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Instalment number one: How to promote progressive surfing on tour:
Category: General
Posted by: tim
Okay, everyone wants to promote so-called "progressive surfing." How do we achieve this? Currently, the judges score each surfer on their best two rides. What appears to stifle the spread of "progressive surfing" is that surfers fear falling off and blowing a wave and losing a potential score. What if instead they were scored on their best wave and their best individual manoeuvre? Surfers would need to try and complete one wave ridden well from start to finish and also throw down the most radical, wild manoeuvre they can on another wave, without having to worry about the number of manoeuvres they fit into the wave. Progressive surfing, especially airs, often require the surfer to sacrifice sections to generate speed and aim for a ramp to launch from, so this system would allow them to do this without having to worry about fitting in maximum manoeuvres every wave. High scoring single manoeuvres wouldn't just have to be airs - it could be a big hack, a perfect figure eight roundhouse cutback, or even a tube ride could be scored as a manoeuvre. Of course, surfers could still perform "progressive surfing" on their ride that is judged for the entire wave and receive high scores, but they would also have the freedom to choose a wave simply for the opportunity to go for one crazy move. Degree of difficulty, control, clean landing, riding out of the turn, speed and power could all be considered in the judging and the judging panel could be thoroughly drilled in the relative difficulty of the various aerial manoeuvres by the relevant experts. Thus, in any given heat, each surfer could go out and go wild trying to complete one crazy move for half the heat, even on a sniveller if sets were rare, and spend the other half of the heat waiting for a bomb and trying to go to town on it from start to finish. It would combine the two disciplines that the opposing new and old schools of surfing seem to value - completing the wave with flawless technique and control and performing the most outlandish manoeuvres with little regard for finishing the wave or linking turns. Watching Dane and Mick going at it head to head - where either a crazy air 360 or a flawless rap around cutty could earn a 10 would be something to watch and would satisfy surf fans of all persuasions. Each surfer would still end up with a total score out of 20 - a possible 10 for the best ride and a possible 10 for their best single manoeuvre. Surfers could signal to have a ride scored for a single manoeuvre by nominating it, holding both hands in the air at the end of the ride. Andriano de Souza might have to have this carefully explained to him so he doesn't continue to claim every single wave he rides, but these sort of inevitable teething problems could be overcome. There you have it. Problem solved. NEXT!
PS. Asked Kelly Slater what he thought of this and he said: "Very good idea. I've been thinking along this same line of somehow scoring individual maneuvers and your one best overall ride. That leaves every other wave open to something just big. We should come up with a real good plan of how to utilize fairly. Speak soon."