Surfing airs are rubbish - discuss

[alakaboo]

So, it seems like the next evolution of surfing is aerial moves. We see a lot more of them in ASP/WCT (or whatever it's called now) events.

Am I alone in thinking that airs on a surfboard are, for the most part, completely boring to watch and non-functional? Same goes for bodyboards except at the higher levels...
And not just because I am never going to be stomping a full rotation reverse on the end section at Pipe.

At the moment, they seem to be massively overscored. Occasionally one gets some decent amplitude and a clean(ish) landing, e.g. Dane in Brazil, but many of them have rubbish landings and rotation completed in the foam. Even standing up appears to be optional for the move to count. Why not just go back to Slater doing kickout airs?

Witness the surfing of Pat Gudauskis at...pretty much anywhere, but especially Tahiti for a rodeo clown (which probably wouldn't even have been scored in a snowboard halfpipe event).

There are some instances where airs are truly functional and smooth. check out the 40s mark in this clip, which otherwise serves mainly to prove my point. and that surf films almost universally have shite soundtracks
http://vimeo.com/15532637

This fella does some smooth spins too...among a lot of sketched out rubbish http://vimeo.com/7162629

I take my hat off to the fellas who can do them, but I don't really get it.
Has the innovative scoring system forced people to do stuff that isn't evolved properly?
Thoughts?

[Grooter]

Some of the stuff in those clips is pretty damn impressive and it would take a massive amount of skill and natural ability to do them. I don't reckon it is rubbish, if you're that talented then all power to you if that's how you like to surf.

But because I know I could never do anything like that I don't really care much for it. Sure I'll admire it from afar but if I'm really going to watch someone surfing, and by that I mean make the effort to buy/download a DVD, find some spare time and watch it, I'd rather it be more in the Joel Tudor vein (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WoVpxPb ... re=related). Not just for the longboarding, but more for the smooth and effortless lines he creates, I'm not one for all that fast, frenetic, whip-cracking style of surfing, which is why I could watch a guy like Tudor surf all day long and don't even bother watching the ASP. The last surfing event I took notice of was last years Eddie as the big wave stuff is great to watch as well.

[Beanpole]

I was watching some footage of Honolua Bay and some older guys were getting big barrels, doing big snaps and basically taking the place apart.Other guys were going for these more radical stunts and blowing every wave. I don't like the fact that the wave is just a platform to launch a move. If the question was would you prefer to get mega pitted on a monster barrel or do a few aerials on the same wave I'd rather get pitted any day.

The fact that on shore winds are seen as favorable and little close outs are often prefered means it may become a sub sport. Allready is I reckon. That event at Bondi, the surf actually looked way better on TV. It was woeful.

I reckon it will go the way of nose riding. Really skillfull in its own way and occasionally functional but a bit of an add on in real surf. Chippa Wilsons pretty good though. I prefer his style to owen wright or ozzie for that matter.

[Cpt.Caveman]

Its all about the context in my opinion.

If its the 100th air in a row with lo-fi punk or electro playing in the background, thats going to put me to sleep.

If its Dane Reynolds who just ripped the fastest most animal gouge on a huge section who then pumps and flows into a tail-waft air, landing back into the wave to smash it all over again - Whoah!

[Cuttlefish]

They are keeping health care professionals and shapers busy that's for sure.
Busted boards and bodies.

[climbo]

sorta agree, just banging them out and landing 1 in a 100 is annoying to watch (i.e. every grommet at my local )... if you can do them and land them properly and ride out or continue the wave, give it a good score and by all means continue...

If it's the only trick on a wave and they land it and fall in to the whitewash, get covered in foam and then finally/barely stand up by the time you hit the sand, it should get no more than a 5 IMO, just the same as if you don't ride out of a 10 second barrel, you don't score very highly even though the barrel was insane, and rightly so.

[Beerfan]

No way dude, like, they're fully sick, like, awesome dude, like, dude, sick, dude, airs rock, like, yah.

[bumfluff]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INrfyzNQ ... re=related

[Kunji]

I like standup surfing to be drawing lines up and down the wave and getting kegged. Not to impressed with the airs so far. But when they do them in waves of consequence, they look pretty terrific. They should just name them what they are instead of Quiksilver Sushi Roll™

[Trev]

It's the snowboarding half pipe, skate bowl influence - more an dmore radical moves.
Admirable talent and skill but as I've said before, modern shortboarders remind me most of acrobats or gymnasts.
Tudor's surfing is awesome to watch. I agree with Hatchman.

[Cuttlefish]

The tables have been turned.
Originally skateboarders and then snowboarders aped surfing.
Now it's the other way around with aerial tricks.
Surfers are now followers.

[Deesee]

Probably the raddest example of air on a board - megaramp fakie to fakie 900 (insane). If you want to get straight to the action got to the 2:30 mark. Makes surfing airs naff and redundant.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG_JUCZf3mg

[Kunji]

Probably the raddest example of air on a board - megaramp fakie to fakie 900 (insane). If you want to get straight to the action got to the 2:30 mark. Makes surfing airs naff and redundant.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG_JUCZf3mg

Seen that before, pretty sick!

Now check out some BMX action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GY1CPDXmJ1s
TJ Ellis' winning run is pretty impressive.

[alakaboo]

Probably the raddest example of air on a board - megaramp fakie to fakie 900 (insane). If you want to get straight to the action got to the 2:30 mark. Makes surfing airs naff and redundant.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG_JUCZf3mg

yeah, it's alright, but it doesn't involve linking or flowing. It's just a single trick.
this is better for mine, i reckon halpipe snowboarding is the closest to surfing because they have to also maintain the speed down the hill.
http://vimeo.com/8588341

[jimmy]

I think it's also worth pointing out that Skaters and Snowboarders have a fixed canvas rather than a wave that is constantly changing..

[alakaboo]

yeah, i started writing about that, but i got bored before i got the words the way i wanted them...

the problem lies, i think, in the need to maintain momentum in more than one plane, along the wave and towards the beach (so you land back on an unbroken part of the wave).
this means you can't hit the 'transition' as vertically as you would if you were on a snowboard. (skate halfpipe doesn't have to worry about lateral/downhill movement either), because you have to hit the section either before it's vertical and with projection along the wave(and hope for onshores to blow you in front of the wave), or later and gain the forward projection from the pitching lip. easy on a bodyboard where you can compress and bend to fit the wave, nigh on impossible on a surfboard. if you do the second one, then you need a lot of speed down the line, or a wave that bends back into a rampy section.

interesting to think about the physics, but i'm still no likelier to be hucking anytime soon.

[Beanpole]

Always great when someone tries one in front of you when your paddling out :?

I reckon its great that theyve found something to do with onshore rubbish. Also like the bali footage where they concentrate on changu and turtle island with onshore winds. You can happily stay there guys. Just leave me the lined up offshore reefs and points

[purple pyramids]

reminds me of skating in the 80s, in bowls and half-pipes.
that became so dull, so quickly that skating nearly sunk itself before returning to street skating.