profit 501c organization
• OC Fairgrounds – three conjoined buildings / 35K+ Square Feet

The Surfing Heritage Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving, presenting and promoting surfing’s heritage for the appreciation and education of current and future generations; and to achieving our goal of surfing being more accurately understood, represented and enjoyed. Preservation. Presentation. Promotion.

July 15, 2012 Down The Line Surf Talk Radio with Bassy n Baldy on XTRA SPORTS 1360AM in San Diego; on iTunes podcast (Google it).

Tom Morey was once asked if he would give up surfing for a million dollars. He responded by asking something to the effect of “does that include hanging your hand out the car window at a freeway underpass?”.

Segment Sponsor Quiksilver Waterman Collection is presenting next years’ Surfing Heritage Vintage Surf Auction presented by Quiksilver Waterman Collection which takes place May 11, 2013 in the brand new state-of-the-art building at the OC Fairgrounds called The HANGAR. Quiksilver Waterman Collection and their brand ambassadors on twitter Mark Healey @healeysurf , Shayne McIntyre @ShayneMcIntyre, Jamie Mitchell, Peter Mel @peter_mel, Mel Pu’u: Robby Naish;

LIBERIA Surfing with Sean Brody -

What is the latest with surfing in and around Liberia?
ISA?
You are on your way to do some scholarship over there, correct?

SEGMENT 2: Segment Sponsor Quiksilver Waterman Collection is presenting next years’ Surfing Heritage Vintage Surf Auction presented by Quiksilver Waterman Collection which takes place May 11, 2013 in the brand new state-of-the-art building at the OC Fairgrounds called The HANGAR. Quiksilver Waterman Collection and their brand ambassadors on twitter Mark Healey @healeysurf , Shayne McIntyre @ShayneMcIntyre, Jamie Mitchell, Peter Mel @peter_mel, Mel Pu’u: Robby Naish;

BOYS TO MEN Mentoring Program w/ Joe Sigurdson

Good morning Joe, tell us about Boys to Men,
Who What When Where Why How
100 Wave Challenge
Are these kids that are already in gangs?
Is there anything more important to a society than Father/Mother family home life?

EMAIL – TWEETS – SHOUTS OUTS:

SEGMENT 3 SPONSORS THE BOARDROOM INTERNATIONAL SURFBOARD SHOW HONORING 4X ASP WORLD CHAMP MARK RICHARDS OCTOBER 6 & 7 DEL MAR FAIRGROUNDS LIVE SHAPING, LIVE LAMINATING, BOARD GIVEAWAYS, SURFBOARD DEMO, AUTOGRAPHS SIGNINGS, TOP SURFBOARD MANUFACTURERS, WETSUITS, LEASHES, BOARDBOAGS GREAT DEALS
Big Wave Roundtable

TOP 5 Storeis:
# 1) Jeffreys Bay — Brazilian surfer Adriano De Souza has won the ASP 6-Star Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay defeating French surfer Joan Duru in small and difficult conditions in the Final with polished and dynamic surfing.

It was an icy winter day that dawned for the remaining competitors in the Billabong Pro J-Bay today, but with contestable waves running down the point, contest director Luke Egan showed no hesitation in sending the remaining competitors straight out into the water. “We’re going to crown a winner today, weather permitting,” said Egan.

November 20, 2011 –  surfing, surfing news, surfing industry, surf – Live every sunday on XTRASPORTS 1360AM IN SAN DIEGO ; internet Xtrasports1360.com ; or iTunes podcast download keyword search “down the line surf”

GMAC’s World Record Proclamation w/ XXL Director Bill Sharp

GMAC’S wave could be 90 feet. It could be 100 feet. I hope it measures 99 feet. I don’t care. I’m not questioning the size. What I’m questioning is the process.
Which organization or authority validates such a claim? Is it the Guinness people? Or XXL? YouTube? Is it George Downing or George Will? Perhaps Jane Kachmer?
This week we talk with Bill Sharp, Director of Billabong’s XXL Global Big Waves Awards Director. There’s been much internet chatter about Garrett McNamara’s huge wave and self-proclaimed world record.

