Coronavirus presents a novel problem for surfers and organisers
It's the coronavirus article you don't need, that's more speculation than fact, and what facts there are will have changed by the time you finish reading.
We went to write this article last week, but at the time it was hard to believe the headlines - it was all doomsaying, surely?
But now travel bans are swiftly being enforced, the NBA season has been cancelled, and the virus is spreading in Australia, so it's reasonable to ask how surfers are going to be affected.
As of this morning, WSL employees have heard no news about the virus from their employer. To their mind, they'll be following the Oz/NZ leg: the Sydney Pro now, then Piha, then back to Oz for the Corona Open on the Gold Coast on March 26th.
Speaking of the Gold Coast, American actor Tom Hanks is on the Goldy and he and his wife have just contracted the virus.
It may be that, rather than take a pro-active stance like the NBA, the Woz is waiting for state and federal goverments to act first. Both Queensland Health and the Australian Department of Health have today issued general advice about travel and gathering in crowds. Neither is enough to question runnng the Corona Open, or Bells and Margs for that matter.
Unlike concerts and festivals, which are held indoors or amongst tightly packed crowds, or the NBA which is also held indoors, pro surfing has the obvious advantage of being run outside. As a precaution the Wozzle may dismantle the grandstands, deter people from gathering, tell fans to watch it on the webcast, and then run the CT leg as per normal.
They'll take a hit at the merch table, no doubt about it, but every pro sport is gonna take a bath in the coming weeks.
Travel between events has been a concern for some surfers. However, a handy byproduct of the virus is plumetting petrol prices so it's easy enough to skip the Virgin counter for Avis. Collect the keys at Coolangatta, hand them back at Margaret River.
If the Wozzle opts to run the Oz CT leg - that is, if they're allowed to run it and aren't prevented by authorities - the surfers have three domestic events in a row. They'll remain in Australia until May, perhaps even the end of May - the next event, G'Land, doesn't start until June 4th.
By that stage the news will be very different to what we're hearing now.
Of course, the news could be worse and travelling to Java via Bali - which recorded its first case yesterday - will be problematic. It may be 2001 all over, when Americans refused to travel after 911 and CJ Hobgood was declared World Champ by virtue of leading at the point it was cancelled. In 2001 five events were surfed: is three events enough to declare a winner?
At any rate, there's a thousand headlines between now and then.
While nothing official has been announced about the Tokyo Olympics - where surfing is debuting - the creeping assumption is that it'll either be cancelled or postponed for two years. Cancellation of the Games isn't new, they've been cancelled three times due to war, the last time was in 1940 and the host city then was also Tokyo.
For recreational surfers, especially those considering international travel, the news is equally grim. As of today, the US closed its borders to Europe, and commentators are expecting Australia to implement similar measures.
What country people are travelling to, or equally as important, countries they're travelling through, is vital. Take advice from DFAT not from the comments below. Consider that travel insurance companies no longer cover for any incident caused by coronavirus. That doesn't simply mean expenses for being medivacced or so forth, but cancellation of flights, unforeseen quarantines, any hitch that can be attributed to CV, and expect insurance companies to do their research.
For everyone else, there's no reason short of actually having the virus to stop surfing. Plus, the aforementioned petrol price drop makes a roadie that more viable. What you save on petrol, you can spend on handwipes, and chase uncrowded waves while Joe Public bunkers down awaiting the end of days.
Comments
slight correction Stu, Corona open starts 26 Mar, not 22.
those 4 days could be significant, if events keep unfolding at current pace.
You understand I'm going to go in and change the original text to make it look like you haven't read it correctly?
Amazing , Presto!
you no longer calling it 'not as bad as the flu' fr?
hahahaha, I got in first.
Got to feel for the rookies who were heading off for their first year on tour and then this happens.
Owen Wright wins Snapper - WCT cancelled before Bell's and voila we have our next Aussie World Champ!
Looks like those such as myself that indulge in an annual Indo (or equivalent) trip will be stuck in Oz this year. Good chance to travel locally and spend some cash in the fire affected regions.
I'm already booked and from what I have read, Corona doesn't like it hot and sweaty, prefers cold and dry so Bintang maybe OK.
