My buddy called me up Saturday night and asked me if I saw Ledbetter point during the day. "No," I say. He then tells me that as he was driving by he counted 21 SUP surfers in the break. "SUP surfers," I say, "or guys on SUP boards?" There is a BIG difference. An SUP surfer knows how to surf and knows the rules and the etiquette of surfing. As soon as you enter the surf zone on an SUP board you become a surfer. That means you need to play by the rules and you need to know what you are doing. These boards are big and dangerous and can put the hurting on a guy prone surfing or even a kid on his surfboard. I can't believe how this sport has grown the past few years and in order to gain respect we need to act like surfers and not kooks. It's kind of funny to watch 21 guys on SUP boards doing the bumper car routine at the point, but this is not the county fair and even as a die hard SUP surfer I am starting to avoid spots like this. SUP surfing is super fun so let's keep the sport clean and if you don't know the rules of surfing please ask a surfer friend how it works. Thanks. OUT.
FYI. Listen to the band "The Kooks ". They rock!
1 comment:
As the sport catches on and starts to grow, this "problem" will become more pressing. SUPing is for flat water paddlers who don't have a clue about surfing, and for surfers who want to surf their SUPs.
Surfing your SUP is not the same as surfing your shortboard or longboard. As we bring people into the sport, it's important that we inform them of the differences.
See ya on the 17th. Got my res at the Marina Beach. Lookin' to try out (and maybe surf) the performance SUPs ala Lopez, House, C4 and Blair.
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