Tahiti Pro 2024: Day One
Tahiti Pro 2024: Day One
A 'nice' opening day - a fun warm-up to kick off Chopes 2024 - that dragged on four heats too long after another head-scratching call from the WSL. Those last four heats saw the elimination of current world No. 1 and the best female tube-rider on the planet, Caity Simmers, as the South Pacific went to sleep. Caity's opening heat score of 14.17, assuming rough parity in the scoring, would have won all but two men's heats and every other women's heat run for the opening rounds. Only two bombs ridden by local wildcard Vahine Fierro put Simmers into the Elimination Round.
The original justification for the cut was to enable a slimmed down roster for the second half of the season to fully capitalise on the peak of a swell cycle.
Which is great and makes complete sense. That's what we want to see; we want to see the best surfers in the best waves in the waiting period.
So, with the luxury of multiple swell pulses now incoming for Tahiti during the waiting period and offshore winds, why send them out in marginal conditions?
Just...why?
No help from the commentary team of course. Happy to hype the living bejesus out of the upcoming swells but not prepared to utter so much as a pipsqueak to wonder why we are sending out champions in super slow conditions with these conditions only days away.
Caity during the Opening Round (WSL/Sloane)
To add insult to injury, while Caity and Sawyer Lindblad sat around for most of the heat in an unco-operative ocean we had Kelly Slater and his marketing manager spruiking Firewire and Outerknown and whatever else came into Kelly's mind. The GOAT will never miss an opportunity to talk about the GOAT and given a typically long leash from chief sycophant Joe Turpel we were treated to long soliloquys about Kelly's globe-trotting schedule (New York, Fiji, Gold Coast, California - fine, but striking a slightly tone-deaf note in this age where climate change is cooking coral reefs), Babymoons and baby showers and potential names for Slater's yet to be born son (Gator Slater is favoured - true!). It took Kelly about ¾ of the heat before he finally cottoned on to the fact there was a live CT heat happening and it might be incumbent on him to mention that and stop flapping his gums about his own stuff.
To his credit, Kelly did eventually refer to the prevailing lack of surf in the heat in realistic terms: “what a bummer, I really wanted them to have a shootout here”.
Caity just failed to make a tuberide and Sawyer got through on a turn wave and a neat, open nugget.
Sawyer, again during her Opening Round heat (WSL/Sloane)
Kelly was cock-a-hoop over more than the upcoming birth of Gator. His heat win over Ramzi and defending champ Jack Robbo was the second highest score (14.50) of the day and classic Kelly. He alpha-maled Jack for the inside position to start the heat and cooly slotted his best ride of the heat as his opener. He backed it up with more good rides, put Jack out of rhythm and left Ramzi to catch the best wave of the heat.
He said it had “been a while” since his last heat win but, referencing tuberiding, “he could still go straight”.
He hosed down talk of the upcoming swells being too big to paddle as an example of marketing hype from someone “trying to sell ads on their surf forecasting website”. Kelly has a beef with Surfline?
Kelly (WSL/Dunbar)
To be fair to the call to hold the women's Elimination Round, the next heat between Tyler and Defay had far more waves. Both competitors showcased vastly improved backside tuberiding. Defay coming from very deep with a highly technical exit for an 8.83 that should have been the wave of the heat by at least a clear point. Tyler's answer back was solid but the 8.60 looked vastly over-inflated. The result looked to favour the wrong surfer.
Tyler was candid as ever in the presser stating those were the “first proper barrels I've had the entire time I've been here”.
A head knock had left her with fear but had learned to hold the fear but trust herself more than the fear.
Sports psychology can be iatrogenic. In other words, the treatment can bring on the disease. The pyschobabble can make the head noise worse, and we saw the first reactions to the over-analysis of natural emotions. Sometimes, as Carissa Moore said in the booth, it is "just a matter of sending it”.
John (WSL/Dunbar)
There was zero sign of head noise from John John Florence. Darwin Florence's Dad looked and claimed afterwards to be having tremendous fun. He roamed around the lineup, picked up waves at will and surfed with them an uncommon exuberance, familiar to all new dads. Yes, having a baby is incredible, but that feeling of having an unconstrained surf in the immediate post-baby landscape feels exhilarating.
Quick question: Darwin Florence, Zen Robinson, Gator Slater. Who is the most likely to beat Kelly's record of eleven world titles?
Highest heat total of the day belonged to Ryan Callinan, who starred in a recent Surfing Australia junket to Tahiti - presumably justified as a training exercise to develop skills? R-Cal had one incredible near-make on a bomb with a swinging bowl section. He came up slapping the water after the foamball sent his nose skywards. Minutes later he was able to correct the mistake on an almost identical set wave for a deep, clean make and the highest (male) wave score of the day - a 9.10.
Ryan (WSL/Dunbar)
Two female rides breached that barrier. Vahine Fierro's 9.33 double foamball wrangle and Sawyer Lindblads gutsy 9.43 for a wave she made by her toenails.
Round 1 of the men's and women's completed would have left the field intact with champion tuberiders able to redeem ordinary or out of rhythm performances in heaving tubes.
The men have that courtesy extended to them, the women did not.
That seems both incomprehensible and unforgiveable at the current juncture.
//STEVE SHEARER
Comments
Thanks FR, making sense to a some what confusing couple of heats. Still not sure how Taylor got the nod!
Great write up. Would love to know why they ran women’s elimination today. Was it pressure from advertisers/network partners to run heats in prime time? Was it planned so they could fit in Kelly/firewire advertising/interview? Would love to be a fly on the wall during those discussions because I don’t believe JMD would have wanted to put the girls out for elimination in that today.
Long weekend in U S great time zone.
Bums on coaches in houses bbq beers wsl....
Lol couches
"striking a slightly tone-deaf note in this age where climate change is cooking coral reefs"
Please name one (surfing) coral reef that has been negatively impacted by climate change. Just one?
crawl back under your rock
So zero then?
i learned a long time ago that you cant win an argument with a stupid person, so im not going to bother. it was my mistake to engage you in the first place.
