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Extract from the book Walking
on water by Andy Martin. 1991, Minerva.
by Michael Willis
"Once upon a time, pro surfing was a tiny seed
that needed care and cultivation to come to fruition.
It was such a delicate plant that any harsh wind threatened
to snuff it out. We protected and nourished it. Then
it grew. And kept on going, beanstalking upwards and
outwards, until finally, like a mean and hungry triffid,
it has gone on the rampage, wreaking havoc and terrorizing
innocent citizens of the surf. I believe the time has
come for some radical rethinking which would put an
end to this menace.
The ASP has become a bullying, dictatorial elite, concerned
only with lining its pockets at everyone’s expense.
Consider the example of the North Shore this Winter.
The ASP rolled into our peaceful town and like a bunch
of heavies in a bad western, proceeded to take the place
over, shooting up anyone that got in their way.
Throughout the entire month of December the ASP circus
sat on the best surf spots and ruthlessly excluded anyone
that was not a member of the chosen few. A reign of
terror ensued, which only came to an end in January.
But like a nuclear bomb going off, the whole incident
has left a kind of fallout hanging over the North Shore.
The ocean is lethally irradiated with bad vibes.
No one can take seriously any longer the claim that
pro events are having a beneficial effect on surfing
as a whole. All they produce is a huge publicity bubble.
Surfers will continue to surf with or without the ASP.
Meanwhile we are being swindled, having the best waves
in the world stolen from us.
The water should be open to everyone all the time,
not just to those with money and power. There are thousands
of surfers in the world. The number of pros is insignificant
by comparison. But the influence of the ASP mafia is
disproportionately huge.
The current situation is a kind of sacrilege. Jesus
kicked the money merchants out of the Temple. On the
North Shore it's the ordinary pilgrims and worshippers
who are being banished from the worlds great shrine.
Surfers should be demanding equity for all, and liberty
in the water. But fraternity goes along with those values,
too. Just as the pro surfing politburo should be more
tolerant towards recreational surfers - who will always
be the true soul of surfing - so too we should be tolerant
towards pro surfing. Let the contests continue - but
not at our expense. The only obvious course for pro
surfing to build more wave pools. Let the ASP invest
their money in some proper facilities. It’s a fraud
to hold contests in uneven conditions where chance plays
such a strong factor. Let every competitor have the
same wave as every other and then you will have a fair
contest. Do tennis players play on different sized courts?
Spectators will pay to go and watch the action. And
meanwhile, the North Shore will not be taken over by
squatters.
Surfers of the world arise and unite! We must struggle
to free ourselves from the tyranny of the ASP."
Where do you think surfing should be going?
e-mail us your
thoughts.
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