scroffmeister
June 2007
I understand what you are saying and I certainly respect your enthusiasm for the sport. However for some of us its not such a simple thing. We will support bodyboarding, the companies that support bodyboarding and we continue to be stoked by bodyboarding but as we get older priorities in our lives change, we get married, have kids, get jobs and well getting pissed off in the water and all aggressive because someone dropped in on me is not a good thing as my few hours in the surf over the weekend are supposed to relax me.I have fun and dont take anything personally in the water.
I am not going to be a pro bodyboarder and I dont begrudge anyone making some money from something they love but I equate it like a doctor and a nurse, now they both work in hospitals but one is paid far more than the other, but thats the career they chose. I dont see why I , with all my other distractions in my life, should really be concerned or bothered about someone that has decided to make their living from bodyboarding, we ALL would love that to be our careers.
Its certainly not a case of not giving a rats arse about bodyboarding and not caring.
peterbee
June 2007
Marthinus wrote:
So whats it gonna be?
1) do I want to bodyboard, UNencumbered by other people's baggage or guilt psyching??
2) do I want to score some sick waves sometime soon, and maybe chill with my buddies after a sesh and talk about the waves?
If you have answered yes to all of the above questions then you're a bodyboarder...
... no wait... there's more questions?
Marthinus
June 2007
peterbee wrote:
1) do I want to bodyboard, UNencumbered by other people's baggage or guilt psyching??
2) do I want to score some sick waves sometime soon, and maybe chill with my buddies after a sesh and talk about the waves?
If you have answered yes to all of the above questions then you're a bodyboarder...
... no wait... there's more questions?
Guy, there is no need to mock me.. what you said is completely besides the point.. and i dont see how u could have missed the point, beacuse i could not have put it any more straight forward..
The implication with "whats it gonna be?" is, you either WANT bodyboarding to grow or you DONT! Its a very simple
yes or
no question that i put forward
no dissrespect
scroffmeister
June 2007
This was posted on a forum in the UK, they were discussing the death of kneeboarding and whether or not bbing would go the same way.
"i don't think bbing is in danger of dying out, it's like all sports / hobbies etc it booms it busts, the hardcore keep it ticking over as an underground sport, then the media pick up on it as a counter-culture and propell it into its second artificial boom. The original hard-core get sick of the over-exposure and the now fashion driven "lifestyle" and go find something else to do.
It happened in the 80's to skateboarding, and stand up surfing is now in that second phase, and if you listen to or read stand up's mags you will detect a real disgust at what is happening to surfing's "soul" in the last 6 or 7 years. You can't go up a land-locked high street without seeing a clan of surfer dudes hanging out in Quicksiver clothes and "sun bleached" hair.
When stand up loses it's media image value, it will be dumped, and guess which extreme water sport they will come to devour next..."
made me think..........
Marthinus
June 2007
scroffmeister wrote:
This was posted on a forum in the UK, they were discussing the death of kneeboarding and whether or not bbing would go the same way.
"i don't think bbing is in danger of dying out, it's like all sports / hobbies etc it booms it busts, the hardcore keep it ticking over as an underground sport, then the media pick up on it as a counter-culture and propell it into its second artificial boom. The original hard-core get sick of the over-exposure and the now fashion driven "lifestyle" and go find something else to do.
It happened in the 80's to skateboarding, and stand up surfing is now in that second phase, and if you listen to or read stand up's mags you will detect a real disgust at what is happening to surfing's "soul" in the last 6 or 7 years. You can't go up a land-locked high street without seeing a clan of surfer dudes hanging out in Quicksiver clothes and "sun bleached" hair.
When stand up loses it's media image value, it will be dumped, and guess which extreme water sport they will come to devour next..."
made me think..........
Very intresting concept... thanks for the quote
Elianderthehateful
June 2007
Mrthinus...I totally get your point.
It's just that I don't really see what the issue is...if bbing goes huge, great. I'll still be doing it. If bbing dies, ell then alot of people obviously did it for the wrong reason!!! I'm not gonna quit because less people do it...
It's not like all the stand-ups out there are being paid to surf. Maybe bbing is just less popular. And therefore less money (although I agree too little money) is pushed into it.
If I could have made a ton out of bbing then I sure as hell would've, but I can't. Making money while doing something as fun as bbing is a privilege, not a right.
And I sure as hell am not going to wear bbing brands just because I have to show my support of a scene I'm not really even part of. This scene seems to be turning more and more into a little elite group of backflipping, huge wave charging bbers who don't really give a shit about those who don't bust as big as them. Hence jock-mafia!!!