You have made any arguments? You just told me crawl under a rock, then you inferred I was stupid.
Pottah, why categorise your comment with "(surfing) coral reef?
Because this is a surfing website. And I can't be bothered arguing about some fake religion and fake stats on something I don't care about. The answer is no coral reefs have changed in the past X years from anything other than seismic activity.
Yeah! I'm sick of fake religion and stats. Give us the TRUTH Pottah!
And here's today's climate change denying cultist. Toss
Don't be a hypocrite, stay on your shitty beach breaks and leave the reefs to the adults in the room
Hey Ben, can you get rid of this troll for us.
The greatest surfer of all time, was talking about every surfer's dreams (ie surfing good waves), and you idiots turned it into climate change crap. Now you want a business to cancel a paying customer because it has hurt your feelings. You are out of control, and kooks, and probably euros too.
I'm sure Swellnet can afford not to have individuals like you around... I doubt you'll be here in 24 hours... see ya.
Correct. I'll be surfing coral reef breaks tomorrow. I might even get on a plane or burn a lot of diesel to get to the best one.
No you won’t flog. You’ll be hate fcuking teddy in mummy’s basement waiting for tomorrow’s episode of “lefties losing it” on Skynews you absolute muppet
You have a point. Much as my head thinks no flight, no car, no heat, no motorbike, no meat...my heart says I still love all of these and at this point I don't want to give them up. They are too much fun and I hate being a hypocrite. I'm not the rootin tootin type which heads to the hills (in a ute) and shoots deer and butchers them for food, so I buy it from a butcher always feeling guilty. I remember John Safran said kiddy fiddlers were better than hypocrites, not so sure about that but I get the drift.
I think about this often. Change on an individual level can't/won't happen simultaneously to make a meaningful difference but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try and reduce your personal carbon output (buy second hand boards, don't travel to the good wave an hour away but surf whatever's walking distance). I hope that the social media algorithms will one day program the ignorant with science instead of hate for the 'other' for ad revenue. That coupled with effective government policies I believe would be enough to at least start heading in the right direction.
I still believe that ultimately it won't be enough because we haven't been sustainable as a society since the 1600s and even then you could make an argument against it (think about the first Aboriginals that basically instantly made the mega fauna of Australia go extinct).
Planes don't run on diesel mate.
Righto tosser, we’re all woke euro kooks and you’re a real hard man with all the answers. Got it. Skynews called, they miss you
I wasn’t going to dignify with a response but just to say it’s disappointing and boring to scroll through unnecessary trolling.
We’re all here through our love of surfing, healthy debate and to enjoy writing such as Steve’s.
Let’s leave it at that.
Nah let them stay, please. Village idiot commentary lights up my day...
so the Great Barrier Reef has for years been under pressure due to climate change? especially water temps around the globe.
In 2022, the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) reported the highest levels of coral cover across two-thirds of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) in over 36 years.
That report was Aug 22.
Prior to another bleaching event in summer 22/23 and a global reef bleaching event in 23/24.
https://www.aims.gov.au/information-centre/news-and-stories/global-coral...
https://www.csiro.au/en/news/all/news/2024/april/reef-snapshot-details-w....
That report said the coral recovers from bleaching, why won't it again?
They've data mined a ridiculously short period of time, and claimed that is the baseline.
Last year was el nino- nothing to do with religion
Hey Pottah, I'm an ecologist with postgrad in marine ecology. Whether you believe in human-made climate change or not, is your business. What I can suggest is that people often mistake small variations with long-term trends. What I mean is, the scientific evidence demonstrating the long term trend of the planet warming is irrefutable. However, we see small variations during this upward trend in temperature, such as huge rainfalls, or cold snaps or bleached coral regrowing. Right at this very moment it's freezing here in Perth and bucketing rain but that's just a single observation. a single data point. I can't extrapolate that into a global theory about climate change. Another analogy is, I'm not going to judge you over a single comment but if you make (or I make) a series of ill-informed comments, then that's a trend over time isn't it? Apart from coral bleaching over the long term, we are also seeing another indicator which is a suite of coral reef fish dropping out or starting to move southwards to cooler waters. CR fish have an extremely low tolerance to temperature change so these are a leading indicator that coral reefs are changing because of a warming ocean (and oceans are warming).
@Tjinuru "CR fish have an extremely low tolerance to temperature change".
Warm or cold changes?
Short term or long term?
@fitzroy-21 Can be both and is species dependent. As I understand it, some CR fish are adaptive so we are seeing the slow move down the coasts as waters warm, both east and wests of Australia (we'll stick to Australia for the moment). It would also be dependent on a species life history and home range. Some species will thrive, others will drop out.
I remember during the 80's reports of occasional coral trout caught at reefs off Sydney.
During the 90's-2000's I commercially fished for live coral trout and was amazed at the adaptability of the fish with temperature and salinity range. We ran a biocycle system on board with holdings of up to 1-1.2T of live trout. Temp of 20*C and salinity 1-1.2%. The CT would be pulled from 26-28*C water and put into the tank, and whilst they would "sulk" for a few hours resting on the bottom, would be fully recovered within 12hrs. Longest time frame in the tank of 5 weeks unaffected.
@fitzroy-21 thanks for that- its really interesting. It would have been interesting to tag and release them although I'd prefer to eat them haha!!
This Summer SST's were insane here (Lennox-Ballina) and the inter-tidal lagoon here was full of reef fish.
Not just juveys either.
That's interesting too, I'm a bit out of the recent research but I think its another observation that confirms the general scientific consensus and the thrust of this thread, which is climate change is real, that the oceans are warming and as a result things are changing, sometimes for the better but generally for the worse. Sounds like in your case you lucked out! BTW, to close out the loop on this thread, thanks for your write ups on the WSL comps. Bloody awesome analysis.
Here's some recent research specific to the GBR. Decreases in cloud cover, not water temps causing bleaching due to increased irradiance.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-33613-1
I'm just a simpleton looking at limestone cliffs, that used to be coral reefs, and I've put two and two together that humans can't change the climate, even if we wanted to.
