Ask Carroll

[Nick Carroll]

from a very cold point of view, the WSL just scored an epic publicity hit, that's probably the biggest single global news story of the day, and everyone came out unhurt and looking like heroes.

Agreed Nick, but I'm puzzled why the live feed went off for so long. Mainstream media had the story (and longer video) online while WSL was still off. Obviously they should do their utmost to avoid broadcasting actual footage of a death or serious injury. But why cut the commentary? And once it was clear Mick and Julian were out of harms way, why didn't the stream come straight back on?

Maybe I'm connecting the wrong dots, but WSL doesn't seem to have someone with sufficient capacity in charge of this stuff on the fly. (Or even afterwards. e.g the three heats around the Medina/Micro spat on the Goldie are still not online on heat analyzer FFS.)

I assume a lot of people were sitting there feeling pretty emotional and WSL kind of dropped the ball instead of kicking a huge goal in connecting with their audience, even though they did alright afterwards with the Mick/Julian/Kelly interviews etc. Am I being too harsh? Noone could predict this incident but surely with Chopes, the Box, etc. and the basic nature of surfing, the possibility of a serious incident is always there, and they seem very underprepared.

Umm yeah I think they probably just panicked and steered away from it. Like there's no precedent so they didn't know where to go with it. I dunno who was running the communications on the ground. The main thing was making sure Mick and Julian were safe and protected.

[Nick Carroll]

Godspeed across the channel Carroll.

May the road rise to meet you.

Ha it's gonna be pretty funny. It's HOT here which is a crazy contrast to Sydney lately. I did a wake up paddle from Turtle Bay to Pipe today with TC and Jamie Mitchell under sunny early arvo skies, beautiful downwind conditions. Jamie was on a big SUP and got away from me over the distance. I tried to shake off the plane flight and partly succeeded. I'll feel different in a week but I already know I'm gonna go to some strange places in my head.

[Natho]

Thanks Nick. for me the tri suit is probably more about getting me into the open water at 5am mid winter when its freezing cold rather than float. been offered a brand new $980 rrp suit for $140. reckon I will try it and I don't like it I can flog it to some other poor bastard on realsurf.
If Gauly wins he should have two bottles of good French bubbly with him to open and celebrate with. You are welcome to have a glass or two.

[xe]

Nick, (And anyone else who knows)

Who is the writer 'Lamont' that wrote for ASL and some syndicated articles?

Cheers.

[steve shearer]

mimi lamongtange?

[xe]

Thanks Steve thought that would be mimi...

[rmb]

Nick ever had an encounter with a white pointer.

[The Mighty Sunbird]

Or Mimi lamontange?

[Nick Carroll]

Nick ever had an encounter with a white pointer.

I don't know. I've seen quite a few sharks. Actually yes! I have. Just popped into my head. About 15 years ago, in winter, I was paddling around on a sandbank off Newport looking for a little wave, clean light westerly, super clear water. And one swam right underneath me. It was only pretty small, eight feet long? But very distinctively a white shark, that thick missile head and massive pectoral fins. It was very docile and just sorta swam along slowly. I couldn't help it, I followed it along off to the side at a minor distance, and eventually it just wandered off into deeper water.

Someone else saw it later that day so I knew I was not tripping.

[Nick Carroll]

Or Mimi lamontange?

Leave Mimi out of this you revolting man.

[ctd]

Nick, how do you remember things like the wind direction 15yrs ago? Do you review every session to get it into your mind to improve the next one?

I have dealt with a few pro athletes (different sports, not surfing) and a lot of them seem to have an amazing ability to recall previous games or races. I don't know whether being pro (ie it being your work) means they focus more, or because they focus more they succeed.

[chrisb]

Nick, what do you think about the distributions of points and prize-money following Mick's shark attack?
Should the fairest distribution be to give each participant 50% of 1st place plus 50% of 2nd place for both points and prize money?
Sure, deSouza stays just that little bit further ahead than if the final was decided but I cannot think of any fairer way.
Did the tour organisers have rules in place for an abandoned final or was their decision just made after the event ended prematurely? (I'm presuming that if not, then this would set the precedent)

[Cranked]

Nick, in the ligh of recent events I think it best that you seek the aid of a the great shark-god of Molokai before the race.

