WSL Longboard Tour Proposes Four Events In 2023
Since longboarding fell under the WSL/ASP auspices, no two seasons have been identical. Some seasons have had one contest, some have had four. Some seasons had four proposed contests with only one contest running.
Even after the Woz brought in Devon Howard to right the ship, has stability alluded them.
Next season, however, the Longboard Tour is making a play at an expanded and hopefully stable tour, with four stops. Yesterday, they announced the schedule which included a stop in Australia. Surprisingly, it wasn't at Noosa or any of the Northern NSW pointbreaks, but at Bells Beach in Victoria.
They'll also incorporate the CT system of a one-day, winner takes all final. That will be held at Malibu, California.
“We’re excited for the new developments and growth for the WSL Longboard Tour,” said Jessi Miley-Dyer, the World Surf League Senior Vice President of Tours and Head of Competition - handily shortened to WSL SVPoTaHoC.
“The intention of the new structure is to create improved opportunities for surfers to compete. We’ve added more tour stops, incorporated wider qualification, and are committed to crowning World Champions in the water with a new one-day Finals-format. We look forward to the 2023 season and beyond to continue to celebrate the world’s best longboarding.”
2023 WSL Longboard Tour Schedule*
- Bells Beach Longboard Classic (Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia): August 30 - September 2, 2023
- Surf City El Salvador Longboard Classic (El Sunzal, El Salvador): September 19 - 25, 2023
- Longboard Championship (Malibu, Calif., USA): October 3 - 13, 2023
*Fourth Longboard Tour event to be announced at a later date
Comments
Tallest dwarf tour
Haha!
firing Bell's would be epic
Longboard guns would get a boost in development in that case. Or the banana'd longboards of the 90s - eg TC and Glen Winton in comp at Haleiwa iirc
Edit: Big Bells - in August/September! - would be interesting as it would force a change in the style of board ridden from the California style traditional log popularised by JT since about 2000. It's the design increments I find fascinating in the shortboard comps and BWWT, so I'd say longboards are ripe to re-learn some old lessons if things get juicy. Look at footage of Bonga Perkins, for example. Predict less walking to nose in these conditions, more cutties and turns from a central point, too.
I'd go and watch.
Nope the tour JT help invent pretty much bans progressive long boarding and forces cross stepping, knee dropping and plenty of toes to the nose.
Watch former longboard winner HI in clips. He rips on a longboard but that’s not how you score in long board comps. Normal tour rewards progression but the longboard tour represses progression.
someone should start crying about equal pay. :)
How do you qualify?
Is there a Longboard QS?
Sort of. There were seven contests this year, but just three of them were 'championship' comps.
The others were called 'Regional Series' comps, and I assume doing well in those is the pathway to the top.
Qualify through a competition to see who takes the best photo of a sunset shining through a translucent D fin?
A stomp competition?
Period costume competition where the girls see who can sport the highest waisted nappy-bikini and guys try to recreate a lifestyle scene from a 1964 edition of Surfing World?
Competition to see how many metro living, Vanlyfe lurking , longboard toting gronks they can assemble to invade a regional surf spot on a long weekend and then see how much they can irritate locals?
Most Madonna vogue totally - uncontrived strike-a-pose and dysfunctional surf manoeuvre?
Points for surfer Most capable of continuing to uphold the self deceit concept that “we are all just celebrating surfing and the lineup is one big melting pot party “ as they burn everyone on every wave and then paddle past the entire pack on their 40000litre piece of shit log?
DSDS, i think you've just explained a Rhythm photoshoot perfectly.
Comment of year, gold.
Sounds like you might have tried to catch a wave at the Pass or Noosa lately on a thruster and are a little frustrated ?
I hear you brother. If it was a actual walk the plank comp involving pirates and sharks at least it would end quicker.
hahaha .. ahhh . that was good.
i like longboarding abit , but that 9 foot shortboarding wasnt cool . but neither is standing still doin f all . however some riders make it look great doing either style while the majority kinda suck . just like regular surfing i guess
Spend a lot of money on travel for not much prize money LOL. Seriously though they should do a mal contest around most short board events and it would get more people interested. Even have a legends heat in most WSL events. That is way more exciting.
"WSL SVPoTaHoC"
You know how to delight the readership :)
I still really struggle to see Longboarding - especially trad style- as a sport.
Especially compared to Big Wave surfing which seems to have fizzled as a sport.
Big wave surfing is easy to understand as far as scoring goes, Longboarding is just incredibly fuzzy as far as putting numbers on people shuffling back and forwards on logs in waist high peelers goes.