Then you would know that coral reefs, with same corals as the GBR, have existed around Papua New Guinea, in waters FAR warmer than those off Mackay?
And you would now the REAL reason for coral bleaching is NOT warm water, but sediment runoff choking the reefs thans to GIGANTIC amounts of both legal and illegal land clearing in Qld? In fact, more trees and forests in QLD have been wiped out in the last few years than in the Amazon.
So, what amazes me, is that ecologists like yourself stay deathly silent on the real reason why the Great barrier reef is dying. Is it because you all rely on state government funding, and dont wish to bit the hand that feeds you?
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-12-01/fact-check-queensland-land-cleari...
but CliMatE ChaNge you heretic!
Pottah ur bringing the Truth hammer here has all the Chicken Littles rounding the wagons. How dare ... Fact is, we humans think we are able to control & influence the various machinations of the planets cycles with, in our country's case, 200 years of records of sophisticated records.
Fact is we as a species will be gone long before the Earth in it's revolutionary form is still circling the Sun for billions of years to come. Adaptation in natural selection equals survival. Always was, always will be. Kudos to you, the frontal lobotomy obviously didn't get you.
Echo chamber has no exit door these days, & virtue signalling keeps the climate change white rats running their wheels. Good luck with ur crusade however methinks leave them to their cult. How dare?! ... Bwahahah.
Where is the like button when you need one?
The cult will be the cult, I like it for entertainment value. I don't like Kelly Slater, yes ROBERT KELLY FUCKING SLATER, being hypocritically derided by the cult. Pull your heads in grasshoppers.
Appreciate ur acknowledgement. When ur copping this much flak means your on the target. Hater's always gonna hate The fix is in mate.
.
Tjinguru, Then you would know that coral reefs, with same corals as the GBR, have existed around Papua New Guinea, in waters FAR warmer than those off Mackay?
And you would now the REAL reason for coral bleaching is NOT warm water, but sediment runoff choking the reefs thans to GIGANTIC amounts of both legal and illegal land clearing in Qld? In fact, more trees and forests in QLD have been wiped out in the last few years than in the Amazon.
So, what amazes me, is that ecologists like yourself stay deathly silent on the real reason why the Great barrier reef is dying. Is it because you all rely on state government funding, and dont wish to bit the hand that feeds you?
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-12-01/fact-check-queensland-land-cleari...
@sheepdog 100% agree about sediment and chemical runoff due to land clearing. Its just got worse and worse. Yep 100% agree there is variation in water temp the closer you get to the equator. Warming water is yet another indicator of our failure to halt the damage to our environment. As I understand it approx, 50% of earth's habitable land surface (excluding deserts etc) is now dedicated to agriculture much of this for foodstock to feed beef. Its crazy. Nope, don't receive any funding from the Qld government or Aust government. I'm just a punter mate (an old punter now!). Just worked hard and put myself through Uni. Started off as a chippie!
Come on SN team how many more years do we have to suffer these fools? High road defeatism; just delete the shit.
and take all books out of the library that every one doesnt like hahahaha... how do i put up a chinese emoji of a flag up. anyone who responded took the bait ffs its a forum been open slather for the last 25 years.. this website over took seabreeze forum for amount of trolls and armchair critics (like myself "armchair critic") over 10 years ago. the amount of dribble ect is the reason everyone scrolls down.
fyi sprout not trying to upset you just saying
https://simonmustoe.blog/three-powerful-ways-wildlife-will-save-our-food...
this is such an important and interesting topic in regards to the carbon cycle and need to protect wildlife for the sustainability of our planet and civilization. I've never seen this point of view brought forward in climate talks.
https://briantissot.com/2014/04/30/deep-impact-why-surfers-should-care-a...
Asu ain’t in great shape
Agree mate!
Just got back from that area.
Shadow of its former self.
20 years since the lift.
May take another 20/30 years to recoup,Coral that is.
Wave ? Well every dog has its day, but I didn’t see any.
Surf well .
Cheers Komodo
Was definitely a bit of a stretch to have a crack at Slater for travelling, but the great barrier reef is plainly dying, and yes people surf it
I think the point was missed here.
WSL making a huge noise about being environmentally/reef friendly, and the whole Outerknown marketing is about being green.
Just struck a bit of a tone deaf note from Kelly to brag so much about the jet setting lifestyle.
It's like do as I say, not as I do.
If we all did as Kelly did, the planet would be cooked in about 15 minutes flat.
I'm happy for Pottah to throw his 2c in though.
Well said FR and I agree.
Didn't miss the point, it just seems like there's always a jab at KS no matter what he does.
Sure he's pretty insufferable sometimes, but he's also done some legendary stuff that has made a lot of people stoked.
Problem is, his opinion isn't worth 2c. There hasn't been a single peer reviewed paper published in the last decade denying the climate change catastrophe. If anyone has any evidence against it why not publish? Why do we have to put up with this dribble? That's my 2c
Actually Moist there's a shit ton, you've just never read any of them. The only crisis is a pollutant crisis.
I don't think it's about surfing reefs, Pottah. It's coral reefs generally -
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-54533971
The Great Barrier Reef for one.
Gator slater has a nice ring to it............do the competitors have a say with the conditions ?
Only the WSL can ruin their most perfect forecast they have had in years. That was some head scratching stuff today.
yes burls, just an epic fail from WSL, someone needs to stand up to this shit... I reckon GOAT may be a good candidate if ever the opportunity arises (that's if he can stop his own self promotions!)
Lol, the same wokeist that wants me cancelled for calling bullshit on chasing swells is destroying surfing, can't understand why the WSL ran the women's elimination heats today with a big swell forecast. mmm, no prizes for guessing why they did that.
You're an idiot. If you have been paying attention, it's clear there are women willing to charge in the heavy stuff...... and more than that, there are people who really want to see it! Women's surfing this year has been the most exciting it's perhaps ever been for that reason. It's not like the women weren't riding heavy waves today either. Vahine and Sawyer's waves were bombs, ridden as well as any of the men would have ridden them.
