Longboarders Versus SUP Battle At Malibu
Justin Cote
- September 24 2008
- 854 views
- 18 comments
As reported on the Christian Science Monitor
It’s been nearly 30 minutes since the last rideable wave rolled through first point at Malibu, and about three dozen surfers are cold and downright cranky. “Would someone please deposit a token to start the wave machine,” grouses one surfer.
A few chuckles and pseudo dolphin cries later, a wave forms in the distance and a mass migration of surfers begins jockeying for position.
“It’s mine, it’s mine,” a longboarder shouts as he maneuvers his 10-foot projectile in front of the oncoming wall of water. He is sandwiched between 15 other surfers, all of whom are charging the same wave with ravenous eyes and visions of 10-toe glory.
And then there’s Tom Tilberg, already standing on his board and gracefully sweeping the water with a paddle like a gondolier. Two quick strokes and he’s the first one in the wave, enjoying a 50-yard ride that ends with a frothy finish.
“It’s just too easy to get into waves on this thing,” says Mr. Tilberg, riding his stand-up paddle board. “Sometimes you get dirty looks.”
Wave envy – or perhaps animosity – runs deep in southern California as more people jockey to ride the same crowded breaks. Now a new form of surfing is gaining popularity that is adding to the congestion off coastlines around the country.
Called stand up paddle surfing, or SUP for short, it involves using a big surfboard that is stable enough to stand on when in flat water. Then, wielding a paddle or “blade” for propulsion, SUP riders canoe up to catch a wave.
The technique makes it far easier to paddle into everything from a snapper to a hollowed-out A-frame and has opened the exclusive world of surfing to more novices.
Which is where the problem begins. Many traditional surfers, a cliquish group to begin with, resent these table-top-size boards invading their aquatic turf.
They sniff that SUP is like riding a bike with training wheels. Like skiing with a helmet. Like hitting a baseball off a tee.
Or, as veteran Malibu surfer Eric Walker, puts it: “It’s like watching a Mack Truck come down the line versus a Toyota Echo.”
But the purists may want to get used to their paddling cousins. Like snowboarding, SUP doesn’t look like it will vanish with the next swell. “It’s not a fad – it’s already sticking,” says Matt Warshaw, author of “The Encyclopedia of Surfing.”
•••
On average, waves at Malibu’s first point, arguably among the best on the West Coast, provide rides that range from 5 to 10 seconds. When you consider that several dozen surfers usually vie for each swell, you can begin to understand the arithmetic behind the animosity.
Moreover, just having someone slashing around in the surf with a paddle, and already in the standing position before a wave even breaks, further irritates traditional boarders, who spend most of their time laying idle on their bellies.
Surf shops up and down southern California’s coast are selling stand-up boards and offering lessons. The problem is that SUP riders with little or no surfing experience don’t understand the etiquette of the water.
“SUPs will pull into a wave with their paddles right in front of you, and you’re like, ‘really, did that just happen?’ ” Mr. Walker says. “Too bad there isn’t a bike lane for stand up surfers.”
Yet not all SUP riders are new to the sport. In fact, the roots of stand-up surfing reach back more than 100 years ago, when wave riders in Hawaii were using paddles and wood planks for transportation. Some surfers even believe that today’s version of stand-up surfing echoes the practices of the ancient Polynesians.
“SUP is a throwback to what true watermen all aspired to do, and once you try it, you’re instantly hooked,” says Scott Bass, a San Diego surf talk radio host. “But it’s also a curse.”
Mr. Bass, who prefers stand-up surfing when the waves aren’t big enough for shortboarding, says SUP is like having too much of a good thing.
“People see stand-up riders catching waves and suddenly they’re everyone’s enemy,” he says. “There are some beaches where there’s such a negative vibe that stand-up surfers don’t even step foot in the water.”
On a recent weekend afternoon at Topanga State Beach in Los Angeles County, nearly 40 surfers bobbed offshore without a single SUP. The crowd at Malibu was similar, as Sunny Chang, an outdoor instructor for the store REI, was just finishing up her session.
Ms. Chang says contrary to what traditional surfers think, she believes SUP riders are always welcome.
“It’s just a slightly different way of surfing,” says Chang, her 9-foot, 2-inch longboard tucked under her arm. “Everyone is entitled to surf.”