I love the sport, that's why I do it.
And I love watching others rip at the sport, it's inspirational.
But don't be going around like you just cured cancer when you busted your third revo at 6ft Caves and expect the world to hold its breath in awe...the world goes on without you brother.
Marthinus
June 2007
Nico, i get your point of view..
Elianderthehateful wrote:
It's just that I don't really see what the issue is...if bbing goes huge, great
In a sense this is the issue; bodyboarding isnt just gonna go huge by itslef, it needs to be a team effort.
Thats why we cant simply sit back and say "if bbing goes huge, great" coz its neva gona happen on its own, we need to go out and actually do something about it, and SUPPORTING COMPANIES THAT SUPPORT BODYBOARDING is a very good place to start. How else do you see bbing going huge?
It all sounds very fine and dandy but i think the catch 22 in the scenario is, like you said yourself, not everyone is willing/ready to commit themselves to this..
But as i said, i understand where you coming from
Marthinus
June 2007
Damn it feels like i'm fighting a war against a entire army by myself!
Kelly, Ian, some one back me up man.. haha
I guess that at the end of the day there is actually nothing one can do to change the perceptions of others.
kimon
June 2007
i think people are disagreeing on the corporate side of things. to me, seeing it on tv would kill it a little. what i like about body boarding is its underground nature! winning respect as a sport unfortunately depends on being in the public eye though, so its a catch 22 indeed.
however, earning respect as individuals also works. if each of us conducts ourselves in a way we can be proud of (busting out, respecting others, keeping the stoke alive in a true sense of the word) then slowly, one spot or region at a time, south african bodyboarding will benefit.
marthinus, you've got mail
peterbee
June 2007
Marthinus wrote:
Guy, there is no need to mock me..
Sorry dude, apologies.
I think all I'm trying to make clear is that for some of us progression isn't about Hubb's 720, it's about making it out of the local barrel in front of one's buddies. Stoke!
There's a lot of evangelism about making the sport grow, but to some of us I guess it just seems a bit out there... as in, what difference does it really make to the non-competitive type?
Marthinus
June 2007
Peter, fair enough, it has become quite evident that people have very different outlooks and eveyone is rightly entitled to his own opinion no matter how dull(in terms of it towards the sports future) may seem..
EDIT: to me personally, progression isn't about Hubb's 720's either, if you talking about actual physical bodyboarding, to me its about stylish and well executed moves rather than just aiming to get the most air possible with no regard to style. but that is completely off the topic.
But yes, now i do understand your motives
peace
Pi bodyboardsJune 2007Ok guys,its like this...
To many bodyboarding is the stepping stone to surfing,to me its the biggest bunch of crap i can ever think of not even hugh grant cant think of something worse than that.
yes,bbing needs a team effort for it to survive(hate that too)let alone to go big and be more in the public eye.see guys its like this companies like us,ATD,PI,ROssi etc(ALL bbing companies and sponsors)Try to set the foundation for us as bbders,what happens in the sport is up to us.Make it or break it.
Try and tap Alistar Taylors brain a bit and just read what he writes, twice,if theres someone out there who can make our sport great for all of us it can be him.But once again it boils down to the support factor.
As simple as that.
Marthinus
June 2007
Pi bodyboards wrote:
To many bodyboarding is the stepping stone to surfing,to me its the biggest bunch of crap i can ever think of not even hugh grant cant think of something worse than that.
Watch out man, that sentence has got some very negative connotations to it! haha..
ElementreeJune 2007Read the article in the Sixty40 mag..."What's in a name"
Then you'll see where myself, Kelly, Alistair and Peter stand with regards to this issue.
The choice is yours...
Spy Dude
June 2007
I am not even gonna comment on this string.... doh i just did.. damn fool!!
ADD
June 2007
Howzit Marthinus,
1) Do you want to see bodyboarding on TV? Yes
2) Do you want to see professionals make a decent living from bodyboarding? Yes
3) Do you want to see corporate companies sponsoring SABA’s as well as riders? Yes
4) Do you want to see bodyboaridng in South Africa grow and develop in general? Yes
Now I have the following questions..
1) Does the general public want to see bodyboarding on TV?
2) Does the general public want to see professionals make a decent living from bodyboarding?
3) Is bodyboarding a sustainable marketing tool available to Corporate Companies allowing them to produce income from the general public inturn allowing them to sponsor SABA events?
4) Does the general public want to see bodyboarding in South Africa grow and develop?
