That was a Tracks reader named Gezmon getting in touch to register his potty-mouthed disapproval with the current state of the priority system on the CT. Gezmon had obviously been watching the Billabong Pro Tahiti and had witnessed the various hassle battles that occurred at the start of many heats including the final.
As you probably well know the start of each heat features a no priority situation. Priority is only assigned when a surfer stands up and rides a wave. The right to do so is established primarily through one surfer being on the inside. And that is only established by each surfer’s willingness to do so. Some, like, lets say Gabriel Medina, make it a fundamental pillar of their heat strategy. Others like Mick Fanning and Taj Burrow for example, were always happy to concede.
The problem arises when both surfers want that first wave. We’ve seen that lead to either prolonged blocking as Gezmon points out, or interferences. Filipe Toledo has been one of the more high profile recent casualties; his interference in the first five minutes of his Oi Rio Pro heat with Kanoa Igarashi took him out of the event. His subsequent reaction to the decision, which wasn’t a carefully drafted email, led to a ban for the next one. It’s no exaggeration to say that single interaction in Rio has also took him out of this year’s World Title race.
The establishment of priority by random chance, say a flip of a coin, pin the tail on Richie Porta’s forehead or, my favorite, a live broadcasted game paper scissor rocks, would take these hassles out of the equation. Our very own Deputy Editor Ben Bugden, another potty mouth, is all for this approach. “Pottz was salivating into the mic at the display of salt-water slap and tickle, but me; personally, I hate that shit with the fire of a thousand suns. It’s a waste of fucking time. Flip a coin before you paddle out and ride more waves.”
Others however disagree. Many fans see this interaction as the only true competitive element in surfing and one that brings in a mental process to the heat. Competitors, say faced with Gabriel Medina, have to make a decision whether to engage in five minutes of brinkmanship. At Bells for example, Portuguese rookie Fred Morais decided to take that route. “No one has ever taken it to Gabriel Medina at the start of heat before, no one has done it to him,” his coach Richard “Dog” Marsh told him at the time. “You might not win the heat, but you will rattle him.”
The first eight minutes of that heat at Winki didn’t see a wave ridden, but it was a fascinating contest nonetheless. In the end Morais held his ground and won the heat. He also may have prompted Wilson and Andino to adopt the same strategy in Tahiti. In fact some who love this style of competition have proposed it be taken a step further. A non-priority situation could be enforced at other stages of the heat; say from the 15 to 10 minute mark or, with more explosive potential, the last five minutes. Cat, pigeons, etc.
This however would probably lead to an explosion of interferences, which currently end the heat as any form of meaningful contest. Others want to retain the concept, but maybe tone it down. Sean Doherty, previously of this parish, proposed that the no priority situation stay in place at the start of heats, but that priority would be given away when a surfer paddled, rather than stood up on, on a wave. That may shorten the period of hassling time, but it feels like a watered down version of what we have now.
It is of course all academic, as right now the no priority system will stay in place for this year at least. Heading into Trestles, a wave perfectly designed to cause the most interferences, we can expect to see the start of the heats featuring the scrapping and baiting that featured in Tahiti. It will make Gezmon’s blood boil and turn the air around Buggo’s head blue, but for many it could be the highlight of the whole goddamn event. Our question to you is? Where do you stand on it, and what’s the solution?
