thats fine lobster , a certain arrogance was indeed being conveyed …
as someone in the industry , when i read those comments , i took them for what they were , i could clearly see between the lines …
your average consumer takes it at face value …
i agree with greg , let them keep making the same stuff …
i read one comment where epoxy and a standard glass shop cant coexist as one side by side ???
what crap , i ran dual productions side by side thousands of each for over a decade …
setting up another one right now …
its easy to be arrogant when the crew held in high regard for being industry leaders and keeping the industry standard , make comments that show there obvious ignorance or lack of real experience in regard to new materials and technology …
i make a point of trying to be humble , but when you come up against statements or opinions that arent in line with the facts or are somewhat misleading and are put forth purely so someone can stay in there comfort zone , then that brings out an indignant or arrogant side …
to many points to mention , maybe they could be disected and discussed later …
i have to admit , im not a big fan of alot of surf media …
we basically get the same old same old …
i recently read a great article on new guinea , i watched a kool surf movie called unsalted , both really stoked me , show me something i havent seen …
even the surf media can get in a comfort zone and forget to push the boundries as well …
every mag could be featuring a new location every issue for the next 100 years and we still wouldnt get through all the waves on the planet …
that would take that bit more effort , and may not be commercially viable …
im not being cynical or disrespectful , just stating the facts …
there is so much more to come , so many new frontiers to forge , both in waves and in design plus performance …
and yet i read a comment about a guy whos still getting a handle on how to tune a retro design ???
i read a comment about surfing at a point break and once you have the wave worked out you can shape a board for anywhere ???
anywhere in cali ??
be good if the smog lifted off california , so they could see the whats happening in the rest of the world …
its one of the last insulated pockets of surf industry still functioning as it was 20 years ago …
theres a few other places around the world where the concentration of industry has managed to keep the status quo for longer …
mainly due to politics , maintaining a comfort zone and promoting the commercial aspects …
it seems these epicentres of surf culture and industry dont have to put any effort in to make things better and improve things because so many people come to them and except whatever they dish out , any board can be sold effortlessly purely because they exist in a region rich in surf culture , there is an attitude that permeates from these areas , if were not doing it, it cant be worth doing …
so all the real development and cutting edge stuff is being done outside the traditional areas , to the point where even production techniques and standards are being refined in asia , high tech out of france , high quality out of japan , new designs and concepts out of south america , new zealand , south africa , raw technology and development in isolated localities …
every shaper interviewed , was based in an insulated epicentre of surf industry …
in there warm cozy enviroments …within walking distance of the surf media …
looks to me like there all striving to push the boundries ???
be interesting to see what vibe comes out in the next issues …
last week i saw alot of surf media guys standing around with there mouths open …
they got a taste of whats happening in the rest of the world , outside the cozy smog blanket …
regards
BERT