Here are some other “Worlds Biggest Wave” – there’s more than one! Who knew?

Top 5 Stories:
1) Aussie News article:  http://www.swellnet.com.au/news/2651-kelly-slater-almost-sunk-in-wave-pool-wrangle
2) Please support your favorite flag:  http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/patriotism-flagging-at-surf-contests/story-e6frg7mf-1226197716298
3) Hawaiian Happenings: Rumor floating on Twitter from Shea Lopez that ASP will do away with the mid-year reshuffle of pro surfers; Flat on the North  Shore so far…REEF HAWAIIAN PRO AT Haleiwa – no waves showing up at Haleiwa. They need west swell. Minor norths rolling in.
4) ASP drops Rip Curl Pro Search from 2012 ASP World Tour schedule
5)

ERMA EBERLY
We are raising money to pay for Tom Eberly’s wife’s cancer operation.
Erma Eberly Dangla is the mother of three daughters, Rebeca (23), Erin (17) and Tara (15), and is the force behind Tom Eberly’s Nicasurf International Surf Tours. La jefa. We are raising money to pay for Erma’s cancer operation to save her. Please Help us by donating anything you can spare through our paypal account – sean@sanjuansurf.com – all will help and will go straight to the cause. She needs to have an operation now and we are a little bit short, so please help!
Website     http://www.nicasurfinternational.com/

I never mention charities on the air unless I have given and I have given generously. I want you too as well, but only within your means.

Help Matt Warshaw get the Encyclopedia of Surfing on line by donating to the KickStarter Cause. Link below:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1391193483/encyclopedia-of-surfing?ref=live

Nov 3. 2011 – surf news, surf industry insight, surf talk radio

Kelly Slater: Oh sure, he looks happy, but… he's never been to WalMart!

Ok, Kelly Slater has clinched his unprecedented and inspiring 11th World Title. Plenty of people, surf blogs, and PR folks (err… surf mag editors) will discuss this. I’ll leave thatto them. Bottom line: The guy is a class act and makes us all look good.

While he’s spent the better part of his life becoming the surfer and man that he is, people don’t realize he’s missed out on a lot of fun and excitement over the past 20 years.!!

In the spirit and fun of David Letterman’s Top 10 list, here are the Top 11 life pleasures that Kelly Slater has never experienced, at least not in the last 20 years (we think…)!
Kelly Slater, he’s never:

11) Participated in a job interview.
10) He’s never mowed a lawn.
9) Never said “hello” to the WalMart greeter.
Never looked for used furniture on Craigslist.
7) Never had to change his HR health benefits during ‘open enrollment’.
6) Never had to explain WHY it is crucially important that he go surfing.
5) Never been on a dump run.
4) Never made mindless small talk at back-to-school night.
3) Never cleared out the rain gutters.
2) Never purchased a bar of surf wax.
1) Never scrounged for golf balls in the bushes.

You see, while it may seem like Kelly Slater has had the good life, he’s really missed out on a lot of cool stuff. Consider yourselves lucky.

JULY 13, 2011 Surf Industry News — Hearing lots of chatter…

Dane Reynolds. He admits it, he’s Lost Interest.

1) Kelly Slater setting up a Jeter-esque type 2nd half performance; missing JBAY a no-brainer due to huge Cloudbreak but… ALSO gives the guys on tour (Adriano de Souza, Mick Fanning, Taj Burrow, Parko) a false sense of security before KS10 pulls a Slater sweep at Quiksilver Pro NYCity and Hurley LOWERS PRO. KS probably wants to own Manhattan for the week, he’s surfing’s celebrity– after all. All this sets up a climactic showdown at PIPELINE.

