"Of the events last week, that was the most disheartening sight.

Like African colonists, the WSL favoured one tribe over another setting up a cycle of disharmony, and though it wasn’t the Wozzle’s intention, they lobbed a big friggen spanner in the Lennox lineup. Group differences were brought to the fore."

It's hard to take at face value and in good faith any assertion that the WSL had no intention or didn't realise the extent of community opposition to the proposed comp, considering there was a precedent with the Rip Curl Search Proposal in 2008.

At that time Starkey was a surf administrator, CEO of Surfing QLD. He would have been very well aware of a huge swell of backlash to the event.

Neither innocence or ignorance are plausibly deniable answers to the Woz approach.

Which makes it even more unsavoury the way it was attempted to be decided behind closed doors, with even token community consultation clouded in deceit.

Anyhow from many perspectives here, the result: a community banding together was heartening, not disheartening.

And people accept there are differing opinions to their own.

What's the feeling been like in the lineup since the announcement? Have you shared it with surfers who were for the competition?

it's been good, and yes.
everyones been getting waves.

Timely read, as the 'social construct’ appeared to be a little broken at the my local yesterday. Admittedly, it was a sunny Sunday and pumping. But over 40 in the water on the peak and all hungry for waves after a week of wind. Some ugly behaviour and defiantly not the normal vide experienced by many mid-week regulars.

Stu appropo your likeable line-ups...

Thursday last was a big day for me and Lennox played its part. I saw my eldest son for the first time in 14 months and on the way back from the Ballina fishmongers I checked Lennox for old times' sake.

It was soft NE corduroy all the way but not huge and very likeable. I remembered my first go out there in '73 when it was a brisk 6-8ft and I thought I could do a Greenough and take it on with a mat (remember Surf-O-Planes?). After a 2 hour flogging which much amused my mate I felt strangely euphoric and satisfied. There were six of us out.

However what I really loved about Thursday was watching and listening to the 12 year-olds hooting, screaming, laughing and whingeing when they fell off. They were at least half of the lineup and brought joyous relief. It felt really good, just like my local after the winter school buses empty out. 

I returned on Saturday to watch my son surf after my deeply unsatisfying battle with Brunz. My lad is skilful and strong and tore into the 6ft sets from the now way bigger but slightly confused swell. But the only sounds I heard from the lineup were from two ignoramuses yelling for the sake of it, sounding like Cronulla rioters trying to drive out the visitors   My son wasn't bothered but lamented the disturbance of an otherwise lovely but busy session. For me, the magic had left without closing the door.

I loved surfing there, Burleigh and Greenie too, but the rewards are a memory now. It's not the crowds but the insufferable ignorance that drives me away. Everywhere is crowded, accept and adapt. Share the joy, not the aggro. A contest won't kill Lennox, though it's cut up pretty bad as it is.People who happen to live somewhere and claim entitlement are stricken by anger, greed and envy brought on by ignorance. The only ones who can legitimately claim some location ownership are blackfellas and in my experience, they are very happy to share - a great deal. Lennox won't be inundated, getting out and in without seeing your best stick munted is challenge enough. The greater challenge is to accept and share. I've never surfed a top break that was exhausted before I was.

"for the most part lineups work" for a chosen few and as long as you follow "our" rules. obey and "we" may permit you a wave.

Lineups are fascinating and I think it takes a deal of emotional intelligence to read them well, particularly those of which you are new.

My local lineups are interesting and varied and it depends on the conditions. For the most part the line up is very mellow.

On certain days there are quite a few women and up and coming girls that really make for a much more mellow and fun surf. Some days it’s the old boys and others it’s young rippers from the local boardriders.

Where I live the spots are all very sand dependent which acts as a kind of refresh/reset of a lineup when conditions change. All depends on where the bank is or where people choose to surf.

Change is the constant, it never gets boring.

