It's International Surfing Day on Saturday. Does anyone know? Does anyone care?

I don't know which bright spark first came up with the idea for International Surfing Day but I imagine they're the type that also believes surfing at the Olympics is a good thing (which it's not! more on that later).

What I do know is Surfing Magazine in the US first picked up the ISD ball and ran with it, roping in a whole swag of surfing corporations and, to give it legitimacy, the good folk at Surfrider. Being a US invention it's celebrated fairly well over there, and in the usual way - companies chalk up green points by sponsoring 'beach clean-ups' and the like.

However, I notice International Surfing Day is now coming on strong here too. But I'm gonna take a stand against this formalised 'celebration'. I'm dissenting from International Surf Day.

Before I go on: I've been called contrary before, and if I look hard at myself I think it's an accusation I'd agree with (except being contrary I have to disagree with it). But this isn't my contrary nature talking here. This is coming from somewhere deeper. Somewhere that senses an infringement. An opportunistic cashing in on what I hold near and dear.

There are days that should be celebrated: Australia Day, New Years Day. And there are days that should be spent in quiet reflection: ANZAC Day, Armistice Day. Let's ask ourselves, do we really need a Surfing Day? Who REALLY benefits? Are we celebrating surfing or just providing another marketing platform? Albeit through the feelgood conduit of beach clean-ups. But I dispute the sincerity.

So bugger the corporate behemoths telling me what I should be doing via the one activity I pursue to get away from orders and authority. When corporations take ownership of something like this it forces others who pursue the activity to fall into line. It's the social conscience at work. Kinda like when you're at a protest march and you're chuffed cos you're doing a good thing and some twat in the crowd yells out “What do we want?”, and the crowd rolls their eyes and moans because the chant is so trite and cliché. Yet for the sake of solidarity and not wanting to look like a spoiler everyone replies with the obligatory “Land rights/ gay rights/ surfers rights/ whatever” and hopes the news cameras don't catch them chanting the ridiculous song. Nice sentiment, woeful delivery.

If you also feel like me, and think International Surfing Day is a bit twee, don't feel guilty. It doesn't mean you hate surfing, or Surfrider. Nor does it mean you don't want clean oceans or aren't prepared to do something about it (let's face it, any organisation that waits for 'International Surfing Day' to roll around before taking action isn't gonna get much done).

So don't be afraid to dismiss International Surfing Day. Or at least roundly ignore it. It doesn't make you a bad person. And one last thing. Not only am I not singing the International Surfing Day song this Saturday, I'm gonna take this one-man protest one step further. No matter what the surf is like I'm NOT going surfing.

PS: Fucken hope it's not pumping.