And if you can use your brain for half a second, they are going to have to run the women's quarters, semis and finals in heaving conditions. There's no wriggling their way out of it. So the idea they held the elimination today to somehow protect them from having to surf in the big stuff doesn't make much sense. It's far more likely they did it to guard against having a forecast change and having to run the finals in sub-par conditions.
Take your misogynism elsewhere you toxic fuckhead.
ok., thanks for the feedback, maybe you need to be reminded of a few FACTS:
- Most of them aren't good or brave enough when it's 8-10 foot. Toledo is as talented as any surfer ever, and he's said no, plenty other men pros have gone, but weren't actually good enough. Not many on this chat would even paddle out.
- It's dangerous when it's that big, like, you could die dangerous.
- Facts matter, and the facts are the WSL eliminated 4 women today in sub par conditions (given forecast) - their actions suggest they agree with me.
Firstly, sorry for the name calling. Snide comments get me worked up.
I guess we'll see how it goes this week. Hopefully, just like the pipe comp earlier this year, we'll be commenting on another monumental leap forward for women's surfing in a few days. There are a lot of positives in the direction they're heading. Can't expect them to just suddenly be good in big critical waves. But the signs point in the right direction at the moment and that's all you can ask. It was only a few years ago now that the WSL changed the tour to align the men and women a bit more closely and the naysayers all said the women will never be able to match it at big pipe etc. With every year that goes by they're being proven more and more wrong. There's a new breed coming through. Maybe get behind them instead of undermining them on on internet message boards.
Now you may be right that the WSL may not want to send them out in life threatening conditions. But it's not just the women they're hesitant with these days if you cast your mind back to Pipe earlier in the year.
Some of them will catch some good waves, but the ones that can't backhand tuberide (and it's obvious who they are) won't go ok, and might get hurt.
They are lucky the period is relatively short.
There is also potential for this new swell to have some unfavorable conditions. There's looks to be only 1.5 to 2 days (max) left in the forecast of decent surf to run the rest of the event. They needed Saturday to finish by the 31st.
I vote Darwin Florence for the win... Survival of the flippest
That heading photo of Tyler is epic.
I’m not ashamed to say I’ve never been in a backhand tube that big (round).
Me neither that is only pro/semi pro level when you are on the spot and it is powering down the reef I say no, it scares the shit out of me and rightly so.
In her ER, on a non-make, Caity got bucked by the shocky before being lipped on the exit. You could see half of the bottom of her board as her nose pointed up and she still re-set the rail. Was sick af. Total bummer to lose, and a shit wsl call. no disrespect to her competitor, but it felt like sawyer was close her to her limit.
The water view on this was amazing. She completely disappeared. Just unlucky to get lipped. Would have been one of the rides of the day if she made it, despite it being a smaller wave.
She might of made it without the helmet seems that lip just smacked the top of it and pulled her forward. Great attempt though and us the fans loose out on her Not getting to charge the bigger stuff.
Too true Swany,
That was the highlight of the day for me....especially the first expression she offered before she got a breath. no Chick changing harder than the freakshow thats Caiity Simmers. Respect.
Yep what a wave it was to make it that far.
The real world surfers league will miss Caity this comp;
while Sawyer was reeealy suprised to make it out of the earlier bigger barrel
Tyler went up & over the foam ball in the barrel, in control ala K.S. Johanne was also great!!
agreed, I was screaming at the TV, asking why that silly JMD wouldn't call it once the conditions deteriorated. There's always some subterfuge at play with the Wosle. "Chief sycophant couldn't be more apt for Turpel, he's such a douchey fanboy, its so cringe.
You watch, in 10 years the newest groms will all be called Trevor, Michael Sarah and Joan.
Wonder if the Florence family might pay a trip to our most northern capital?
Best call
Here's the latest coral bleaching alert from NOAA: https://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/product/5km/index_5km_baa-max-7d.php
and here's the year to date maximum SST anomaly: https://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/product/5km/index_5km_ssta-max-ytd.php
See if your favourite reef break is under yellow or red. The oceans have absorbed most of the heat we have generated, and a lot of the CO2 as well.
Increasingly large areas of reef tract have experienced 'mass bleaching' since 1998, with unprecedented coral death globally (in the scientific record, dating a century or so). That death in turn promotes bioeroders that literally 'eat' reef and make the substrate that waves break on more susceptible to other forms of erosion (eg. by waves). This is happening, but takes time. Most reef scientists expect the situation to continue to deteriorate, as corals and everything in the ecosystem that relies on them (surfers?) race to adapt. Those who were fortunate to surf on tropical reefs in decades prior to 1998 may have a very different perspective on their present state.
Don’t confuse Pottah the MAGA f wit with facts mate, his pointy head will explode
name 1 wave that has changed due to "climate change"? You can't
That's not really the point, dickhead.
it is literally the point. No impact from change = no change
So we only need to worry about surfing reefs? Is damage to other reefs fine?
Go to the Maldives mate! Was there 13 years ago and coral was dead as a doornail - white as your granny's undies.
The Maldives still have reefs?
Bleaching is not due to climate change, it's due to localized / global sea temps, which are also not due to climate change, although they do change the weather.
Hi. I have attended lectures by some of Australia's leading marine scientists over the last two years. They all say the same things but tell people to not spread the word but: "the reefs are as good as ever". "Coral bleaching" is merely a temporary event.
Who were they Barb?
Not calling BS on you- I accept there are a range of views but interested in following up.
It's a BS comment, FR. I used to work (off and on) for a leading marine scientist and this is not the status quo. I'm guessing the "experts" are Jonesy, Pauline and Rupert's winged monkeys...
Certainly not B.S. I live in the heart of Marine Biologist territory.
Simple, name those that are claiming this and we can look at their findings published on Scholar...
I'll wager all we're going to get is crickets chirping...
yeah we're all still waiting!
Great Barrier Reef marine biologist Peter Ridd gives a good breakdown in this 5 min video. Believe it or not there is more coral than ever on the GBR.
?si=eI2h6BfoGDpfvsS6What happened to this guy was wrong. Good on him for going for the jugular.