The lineups down here have wild variation depending on the season. It's a busy place most of the time, unfortunately, and low numbers in the water are rare, especially when there's been hype around a swell. Most places have their regulars with their regular time-slots and the rotation works pretty well if it's not too busy. Sure there are a few pricks in the water who will burn people or snake, and there's always a couple who froth a bit and catch a few extras, but there's generally a fair bit of order.

The extra flies in the ointment for a smooth lineup come from two main quarters: the VALs and the 20-35yo blokes who can paddle well but are still in the very early intermediate journey. Few of these crew seem to have spent any serious time investing in understanding the progression and have little hesitation in paddling out at crowded and/or name breaks and proceeding to throw a spanner in the works by ignoring almost every morsel of surf etiquette, sometimes simultaneously. How you educate these people on how a lineup should function is beyond me, as there are just far too many of them now. It makes several places pretty dangerous and others a compete shitshow where the good spots have at least three muppets on every wave.

BTW Stu, I can't agree with the "up and riding has right of way". If this were the case, the loggers, mals and SUPs would be entitled to everything, which I note is often how some of them behave (Declaration: I ride them all too).

And Sol, without wanting to sound sexist, and trying hard not to be, I'm not sure the vibe is all that improved with women in the water. Perhaps there are different views on this, but I think a while back it may have been the case. My experience over the past couple of years is that there are lots more women venturing into the water now, especially on logs/longboards, and few of them are spreading good vibes when a set wave comes through - it's more often than not just the same old hassle. My wife has surfed around here for over 20 years and she agrees wholeheartedly.

I'd say the line up is just like society. Everyone knows how it should operate if it is to function at its best and yet there will always be two things: (1) a minority of c*nts who know they can break the rules and get away with ruining everyone else's time and (2) the feeble majority who know they should call the minority out on their BS but just don't have the spine to do so.

I don't see a minority of cuhts being the problem.

Like Tango, I see cluelessness and zero idea of surf etiquette being the far more pressing and dangerous problem.

I see the entitlement mostly on the shoulders of those who have no skills/knowledge and not even enough of a clue to realise they are clueless. Yet they still feel they are deserving of paddling out into super crowded lineups at A grade waves.

Once that clueless number gets too high then chaos and Darwinian struggles ensue.

I'd much rather a line-up with a couple of shouts then a lineup where it's 50/50 if the next set wave will land me in emergency because some clueless kook is either in the road throwing a board or dropping in.

I surf both types of lineups regularly.

Order, as far as I can tell after surfing all over the world, benefits almost everyone: see Spiggys son for exhibit A. He had a ball tearing up 6ft point surf.
Chaos, likewise makes everyone into a selfish cunt. See Superbank/Kirra on the last swell.

Hypothetical :

You are surfing a crowded wave and observe a bloke hassling flat out. Whilst waiting out the back you realise that he is in pole position and you are in second place. Despite feeling unease towards him you strike up with a pleasant little “ Getting any good ones ? “ and he responds in a deep German accent that it’s very crowded and hard to catch waves and that he wishes everyone would leave.

What do you do ?

I totally agree Stu! I think line-ups are a triumph of human organisation. I can't think of another self-regulated human endevour, where a limited resource is allocated among a group of selfish (in the kindest sense), mainly men, without word or explanation, in a changeable and relatively dangerous environment. Imagine a game of footy without a ref or a very strict set of rules? Everyone remembers when the line-up doesn't work but forgets all the times it does.

I’m a little with clif on this one, if I understand him. I suspect, as surfers, we can dolly this up a bit, thinking ‘oh, how spiritual I am, I’m in the water and dancing on water,, grown adults just doing it for the sheer sensual pleasure,’, yada yada yada.

Do we kid ourselves, a bit?

Here’s an alternate thesis. It is entirely Darwinian out there, survival of the fittest (which is quite a subtle theory which is often misunderstood)

While waves are plentiful, it’s all bonhomie, how good is that, no, after you, chipmunks bullshit. Really, you gave the other guy the wave because your having a rest after taking the previous 6 waves and didn’t see him seething while you did it.

