there is no excuse for my poor attitude or my slack surfing, or, my lack of motivation, for that matter. there isn't an excuse for yours either.
while traveling in central america, i watched some serious ripping going on.... the above pictured wave, ridden by locals on the above pictured boards: broken, water-logged, heavy, leashless, dinged, often with missing fins.... not in the thomas campbell ailia (however you spell that word) trendy kind of way.... no, not heavy and leashless and finless in that way...
no, these lads were ripping old, heavy beat-up boards because those were the only ones available. they don't make 3000 dollars a month, they make 150. new boards are just out of the question. yet, they were stoked, smiling, happy, friendly and generous. the soul of surfing.
it's not dead (not yet). you might just have to have your helping of humility (as i did) to remember where to find it.
no bad days. (not like that lame tee-shirt. why, oh why is every god-damned thing for sale?!). but just really, no bad days. it's a state of mind, right? one we can choose for ourselves despite the circumstances.
so next time I (or you, or your surfer bros) go through the quiver of amazing boards and cruise out to the surf in the automobile... don't make any excuses for not surfing, or not getting waves, or the crowds or whathaveyou.... I'll try not to.
6 comments:
Pilsener huh. El Slavador, the new Costa Rica.
ok
Ill not make excuses.
But travel is no less expensive than surfboards.
Don't vent too much...
Just shut up and surf.
As if I should talk.
And this is no shit...
Word verification is weenie
Are those hand me down boards stoke machines or simply spreading the disease that is surfing?
The generous and positive nature you experienced may be more a cultural phenomenon compared to the perverse and selfish ways we've become accustomed to in our own capitalist/consumer based lives.
No excuses here.
I'll bite. 52 degree water, 45 degree air, icy north wind, foggy, drizzly, 5 mil. rubber head to toe, broke down body older and more rickety than any of those boards pictured, 65 mile drive to the nearest surf break.
Bet I'm just as stoked to surf when I get there as they are tho.
I always feel lucky and happy to be able to do it.
agreed: surf culture is a parasitic disease...
i am guilty, carrying the contagion, a priveleged white visitor with a good job and the luxury to travel. a rant against myself, and all that i belong to, no doubt.
as for my excuse; as per the above post... cold water, cold water, cold water. i need a new 600 dollar wetsuit...
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