It's ALL WRONG!!

[sinistapenguin]

Surfboards, at ARGOS!!!???

What the hell's going on!?

http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10001&langId=-1&catalogId=3801&productId=151574&clickfrom=name

(yes, I know it's a rubbish foam board but still!)

[surferdude_scarborough]

oh dear thats bad!! foamies today bics n nsps tomorrow!!

i cant wait til surfing goes out of "fashion"

[sinistapenguin]

Unfortunately surfing will never go out of fashion, because it is so unbelievably cool!

If you flick through most catalogues at the TV section, there will be pictures of people surfing on the screens! Why? Because it's cool!!

[Totterz]

ah my god...what is going on...

[libby]

Its like the whole wetsuits in topshop again (i went to have a look at those they were fleshin awful)....

I dunno i think it might go out of fashion eventually. The way it portrayed by the media is so different to the reality, or at least the reality of the first few years of surfing.

They fail to mention the soft top boards, the dragged through a hedge backwards post surf hair, the million gallons of salt water up your nose, and the trying to get out of your wetsuit in a freezing cold car park in front of a group of onlooking chavs that are some of the realities of surfing in the UK.

Surfing when your good is cool, surfing when your a kook (i.e for the first year at least) is definatley one of the least glamorous things you can do. I kinda hope that the craze will die down when people realise that, yes they will buy all the equipment, but 2 months down the line when the water gets colder and they are still spending more time off the board than on it the majority will give up and go back home to play their newly acquired surfing games on their play station 2's.......

Oh dear i do believe i ranted. Oooops

[babyboarder89]

only a year? three/four years later im still pants! but your so right, cant wait for winter, PLEASE let them get bored and go away. and the topshop wetsuits are VILE, seriously, theyre a clothing company, youd think theyd be a bit good looking at least, if useless, but no theyre horrible!

[libby]

Yeh I reckon i'll still be crap in 3/4 years, but i knew if i put that then someone would be like " i've only been surfing for 6 months and i rip you must just be really slow or something" and depress me

[drowningbitbybit]

I think it'll always be fashionable in summer

But autumn is just around the corner, and the first swell is already on the way, and 90% of the people who have tried it this summer will put their wetsuits and foam boards into the loft never to be seen again

The 10% who gave it a go and stuck to it and then will surf all winter - we should welcome them with open arms!







Oh yeah - and surfing for years and only recently graduated from 'sh$t' to 'merely adequate'

[NorthDevonBigBoy]

sorry i think its my fault!!!

when ever i get into something the mainstream produces crap 2 days later!

e.g.

mixing- i get pukka decks and then argos sell "homemix mixing set"

car modding- i think ill get some nice wheels for my car, guess what? littlewoods are selling alloy wheels on a 52 week interest free blah blah........

just got into surfing!!!!!
now bloody argos are selling boards???

whats the world comming to?

[sinistapenguin]

It's a sorry state of affairs!!

Unfortunately Fashion is not about truth and you get a lot of people who don't actually want to be surfers, but want to LOOK like good surfers! This keeps the sport LOOKING cool to the general public.

The problem is Libby, that you say about the cold, bad hair, car park changing etc. But you know as well as I am that if you try surfing, chances are you're going to love it, then you will not care about all these things.

Next thing you know you're on the internet laughing at argos cos they sell 'surfboards'. Because by that point, you're a surfer and annoyed by the people who want to LOOK like surfers and could never understand!

It's a vicious circle!! And surfing remains cool!

[drowningbitbybit]

The problem is Libby,

Thats a bit harsh

[WaveJunkie]

The "fad" part IS settling down.

I "came of age" back in the 1960's, on the West Coast, USA. Grew up on a lake where everyone water-skied in the summer, but we all pretended we were "sufers."

Long bleach blond hair, "baggies" (board shorts), Madras print shirts. Iron crosses, and other "Nazi gear." It was a sort of outlaw sub-culture.

We all wanted to own a "Woody" (vintage, wood sided station-wagon). Seems like Ford or Chevy even came out with a simulated wood side station wagon about that time -- for the suburbs.

Beach Boys music, Annette Funicello/Frankie Avalon surfing movies, "Giget Goes Hawaiian" . . . Annette & Frankie went on a Hawaiian tour and "Hawaiian Pizza" -- with pineapple was invented. Local Dairy Queen ("malt shop") featured pineapple milkshakes. I liked 'em!

Locally -- this was a suburb with $$$ -- everyone went to Hawaii for vacations. Very trendy to come back from Spring Vacation and have a Hawaiian shirt and a tan in high school.

Ahhhhhh, but wet-suit tech sucked. Suits were neoprene without any sort of fabric cover/liner. They shredded. Boards sucked, and not any good on the local surf (Oregon). We pretty much resigned ourselves to the idea that Oregon didn't have surf -- Just So. Cal. and Hawaii. Maybe Australia, but that was like on another planet.

But yes, more surfers these days. More geeks -- which are kooks I suppose.

But half the dudes on the beach are my age (57), grew up in the same "surf era" as me, and now are able to surf in Oregon -- with sharks, rain, 52 F water, and waves that are marginal most of the time. 8' waves are HUGE here.

And they still sell pukkah shell stuff at the beach. Jeez !!!

[libby]

ha ha ha Drowningbitbybit very good!!

I get what your saying Sinista and to a large extent i agree, as in SOME of the people who try surfing will, quite rightly love it. My argument is this - that the crazy argos and topshop jumping on the band wagon,and the insane numbers of people learning to surf (me included!!) will not all still be surfing or selling surf products this time next year. I believe, its just my opinion. I think surfing is one of those sports that looks much, MUCH harder than it is and that will put alot of people off in the long run. Not everyone by any means, but alot. Maybe we will get into a cycle of everyone loving surfing in the summer, then the sea more or less empties (bar the odd hardcore new person) each winter, maybe the british public are made of harder stuff than i give them (again me included) credit for. I guess we will just have to wait and see, i think with this one only time will tell......

[sinistapenguin]

Sorry Libby, just realised how patronising I sounded!!

I agree, it goes in cycles, but surfing is always cool to some extent!

[libby]

No no no not at all. You were just giving your opinion - s'all good

And i personally agree - of course i think it is cool, i'm addicted

[ams]

surfing is always in fashion in the summer but we know wen the winter time cums only the REAL surfers will b out ther in the ice cold temps in the porin rain wile the wannabes will b at home watchin blue crush!

[Totterz]

lol .... blue crush...i remember that movie went to watch it b4 i surfed...all my m8s sed oo im gnna surf now...but still im the only 1 out the lot of them


another pointless story by totterz