Great movie. Amazing surfing. Best surfer ever etc etc.

But...

Kelly's surfing, for all it's unparalleled ability, has never inspired me as some other surfers have.

It's a rare Slater clip that makes me jump from my seat AMPED to surf RIGHT NOW.

Maybe it's his style. So perfect.

So centred .

When I'm surfing natural it's very front footed , when I surf goofy it's very back footed . Whilst Slater is neither.

So perfect.

But Occy's backhand is better.

Just saying.

Kelly - Don't fret mate. You're a GOD walking the Earth and the lives of all surfers are greatly enriched by not just your talent, but by the sheer commitment you have displayed towards the act of riding waves.

Some people revere someone such as Camel for his dedication. Which is justified in itself.

Yet you have literally lived and breathed surfing since you first discovered the way it elevated you from the mundane realities of existence.

I'm so stoked that someone that has dedicated everything has been rewarded as suitably as yourself.

Cheers for living the dreams of others and showing the world what can be accomplished through purity of focus and desire.

That 540 or 720 or what ever you call it is still a beautiful thing to watch.

Most people reach a very simple level, ... and then stay there for life.

Not Mr. Slater.

Robert Kelly Slater, thank you for showing all other humans the road to higher levels of potential. Even though most people will never even try.

Yew!

Would like to see kelly on a MAL ,
Cross stepping to the nose to tuck into some hang ten time shade , Would be lovely ,

@ blowin.....its probably because he makes it look all so easy. as you say "so perfect". and there the occasional bullshit freaky entry exit that just blows your mind...saying how the fuck did he make that, (shaking your head)

super all rounder and in amazing physical condition.

as they say, winning is 10% talent, and 90% hard work.

If i could surf as good as slaters little toe nail id be happy...

Im kinda surprised to read the above comments I find Kelly's surfing more inspiring than anyone, i don't know what it is i could watch his surfing all day long, i just love his style and flow but also the fact i never know what he is going to do next.

I just feel so lucky that I've got to experience seeing him from before black and white until now, its been an amazing journey and its crazy to think its still going, I just hope when he finally does retire we still get to see heaps of footage of him free surfing.

Indo....it could also be that people get maybe slightly bored because they see so much footage of him, and just get a bit too overly familiar with his style....I dunno....just a thought. Any other explanation just doesn't make sense in light of how fricken amazing he is. I read once somewhere that a career in sport is significantly governed by how you can avoid injury.....ks seems to have mastered that. For him it seems like a case of 2 steps forward 1 step forward.

On the contrary Indo, I think it's his thorough ability to read a situation and enact a premeditated response to each wave's requirements that I find dulls the otherwise extremely honed edge to his act.

Whereas someone such as Occy is simply reacting.

It's a bit of a tell regarding each surfers personality as any such artful or expressive act will reveal a persons true nature.

Slater , from what limited media I've seen of him , appears quite a savvy fella, whilst The Occster seems to react to a predicament as it confronts him.

Personally , I find the complete abandon of one's self to the moment to be a most appealing aspect of surfing and Occy personifies this perfectly.

Watch the fucker surf - he's often arse deep to the water in his backhand bottom turn before he even rotates his torso towards the lip.

The Occster is totally commited before he sees what he's up against.

Not a bad approach to life really.....if you have the talent and self belief to pull it off.

Not that it's either / or when it comes to appreciating red hot surfing.

PS. That's where the parallels between Wilko's and Occy's surfing really shine.

It's not just that they're both relentlessly rail to rail goofies on their backhand , it's the lack of pause and consideration between turns that elevates them to the next level , especially when they're placed on a wave that enables them to fully wind out such as J Bay.

That's when shit gets memorable.

PPS. Case in point - think of Occy kicking that rock on the way out to the point at Red Bluff in Green Iguana.

I'm sure Kelly has stubbed plenty of toes , but he appears to be a bit more aware of his surroundings than Rocky Occhilupo.

Mmmmmm......need car, need sponsor.

Ripping Rocky.....just like Occy.

As an aside, I've only seen our King surf in the flesh once.

At Snapper.

Attempting to freesurf after close of play at the Quik Pro one afternoon.

Amongst 200 odd industry hangers -on, plebs , emerging groms and assorted fuckstains of the breed that would eye the undisputed best surfer ever flying down the line and would then proceed to drop in on him.

Amongst the type that drops in on the fuckstain that initially dropped in on the King.

And amongst the type that drops in on the fuckstain that dropped in on the fuckstain that etc etc.

I actually witnessed Kelly get burnt four times on one shitty wave on what would eventuate as The Day That Snapper Became Untenable and Freddy Patachia had a spray about the kooks in the local rag.

Poor Kelly.

It was like watching King Kong being brought down by a million rounds of inconsequential small arms fire on the side of the Empire State Building.

Blowin your on fire ! & dont ever compare camel to slater . Kelly is light years ahead

Kelly is the ultimate all rounder. If you compare him to the next generation of ultra talented freaks none of them can match him.

John Florence: as good as anyone in the big stuff, hollow, shallow slabs and above the lip. But could still improve on his rail work. ( carving/"traditional" surfing)

Dane Reynolds: unbelievable airs, tail wafts etc perfect on rail bottom turns cutbacks etc. not much of a big wave/ dangerous wave act.

Jordy Smith: the best rail surfing of any contemporary pro and also one of the best aerialists. But, can he even surf a wave over 6 ft?

Andy maybe came close but, say no more.

Kelly needs to get off those shorter boards though. Just my opinion but 6'0 is definitely his ideal length in smaller waves and his surfing in bigger waves is so much better on a proper gun.

That Jack Robinson kid though. Fucken look out world. That kid is a proper freak and is NOT scared of ANYTHING.

In my opinion, KS has the perfect blend of style and radical moves (as he stated in the beginning, a mix of Tom Curren and airs). Whats more impressive is his drive to increase his performance at 43 years of age (42?), anyway. I'm 51 and feel my years. This man still drops into anything and makes it look effortless.

Hat's off...

Kelly v Andy!! Those were the days!!

I think Kellys surfing is awesome for a guy his age but im not sure if his surfing looks as good as it used too,seems to struggle a bit at times and i think chopping and changing boards has'nt done him any favours and as Eugene said above i think he needs to go a bit longer.That heat at margies really showed that,its almost like hes trying to prove that hes setting the bar higher every time he goes out,which is what he used to do,but everyone has caught up to him now and hes struggling....IMO

Agree with most of you guys but I still find myself watching Kelly's heats whenever they're on. I reckon he is still the best in barrels and big hollow stuff but the mucking around with boards has maybe even cost him a title. Still love his variations though and some of his moves stick in my memory. The full carving 360 and that barrel to reo thing at margies last year stand out and the 540/720 was unbelievable. I think he's been a bit hard done by in a few heats in the last 18 months too.

The Kelly kut has been taken down across all major surf sites? Why is dis!!!???

I dont understand how Surfers trying to make a living by promoting surfing to non surfers as a sport to make money from can complain about over crowding,

you pretty much just agreed with me , I have no problem with more people surfing just those people in the catergory above who seem to complain when there local spot is full of "kooks" Ive heard surf shop owners in my area complain about over crowding and its like you probly just sold them there board ! chill out , Same with Swellnet posting articles about over crowding its like your promoting it why complain about it ?

where'd the video go?