Well you better get there well before the Oz winter(eg pretty much right now) before the Indos slap a travel ban on Aussies coming from a colder drier climate.
I don't think we will make it looking at the way things are going. As you said may need to sniff around locally.
the flipside will be far less crowds!!
Fuck it.
With all the panic I’m guessing that the vast majority of pros won’t travel anywhere near the events.
So I’ve decided to register with the WSL as a professional. Pay my union dues and put myself on the alternates list . Chances are good that I’ll be bumped into the top 30 by the time the internationals are on flight restrictions and the locals are quarantined at home.
I’m going to be the Steven Bradbury of surfing. The first top 10 surfer in history who’s never cracked a 3 point heat total.
All you team managers and corporate types out there can consider the nose of my board open for business. Let the bidding war begin.
Brilliant Blowiin.....except broadcasting it. I'll have you know i got a 3.5 heat total in the masters of our board riders comp just last weekend. I'm coming for you. Rookie, Old, Not that good and World Champion. I like the sound of it.
I reckon you could scrape in a couple of 9's going by this years judging scale: https://www.facebook.com/WSL/videos/498878090795887/
Not good I wonder what a 6 looked like?
That was heavy
I've been getting 9's all week :p
Ha ha!
I'm in combo-land.
The northwest will be fucking packed.
I'm not so sure, with the mass Gastro outbreak last winter which spread through the camps like nothing else, would you be prepared to go and camp on top of others when the Government are telling everyone to avoid crowded places to avoid the spread of a deadly virus?
Was there really bad gastro? Both Bluff and 3 Mile?
Can imagine it would be hard to contain with the lack of amenties
It was crazy...alot of crew claim they will never set foot there again.
no one locally , when usually this close to the CT there are pro's sniffing around.
20 knots onshore and no banks might have something to do with it too.
They're all down here FR, literally!
And no comment on the irony of the name Corona Open....
I was waiting for that.
Come get some Corona with the crew in the VIP tent.
and no one's taking the bait... Corona Pro is the chance to infect the pros and see who performs the best under the influence. Cummon' peoples -where are the puns?
No puns needed, Corona World Surfluenza is catchy enough!
US/OZ are banning Euro Surfers right about Now!
US surfers will be be gone by next week!
Disgraced Sydney Pro OZ Olympians are awarded Oz leg...blindfolded.
How about - I hear the Knack are re-recording their classic song for the launch.....
A bottle of Corona (virus) needs a slice of Limes (disease) to make it palatable...
The Knack what a great reference!
I heard a rumour that gland is off.
It's the kind of rumour that'll be true by next month the way things are going.
G Land off Bruce???. That would be a blessing. As long as we can fly to Indonesia that is.
11/3/2020 Oz calls Travel ban on Italy
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-11/coronavirus-australian-travel-ban...
WSL ordered Italian to surf Oz leg Triple Crown to Qualify for 2020 Tour.
Italians have already banned themselves from all sporting Comps.(Full Stop!)
Ask! Which country is brave enough to override Mafia & say yer welcome here.(WTF)
No offence but WSL Plan B seems already Fucked...time will tell.
Is the Italian off the Tour before getting wet in Main Event?
[# 46 XXXXX] The Goat's nemesis could be wiped from 2020 WSL tour.
Will OZ PM Scomo rule Aussie Wildcard Mikey wins WSL Penalty Shoot Out.
Nuthin' Suss to use PM political intervention to get even for 2006 World Cup dive.
Has Corona ended WSL Tour for some before it even begun.
Oz crew send wave of the day to Leonardo Fioravanti...that's a tough gig!
Fioravanti is currently surfing in Sydney Pro (Final 16)
If just one Aust F1 crew test + / The whole Grand Prix is cancelled right here & now.
As tbb types McLaren Team is Fucked...so looks like for certain they'll wrap it up.
You can bet WSL Italian surfer's crew will feel the same heat...just saying it's borderline!
Not even Italy want Italian Sportsmen competing (Full Stop!) Need Divine Intervention!
https://7news.com.au/sport/f1/green-light-for-australian-grand-prix-hing...
https://7news.com.au/sport/motorsport/australian-grand-prix-officially-i...
