The trouble with women's surfing

As the women's second to last event for the season, the Roxy Pro Biarritz, comes to a close, now more than ever the sport deserves some reflection. Yes it's true, a new breed of surfers are here; and they're here to stay. Led by freshly crowned ASP 2011 champ Carissa Moore, these surfers are all characterized by two unifying factors: 1) age and, 2) more progressive surfing.



Laura Enever, Leave A Message

Stephanie Gilmore, winner of the Roxy Pro Biarritz and 4x ASP world champion, at 23 is the oldest of the new pack. The rest is made up of Sally Fitzgibbons (20), Carissa Moore (18), Coco Ho (20), Alana Blanchard (21), Paige Hareb (21), Laura Enever (19), Tyler Wright (17), Courtney Conologue (18), and Pauline Ado (20). I'm not saying all these women have amazing styles. Some are squatty, some stick their butts out way too much. That's not the point. These women are pushing, they are trying. They're not afraid of barrels. Just look at Laura Enever in Leave a Message, Stephanie Gilmore and Tyler Wright at the 2010 Duel for the Jewel, or Alana Blanchard at Honolua, Maui 2009. These ladies go for broke in contests, doing maneuvers traditionally reserved for free surfs. "Fins free" and "tailslide" are becoming just as commonplace in commentators' vocabularies as "cutback."



The sheer number of young surfers filling the ranks of the Women's World Tour is unprecedented. These women (the oldest is 23 remember!) account for ten of the seventeen total women on tour: over 58%. Not including Steph Gilmore, these ladies have successfully booted out over 50% of the old-timers in about three years. Now that's quick turnover. And it's a turnover rate that's unique to women's surfing, the men's side doesn't even come close. True, athletes are constantly improving over previous generations, but rarely (if ever) is there such a wide margin of difference. The result of this great overthrow? An exciting Women's Tour with numerous heated battles in the water.

So, what's the problem?

Despite all this growth, the Women's World Tour is shrinking. This year there are seven contests. Last year there were eight. And the quality of the waves seems to be dropping. This year has been marred with numerous crumbly beachbreaks. The Roxy Pro Biarritz is really just a longboard contest with a women's world tour event squeezed in. To top it off, there are no Women's Tour events in Hawai'i this year. That means no Triple Crown. No pumping Waimea. No barreling Honolua. Which also means the Tour for the women will end in August at the US Open in Huntington: a zoo of an event celebrating a grossly overrated - you guessed it - beachbreak.

In an age of new, explosive, and most of all interesting women's surfing, better venues are a must. Send the girls to J-Bay. Let them surf Cloudbreak. This new guard of women has changed the tone of the sport, but they can only do so much. It's hard to be interested in watching a webcast when girls are surfing waist high mush in New Zealand. These women, more than any other group before them, are ready for pumping pointbreaks. Let's give it to them!

Carissa Moore, Leave A Message