SURFING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm not sure how your session was this AM but mine was as fun as it gets! What a surprise to wake up expecting knee to thigh and finding waist plus sets! YAHOOO!!!!! Light offshore winds, only a few people out, does it get any better??? I saw lots of the Pioneers crew on it early this morning! It's awesome to know that our customers, our crew, our friends, are ON IT! We surf no matter what, we surf slop, we surf storm surf, and sometimes we are rewarded with perfect early morning surf all to ourselves! Take pride pioneers, you're doing it!
The Plot Thickens (cue dramatic music)
If you've been surfing for a while you probably have developed your own opinion about stand up paddle boarding. Well love them or hate them things just got a little more interesting, thanks to the Coast Guard officially classifying SUPs as "vessels", which puts them in the same category as kayaks, surf skis, wave skis. That official classification means that SUPs must now stay 100o feet from the high tide mark in undesignated SUP areas and they must stay 100 feet from all swimmers, which includes surfers. This new rule has been implemented in the Orange Coast district of California but could become the example that many other areas could follow. What this means in reality is basically no SUPping in areas where people are surfing, which in Cali is everywhere...
Stand Up Paddler editor commented on the issue by saying "the tension between the surfing and standup paddling communities, (which seem to share an ironically sizeable overlap) is very real." People are so passionate about surfing, and the resource is finite, so it’s going to create problems inevitably. Especially if the sport grows. I see the problem. I see what people are worried about: inexperienced paddleboarders endangering others. Right now, we’re lucky that there’s a respect out there. Trestles still seems sacred to me. You don’t see guys out there. Where you see problems is where there is an easy access for standup paddling, like Doheny. The biggest sticking point has got to be San Onofre, because there is such a decorated history of surfing there, and you bring in another paddling craft and it’s just dicey. I think the secret to success here is humility" which seems to be an honest and fair statement. Now if you surf around here you may be asking yourself what the big deal is because at most you'll only see a few SUPpers out at a time. But where this ordinance is taking effect the amount of surfers is insane, as is the amount of SUPpers. It really is a safety concern when you get down to the heart of the issue but the fact the SUPpers are also seen as wave hogs by their prone siblings could have something to do with it.
If I had to add my opinion on this issue I would say that I understand and support this rule. Reason being. Even if you're surfing w/ a beginner on a old heavy 11' longbaord you know how to react to most situations. SUPpers tend to sit further outside and it is hard to predict their next move as they head your way while catching a wave. Plus adding 12 ft board with a 12 foot leash makes for a dangerous situation even at a distance. I would almost compare it to bikers and skaters shredding together at the park. When skaters and bikers collide things usually don't end to well for the skater. The same could be said for a heavy 12 foot sup and anyone in its path. We are very lucky in that this SUP vs Surfer issue is very mellow in NH but like all things change is inevitable and with board and paddle packages at $1000 and so many available, things could change pretty fast around here. At the same time this NH and it says Live Free or Die on my license plate which means you can paddle wherever the hell you want. For the full article, titled "The Greatr Debate", click HERE and I think the only thing left to say is Everybody At The Beach!!!
In Skate news the mini at Hampton Skatepark is complete. Full skate-lite layer and ready to rip. I skated it yesterday and it was RAD. I also got a little skate contest for you all. I want you to film your best mini ramp trick on the new mini and post it on the Pioneers facebook page by next Sunday and if your trick is chosen as the best you'll win two tickets to the Dew Tour the following weekend! I also want pictures too. The best picture taken with you skating on the mini and posted to our facebook page will also win two tickets to the Dew tour. Remember style still means something so make it steezy.
Little waves look like they're going to stick around all week so keep the log handy and be ready to glide!