WSL French Olympians can compete on WSL Oz Leg as Tahitians. (Just ask WSL !)
WSL Poms > Falklands + Dutch > Caribbean + Portuguese > Timor
So most WSL surfers can use a doggie door...to dogleg the Oz Leg. ( Book fast! )
"The Ultimate SLSA Patron" PM Scomo decides which WSL surfer goes overboard.
Hurley Head : "That's how we roll in the shire!"
Slater to show no fear in the face of the corona virus pandemic and to show up to every event (presuming they're not cancelled) while all the other guys that have been rated higher than him and been world title contenders or winners the last few years stay at home (for at least some of the events anyway) on the WSL's advice that they won't be penalised for no showing.
I think he's sitting back pondering right now how to use the situation to his advantage for this season.
He's chances for a 12th world title will significantly improve if this thing keeps getting bigger but the WSL season still runs.
He'll be the last guy of all 44 to pull out.
Someone always wins in these situations.
The guy who invents the corona virus vaccine and Slater with his much improved 12th world title chances are my first 2 picks for the biggest winners in the ongoing and escallating covid19 saga.
that was a good read boyz,
"For everyone else, there's no reason short of actually having the virus to stop surfing. Plus, the aforementioned petrol price drop makes a roadie that more viable. What you save on petrol, you can spend on handwipes, and chase uncrowded waves while Joe Public bunkers down awaiting the end of days."
Back to the 90's when car was cheap and flights harder to get
Everybody wanking on about "roadtrips', I did the drive east and back over the summer and the bushfire conundrum this year and saw the reality of lots of people hitting what is pretty much 12 servos in the middle of nowhere, packed, running out of fuel, water etc and not to mention everyone stops at the same 12 places. Make sure you,ve got plenty of handwipes for the bowsers, masks for the bain marie cornjack orders and shit coffee service, not to mention the grotty toilets and b grade tarantino movie motel rooms cause once one sick cunt goes through in the car before you its going to be the same as being in anywhere thats contaminated ,maybe worse after the driver touches the virus contaminate and then your in all sitting together for the next 20hrs. Also I dont see a bunch of pampered pro surfers driving for 40 + hrs anywhere without phone signal and instasham either. Dream on.
Hell Stu, I wish you aligned more with Mike Hunt's perspectives on surfing than those you share in your (albeit well-written) Swellnet articles.
This is not the year for surf travel. Spread the word. The roadtrip is an unsanitary, virus riddled, sick-pit. Especially anywhere other than the east coast. Do not fucken bother. And Indo, that joint is going to be one grubby death TRAP in a few months. Likewise anywhere else overseas. For once, everyone needs to just stay the fuck home. Get with the program Stu. Good work Mikey Hunt.
All I got from that was "sick-pit". Long live the roadie.
Yikes Mike...OK no road trip...home looks nice.
home it is.
I got the veggie garden all planted out.
duck eggs a dollar a throw.
All this from someone eating a Bat! Who would of thought hey?
Don't think it was a bat this time but a pangolin.
The "most trafficked animal in the world" gets its revenge.
A bat was eaten by a pangolin which was then eaten by a King Cobra, which was cut up in a wet market and infected some folks.
Or it was Steven King's "The Stand"...
Or it was Dean R Koontz's 1981 book "The Eyes of Darkness":
https://www.news.com.au/technology/online/social/1981-books-eerie-corona...
Page 333 (who's into occult numerology?):
https://gematriaeffect.news/page-333-of-dean-koontzs-the-eyes-of-darknes...
have a read for yourself, make up your mind.
This would not be the first time very similar happenstances have been written long before an actual event occurs that bears great similarity. In 1898 Morgan Robertson wrote a book "Futility" about a British liner, the Titan, of about 40,000 tonnes (big for then) that strikes an iceberg and sinks in April in the North Atlantic with great loss of life.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wreck_of_the_Titan:_Or,_Futility
Walter Lord relays that Robertson claims he was influenced by his astral writing partner.
In the early hours of April 15, 1912 in cold glassy conditions, the British liner Titanic, 45,000 tonnes, struck an iceberg and sank with great loss of life.