With all respect Terminal, what exactly do you mean by your reply? You previously asked for evidence and apparently heard “crickets”. I gave a decent link to verifiable evidence showing that the GBR has more coral than ever. Do you understand and agree with what Peter Ridd is detailing in the video or do you refute his analysis?
Hey Algae,
Yeah saw his vid, and yes he presents an argument. Understood everything therein, am I qualified to critique his arguments? No. His arguments contradict the status quo, who is closer to what's actually happening on the reef will remain to be seen.
What I take exception to about this guy's situation was his dismissal for being critical of the science, that is what scientists are supposed to be. So basically he got fired for doing his job. Irrespective of whether I agree or disagree with his arguments, which I'm not qualified to do (my field is terrestrial systems), he got fired for doing his job. Peace
.
.
if you dive down deep enough, there will be little change observed.
eg Bougainville Reef
https://maps.app.goo.gl/U3vHjadpsy3NnRF59
Old news, QLD barrier reefs were recovering well, up until this year. It's a horror show out there now
Einstein. Like the surf, its temporary. It goes in cycles. Why would a plastic fixed materialistic person like yourself imagining a concrete fiberglass world be concerned with what is natural.
why would "leading marine scientists" - scientists generally for that matter - ask their audience not to spread the word (regarding their research)? Bit odd, that's not how science normally works. Yes, names of scientists please..
As usual BarbB has nothing but Skynews “facts”. Hes been asked a bunch of times now to name names and can’t. Yawn
haha,
haha,
Darwin with the smarts, Zen with the flow, Gator with the... well the legendary old man (despite his slightly narcissistic self-marketing at times)... Tough call. What if they don't surf? Could have a next gen next level philosopher, grounbreaking spiritual guru, and a world champ golfer!???...
Dearest Pottah, fuck off with the stoopid cimate comments mate, not welcome here I thinks....
JMD...FMD, WTF?
Spewin about Caity, was looking forward to seeing her surf the better stuff.
Super disappointed to see Caity out. Doesn’t seem right does it?
Hate to see anyone coast through.
Kooks? Beachbreaks? Euros?
Geez you are an intelligent one aren't ya Pottah? Like a bit of racism and judgement calling? We could do with more legends like yourself around.
Oh wait, there's already enough dumb c@#ts in the world making it shitty....
Psychosocial Di...
Do most people on this chat surf more beach breaks more than coral reef breaks - yes
Tyler gets a 4 foot barrel (and doesn't surf it well - she went way too high, and should have stalled more) and people are saying it's better than they have ever had - kooks
Euros is the new colloquial term for kook. Visit any coral reef break and you'll see why.
Can't be racist toward white people - fact.
“ Tyler gets a 4 foot barrel (and doesn't surf it well - she went way too high, and should have stalled more) and people are saying it's better than they have ever had - kooks”
Hey I said that! :-)
You in Victoria? Happy to chat about it further
Nah, I'm in Indo, emitting a GOAT amount of CO2 and chasing the best May / early June swells in years.
Need to cash in before the reefs all disappear.
Its not that they are all going to disappear (nobody on here or probably elsewhere has said that, so please at least try to not misrepresent others if you are going to sprout off ), it's that shallower reefs - coral and otherwise - ARE being impacted by warming oceans, as are multiple ecological systems across the planet. Flora and fauna. But you don't seem to understand that. Or care. It's all about you, we get it.
PS while Im at it how dare you criticise other surfers for not shredding coral reefs to your obviously exceptionally high standard. We surf for enjoyment, from learners thru to pro, from little beachies to whatever. Personally I love seeing the stoke new surfers and especially girls get from surfing. How dare you call them kooks. Basically, fuck off idiot.
No one has any evidence of any surfing reefs changing, most are very shallow.
You seem so caught up in your climate change religion and propaganda you have missed the main point. You are all hypocrites, you want to watch people fly all around the world to surf in WSL contests (and probably go on a yearly ments trip yourself), then claim it is wrong for people to do that all the time, and judge them for doing so.
BTW, you sound like a kook.
The (US) National Ocean Service (NOAA) provides data, tools, and services that protect our ecosystems and enhance climate and economic resilience.
"The varied effects of climate change are changing the ocean; these changes dramatically affect coral reef ecosystems. " pictures and simple graphs for 'ill it rit' be low.
https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/coralreef-climate.html
Detail..... US budget est 2025 will allow NOAA to: maintain its next generation satellite program and collect the observations and data that enable improved forecasts, economic growth, and environmental stewardship; support the deployment of renewable wind energy and advance climate resilience across the Nation through expansion of usable products and services; and protect and restore our natural resources for the benefit and enjoyment of future generations.
https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/NOAA_FY25_Congressional...
Cost $6.5B to tell the '3 wise monkeys', that the planet is still cooking & apply known remedies; an expensive uphill battle of babel proportions.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/babel
Govt agencies have to use science & facts to combat ignorace, whom are often fed fodder by media, paid by greedy a'holes, Inc. Pty Ltd.
eg Microsoft advise that "Nation-states engage in US-focused influence operations ahead of US presidential election" April 17, 2024
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesfarrell/2024/04/17/russias-2024-electi...
"The dominant conversation across global elections so far this year centers on malicious use of generative AI for propaganda and disinformation. We have created a process for assessing foreign manipulator use of AI to influence audiences. All three of the authoritarian actors reviewed in this report—Russia, Iran, and China—leveraged some form of generative AI to create content since last summer."
https://blogs.microsoft.com/wp-content/uploads/prod/sites/5/2024/04/MTAC...
In 1600 Giordano Bruno suggested that the that the universe was infinite and that other stars might have their own planets with life. The government, following their "expert" advice, burned him at the stake for heretic.
He was a catholic, would then vocally agreed with scientic observations & theories....of his time in 1543
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copernican_heliocentrism
then killed by Roman catholics.... for religious herecy in 1600
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giordano_Bruno
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heresy
ok, here's a few from government scientists recently:
- stay 6 feet apart, because science, and the vaccines will stop the spread, and are 100% safe.
- Nuclear is 6 times more expensive, umm, ahh, we actually meant 2 times, and yep, we assumed nuclear last half as long as it actually lasts.