But Jefferson Wagner, a Malibu city councilman, disagrees. “Stand-up paddle boarders should be banned from the surf zone,” says Mr. Wagner, who owns Zuma Jay, a surf shop that is a Malibu icon. “SUPs are too large and bulky for a person to control around other people.”
Most SUPs are nine to 10 feet long, not much different than longboards. But they are at least an inch and a half thicker and wider than traditional boards. And many SUP riders don’t wear leashes to keep their boards from tumbling toward surfers and swimmers closer to shore.
“I can just see some unsuspecting family visiting from the East Coast getting slammed by one of these boards set loose in the water,” Wagner says.
Kayaks are already banned at Malibu’s Surfrider Beach, so Wagner doesn’t think it’s unreasonable to banish SUPs as well. Of course, the cost of stand-up surfboards could end up being more of an impediment than any government restrictions or gnarly vibes in the water. Most SUPs, often carbon-wrapped, run anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000, and that usually doesn’t include the $250 paddle.
Freddie Morales, a longboarder, says he has no problem with SUPs “in the lineup” as long as stand-up riders and traditional surfers respect each other.
“There used to be a rivalry among longboarders and shortboarders, but that has basically dissipated,” says Mr. Morales, who works at Masi Custom Surfboards in San Diego. “I suspect the same will eventually happen between SUP and traditional surfers.”
•••
Some resistance to SUP clearly remains more philosophical than pragmatic. Many purists believe using a paddle and a lumbering board is like surfing with a pontoon boat.
They prefer the purity of using arms and legs to propel themselves into a wave and then relying on their own dexterity and balance and feel to negotiate the water – in other words, “true” surfing.
“I have no interest in trying SUP,” says Chris Dewind, a devoted shortboarder and college student from Malibu. “You see these SUP riders sitting way outside or on the shoulder [of a point break], and they just don’t care about the other surfers.”
Mr. Dewind admits that it is more difficult to catch a wave on a shortboard than a SUP, but “I still think they should go find their own peaks – away from traditional surfers.”
Still, not everyone believes there needs to be segregated surf zones. Greg Bonann, a Los Angeles County lifeguard and creator of the TV series “Baywatch,” draws a comparison between SUVs and smaller cars.
“One is bigger, and you don’t want to get hit by it, but there is no reason that you can’t share the road together,” Mr. Bonann says. Then he offers a piece of pure laid-back L.A. advice to SUPs: “Surf politely, enjoy one another, and enjoy the waves.”
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September 24th, 2008 at 10:58 am
Both SUP’s and long boarders suck balls! Snake those kooks!
September 24th, 2008 at 4:21 pm
I surfed for 9 hours yesterday on my 15′3″ x 35 1/4″ x 5 1/2″ and stayed dry from the ankles up! Up yours bolt thrower
September 24th, 2008 at 5:12 pm
SUP’s should are stick to wide open beachbreak where they can pick off waves that are going unridden, not for wavehogging everything that comes through (at least let a few go by)…or oversized surf where the flying paddle or board is just dangerous. Nothing wrong with the SUP itself just some riders who make spectacles of themselves.
September 24th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
AGREED! IF YOU ARE SURFING ANYTHING OVER A 6′8″ IN CALIFORNIA (UNLESS IT’S REALLY PUMPING) YOU ARE A F#CKING KOOK. BEAT IT!!!
September 24th, 2008 at 11:13 pm
hahaha.. Longboarders getting mad at SUP.
hahaha.. Longboarders says riding a SUP is cheating
HOW IRONIC!!!!
September 25th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
There is a law that states “boats are to stay a 1/4 mile off shore”! If you know how to surf then why float a boat? Nothing is more iritating then watching some one just stand ther on a longboard and waste the wave.Bunch of sissy’s, stay on the tit at home
September 26th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
WORD!
September 26th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
Oh wow
what an accomplishment! You’d probably drown if you weren’t on that piece of sh!t anyway. By the way you weren’t “surfing” you KOOK, you were “sweeping”.
November 2nd, 2008 at 7:28 pm
SUP is a blast. The big misconception is that any kook can do it. I have several friends - all surfers - who have had a tough time with the balance, especially in waves or inside when sets are crashing in. I surf a few breaks in the Ventura area (not Malibu) and SUP is generally accepted. Maybe it’s because people in Ventura have more self-esteem and have nothing to prove. I agree that SUP surfers who hog waves are not cool - share the ocean. But people who hate are worse. I have surfed almost everything that floats and I think it’s all good.