How would this work? Perhaps there are other dimensions out there where it is possible to look in on this dimension at any particular point in time you desire - the concept of eternal return mentioned in Kundera's "Unbearable Lightness of Being" - if you want a modern film version of what someone thinks it looks like, try the end of the film "Interstellar"
I think it was released by the infectious disease unit in Wuhan
what was their agenda!!! genocide perhaps to cull an large population of elderly people they no longer want to feed..
any other conspiracy theories???
Seems a little too convenient that the Hong Kong riots were getting out of hand too around the time of the virus outbreak........
Mundine has a couple
Bahahahaha.... Mundine's got some fruity flavors cooked on corona hahahaha. Who'd of guessed it. So good
Was the Wuhan virus lab as the Chinese leader shut it down immediately. He knew one of his creations had escaped.
Thanks China for your export.
Freeride my tomatoes and beans have blight damn them.
Anyone near the Manly comp?
looks like about 20 people at the beach watching , zero vibe.
Went for a SUP out to Bower from South Steyne, beach looked empty from the water.
...
good laugh on that one stunet
So I'm confused, drink corona and get the virus or drink corona and you're immune
So many consequences everywhere you look. Pro tour = plane flights, airports, airport toilets with hand dryers atomising the water droplets to make a nice cv soup to breathe. The prospect of being "stranded far from home, stranded all alone" being very high.
The ocean surf will be sort of safe away from sewerage outfalls. Wave pools not so much. Ziffs fortune declining rapidly.
Quiet little surfs locally make sense. WSL not so much.
Pretty much this Frog.
Further, the world we've known for the last 40+ years is now fading, perhaps for a while.
Quiet little local surfs working well here at the mo.
Boom , cancelled.
WSL just released statement.
all events in march, including NZ.
I can hear keyboards tapping frantically.
Guaranteed to pump during contest window!
Snapper and Piha cancelled, with more comps likely:
https://www.swellnet.com/news/swellnet-dispatch/2020/03/13/the-wsl-pulls-the-pin-snapper-and-piha
Breaking News: swellnet crew stumble upon best kept secret since Toilet Paper!
Ok! So tbb is new at "Panic Buy Headlines"...plenty of time yet!
No Surf Safari to URBNSURF for the crew as cesspools are being shut down!
Corona Virus would surely shut down / Drain / Disinfect / Quarantine a Wave Pool?
Not so fast! Are authorities getting ahead of themselves?
Here's a batshit crazy insider Tip off !
URBNSURF can be a Coronavirus Free surfing Oasis!
Well! It can be made such by strict Pool Rules
"With Wot! Pool Rules! Please no more rules...had it up to here with Rules!"
FU : Guidelines Then!
tbb swims in Pools daily so would be at higher risk than crew...so naturally...
Ran some health checks to reveal more about the virus & sussed a new great product!
There are 3 types of Virus
*Enveloped Virus (Corona + SARS)
*Outer Lipid Membrane
*Non enveloped no membrane
Enveloped Virus is easier to kill.
WHO Chlorine Dose of 15mg. min/litre can kill Envelope viruses & all above.
[IMPORTANT]
Contact Time + Heavier doses are required for People per smaller Pool size.
Jacuzzis & Spas need bucket loads, just for the STD's...so throw in an extra cap full!
Sinful Hot Tub Time Machine (They can simply FF or Rewind so fuck them!)
What's the worst Pool virus since no one asked? That's Easy! (Cryptosporidium)
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/coronavirus-proper-chlorination-s...
Q: Would Coronavirus shut down upcoming URBNSURF Comps?
A: ( Only authorities can say! )
Comp is more a crowd per metre issue...possibly cull numbers to go ahead.
Wavepool? Mr Ross bitched he was forced to Chlorinate (Who's Laughing Now!)
Reduce Surfers & Session Times + dose pool to 15mg.min/litre to ward off virus!
Best ever "New Improved" End of the World Product for swellnet to queue or die for.
https://nwsolutions.com.au/resources/chlorine-dioxide-approvals/
Comes in Zombie Strength [+] dose
https://www.rei.com/product/109906/aquatabs-water-purification-tablets-p...
Not to be confused with harder to swallow Pool Chlorine tabs.
https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/H1ff5429ff5e342c995aa7125d96ff009V/Wholesale-...
