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Fresh Friday is an editorial by We Are Water

January 20th, 2006

In most sports, a pick, or getting in someone’s way, to prevent the athlete to go in a straight line and make a play is illegal. For instance, in basketball, you can set a pick to block a defender from another player. However, the person performing the pick must be stationary and not moving. Otherwise it is a penalty. You can’t block someone’s forward progress while in motion yourself. As well, in football, you can set a pick, but there are rules that govern what kind of pick is legal, or not. It’s just common that a pick is illegal in most sports, however, in Surfing it is not.

The ASP has the priority buoys in most of the contest however during the 2006 Inlet Pro, defending champ, Corey Lopez was not only picked, but Double Teamed. (Again, in some sports Double Teaming is illegal.)

In Round 32 of the contest, Corey Lopez got eliminated by a tag team in the form of twin brothers from California! Dane and Patrick Gudauskas played a game of street ball and prevented Lopez from catching a wave the final five minutes of the heat. Lopez needed a good scoring wave to remain alive in the contest and take the heat. However, the two brothers intentionally AND went out of their way to prevent Lopez on catching that wave.

You could tell Lopez was frustrated with the maneuver of the twins. They didn’t do anything illegal and actually were great competitors and surfed great. However, the way to win, at least to me and with no better words, was cheap. Lopez did catch a wave immediately after the heat and easily would have scored the lead if it counted. But, the two blocking surfers were impossible to get around.

The point that I’m making is this should be illegal in surfing. Blocking, or picking, in any form of surfing should be disallowed, as it is not a safe thing to do and encourages ‘Street Style’ rules (i.e. No Blood, No Foul). The ASP has the priority buoy format in many of the other contest. I suspect wave priority format would prevent people from blocking and picking. What I witnessed at the Inlet Pro contest and what the two brothers did was very frustrating for me as I was there to take photos of Corey Lopez! Not only did they prevent the defending champ and local favorite to advance, they also were blocking my view…

Patrick Gudauskas (Yellow) playing 'offensive' guard and blocking Corey Lopez.

Insult to Injury Corey Lopez got an interference on this wave and only needed a 5.9 to advance.

Wave after the heat would of scored at least a 6.0 but did not count.

Corey Lopez realizing he took off after the buzzer and the wave would not count.

Nothing left to do but Punt in frustration.

Money Shot!

Landed it!

Corey Lopez signing autographs.

2006 East Coast Hall of Fame

Photos from the Induction Ceremony Saturday Jan. 14th. Text from the Board of Directors of the East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame.

Will Allison – NC
Longtime competitive surfer and board builder since the early 70’s. One of his state’s most respected surfers and craftsmen. Locally influential and respected throughout the Southeast. Winner of numerous championships throughout a long and distinguished amateur career and has represented his area numerous times at the ESA championships in Cape Hatteras. Today sells his coveted hand-built surfboards throughout the Southeast.

Matt Kechele – FL
80’s wonder kid, one of the most recognizable names of his era, winning numerous amateur and pro surfing events and an ASP Eastern Pro circuit title. “Kech” was the leading force in the earliest moves towards aerial surfing maneuvers. Also a leading board builder, his surf team consisted of many of this coast’s most recognizable figures including his young protégé Kelly Slater. He continues today a board builder, strong pro competitor, contest organizer (King of the Peak Event) and an influence to our youth as the Eastern Quicksilver Team Captain.

Pat Mulhern – FL
Second-generation surfer and board builder, son of legendary California and Eastern board builder, Donny Mulhern. Incredibly gifted amateur and pro surfer from the 80’s, Pat won the APS (American Professional Surfing) tour a record four times. Also won the ASP Professional Team event, held at Sunset Beach, Hawaii, for the East Coast in 1984. Went on to be a force in surfboard building, helping to propel Hawaiian Sunny Garcia to a world championship in 2001 with his visionary surfboard shapes.

Maryanne Hayes – FL
1970 East Coast Women’s Champion and 1974 U.S. Surfing Champ. This was the first national championship held by an East Coast woman. An incredible athlete, Maryanne was one of the first women to surf against the guys and she beat more than a few. In her day, one of the most talented surfers on the East Coast, male or female. Also a talented seamstress who produced surf trunks for most of the top surfing talent in the Florida area. Still living and surfing today in central Florida.

Frieda Zamba – FL
Four-time professional World Champ (ASP). The absolute dominate woman surfer in the world during her reign. One of the very best female surfers ever to set foot on a surfboard, she single handedly changed women’s surfing forever with her aggressive, athletic style. Unquestionably on the most influential female surfers ever, leading many other young Eastern women into competitive surfing. Her influence is still being felt today with the emergence of talent like Lisa Anderson, Connie Aries, and Katrina Petroni. Also has been involved for many years in the surfing industry as a ream rider and product rep.

Dick Meseroll / Tom Dugan – NJ
It’s rare that we would consider two names as one, but in this case the partnership that has produced such impact on Eastern surfing cannot be attributed but to both. Longtime Eastern photographers and co-founders, creative visionaries of Eastern Surf Magazine, the first successful surf magazine in the history of the East coast. Before their ESM days, both were longtime staff photogs for many West Coast publications, bringing worldwide awareness to Eastern surfing. Their history also included stints as co-producers of other early East coast surf magazines like US Surf. After 30 years, Mez and Dugan continue to be leading photographic eyes on Eastern surfing through ESM and further submissions to international surfing publications all over the world.

Bill Bringhurst – FL
Respected 60s and 70s 3A surfer, Bill was also the captain of the feared (and talented) Surfboards Hawaii team during the legendary 60’s “East Coast run” contest schedule. A major influence on younger surfers, he mentored such standouts as Richard Munson, Jimbo Brothers, and fellow-Hall member Fletcher Sharpe. Bill is a true pioneer in the field of surf marketing. He was the first Floridian to represent West Coast surf companies in the East Coast market. He laid the groundwork and wrote the rulebook on being a liaison between East and West, opening up what was once a cumbersome process to become a more efficient line of communication. Certainly he was the prototype by which all future reps would follow.

Howie “Goldie” Goldsmith – RI
One of the true Pioneers of Eastern surfing. Largest manufacture of surfboards on the East coast in the 60’s, producing up to 400 surfboards a week out of his factory in Cranston, RI. He was also the first real promoter of surfing contests in New England and organized and produced many large events, including the New England Invitational Surfing Championships, which drew competitors from all over the U.S. Howie contuse to surf today and in recent years has competed in the ESA contest circuit in New England. His early surfboards are now considered collectors’ items at vintage shows and are known under the Kahuna and Keoki surfboard labels.

Sam Reid – NJ
Sam was one of the many present the day the Duke first pushed his board into the Atlantic City waters in 1912. The next day he snuck his mother’s ironing board out of the house and went for his first surf. Just 9 years old at the time, from that point forward, Sam’s life was surfing. Traveling the world and surfing the then-known breaks with friends like Tom Blake, Sam pioneered many of today’s mainstream spots on both the East and West coasts, possible most notable as the first person, along with Mr. Blake, to ride Malibu when it was still just a ranch up the road from Santa Monica. Sam also wrote many articles for the national surf magazines in the 60’s and was seen as the first surfing purist for his views.

Balsa Bill Yerkes opening remarks

Dick Catri on the podium

ESM founders Dick Meseroll / Tom Dugan

Frieda Zamba

Maryanne Hayes

Matt Kechele

Surfing East Coast Hall of Fame photos by Dan of 2ndlight.com

 

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