Boardriders who are clubbies

Post by **buzzy** » Fri Jan 07, 2005 1:25 pm

When I was a takker about the worst thing you could be was a clubbie. Clubbies were the blokes you had fights with, not were.

I'm about to join my local club, do the bronze medallion (I did a stillwater one years ago but worth jack now) and start patrolling. It's probably about time I did something worthwhile, and "gave something back". Anyone else here a clubbie and boardrider? Anyone feel a bit conflicted by it (like me) or are clubbies and boardriders best mates nowadays?

Post by **Longygrom** » Fri Jan 07, 2005 10:12 pm

The clubbies and boardriders are definitely not best mates at long reef nowadays.

I think the new clubbies imported from collaroy are slowly finding their way around the beach and finding out which surfers to blow a whistle at to move, and which surfers not to blow a whistle at.

LRSA · Post by **LRSA** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 8:38 am

Yeah im embarassed to be apart of it sometimes. But I have to do it so that I can row. The new lifegaurds this year are so lazy. I don't think i've seen the flags move from shark tower?

But collaroy are just the pits. Me and a mate were surfing the pipe it was raining and no one was even swimming in the flags and he got suspended from the beach for 4 hours for doing it and then they came out and did laps around me in the duckie and abused the shit out of me. Any way my next wave was into the flags...

tubedude · Post by **tubedude** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 10:52 am

yeah me and my mates hang around north stenyne, got our bronze and patrol once in while..... its fun when its flat and u can take the rescue boards out for a surf.... its also a good place to hang on long. boring and flat summer days

Post by **marcus** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 12:57 pm

is it just me, or do most 'sunday' clubies seem to not know much about the ocean?
they talk about rips and sandbanks in a way that seems opposite to surfers and boogers.
rips can be great to surf in, and a quick way to paddle out, but the weekend clubies ive met seem like they have been trained to be too wary of them.
it would be good if more clubies were good surfers, rather than those overweight guys that blow whistles.
that being said, the pro lifeguards seem to be pretty cool.

LRSA · Post by **LRSA** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 4:24 pm

Yeah most of them are stooges but some have a fair idea. Some of the life gaurds are cool. The old one at longy was sweet but the new ones are the biggest wankers ever. But the sunday clubbies at collaroy are the biggest bunch of tools on the northern beaches...

Post by **Longygrom** » Sat Jan 08, 2005 5:07 pm

Yer Jim his name was. I remember he moved the flags on to the other side of the lagoon so we could surf the bank straight out.

Chonie · Post by **Chonie** » Sun Jan 09, 2005 11:38 am

Ive never really understood this clubbie thing. My friend Cate is a surfer and also works at DY as a vol lifegaurd. You'd think most clubbies would be surfers if theyve chosen to work or volunteer at the beach? Why is there this rif between the two groups? Both love the ocean and i just think it weird they dont get along.

Feel free to open my eyes to the real issues out there.

Post by **kjpwong** » Sun Jan 09, 2005 4:01 pm

i dont really understand why clubbies seem to be against surfers. i reckon both clubbies and surfers are loving the same beautiful ocean and i dont see why they should hate each other. i m a clubbie at freshie and also an occusional surfer 2-3 times a week and i really cant stand how they say 'the biggest enemies of surfers are clubbies', but i have to admit that minority of surfers do create an image of arrogant little punks and some clubbies can be tight arses every now and then but their principal while being on patrol is to guarantee safety of everyone. after all we are all healthy aussies who love the mother nature. so, stay cool!

Post by **FishStick** » Sun Jan 09, 2005 10:59 pm

I've always wondered if a surfer is in trouble and he raises his hand will the IRB come or do you have to be in between the flags to even get noticed?

I don't hate clubbies but sometimes when conditions are big and the takeoff spot is right in between the flags but really far away from the shore it can get frustrating. Once you ride the wave left or right you will no longer be in the flags and still very far from the shore and the swimmers. So you paddle into the flags and then you hear it "attention in the wadda......blah blah"

Surely there should be a distance limit to the flags too?

