Turn On It, Tune Out, Drop In

S WIND 25 KT WITH OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO 35 KT.
WIND WAVES 6 FT.
SW SWELL 8 FT AT 11 SECONDS.

This is the final installment on the Nelscott debate/fiasco before it devolved into a name calling insult fest on the OSP...

I suppose I may as well go on record here with my take on this whole mess...

Clearly there is much more to the whole sordid affair than meets the eye. Had the organizers taken steps to include some local surfers perhaps some problems may have been avoided. It appears that Oregon riders were actively prevented from participating and that their lack of participation was characterized as their choice or the organizers protecting them from the dangers of their own wave.

The sheer commercial nature of the Nelscott contest...from promotion to the addition of a new tow surf shop in LC...turns me off. I don't really have a problem with someone making money per se...but wonder who is going to buy the product? Maybe I'll be able to buy some Nelscott Surf Aftershave soon.I guess we'll see.

I certainly hope that we don't see a sudden influx of Waverunners towing up and down Oregon's "mysto" cloudbreaks and paddle spots. I also worry about the end result which would probably be unqualified and inexperienced individuals getting in way over their heads.

Finally, as a dirty, dirty California trannie...I can vouch that Oregon surfers are not generally hillbillies, toothless or inbred...regardless of whether they live in a coastal town or in the valley. And characterizations of such by Californians (regardless of their surf world status) serves no purpose other than to perpetuate the tribal localism of spot specific surf tribes.

My final comment is the simple reminder...There is no Surf in Oregon.

Nelscott 5

For all of you guys who feel like bitching and moaning about the lack of Oregon local surfers in the 2006 Nelscott Contest: for your information, all of the experienced local teams were invited, but all but one team declined to participate for reasons of their own. John Forse deserves all of our respect for being a great guy, and a person who genuinely cares about his local community. He also recognizes, as do many of the surfers who have ridden Nelscott, that it is a tow-in spot only. Sure, you can paddle into it, but you might catch one wave every two hours if you're lucky, have to negotiate an enormous beachbreak with no channels before you even start the half-mile paddle to the reef, an let's not even go into the shark factor. How about we stop whining about the contest and appreciate it for what it is - a damn cool event to watch. And for those of you who are worried about the hundreds of invading surfers who might drive up from California on the next swell, cool your jets - we've got plenty of seldom-ridden reefs of our own to explore before making the 12-hour drive.

Good, ‘cuz we don’t want you contaminating our water with your governator asses.

Oh Hess, I guess I should expect such an immature response from your small redneck brain. Like I said, don't worry, we aren't planning an invasion any time soon - and even if we were, idiots like you wouldn't keep us from coming. Apparently you have nothing better to do than to sit at your computer and whine when the point isn't working and there's no one to throw rocks at.

Who is the one local team that DID participate Will?

Sucker punching surfers in and out of the water isn’t good for the community. Before you praise the man why don’t you take time to get to know him.
But hey, to each their own.

Will, this makes me angry. I know who you are and your work. For a journalist (and maybe I'll excuse you because you're a photo journalist), you're incredibly uninformed. If you're interested in who JF is, go take a look at his police record and talk to the community of surfers up and down the coast. Also, ask him about the bribery and extortion that went along with this contest. Ask him why he wouldn't let JG partner with someone of his choice because of his involvement with the APT-- You're regurgitating JF's talking points and you're seeing the best side of him BECAUSE you are the press. I did too when I--....but if you look at how he actually treats the people in his community and you count how many people have been hit in the face by him and that sponsors are pulling out because of his behavior and and and....then let's get back to the bribery, the extortion, the 'hey, for the right price Lopez can be in it', etc. etc.

For you to suggest that we're whiners and don't understand our own break is the typical California arrogance we can't stand up here. Choke on a shark taco bro. For you to think, for one moment that you have a better perspective on this is unreal and tragic. I've been fucking researching this for months before it happened. C'mon man, do some damn journo work, don't be convinced by the free hotel room and meal tickets. I was objective going into it--- and truth is truth--

Your post is so incredibly lame. Do you have any idea who you're talking to on this board? NO. Shoot Drew an email man, he knows all about it....and if you need further reading, I'll be happy to send you transcripts of the countless interviews I've done on the subject. Man, I respect your work and who you are, but don't open your mouth when you don't know what you're talking about.

Here's my favorite backfired talking point--

"All the locals were invited, they CHOSE not to be in it"

Juxtaposed with--

"It's a safety issue, that's why the locals aren't in it. These waves are incredibly dangerous. This is a professional contest."

Pretty typical Cali responses further illustrate that Mr. Save the Waves, who supports a tow contest, has no idea what he's talking about. Yeah were all rednecks up here and we only have only one wave. I know it sucks up here man.

Pretty funny he even took the time to post on this stupid site. Guess like us all here, he’s got nothing better to do.