Don't say swellnet crew never gave you'll a fighting chance for yer last request!
PS:
Woolies anti-bacterial' Hand Sanitiser 20ml dregs [ Swine Flu Ltd Ed vintage ]
Happily trade for window seat on Invisible Starlink Train...don't knock my door down!
when the WHO issues a pandemic it's not taken lightly.. they weigh up the media sensation that can cause a lot of negative effects. a pandemic is alerted when spread into the community is likely also to make the virus seam serious and to have people take added precautions. so at this stage it's looking like we are pretty likely to get it or know someone who will. But it's not as deadly as the media sensationalises most people get over it in 6 days and have very mild symptoms.. obviously not good for the old or sick... but for the vast majority you will be all good. no need to freak out. I'm way more afraid of more stupid trump comments, flights cancelled and a global recession
Pretty good summary^^^
It's not so much the virus but the infinite number of flow on effects that are the real concern.
Bloody Ozzy Osbourne started it all....
Hmmm, I reckon far chance Olympics will not happen this year, and with no option to reschedule, that's means another 4 years ...
Will Robert K go around another 4 times for a chance to surf in the Olympics?
Rumour postpone Olympics for 2 years.
Shame as all the pros will be now be back to Gold coast for next week.
Oh well, there's a few billion dollars that won't get wasted and might get spent on something worthwhile instead...
This could be the straw that breaks Dirk Ziff's wallet? Fortunes lost from stock crash. WSL can't run, can't bring any income and huge employee expense. He's got a dog with fleas financially speaking. Could be time to take it out the back and quietly ...
Dirk will have bars of silver buried near Mt Sinai
Imagine how many surfers will be playing the 2 week Corona Quarantine card when a cyclone forms in the Coral Sea.
Just as aside, any of you given thought to surf industry supply chain impacts?
Wax.
Wetsuits.
Resin. Fibreglass.
Foam blanks (or chemicals to make)
If we go into lock down like Europe countries, fair chance stocks will fall quickly. With worldwide impacts on production, i can not see how the surf industry will not have supply chain issues.
I have. Somewhere between my car and my bedroom there 3x blocks of wax.
Common wetty on the hook, 2x oldies around proximity somewhere... n if I snapped me board the single fin in the shed do the job no worries under the circumstances.
History repeats. Not sure if young Greta appreciates recycling such consumer items. Cannot much listen to her.
But if i were to be such an individual burning through 180 boards in a year.....
I'd do a check on technique for starters.
Can report wetsuit holes in the rubbery surface can be re-glued with the selleys bathroom liquid nails stuff, need to test it though...
Personal feeling is the entry range wetties last longer, the top end stuff seems to blow out the seams ( :) ) within a year or two...
Wingnut, give a wood board a crack if we lose lots of the supply chain. I reckon some of the plank on frame paulownia I've done might even be surfable and strong enough without glass, will get to test that soon. Can cover with WBPU found in hardware store.
Job losses in all sectors most concerning.
Newspapers, local radio seem in my opinion to be quiet on this issue. But few know or want to know just how far this issue will lead .
So Crew with blinkers on...open up look around... support and protect your locals.
Tough year for Aussies.
this comming week is going to make or break melbourne. my parents survived recession with interest at %17 i got lucky at the gfc...got layed off but got a hook straight away. this next week could paint the picture for industry for the rest of the year.
%100 bells wont be running and the afl are kidding themselves if they think they are going to play with no crowds.
at least stkilda cant loose and we all get to surf our fav surf spots over easter with a bit of crowd spred.
Just snapped up 150 return flights to bali I will risk the biscuit for cheap flights and low crowds
Enjoy your extra 14 day lock down when you return lol.
Low crowds in Bali?
Dream on......
With which Airline and from which City ?
Not affecting just pro surfers.
https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/health-wellbeing/12-australians-stranded-...
More on that...Indo Horror Surflick [SOS]
https://www.swellnet.com/comment/655425#comment-655425
Running Commentary on 1st zero crowd footy game!
Well maybe not the 1st...tbb has watched a few sub zero Socceroo crowds.
The 26 players are chewing thru $100K of Power for goodness knows what?