- We don't think mercury used to work, so we changed the historical data.
- When we said no snow in 10 years, we meant no snow in 10 years from 10 years after you forgot we said that.
- The world is a risk of an ice age (I'm old enough to remember this one)
- sea ice levels are decreasing
- climate change is causing turbulence (not pilots flying into thunderstorms they didn't see)
- etc
Lol yep heading into kookdom after 45+ years of surfing, mainly focused on quiet beachies or desert reefs and loving it. Kooks are OK.
All hail the 4 decade deep kooks
Vs the drunk guy bashing the keyboard in Indo
.........
The crowds never will.
Huh they held elimination heats today? Why? I didn't even watch it, saving myself for when the swell arrives.
Steve you’re sounding a lot like Smellys poor cousin. If you’re in fact trying to report on the day’s results do just that and forget the hyperbole.
It’s more than my simple mind can digest.
It’s why I like these reports. The varying musings of the surfers, WSL at large, conditions. I wouldn’t read it if it were purely an essay about results.
Me too. love to hear Steve’s thoughts. Otherwise why not just look up the results on the wsl page
+1, absofknlutely nate & solitude..
There have been days when Steve’s write up is better than the surfing!
Agree with the others - Steve's perspective is what makes it interesting. You can get the results easily enough on the website
Steve sounds the depths of reason, in a choppy sea of whitewash navigated by professional surfers ... weighed down or lifted high by WSL 'Remora'
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remora
or is it
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbiosis#Amensalism
Thanks Steve & hard core surfers alike
Darwin always has the final say FR.
Not all stars offspring hit the big time, despite gushing expectations!
Right on Freeride76.
Kooks? Beachbreaks? Euros?
Geez you are an intelligent one aren't ya Pottah? Like a bit of racism and judgement calling? We could do with more legends like yourself around.
Oh wait, there's already enough toolbars in the world making it shitty....
Just watched some replays (didn't watch the eliminations live) and then read this. It couldn't be more obvious Johanne vs Tyler. Johanne's tube was deep and technical and Tyler merely a cover up. To me, the difference was at least 1.5 points; even 2.0 points. Joanne 9.0. Tyler 7.0 to 7.5 (to be generous due to the size of the wave). Really bad judging.
I hope folks have seen this video. If not, it must be watched. It doesn't get any better than this. The final wave of Caity Simmers is totally out of this world. Soli also scores the insane wave of his life. Leaves Snapper and occasional Kirra for dead.
?si=zOWxeYq3r498x9aMI hadn't seen it, thanks for posting BarbB.
Can you imagine surfing that with just 3 others? Caity and Soli's barrel riding was mesmerising.
Nice to know there's still waves out there to be found.
I'm going next swell. Can I post a photo on here for all the haters afterward?
Only a beach break, no challenge for a self proclaimed reef legend such as yourself
A wave that breaks along the coast is called a "point break", not "beach break". If you want to be specific, you could call it a "sand bottomed point break".
I'll let you know what it's like.
Thanks Pottah, but don't bother updating me.
I'm sure that like all your "opinions" it'll just be you regurgitating something you barely understand in the hope that it in someway adds weight to your hope that what you like is right.
Keep up the good work Legend
yeah thanks Barb hadnt seen it either.
Wow Caity !
ALL reefs, whether surfed on or not, have already been affected by climate change - via sea level rise. So far less than a foot in the old scale, but gaining pace now, with likely conservative estimates of more than a metre by 2100. The level and rate varies across regions, but the trend is indisputable.
https://ocean.si.edu/through-time/ancient-seas/sea-level-rise
Corals cannot keep pace with that rate of rise, even if they were not also being killed en masse by heat waves, and with ocean acidification and deoxygenation also increasing.
Some reefs, eg. Lagundri on Nias where I surfed in 1978, have been more than compensated by earthquake-driven land rise, others have not. But is is not correct to say that no reef has been affected. Indeed the opposite is true, and will be so increasingly for the foreseeable.
None have changed due to the climate change religion.
- Seismic activity has changed a lot of waves.
- Human construction has changed a lot of waves, some better, seems to be more are worse
- None have changed due to climate change.
Getting back to the original point - stop calling out Slater for ruining waves, when he hasn't done that. He's only lived the Ife we all wanted to -or should have wanted to.
Jeez pothead you just don't get it! Climate change is happening.. ask any farmer, if you're not keen on the science. Or maybe your think they're all dumb too. Not saying the world's about to implode but it IS happening, and it IS impacting natural systems around the world. And yes we all know the climate has always changed, and always will as part of natural cycles, BUT humans are currently causing a significant accelerating effect. And obviously jet travel is a contributor, not that you care. Surely you understand all that don't you?
I 100% believe in science, I don't believe in corrupt pseudo science, or doomsday predictions that sky is falling in.
Science isn't a belief system.
after covid their entire world should question government backed science.
the penguins have to move inland to breed as the ice sheets melts.... will we ....at 60cm or higher ...?
satellite measurements & scientific detail below
I wish the world's big billion$ businesses could provide alternative scientific evident to the contrary...
oh wait ......they have bonuses and shareholders to consider this year & the next. Call PR Ltd for a meeting..
Slater lived the life we all wanted to? Since when do you speak for me? I'd never accept tainted cash from the middle east.
But hey, you do you, bruh
It's scientific consensus that he has lived a very good life. No more arguments please.
WHO THE FUCK WOULDN'T HAVE WANTED TO GET THE BARRELS HE HAS!
a.) Europe is made up numerous shades Pottah.
b.) One can be racist to any colour or creed, white inclusive.
Anyway, have a wonderful day mate.
Darwin will get stupid deep shacks and schralp everything to pieces, Zen will kickflip into take-offs and do double backflips at will, and Gator will be National Tennis Champion by age 16, as well as turning heads on the world's premium golfcourses...
I'd put 50 clams on that if gambling wasn't so corrupt, lame and ethically shitehouse....
reckon you are a bit harsh on kelly here- thought he mostly was interested and talking about the comp….r-cal’s wave was so good, just watching the replay now to make sure i didn’t get too excited when it happened, but yes, it was way good
Yeah not that I’m a starry eyed fan , but I think Kelly redirected the conversation back to the heat.