From my research I recommend you go to the steep precipice which overlooks Kalaupapa and Kalawao, the present home of the lepers. At the foot of this precipice is a heiau, in which the great shark-god is worshipped. Climb down the sides of the bold cliffs south of Kalawao to the cave of the eel, here dwells the great shark-god Kauhuhu and his guardians or watchers, Waka and Mo-o, the great dragons or reptiles of Polynesian legends.

These dragons are mighty warriors in the defence of the shark-god, and are his kahus, or caretakers, necessary while he sleeps, or when his cave needs watching during his absence.

On your shoulders should be a black pig, food for the great [shark] Mano, but fish for Kauhuhu. Here's the tabu place." "Death it may be--life it may be".

Leave your offering and depart quickly

[Nick Carroll]

Nick, how do you remember things like the wind direction 15yrs ago? Do you review every session to get it into your mind to improve the next one?

I have dealt with a few pro athletes (different sports, not surfing) and a lot of them seem to have an amazing ability to recall previous games or races. I don't know whether being pro (ie it being your work) means they focus more, or because they focus more they succeed.

Ah I think a lot of sessions just are ground into my memory. I wouldn't consciously go through a review process but there's a review that happens anyway after many good surfs, just thinking back on the highs and lows of the surf and talking about it with the people you were surfing with. That dynamic is really a big one in surfing for many good surfers and often these days their good sessions are helped in review by looking at video afterward.

I feel like I could write a book based on virtually nothing other than going for surfs. Not some cheesy allegorical thing either, just actual surfs, the things that happen during surfs. Fcuk! I'm gonna have a crack at that.

In my experience and from observation I'd say it's because they focus more that they succeed. A lot of such people start very young, long before they're getting paid to do what they do. That's where they engage and develop that latent ability to tighten the focus and hold it.

[crabmeat thompson]

nick.

toothpicks or floss?

[Nick Carroll]

Nick, what do you think about the distributions of points and prize-money following Mick's shark attack?
Should the fairest distribution be to give each participant 50% of 1st place plus 50% of 2nd place for both points and prize money?
Sure, deSouza stays just that little bit further ahead than if the final was decided but I cannot think of any fairer way.
Did the tour organisers have rules in place for an abandoned final or was their decision just made after the event ended prematurely? (I'm presuming that if not, then this would set the precedent)

There's rules around this, I think they just did what the rules say. I'll have a look at the rule book.

I don't think it would have been fair to award a portion of winning points or money to the two competitors though, no. They made the final, that doesn't entitle you to a presumption of victory. The only thing you can say for sure is that they were both definitely gonna get second at least.

[Nick Carroll]

Nick, in the ligh of recent events I think it best that you seek the aid of a the great shark-god of Molokai before the race.

From my research I recommend you go to the steep precipice which overlooks Kalaupapa and Kalawao, the present home of the lepers. At the foot of this precipice is a heiau, in which the great shark-god is worshipped. Climb down the sides of the bold cliffs south of Kalawao to the cave of the eel, here dwells the great shark-god Kauhuhu and his guardians or watchers, Waka and Mo-o, the great dragons or reptiles of Polynesian legends.

These dragons are mighty warriors in the defence of the shark-god, and are his kahus, or caretakers, necessary while he sleeps, or when his cave needs watching during his absence.

On your shoulders should be a black pig, food for the great [shark] Mano, but fish for Kauhuhu. Here's the tabu place." "Death it may be--life it may be".

Leave your offering and depart quickly

OK no worries. We're gonna go over to Molokai a day early and were just gonna drive around sightseeing etc but let's just go with the feeding the shark god and his warriors.

[steve shearer]

I feel like I could write a book based on virtually nothing other than going for surfs. Not some cheesy allegorical thing either, just actual surfs, the things that happen during surfs. Fcuk! I'm gonna have a crack at that.

I'd love to read that. I love the phenomenology of surfing. Just what happens, both objectively and interiorly.