CEO's Corporate Boxes (Tick!)
All the Playing Field Ads still glow...of course they do...
Yes! Those stupid Flicker Board ads still drive you mad + with more TV ad breaks.
The Big Replay screen is there for no other reason than to chew thru more power.
Struggling to see how this 1.5 metre rule applies to men groping each other.
None are trying real hard to dive wide the required 1.5 m safe distance
All handling the ball & not seen one player sanitise the ball before passing it around!
Someone just scored...I think! Hard to tell without the claims...
The referee's whistle echoes around the Stadium....really loud it is! That's it!
To get more, tbb would have to watch more! That'd be a total waste of resource!
Won't be happening! Be even more stupid to tell you the score so tbb will spare you!
PS: Can any explain how separate set waves are banned but group spooning is fine?
After the Game comes the Hot Tub Coronavirus anointment of the flesh! Go figure!
That stuff will last till one of the players gets it, then team, entourage, last team they played = lockdown & quarantine
Better suggestion, make AFL an E-Sport in 2020. Have the players link in from home and play video game version of AFL. This would really throw open the betting and dream teams!
Team USA bypassed WHO / Olympic Health Quarantine directive.
US Waco Wave Pool held out forever + Kelly's neverending VIP Pool Parties
[ Hawaii ] closes Beaches today.
https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/coronavirus-pandemic-intl-04-17-...
[ Florida ] opens Beaches today.
https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/493510-florida-beaches-swarm-wi...
Essentially Team USA (Aquatics) never stopped training during Covid-19
After Unsportsmanlike Hawaii WSL Olympic Event we see more US Olympic ideal.
If you did it 1000 x over it would still play out the same way...Ask their #1 President!
Surfing Australia Comps return this weekend Sat/Sun 18th/19th July
.
First a community announcement on Surfing Hygiene
~Watertight Surf Comp Covid Plan ~
[ 20 max for Boardrider Club Events ]
[ No sharing Comp singlets ] > [ BYO T-Shirt ]
[ No Sharing Wax, Towels, Sunscreen ]
[ Glove handle (Clean) manky share Wetties ]
[ 1.5m Burn Rule ]
[ No Catching 2nd Waves ]
[ Sanitiser Pump in each Green Room ]
[ Dr Huey's Clean Up Sets between each round ]
[ Winner Chariots ] OMG! The End of Surfing! {R.I.P}
Don't Panic...Look it's one of them Covis Pop Ups...perhaps it can save surfing!
tbb's Covid Beach Hire: [ SD approved Skeg Comp chariots ].
Trad Skeg Range...
Crowd Surf a '3m Sup / Mal' with 1 grom struggling each end.
Cartoon Oar a Canoe / Goat Boat with 1 Grom sweating each end.
Lazy Buoy Range
Loop 1 or 2 Leggies around Tube handles & haul the cheat up on his arse.
Waterpark Family Raft should have 1.5m apart handles for 4 Grom Chix carry.
Dodgy Bros Range
Flip the Head Judge from his Hammock to bundle up the Champ.
Skyhook the Big Nipper Drone on the Incoming Shark Sweep.
DIY - Still Good - done dirt cheap range
Slightly used spew scented Zorb Ball (tbb meant to say Port-a-loo!)
DIY (1 sterilised Flipper & Snorkel with a bonus squished GPS fitbit GoPro).
https://www.surfingaustralia.com/news/COVID19udpate
Australia is starting off with little steps...{ Gromz Double Header }
*Sunshine Coast hosts Qld State Grommet Surfing Titles
https://www.surfingaustralia.com/SurfingQueensland/news/grommet-state-ti...
*Geraldton hosts WA State Grom Titles.
https://www.surfingaustralia.com/SurfingWesternAustralia/event/woolworth...
Surfing Qld : " Social Distancing Grom Titles Winner" ...Oops!
https://www.surfingaustralia.com/SurfingQueensland/news/grommet-state-ti...
Tomorrow's Comp results___________________________________________________
And that's also the Surfing Qld Covid Promo...Qld Beaches to close from Monday?
https://www.surfingaustralia.com/SurfingQueensland
Covid Pos - Caroline Marks