Coconut Wireless: Is The Dream Dead?
Justin Cote
- November 10 2009
- 21 comments
Is The Pro Surfing Dream Dead? That and a North Shore update from Flynn Novak via the Coconut Wireless
Here we go again, the North Shore winter season is at hand…
I was made aware of this when I noticed about 10 visiting surfers following my every move in the shifty lineup at Rocky Point the other day. The current was strong, the waves were inconsistent, and I had numerous human obstacles to avoid…well all right, here we go again! I gotta get back into the groove of evading other surfers in the lineup with false movements and smokescreens. But aside from this and the traffic factor, I love our North Shore winters more than anything. You have to love it; otherwise you’ll go insane from hating it so much! At least that’s how I work. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a people person, but I can’t be genuine with everyone, every single second of every single day. I need outlets and getaways in order to re-group and step back from the chaos of the battlefield on the ‘Northern Front.’
This past week saw a series of smaller scaled north swells sweep the sand back onto the reef at Pipe. There was a ’sandbar craze’ as everyone and their uncle’s were frothing on the newly formed sandbars around Ehukai Beach Park. The sandbar craze is still going on, even though the waves there aren’t much to froth over. The weather was mostly overcast and rainy this past week, greeting all the annual newcomers back to the North Shore in a somewhat soggy fashion.
I recently read a piece on insurfnews.com about recent Xcel Pro winner Hank Gaskell, that I feel everyone should read, check it out at insurfnews.com
Here’s a quick snippet: “Why doesn’t Hank have a sponsor? It’s the simple and ugly fact that he’s from Hawaii. The argument against him is, you can’t market a Hawaiian outside of Hawaii. If Hank were from California or the East Coast and had the same accomplishments there would never be a lapse in his sponsorship. Industry insiders will most likely deflect this criticism and blame his lack of sponsorship on the economy. But, they would be hard pressed to name a mainland surfer of equal stature who is also without sponsorship.”—from insurfnews.com
I really like how Andrew Oliver broke the industry down with his piece. I have to agree with him on his opinion regarding pro surfing in Hawaii in the article entitled “Why Hank Gaskell Matters” Here are a couple Hawaii groms and Daniel Jones (with his nephew Spike) their thoughts on “Is The Pro Surfing Dream Dead?”—Flynn Novak
So what do you think, is it harder for Hawaiian kids to get sponsored and recognized than their Mainland counterparts? What about other areas of the world like South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, etc.?
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November 10th, 2009 at 8:50 pm
boo hoo. some Hawaiians are gonna have to get real jobs and on their free time like everyone else
November 10th, 2009 at 8:51 pm
get real jobs and surf* on their own time
November 10th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
I think Hawaii's scene is getting trumped by places like Indo where the scene seems to be growing at an exponential rate. It seems like recently Indonesian surfers get just as much coverage as Hawaiian ones. Not to knock on Indo at all, but just an observation that there are other surf meccas that are getting so much attention now. Back in the days of the 80's and 90's it seemed like Hawaii got all the attention….now not so much.
November 10th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Andrew is correct. What can Hank do for a surf company? Truth is, Hawaiians aren't under-sponsored, kids from California are horribly over-sponsored. Surf companies would be wise to cut their list to a select few and be done with it. Give the rest of 'em some free shirts and they'd be just as well off. Has Quik suffered from letting Danny Fully go? Did anyone even notice that they let him go? Of those, did anyone actually care or stop buying Quik stuff because of it? Of course not.
November 10th, 2009 at 10:59 pm
it's definitely harder for hawaiian kids to stay humble these days. boo fucking hoo no one wants to pay you to represent them and it's most likely because your own big fat ego.
November 10th, 2009 at 11:35 pm
for individuals who have nothing to bring to the table fk yeah the dream is over…
lol @ barrack, needs to learn not to drop in on people better than him first haha… wow… seems to only surf town sueprise
daniel jones with tub of ice cream… stoni fest.
November 10th, 2009 at 11:48 pm
danny fuller surfed for QUIK?