2) What does four years of hideous economy mean. Downsizing and a serious look at ROI. WPS surfers as well have been chiming in that they’d like to go to G-Land for an event. Sorry guys, no ROI. Be happy with North American beachbreaks. The Dream Tour is now the Lean Tour. Most of us don’t have any emotional connection to any of you. The world Tour could be trimmed to 16 and fans would be happy.

3) An industry insider is telling me to look for changes in management at Billabong USA.

4) This may be old news to some… hearing that SWATCH was ready to blanket sponsor the ASP tour but they were shut out but the Surf Industry old boy giants on the ASP board. Too much ‘timeshare’ to lose. They have watches too.

5) Dane Reynolds sells more board shorts in North America than numbers 1- 10. Except perhaps Kelly Slater. And Dane has LOST INTEREST. Over-it-itis has become marketable.

6) PUMA, Converse, Nike, – Specialty retail is screwed. My kid saw Kolohe Andino, and suggested we buy some NIKEs. We went to Sports Authority so my kid could look like Kolohe. John John Florence is a way more interesting surfer.

7) Most surfers are embarrassed or simply don’t care to wear “surf clothes.” The individuality is gone. BTW: Saw Rip Curl POP segment at Sports Authority too. Specialty retail is screwed.

X ASP X cloudbreak X dane reynolds X jbay X Kelly slater X quiksilver pro X surf industry surfing industry news tavarua

This piece was originally published in The Australian on November 29, 2010. You can reach the author of the article here: pawlef@theaustralian.com.au ; Our take on Melekian’s OUTSIDE mag article

When Californian surf journalist Brad Melekian was commissioned to write an obituary of three-time world champion Andy Irons, who died this month, he was surprised by the number of people who were keen to discuss the previously unreported troubled side of Irons’ short but brilliant life.

“Every single person I talked to, even those who were unwilling to talk on the record, said there was more to it (than a mere obituary),” Melekian said. “I couldn’t ignore that.”

The eventual 4400-word story detailed two alarming drug and alcohol-related incidents: one when Irons almost died during a bender in Indonesia in 1999, and another when he became almost uncontrollably violent towards a friend in Fiji this year.

Irons’s volatility and self-destructiveness were not news to the “insular” world of pro surfing, Melekian wrote. “But they were kept under wraps by an unspoken but understood code of public silence.”

That code is a consequence of the surf-publishing business model. Surf journalists do not feel inclined to ask difficult questions because the sponsors of the stars they write about also provide most of the advertising revenue for their publications.

Melekian formerly edited Surfer magazine in California, but his investigation was commissioned and published by Outside, a general sports magazine.

“It’s not explicit, but it’s completely understood (in surf mags) that if you push too hard, there’s a fear that a company will pull its ads out,” Melekian told me.

Such stonewalling extends to the companies themselves. In the immediate aftermath of Irons’s death, his sponsor, Billabong, published a press release saying Irons had “reportedly been battling with dengue fever”.

This may or may not be true. Irons had indeed withdrawn from a surf contest in Puerto Rico through illness, and was on his way home when he died. But Melekian’s story reported that Irons had also been out partying with friends the night before he died. Elsewhere, it was reported that prescription-drug bottles were found in the room in which Irons died. A toxicology report is due next month.

Repeated attempts to discuss the issue with Billabong elicited this quote from a spokesman: “Andy was a true champion and, out of respect for his memory and the whole Irons family, we have no intention of participating in any speculation about him.”

Brodie Carr, the CEO of the Association of Surfing Professionals, which administers the sport, was at lunch in France when I called on Friday, and, despite two subsequent calls, didn’t call back.

Irons’s former manager, Blair Marlin, isn’t talking either. “I’m not in a place to comment on (Melekian’s story),” Marlin told me. “He wrote what he wanted to write. I’ve heard both sides of the story, of people who are upset by it and people who thought it was a good piece.”