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Sups AKA grave diggers ALL fail to see that they are all in the way in the lineups at the points, I know a surfer that broke his leg on one in a head on collision out here @ Latigo… and there was more collisions all summer long, counted 15 grave diggers 1 surfer (4-5′ good) out here 2 months ago. How did US surfers allow this to happen its time to make a stand… my friends and I are as made as hell and not going to take it anymore!!!!!!!
December 8th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
hahahah -
Pretty funny comments. I ride longboards & shortboards - and there are greedy surfers all around. Respect is what it’s about. A kook on the outside taking all the good waves, and totally f*cking them up, shows no respect regaurdless of what they are riding. So many breaks in CA are perfect for longboards - riding a short board at those breaks are just as kookish as riding a longboard at a super hollow, fast break IMO. I notice alot of the agro surfers don’t even live near the ocean, or near the waves they are surfing - and that is pretty lame as well. - SBsurfer
March 22nd, 2009 at 8:03 pm
I’m honestly blown away by people hating. I understand the internet is extremely useful for those slandering others anonymously, but no real surfer with the cojones to catch any decent wave, would be on the internet bashing others, no matter what you ride. Surfing is suppose to be that something special to get you off the beach and enjoy the water and the sun on your own terms. So just relax, have fun for f*ck sakes! If your all bickering out there waiting for a wave, you may as well stay home or at least stay back on an overcrowded beach. If your out having fun, then props to you.
April 20th, 2009 at 1:51 pm
I’ve surfed for years and I could care less what someone uses to ride a wave. I’ve never had any problems because I’ve followed 1 simple rule: don’t drop in on people. I SUP now, and love it. All that is needed is for beginners who rent SUPs to learn not to drop in - just because you can catch it doesn’t mean that you should.
August 8th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
SUPs hog waves,,,,period.Go to an uncrowded break you’re dangerous in crowds
August 9th, 2009 at 4:54 pm
One planet, one ocean… learn to respect it and share it… it does not belong to you, it belongs to everyone. Jefferson Wagner needs to dismiss himself and his psuedo-political [business] self-interests from the SUP issue. Typical weenie politician. The rest of you narrow-minded territorial surf-nazis that want to remain hostile and ignorant to your fellow watermen… big guy, big board, big paddle wins argument every time. Bring it, ass-clowns.
August 18th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
Kahuna is spot on! “ONE PLANE, ONE OCEAN….LEARN TO RESPECT IT AND SHARE IT….IT DOES NOT BELONG TO YOU, IT BELONGS TO EVERYONE”. All SUPers out there be the better guy and spread the SUP love to the haters and help beginners learn the ways.
September 2nd, 2009 at 5:18 am
whats a KOOK or what does it stand for. im from hawaii and never heard that term used.
September 21st, 2009 at 12:33 pm
I ride longboards, shortboards and a 12' SUP… I agree, they should ban the SUP where they ban kayaks… too many kooks buy these things who have no wave knowledge. Also banned should be surf-skis, a kind of ride on top hybrid of the kayak and surfboard……Here's the bottom line, SUP and traditional surfing cannot co-exist in a traditional point break or tight reef break, like Windansea. When I scan the surf spots on HD through surfline, I notice that SUPs are not really at Topanga or Malibu anymore… way less…. the SUP should be a fitness training board for an outstanding workout–without waves….or a rad RIVER BOARD, which I am going for next spring (*can't wait…but those are inflatables that will nto hurt you if they hit you in the head… ) great when the waves are really small…. but for the best use of the wave, a shortboard or performance longboard is best… as for sharing breaks like Malibu? hahahaha, no one shares the break… it's the jungle man… dog eat dog… may the biggest asshole win. That's the way it's always been, that's the way it will remain… deal with it pussies. If you have a peace and love attitude and let's just be friends, that's fine with me… I'll get the waves, you won't. I'm too old for this shit anyway… the SUP IS TOO DANGEROUS BECAUSE IT'S HARD TO CONTROL, and too many inexperience riders are actually paddling into lineups… so someone has to reign them in before people get hurt, bottom line. nuff said.