I opt for Skater Slater, Torrance Florence, and Crusoe Robinson.
Nice
Danger Will Robinson!
Tapping out. Ben, these troll wankers like BarbB and Pottah are diluting your brand. Fuck those kooks
BarbB comments on subjective judging and that is diluting a brand? Lol
Unless I'm mistaken, the brand is the accuracy of the surf forecast, and the way that forecast is displayed, that's what we pay for?
If the brand is wokeism, that's not my bag, I'm not a Euro kook.
"If the brand is wokeism, that's not my bag, I'm not a Euro kook."
Shouldn't that be..."I'm not a Euro euro" or "I'm not a Kook kook"
Euro kook is almost a tautology, but there are a few of Euro's who are not kooks.
Crying for moderation over simply every point of view you don't like is very gen z surfalot , potts might be out there with his ideas but it's not offensive
Tyler overscored as usual, shame to see Caity shunted out before the surf pumped
Go molly !
Yes there really are a lot of Anti Vax/ climate change denying 'cooker's on this site. The relevant forums are always good for a laugh!
Insightful writeup as always FR
Personally I thought the most interesting thing about the telecast was Turpel’s pronunciation of Teahupoo: “Tee-a-poo”
I thought it was Choo-poo?
You're a couple of vowels short there Tyler !
Joey T has turned Cho - poo into " Tee-ah -oh- ah- ohh - ahh - poo
Not like Joe to put a bit of mayo on ........
Such a good write up. Slater, has there ever been a bigger wanker that you still appreciate and want to watch?
hahaha, nup. well put.
(what's with the lonely putz in the comments?
who says 'I surf "coral" reefs' ?)
Goddamit ns, I read that right as I'd stuffed a big lump of sandwich in my gob!
Laptop was lucky to survive!
Very mediocre day considering the forecast. Maybe fair enough to run the opening round of the womens but it should have ended there.
If they run tomorrow I think I’m going to switch off permanently.
Woz does what woz wants.
I enjoyed yesterday for what it's worth
Crunch time in Tahiti though...
These gotta be so head noise going on....
Now they know what fil feels every time he paddles out there.. ........
International
Vahine and saywers Day
Packed it
Completed
They'll never forget those waves......
@steveShearer
Great writeup as usual.
I do however feel you're "barking up the wrong tree" by expecting the commentary team to pile shit on the company they work for.
These people would have signed a very long contract stating all the things they CAN'T say/do about their employer. They would not only loose their job, but they could also be sued for a very large sum of money if they put their employer in a bad-light.
I have never seen one of you guys write a bad article about your employer (swellnet), or is Swellnet always right/perfect? so you just never need to?
Yeah, thats probably true.
Most sports have a commentary team that is one step removed from the sport itself and so can do it's job properly.
It's not necessarily piling shit on- just commenting on the basic A and B facts happening in front of them on the day.
But I take your point.
for eg: Kelly Slater: "We have a stacked forecast ahead with 3 days of pumping surf and good winds, why do you think we are still running Joe?"
Joe Turpel: "I'm not sure Kelly, there may be a willingness to complete this full day of competition as an insurance policy- now tell me about your Babymoon on Fiji again"
You know, just something basically plausible.
I do agree with you that the commentary team should be outside the circle, so as not to worry about stepping on anyone's toes with what they say.
Is it time to get Roy and HG on board? Now that would be some good commentary. Hahah
Haha yes Roy and HG, now you’re talking. The far arse wombat could make a return
Americans wouldn't get the humor, but man I'd tune in
"Supernatural Sunday" .... "wasnt seen by the press, just the people..."
media "It was a matter of commercial sensitivity..."
The Dream; a mascot who celebrates humanity.... was stolen,..
looking forward to Sublime games Saturday...
You KNOW i still did Joes voice in my head in the above scenario FR!!!
Hahahahah.
I don't mean to give a wrong impression here: Kelly is awesome in the booth.
No-one knows more about pro surfing or is capable of analysing it to such a high degree across all facets of the game.
Him and Joe are just a very, very bad combination because Joe fan-bois out so hard and encourages Kelly to talk about Kelly. Which Kelly loves to do.
If he can be gently guided back to the task at hand - as he eventually got there yesterday- it's all apples.
But this is the Goats contest, he is major sponsor, so really, he can do whatever he likes.
There's a bit of Joe's voice in all of us...
no comment on judges scores, I can recall.... ever, at all
you might dig this from 3mins, @surf.rat,
"richie lovett calling out low-ball rio score, ian turpel's positive noise, UFC commentators, wozzle waves"
pretty awkward show, aussie / seppo dissonance with T-bone's dryness, but kinda fun,
swellnet mentioned 6:30, funny what sn comments he considers 'brutal'
Haha Swellnet - the go to for brutal comments.
Wozzles high pressure entanglement
Who's claiming it?
I'm pretty sure it was craig .....LOL
frustrating to see the one of the most competent go down in a rubbish heat like that. its annoying the way its seeded you got heats like molly vs vahine, marks vs sindblad then you got tatiana vs tyler and carrisa vs brissa. is what it is ,but all we can do is pray that we dont get a carrisa vs tatiana west final in pumping surf
Great write up, was not able to watch much of it.
Very disappointing we won't get to see Caity giving it a crack.
Great write up again FR. Telling it like it is.
Very entertaining read
Jack Robinson's reasons to hate Kelly Slater keep piling up.
Was enjoying the surfing, the splendour of Tahiti, the few sets that came through were beautiful.. then Simmers got knocked out and suddenly it all sucked.
Real woke people don't attack anyone even if they disagree, should be seen as a chance to engage openly.
You're a sounding board Steve
I’m still trying to work out how the 2 best surfers amongst the females , defay and simmers have been eliminated from the event. Both got shacked off their heads and probably could have made it through the men’s heats
Are these surf comps continually rigged for generic formulaic (perceived high) ratings or maybe 'wsl model of womens safety' ?
or just 'lives up to the hype' as continual WSL middle muddle management for mediaocra_sea?
