Amidst the quiet of lake-like conditions, ASP officials and pro surfers took to the mic in Mundaka, Spain to announce that the ASP would remain the only game in town. If you didn't know, Kelly Slater and ESPN were proposing a breakaway pro tour that would court major sport industry sponsorship and gobs of media coverage to essentially pull a rug out from under the ASP's dominance. The buzz of this "Champions Tour" began ruffling feathers and piquing many a pro surfer's interest some months ago when Kelly Slater discussed the idea with several surfing heavies, the Irons Bros and Jamie Obrien to name a few, and convinced them that the current form of the ASP is obsolete and self-serving. But the board of directors announced today that they would lower the number of competing surfers from 45 to 32, up the prize money across the board, and shuffle some internal positions and power wielders. But is that the BIG CHANGE that was on the horizon? Is this all it takes to keep surfers from trying something new and freshening up the game a bit?
I say throw a monkey wrench into the whole machine. Build a pro-level wave pool for use at some contests and mix in a tow surf event as well. Tally team competition points. Build that Aussie-Seppo rivalry again and waving flags. Incorporate board building and design into the process. Require that a surfer shape his own board and ride it in certain events or have surfers compete in short and long board heats (and body surfing too) and add the points at the end. Make the tour more about being a master surfer rather than simply a performance artist in one genre. Surfing is about more than shredding a short board. Surfing is about crafting a life experience that puts riding waves firmly on the priority list and then ruling that experience on a daily basis. Just live and love what you do. Alright, maybe that might be tough to judge objectively.
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