Marlin is an active manager. I compiled a profile of Irons for a surfing magazine in 2008, when Irons was behaving especially erratic, and Marlin refused access to the star. He also insisted on vetting interviews with people close to Irons before they were published. Asked yesterday if the media had been overly constrained to publish the complexities of Irons’s life, Marlin said: “I don’t even care to discuss this right now. The Outside magazine piece came out before the toxicology report. Until it does, I can’t talk about it.”

Plenty of surf fans can, though. Melekian was “shocked” by the amount of positive feedback about the story from surfers and people in the industry.

“It was really well received,” he said. “People are feeling relieved that it finally came out.”

The narcotic tendencies of surfers is nothing new. The sport attracts athletes who are inclined to pursue extreme experiences, and those at the top are not always exceptions to this.

But the companies that traditionally run the sport are now mostly publicly listed, and there is more at stake than just the reputation of a few people in a fringe subculture.

Also, surfing is attracting investment from companies outside the traditional industry (Red Bull, Nike and Target have all become major sponsors), which may finally break the cozy relationship between the magazines and the industry.

“The sport is being infused with more money,” Melekian says. “That has to change everything. The athletes are being treated like real athletes, and that changes it from a small group . . . who are doing some oddball thing down the beach.”

As an anonymous contributor poignantly noted in an online forum attached to Melekian’s story: “I’ve partied with Andy before. We definitely weren’t close, but I’d been around him. Maybe I couldn’t have done anything for him on my own, but the surfing world as a whole and its party scene let one its brightest stars go. In a way, we’re all a little responsible.”

This piece was originally published in The Australian on November 29, 2010. You can reach the author of the article here: pawlef@theaustralian.com.au

(surf industry, surf, surf news, standup paddle, sup, surf media,)

Check out the latest interview with JS surfboards shaper Jason Stevenson.

We posted this Standup question on our FaceBook page and it got a lot of play so Baldy thought it’d be good to share it with you on our blog.

BTW: This is a photo Steve Sherman took of Baldy and I when he was in-studio for an interview.

Ripping on a Standup is like: Killing a spider with a bazooka, effective but lacking precision.

Rob Farrow: Just stop right there!!!!!

Mark Athanacio: surfing a canoe. its ok for bottom turns and stylish longboarding as long as there is no stabbing of the wave

Rob Farrow: Its like watching a guy with a walker try and do hurdles.

Scott Bass: Racing a John Deere tractor at the Indy 500.

Rob Farrow: backwards

Scott Bass: Taking a number at the DMV… you think you’re getting somewhere, but you’re not.

Scott Bass: BTW: I can have fun with this, because I was doing it before any of you.

Scott Bass: Using binoculars to look for your lost car keys.

Doug Somers: doing wheelies on a moped

Rob Farrow: It’s like riding a moped in general…fun as long as no one sees you on one…..

Joyce Sisson: sweeping the garage

Scott Bass: trimming your eyebrows with a chainsaw

Scott Bass: ‎…working on the Manassas Gap railroad, the rails never get buried and the turns are unfinished.

Scott Bass: ‎…being on the US Olympic Fencing Team, lots of stabbing and no medals.

Jon Peck: rollerblading.

Marco Gonzalez: Like humping a fat chick in your twenties… no matter how fun it is, you don’t want your friends to know about it, … and you certainly don’t want them to see you in action.

Bill Brown: Masturbating to National Geographic.

Geoffrey Buser: Like a cop at a donut shop taking all the fresh donuts

Mike Tuten: federal stimulous money getting to us; neither will ever happen

Bryan Ingraham: like shooting fish in a barrel with ruberbands! :}

Bruce Green: As subtle as a boner in sweatpants!

Scott Bass ‎…being at a fondue festival, tons of stabbing and it’s all cheesy.