Maybe all WSL staff should surf marginal close outs, ....with a WSL Tshirt on, forever ...
be honest.... every decent surfer knows better surf is possible this week.... based on their own WSL forecasters.
https://www.worldsurfleague.com/posts/530394/worlds-best-ready-to-lay-it...
https://www.worldsurfleague.com/posts/530388/surfline-dawn-patrol-day-1-...
I hope Toledo gets shacked off his nut in the biggest barrels of his life. There’s no way he won’t charge. Re Tyler’s pic - I was in a barrel that big at Bangko Bangko in 2001. Got to the ‘Grower’ section & got smashed! Haha! What a day..
And get pushed down onto the reef and not worry about it because the waves are so good !
Not sure if this has been mentioned but regarding the judging...I think Caity (or anyone ) who rides in the barrel and deals with the foam ball, which was the most challenging part of the ride, then just gets clips makes the ride null and void. The skill she showed was incredible.
They did give it a 2.43 for a complete not make. Maybe the highest I can remember for a wave where the person didn't exit the barrel. I think that at least acknowledged the effort to some degree.
Few years ago now, I'm thinking around 2014 or 2015, should look it up, Owen Wright won a heat without making a single barrel.
Wasn't because his opponent did a Yadin Nicol either, just the judges were going through a stage where attempts were being rewarded, even if they weren't successful.
Or straighen out after the 3rd DP barrel section...before the grower section looms larger & fast as f*** ahead....
https://www.emedicinehealth.com/wilderness_coral_cuts/article_em.htm
One of the great features of these comments is the widespread disappointment that Caity is out and we wont get to see her out in solid Chopes (which I share). I've been surfing 40 years, tuning in to the ASP/WSL for much of this time, and I cant remember another time when women's surfing captured the limelight for performance reasons in its own right.
If the WSL had run separate mens and womens events in the past I suspect many of us would have missed the joy of watching womens performance levels explode over the past 2 years. They could do it now and sustain themselves if the sponsorship was there.
Also nice to see Caity be admired and appreciated for who she is. Her attitude and surf stoke reminds me a little of Pauline Menzer who was poorly treated by the 'industry' at the time. Must be bitter sweet for Pauline to observe.
Caity out having to surf those conditions is a travesty. Seen it numerous times this year with poor surf in the first rounds giving the lesser skilled surfers a leg up. In saying that in some of the events they really just had to run, but not this, and also one argument might be that it's pro-surfing and you have to win in all conditions. Me - I just want to see the best in the best conditions and losing Caity is a blow to the spectator. Looking forward to the rest of it though.
I also feel if Slats is sponsoring this - he is helping keep the WSL in quality waves - and he deserves to be able to spruik his businesses.
I watched the last of the mens OR and was 100% sure they wouldn't dream or dare to do any eliminations of the men or women who had earned the right to show case their best surfing in the best waves on the planet by making the cut when such awesome surf was on the horizon....and then...WSL do it again. It is just sooo frustrating and disappointing for the surf fans who still check in on a professional system they have been involved in since the start of their surfing journey.
JMD copping a lot of heat on here but I reckon you'd find that the surfers (via the surfers reps) would have a large say in the calls for each day.
Getting the Opening round underway was a good enough call. Womens Elim round being held in deteriorating conditions on day one with a stacked forecast was a mega fail.
I agree, but I'm saying the surfers would have played a part in that decision.
Wonder if they'll be able to hold similar sway over Olympics organisers?
Will the Olympic fields be bigger? Will they just have to run in whatever they get given there wait period - Ala the ISA games ?
The need four days with a ten day waiting period, according to the five rings' website.
Ok so maybe similar to pre cut CT, possibly a tad longer.
Everyone hyping but I’d be worried it doesn’t have enough swell. I guess will be much better than Tokyo.
I think more likely the sponsors/advertisers had more sway on what ran than the women’s surfers
Sponsors don't have any say in it. Surfer's rep, commish (or whatever they call it these days), and Head Judge split it.
And at any rate, I'd say sponsors would want the drama and exposure.
Thanks stunet. Ok, I’m more used to tennis where local tournament organisers, tv, management companies and sponsors all have (or want to have) a say on when things go on alongside tournament staff. So just assumed it was like that. Would be interesting to know who the women’s surfer rep is.
Iatrogenic, yikes! Go Steve :)
Someone got it!
I just read something about it and had to drop it in.
*Quick question: Darwin Florence, Zen Robinson, Gator Slater. Who is the most likely to beat Kelly's record of eleven world titles?*
Quick answer: None of the above as due to their predecessor's globe trotting things like organized sport will be forgotten in the frantic search for food and water. Didn't rain for 8 months here in the West, Won't stop raining in the East - a pattern of meteorological instability that is playing out around the world. I hope I"m wrong!
We live on the edge of an ancient desert continent.
The locals survived in Oz for 10,000 yrs, knowing their country.
Some survived, trying to peace some fractured parts of of the huge eco/social puzzle together.
a book called "Dark Emu"; gives examples of how some tribes may have lived.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Emu
Debate and further biological exploration continues...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farmers_or_Hunter-Gatherers%3F
60,000 at least mate
I then foresee Furiosa Simmers as future world champ of the Waste Land Woz.
we are in a timeless story of; myth or truth; choice or fate; war or peace.
If all else fails.... science can be like a heart monitor; faith can be a xray of hope; (PR) media can be emotive....shocking, safe or sexy ....?
Biologically, we will need good water & food to produce milk.... regardless of above....
bresty totem sculptures 35000 yrs old have been preserved for science, faith or PR, you decide....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_figurine
"Globally, 2.3 million square kilometers of forest were lost during the 12-year study period."
"The tropics were the only climate domain to exhibit a trend, with forest loss increasing by 2101 square kilometers per year. Brazil’s well-documented reduction in deforestation was offset by increasing forest loss in Indonesia, Malaysia, Paraguay, Bolivia, Zambia, Angola, and elsewhere. "
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1244693