November 11th, 2009 at 12:08 am
first off no disrespect for all the unsponsored shredders however you must look at this situation from the company's perspective (economic reasons) if you are a global brand trying to SELL as many products as possible across the world it is an unwise investment to sponsor a bunch of people from a small area with the same demographic than a smaller, more diverse group of surfers because being a sponsored surfer isn't necessarily being the best surfer but the best image that will sell the most. everything is based on capitalism and this is no different. It is about advertising to the greatest possible amount of people to buy your product. so an oversaturation of the market and having ten hawaiian surfers and no surfers from the northeast is a business plan failure. another point though thought by many as mistreated, neglected brother of the surfing world is the northeast: you companies are blowing it just think of all the major cities located in this region of the country so by you NOT supporting the northeast a huge market for sale has just gone down the drain
November 11th, 2009 at 12:23 am
Not talking about Hank G or Flynn but half the guys on the north shore who think they are pro can't even surf excellent. Sure they can make a drop and turn under the lip- but pretty much all good surfers from hawaii can do that- but most of them are too humble to try and market themselves as pro and just go out and enjoy the water. It takes a lot of work to make it as a pro… and talent.
November 11th, 2009 at 12:34 am
exactly.
November 11th, 2009 at 12:47 am
dude, i just gotta say that specifically with reference to Hank, you're way off. He is from a super rural town on an outer island and nicknamed "hippy hank." mellow genuine guy in touch with his island and surroundings. i can't say anything bad about him.
November 11th, 2009 at 12:59 am
I've had to start over a number of times in my career. Sometimes due to the economy and sometimes due to my own demise. This sucks for guys like Hank Gaskel (and me), but we must ask the question that matters…does Hank Gaskel move product? No, Hank doesn't move product. Even though Nike made $172 million in a quarter this still doesn't mean they(Hurley/Nike) should keep him around. Companies allows use economic downturns as an excuse to trim the fat and that's just how the cookie crumbles.
If there's a will there's a way for Hank or any other Hawaiian if they really want it.
November 11th, 2009 at 1:44 am
the northeast…is he crazy…bunch of kooks out there……hippie hank from hana surfs sick
November 11th, 2009 at 3:47 am
Hank's a fuckin killer. He charges and can boost biggs. I think the QS and hopefully the CT would be his best bet. How he will fund that route is the bigger question. There are a few CTers doin it the hard way. If I was Hank, I'd look to those guys for some of the answers.
November 11th, 2009 at 4:12 am
never noticed his departure either
November 11th, 2009 at 5:04 am
Hello! Hank should of looked at Hurleys track record before signing the dotted line. That brand is notorious for playing sides to look good. ( HELLO ITS JUST BIG BUSINESS IN A WANABEE BIG BUSINESS CALLED SURFING) It would blow your mind how many good surfers loosed thier job @ HURLEY when they were gettting the most coverage/ marketing for them. Any one remember the Malloys?? Josh Sleigh?? Cory Lopez Shea. Wake the fuck up Folks. Each one of those individuals ripped & still rips. If you really want to stop a brands growth stop talking about them. Best yet support the new grass root brands that are small. Cause this hole Hollywood look we are Nike crap has made surfing lame again.
Any one see Machados movie Drifter? How come Taylor Steel blew 1 million on a fake story on a guy (Machado) who is a Dad? Not a Drifter.
In life thier are cycles that make it grow & retract. Right now to be a surfer, a brand, or just a normal father looking to provide for his family is out of a job. And if your trying to be a pro surfer & all of the above then little boys need grow up. But somtimes we need to be humbled or the door needs to close cause were being prepared for a bigger & better plan. But getting dumped hurts. Especially when you grow with the brand & then your cut & have to realize you could loose it all.
At the end of the day at least Hank can walk out the door & be in Hawaii. Sometimes lifes Gold is just going out the door. Keep Surfing Poeple & realize if your getting paid to surf understand their is no Job security in Surfing. So enjoy the ride cause just lke a wave it to will end.
November 11th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
"At the end of the day at least Hank can walk out the door & be in Hawaii."
True, true… and deep. You guys are living the dream, never take it for granted.
As far as pro surfing goes, nowadays everyone is sooo good that it really doesn't matter if you're a little bit better, or get a few more points in a contest. You have to market your personality, just like everyone else in show business. Do you care if some actor's technique is a little better than some other actors'? Hell no; you go see the movie starring the guy whose character intrigues you. Same thing.
Aloha, Uncle Rick.
November 11th, 2009 at 10:07 pm
Bobby Martinez or Bede Durbidge? Time to get to work boys.
November 14th, 2009 at 8:04 pm
Flynn, you should interview Joel, Kekoa, Brock and or Kaliani to see what they think of Hurley; all Hawaiians sponsored by Hurley. Hank rips and this probably will get him to surf harder and wanted even more
Do you still ride for NO FEAR?
Welcome to real life