I think the answer to this issue lies between us and the general public.. Until we have the general publics support we will always be second best, to grow our sport we need more social responsibility.. its all about getting out there and winning our army.. Not about dropping in on Surfers or complaining about how they drop in on us, its not about putting the burden of sponsorship on the corporate's its about earning the support or the admiration of the public to have the guys with interest say " I wanna start bodyboarding", its about parents saying "Son/Daughter why don't you start bodyboarding" until we manage this the big corporate's will have no interest in us... If we want fame, the corporates need income and to give the corporates that income we have to go out there every session and be the people the public want to support.. until we get this right... I am sure you can answer the question for yourselves...
Either way I am happy, Good waves and Good Times..
puku
June 2007
i definitely wanna see bodyboarding grow huge, just like it is in oz! but with surfing i reckon theres way too much focus on the competion side of things! like on tv you just check comps in crappy onshore north beach! rather document a trip into mozambique or a road trip along the coast with good,heavy waves and crazy moves! don't you think the general public would prefer that rather than 20 rolls to the beach at some blown out beach break?
marthinus i'm on you with this 1! and i smaak your avatar! haha volcom is a pile of shit!!!!
kruJune 2007what has made surfing so famous? was it the invention of the rodeo flip? was it laird getting barrelled at jaws? was it kelly's 4th, 5th or sixth world title? HELL NO. it was kate bosworth standing in a fake barrel in a movie called blue crush. At the end of the day surfing is about public perception, and the fact that it has now been made cool in the Karoo, makes some people happy and others not so happy. even as little as 10 years ago the pro surfers weren't making that much money, and they were moaning about it, hell, even today, if they can have events at big death defying teahupoo and only make $30 000 for first place while some guy gets millions for putting a small white ball in a hole. At the end of the day no one will ever be completely happy, surfing also have their issues and so does skating, golf, tennis...everyone. We are a young sport and we have the greatest asset out of every sport, we still do it because we love it more than life itself. And you can be damn proud of that. That and the fact that especially in this country there are the right people in the right places (finally!!) steering the sport in the direction we want it to go in. So keep supporting, keep spreading the word and keep on doing your sport for the right reasons...because you want to. enjoy.
Marthinus
June 2007
Solid reply Ian, very well put. stoked
Spy Dude
June 2007
well said Ian.... doh!! commented on this string again... damn FOOL
Spy Dude
June 2007
ok this comment is for shits and giggles....
Skateboarding (as an industry-related sport) possibly has the best marketing stratergy for revitalising a dying market... Tony Hawks Story is impressive.. He went from making millions to making fuckall and back to making millions (ps he had a wife, kids and expensies through all of this)
Big up to Lance Mountain who started the ball rolling...
Spy Dude
June 2007
In regards to what Ian said again.. the blue crush thing... hundreds bru!! Watch the movie.. "Thank you for Smoking" Its all about how the public percieves you....
As for Bodyboarding marketing... No friends has come close, but in my book, alas no cigar... Operation 7 by the Mawi Malitia is closer to home.
Keep it underground, keep it hard core, keep it clean, keep it professional and dont copy the rest. With enough time the lifestyle will speak for itself.
I love being a booger, its a non conformist sport, its cutting edge and constantly pushing the boundries of what is possible and what is down right silly. But its the lifestyle that i love too and thats the biggest reason i still get my fat gut and go slide it out somewhere...
Also i love the fact that surfers hate me.... hehhehehhe cos i just forgive them and that messes with their heads....
ElementreeJune 2007 Ooooo....i'm watching Operation 7 as i type....sick!
SmTJune 2007I don't Bodyboard because I want to be on TV or any of that other s*@t, if we get coverage or exposure so be it, i'm stoked, it makes explaining to people what I do a little easier.
When the next cool thing comes along and we're out of the limelight it's not going to change what I do. I'll still be sitting out there, hustling the crowds for waves, a little older and hopefully a little wiser, but i'll still be a Bodyboarder.
I have a 8-5 job, I have expenses, I studied. I miss some early surfs during the week but I still manage to get into the water, I ride SABA contests, I promote my sponsors and i'm still loving it. Stop complaining and ride because you want to, i'm sick of all the negativity, focus half of the energy into something positive and we'll get somewhere!
Len at ScienceJune 2007i have run a 2 h 24 min marathon, was 4th in SA 800m jnrs and came 74 th on my first comarades marathon and i am more ampt about the barrel that i made. at 45 years old bodyboarding makes me feel as young as hugh grant. this sport will help you to beat the ageing process. love the sport, support the companies that support you and respect all watermen that deserves it. love every moment.
hugh grant
June 2007
Where you tired after the grueling marathon Mr. Bradford?
Post a Reply
You must be
logged in to reply to this topic.