But if waves (resources) are plentiful, then everyone relatively gets along. We can kid ourselves that this is some kind of spiritual awakening, but it ain’t, it’s just everyone getting their fill, and maybe you didn’t notice that some have much bigger appetites than others.

There is self regulation, no doubt. We are social animals, and your appetite is dependent on crowd numbers, wave numbers, general feelings before you hit the surf, how long the missus gave you before you have to pick up the kids etc. Another major factor is how much it will destroy the whole experience if you get in an altercation, physical or verbal. None at all, you might just act like a bastard and think everything is hunky dory. If it would destroy your experience, you will avoid it like the plague and accept less waves, or lesser waves.

In times of plenty, the lion sits quietly around the water hole with the lamb, the giraffe and the rhino. All is peachy.

But in times of drought, no swell for 6 weeks, crowds at record levels, warm water seeing every numpty out there, things unravel pretty quickly. It starts with the sneaky, the guy who fades right but goes left, just to make sure you don’t take off. The chatterer who strikes up a conversation and then paddles 3 metres past you and claims the next wave, the ‘oops, I didn’t notice that I was directly in front of you and thus made it impossible for you to take off without drilling a board up my arse’, the mate who gets in your way so his mate can get your wave. Seen ‘em all, done a few of them.

Then the sneaky makes way for the downright aggressive. The blatant drop in, the snarl as they paddle past you, the call for ‘locals only here mate’, and ‘why don’t you fuck off’, then the physical aggression.

Don’t kid yourself. This is no more self regulating then a queue at the lunch counter, and often much less.

Just a thought!

A recent example, well, from around September last year. A local but not well known spot, somewhere between Sydney and Old Bar. Really, only the locals look there. Gorgeous early Spring day and unusually not a drop of wind, apart from a hint of offshore, all day. Sunshine, 2-3’ and occasionally 4’. I’m third guy out, and the waves get better, and before too long there are 6-8 guys out. You’d think that’s ok. Everyone is cool, there are a few places to sit but one area is clearly the best of the beach break. Pretty much everyone on a short board.

Old guy paddles out, (60’s, but fit, all silver hair), he’s on a sleek 11’ or so ocean liner. He paddles past everyone and takes the best wave on every set. Often enough he gets it, surfs just past everyone and flicks off to make sure that he’s furthest out to get the next set wave, even though everyone else is getting 100 metre plus rides.

I have no doubt this guy thinks; 1- he’s the best surfer out there so deserves every wave, 2- he’s the local so deserves every wave, 3- I’ve seen him very rarely in 25 years surfing here, so I don’t think he’s any more local then anyone out there, but there is a bit of an entitled mal crew in these parts, just usually not at this wave.

I also have no doubt that this guy paddles in eventually thinking; 1- how much fun was that, 2- wasn’t it great the way everyone shared the waves, 3- isn’t this such a spiritual dippy-shit pursuit that makes us all feel wonderful, we are so self regulating.

Look, I had a great surf, it was a memorable day, got some great waves, but probably missed a dozen or more that this prick paddled past me, sat just outside where I was sitting and the took the best wave of the set.

I also have no doubt that this guy riding a f#*king ocean liner would have been pissed if someone came out and took all his waves by towing in on a jetski. But he had no inkling he was being a number one arsehole in a group where everyone else was playing by ‘self-regulated’ social norms.

There’s always a dick out there. :-). And they rationalise away their poor behaviour in the same way they do on land. Human beings are a hopelessly flawed species, I look forward to the new overlords.

and not one person out there called him on it?

Yeah, it turns into Calhouns behavioural sink from time to time (too many rats in a cage) but I'm always amazed how it does work. How people do manage to share that limited resource.

And I think Clif laying on the full blown Identity Politics mumbo-jumbo is close to total BS.

just based on my experience.

Who does it benefit?

it benefits those who put the time in at a particular spot, like almost any human endeavour.