Surfing Waves

I think Kelly Slater has probably done more to inspire older surfers to get back in the water than anyone alive. All the older surfers I know are usually rooting for him, but it seems like the judges on the pro circuit have had their fill of him. Anyway, one of the things I love about surfing is watching the competitions when the waves are good. If you follow Slater's heats on the WSL website, it's good viewing. I really enjoyed the Slater/Medina quarter final heat. Slater's short ride at 6:40 didn't look too fun though. I wish they would show the aftermath of those rides. I want to see how the pros get themselves out of those sketchy situations.

http://www.worldsurfleague.com/posts/24 ... als-heat-4

The wave Slater had from 8:20 - 8:45 was amazing....making something out of nothing, connecting when he had no business doing so. Skills!

Big H wrote:The wave Slater had from 8:20 - 8:45 was amazing....making something out of nothing, connecting when he had no business doing so. Skills!

Yeah, he's got an amazing style and thrives on competition. It's fun to watch.

Slater is an incredible surfer and on top of that he is the ultimate competitor. At one point he was so much better than everyone else .....well except for Andy Irons but now he is getting older and has lost his competitive spirit. The other surfers have caught up to him...maybe partly because he shows up late for heats and rides boards he has never ridden before giving the other surfers an edge. Supposedly this year he is going to be more competitive. He however surfers from numerous injuries that keep him from having a consistently high performance. Sooner or later he will retire. I would like to see him there longer but I get the feeling that if he doesn't finish the year in a competitive position for the world title he will retire. It's not like he needs the money. I would on the other hand hate to see him get dropped from the tour by points. Anyway while I love his surfing he has nothing to do with me surfing. I guess it's fortunate for those of us who like his surfing , there are hours and hours of videos of him surfing available for us to peruse

RinkyDink wrote:I think Kelly Slater has probably done more to inspire older surfers to get back in the water than anyone alive.

I'm a Kelly fan. It is amazing that he's been at the top level for soo long. He has faced generations of competitors. BUT to me, his story for us older generation or "coming back to surfing after a long absence", isn't as inspiring as OCCY's story ( Mark Occhilupo ).

Excerpt from the book "Occy" The Rise and Fall and Rise of Mark Occhilupo :
Mark Occhilupo looked set to sweep all before him with a radical, spontaneous, irresistible brand of surfing. Yet a spiralling descent into drug abuse and depression snuffed his flame out prematurely when he quit the pro tour at just twenty-two. Faltered comebacks, spectacular bursts of free-surfing and manic breakdowns followed, as the surfing world watched a freakish talent self-combust. After years spent immobile and overweight on the couch, in his so-called 'Elvis period', Occy eventually emerged from his cocoon, reborn and ready to tackle a whole new generation of surf stars. His celebrated comeback to win the world title in 1999, sixteen years after his career began, is a sporting fairytale without equal. Now for the first time, in his own words, Occy tells the complete, remarkable story of his spectacular rise, terrifying fall and miraculous rebirth. 'By going down so hard, by fully falling apart, he was able to give himself longevity. It's like the Buddhist teachings about birth and death - something has to die for new birth to happen, and that happens inside us too. Occy was the ultimate example of that.

I am much older than Kelly or Occy so they don't provide me with inspiration to keep surfing yet they are both inspirational in some way. For me it is all about my basic love for riding waves. It's been a part of me for my whole life. I may have quit for a while but the desire to do it remained. Even when I didn't surf I had an ocean kayak and I constantly seemed to subconsciously find excuses to ride waves with it (sometimes fairly huge waves) It's just a part of who I am.

waikikikichan wrote:

RinkyDink wrote:I think Kelly Slater has probably done more to inspire older surfers to get back in the water than anyone alive.

I'm a Kelly fan. It is amazing that he's been at the top level for soo long. He has faced generations of competitors. BUT to me, his story for us older generation or "coming back to surfing after a long absence", isn't as inspiring as OCCY's story ( Mark Occhilupo ).

You're right. Occy definitely picked up the pieces and put himself back together. I've had to recover from my own "Elvis period" and surfing has probably done more to guide me back to healthy living than anything else. It's funny though because it seems like a lot of surfers lose their way because of surfing whereas it's been the opposite for me. I just wish I had returned to surfing earlier. Oh well, there's always another set on the way.