Oh and the kiddies training at Freshie is always fun just when a set comes in you are surrounded by kids doing a lap hahaha or 10 of them going for a wave on a surfski.

Post by **kjpwong** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 1:13 am

haha, i was probably one of tham who run laps at freshie. i do surf life-saving for summer sport at school (st ignatius riverview). i m usually on patrol on sundays and training with a bit of surfing on saturday.

Post by **marcus** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 1:51 am

Chonie wrote:Ive never really understood this clubbie thing. My friend Cate is a surfer and also works at DY as a vol lifegaurd. You'd think most clubbies would be surfers if theyve chosen to work or volunteer at the beach? Why is there this rif between the two groups? Both love the ocean and i just think it weird they dont get along.

Feel free to open my eyes to the real issues out there.

chonie, i have friends that are clubbies, 'surge' on here is one.
we think differently about the water, for example to teach a girl how to surf, he told her to stay away from the rips, so she just ended up getting axed on a shallow sandbank of closeouts, whereas i took her out in the "big bad rip" and she was able to paddle out the back and catch a wave with a face.
also having those IRB boats hooning around, lifeguards blowing whistles at me when im swimming outside the flags... like for instance i swim regularly from wollongong harbour to north beach, then bodysurf in, but they blow whistles at me when i swim all that way then swim into the rip, jeez, i can handle a 2 foot onshore rip.
i think some of them are ok, but some are just do-gooders that only go to the beach on summer weekends for a social outing.
ive been through the training they get, and they get drummed into them stories of collapsing sandbanks and all sorts of nonsence.
the pros down here are cool tho, and at cronulla they will even tow you in, but those sunday social ones...baah

Post by **Clif** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 9:33 am

doesn't the split go some way back into history when surfers started abandoning slsa clubs, and the tradition seems to be dieing hard. resentment either way? maybe a few of the old boys could enlighten us?
an alternative is to surf the reefs, few clubbies there

there is something in those caps, like mindwarping ifra red rays that go into the brain, about power beholden to wearers of budgie smugglers - they have to compensate for their homoerotic tendencies somehow.

Post by **fletch** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 9:39 am

Chonie wrote:Ive never really understood this clubbie thing. My friend Cate is a surfer and also works at DY as a vol lifegaurd. You'd think most clubbies would be surfers if theyve chosen to work or volunteer at the beach? Why is there this rif between the two groups? Both love the ocean and i just think it weird they dont get along.

Feel free to open my eyes to the real issues out there.

You don't see a problem with someone sticking flags up on what is usually the best bank on the beach?

Post by **munch** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:03 am

to few characters.

Post by **kookmachine** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:12 am

i reckons youd all feel a tiny bit differently if one of you or your family were rescued by a bunch of lifesavers but........

Post by **buzzy** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:14 am

Nat's biography gives a little bit of detail the split in the clubbie movement. Basically at one point in time all surfers were also clubbies, but over time boardriders dropped out of the clubs to spend more time surfing, which caused some resentment. This was also around the time of the youth culture was developing so there was a bit of attitude toward the rigid rules based clubbie society. By the early seventies arived the cultural gap was huge. The surfers were long haired drug taking counter culture folk, whereas the clubbies were, I dunno, John Howard with a tan. By the time I started surfing in the late 70's the divisions were really well established. Clubbies were clubbies and surfers were surfers and there was no crossing over.

Anyways, I joined on the weekend. It'll be interesting. There seem to be a few boardriders in the club, so the culture should be cool. I just figure I've spent enough time sucking the benefit out of things and maybe it's time to give something back. I agree clubbies and indeed the whole SLSC movement is imperfect but it's still a valuable service offered to the community for free.

I get pissed off about the flags as much as anyone. Particularly at the moment at Bondi where they've stolen a bit more of the beach than usual and one of the best banks at the moment is in the middle of the flags. But the spot where the flags usually go is a rip so I have to reluctantly concede it has to be where it is.

Post by **munch** » Mon Jan 10, 2005 12:36 pm

to few characters.

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