SURFING INDUSTRY TRAVEL NEWS: surfing news, surf information, surfing industry news — FIJI’S CLOUDBREAK TURNS INTO CROWDBREAK

CROWDBREAK
Iconic Fijian Wave Open to the Public Starting Today

photo Servais

JULY 8, 2010 – The Fiji Times is reporting that the new decree, which was passed Fij, lawmakers June 30th, goes into effect starting today (Friday, July 9 Fiji time). Radio Fiji and New Zealand news sources are also picking up this story.

The decree takes away any and all powers formerly held or negotiated in surfing areas and overrides all title claims and possibilities of payments for the use of those areas. In other words Cloudbreak has been liberated.

According to the news report, Attorney General and Minister for Tourism Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said the Regulation of Surfing Areas Decree 2010 will assist in creating a marine industry that will create jobs, upskilling and economic growth. Sayed-Khaiyum said the decree “absolutely vests in the Director of Lands any interest in any surfing area in Fiji. Any existing licence or any other instrument of title issued to any person or body in relation to any surfing area is cancelled”.

“The decree gives access to and the use of any surfing area in Fiji by any person. Any person may now, whether individually or in a group, access and use any surfing area in Fiji for the purposes of surfing or any water sport, without obtaining any permit or approval from any person and without the payment of any monies or compensation to any person.”

So which Aussie will test the waters first?

The newspaper went on to report that Fijian Police will help enforce the new decree.

“Fiji’s police force says it is ready to enforce the provisions of a decree that provides unrestricted access to surfing and marine sports areas to tourists and locals alike.

Police spokeswoman Ema Mua said the force will have to quickly understand the decree and provide enforcement.

Under the Regulation of Surfing Areas Decree 2010 which comes into force tomorrow, it is illegal to create exclusive use of any surfing area.

It is also a crime punishable by a fine and/or imprisonment to obstruct or prevent anyone from accessing or using any surfing area for surfing or for any water sport.

Mua told FijiLive that the Police Tourism Unit will play a part in enforcing the decree while the Community Policing Unit will ensure that awareness is carried out about the decree.

Attorney General and Minister for Tourism Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, while announcing the decree yesterday, said that previously, a number of surfing areas in Fiji were exclusively licensed to a couple of hotel operators, which deprived other tourists and Fijians from accessing these surfing areas.

He said there had been numerous reports of tourists and Fijian surfers being physically and violently harassed and assaulted for surfing at these exclusive surfing areas.

http://www.fijilive.com/news/2010/07/08/26881.Fijilive

Massive Waves and Chaos at Mavericks Surf Contest:

This week we interview Drew Kampion who authored the World Surfing Reserves Manifesto (see below):

“If surfers won’t save the world, who will? Obama? The G20? The United Nations?

Is there some other global network of alert, persistent, environmentally-aware individuals who are similarly trained in the art of navigating variables, overcoming adversity, and appreciating the rarities of perfection? Who else will do the work? Who else will hold up the vision?

It’s pretty ironic. Surfing is all about getting away from the constraints of society – escaping the usual manmade rules, breaking free and committing to the rule of natural law – the physics of wave form and the glide.

Surfers are a nomadic sort of tribe, conversant with the wild, in touch with the natural world at a time when the natural world is increasingly remote from most people on the planet.

Surfers are like the canaries in the coal mine … reporting back from the shores and coastal edges, where so many of the changes and impacts of unsustainable growth and pollution and climate change are focused. Surfers are in a position to sense and experience the urgency, and to thereby stake a claim on the possible in the face of the so-called inevitable.

Since it’s a universe of waves – waves of all scales and materials – surfers are uniquely positioned to understand how they work and to know how to ride them … because the principles inherent in all waves are the same.

The World Surfing Reserves (WSR) movement is just another wave. Each WSR is a Trojan horse, conceived in cooperation and with appropriate enthusiasm, but harboring powerful, unseen, and unanticipated effects. The WSR that is fully embraced and actualized at the local, national, and global levels – where it becomes an asset not merely for surfers and beach-lovers, but for the bioregional community of which it is a part – will bring value and better quality of life to the whole.

In enshrining these surf spots the program will be enhancing and, in a sense, enshrining their surf-oriented communities, too – affirming what has great value in that place. A WSR is a celebration of place.

The bubble provided by the WSR designation should act like a semi-permeable membrane, enabling certain kinds of activities and sustainable developments while resisting the intrusion of others (like landfills, mining operations, trawlers, and the grosser monoliths of unchecked development). The simple existence of the WSR acts as a tactical wedge that inserts itself into every future discussion concerning the fate and destiny of the reserve area.

A WSR models a kind of environmental synergy, integrating the principles of preservation with sustainable use … with stewardship and cultural celebration. A WSR provides a nexus for rallying and focusing energy and assets on ensuring that a particular coastal area will be permanently vested with intrinsic importance – an importance that local surfers and others already understand but may not be able to communicate.

The WSR designation is this communication. This plaque, this installation, this monument that dedicates the WSR communicates a cohesive valuation forward through time – says that these people, representing a broad local, regional, national, and global community of like-minded individuals hereby value this place – right here – and declare the intention of holding this place sacred for as long as the waves break and the tides cycle. In other words, each small monument is a symbol for the greater monument that is each surf spot and its enshrined environment, dedicated forward for the common benefit and for the enjoyment and appreciation of present and future generations.

Each WSR is a microcosm – a meeting of land and sea selected for the unique and salutary nature of its waves and natural setting. The dedication of each WSR seeks the protection of this microcosm, this coastal zone of waves and habitat, from wanton destruction and exploitation through the positive force of appreciation and valuation. As a force of inception, it’s worth mentioning that the WSR enterprise is in keeping with the initial impulse of John Kelly, who created SAVE OUR SURF (the ancestor of all surf-related environmental organizations) in the early 1960s, and the result is over a hundred Hawaiian beaches and surf breaks saved that would have been lost but aren’t. That’s the power of an idea.

The Save The Waves crew picked up where John Kelly left off. Founded on work with International Surf Spot Protection and modeled on the vision of Brad Farmer and the National Surfing Reserve program in Australia, the concept of World Surfing Reserves draws inspiration from Patagonia’s Yvon Chouinard, who asked: “Why not have surf breaks – famous, great breaks like Jeffrey’s Bay, Rincon and Malibu – as [UNESCO] World Heritage Sites, so that the whole world sees their value and wants to protect them?”

Creating World Surfing Reserves may not in itself save the world, but it’s a step in that direction. A World Surfing Reserve is like a world park, but with more dynamic local interaction. A WSR is a sort of coastal appreciation zone, and it’s an opportunity zone … and a possibility zone, which happens to be on the coast, in a place where surf culture has taken root.

Undertaking the creation of a WSR – to enshrine a wave and its environs – is to set in motion a medium of communication for disparate parties that might not otherwise become engaged. And once communication begins, who knows where it will lead?

This enshrinement is a kind of protection, but it is not a sure one. Over time threats will come, one by one, to all of the world’s great surf spots, and over time, again and again, they will be compromised. And in the end, the enshrinements we make now and in future years may be the deciding factor that saves a beach or a surf spot or a park … or just a jewel of the natural world.

World Surfing Reserves is about surfers saving the world, one wave at a time, and while it may not guarantee that a beach or a wave will be saved, it does enshrine the global community’s demand that it must be.” – Drew Kampion, WSR Vision Council, January 2010

Surfing News. Surf Industry. Surfer Magazine 50th Anniversary Show with Jim Kempton; We talk Alana Blanchard; she is always in the surf news. This time in the surfing news segment of the show, the young surfer has won the Vans Hawaiian Pro. We discuss more goings on regarding the proposed contests at Swamis.

Email us: surftalksandiego@gmaildotcom

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CLICK HERE to keep the Crown Jewel of the Encinitas surf hamlet free of contests. ACCESS FOR EVERYONE ALL THE TIME.