Agree, I tried to score some waves and failed. Was off by 2-3 points.
I did that in an actual comp when I volunteered to judge lol
Edit, was only one comp, was not invited back :p
Ha.
Ah club comps.
You probably didn't listen to the 'free advice' guy who always goes with "a 5.5???? Matty never gets less than a 7 when he paddles out"
I just did it to have only 4 out :) But I do love the glide, it has it's purpose and flows you toward mastery.
traditional longboarding is kind of boring...
a firing Bell's with high performance longboards, bottom turns, getting vertical and floaters in pumping surf would make for good viewing.
I just bought a Taylor Jensen THE GEM. 9.1. So much fun..
I would rather watch the grass grow.
That's OK, burleigh. If you can't appreciate all types of surfing no one cares.
Great to know you ride a longboard. I picture you to be one of those SUP foil pests sitting at the end of Burleigh.
I picture you to be one of the non surfers watching from the land....whilst others surf and foil and sup.
enjoy watching the grass grow.
"a firing Bell's with high performance longboards, bottom turns, getting vertical and floaters in pumping surf would make for good viewing."
Totally, Roadkill. In longboarding, if you go back to the 90's the boards were very heavily influenced by shortboard design - the 'potato chip' at the time, So my first 1996 longboard is like a banana and can crank power turns at size. But it doesn't nose ride too well. Clubs had 8ft divisions to surf in too, so 8 footers abounded. The Hawaiians did really well in events and world championships, and longboard events were held in heavy waves. Think Rusty Keaulana, Bonga etc
When JT took over the sport with the Californian style - traditional - walking, style, rail, poise, single fins it really took off. So much so that the performance variety has pretty much stopped. Hundreds of thousands of young people followed this traditional path.
If Bells is on tour, and threatens to be big and wintery (esp if La Nina goes away and we get a normal winter again) then the game just changed. If you want to win you are going to need a board that can take a drop and turn hard. Those 90's shapes would do that very well.
I think of design changes recently and you have the BWWT pioneering tiny quad fins a long way up the long rail, as 9ft+ paddle in switched fashion away from tow. I think of JJF's ghost at MR in 2016 - using the old trick of low entry rocker and widepoint forward like the late 1970s, to crank some unanswerable carves. This could be a very interesting comp for current longboard design: could we say it's reached a stasis in trying to recreate the golden era, say 1965-6 on Cali points?
I would love to see Phil Razman attacking Bells.
High performance boards are far better viewing than traditional heavy logs.
Strongly disagree.
The reason "modern" longboarding died out is because it's so horrible to watch people flapping around on enormous, over-rockered longboards.
Incredibly inefficient planing devices and just looks like really bad shortboarding.
Thats opinion, of course, but current events seem to back up my views.
Having said that, I still agree with VJ above.
But I think his expectations are set too high.
More than likely, if Bells is a one off they will stick to trad logs and ride according to the current judging criteria.
But we'll see.
I too would like to see them go beyond the current old skool board designs and incorporate some design advancements for Bells.
Well that gets exciting then - maybe there's somewhere else the longboard can go to avoid the flapping (I too welcomed JT and style when it came around) but also handle some size. From memory it needs to be 9' true, nose width must be a certain width, maybe tail width too; these days its a single not 2+1 - those are the board requirements. Maybe a shaper/surfer can mix the magic ingredients and we'll see flow and style but also big turns and some functional moves. I think of WL footage at Bells on logs, evolution/sea of joy craft, and singles.
(What would I do? 60/40 the rails, esp in tail, put a tucked under edge in tail around/aft of fin, maybe more down rails throughout it, widepoint just forward, a decent single to double-thru-vee concave...)
Extra points for no legrope- at 8' Bells??
Would you call this longboarding? Obviously not in the traditional sense. Gliders seem to be gaining a bit of traction in the 'longboard' world.
Shayma ripping into big Bells.
Greg Brown has been making performance longboards forever and still does....and he still rips.
I sure would call that longboarding icandig. Shyama is walking it, doing great turns. I've got a copy of pacific longboarder that's about 20 years old now that does an interview with Herbie Fletcher and his 'astro deck gun collection' - who says longboards can't be gunny?
And Browny on the pink board, seen some great surfing.
Edit: Lachie Rombouts (sp?) is also redefining it, his huge wave in the black Nor easter swell on a big, big board, and his surfing of that NSW south reef are very inspiring
yep. no leggies . gonna be some great watching of some swimming . hopefully swell large too .
jetski assist ????
I'm guessing you have never seen Jackson Close getting shacked behind the rock at Snapper? The guy surfs better than most short boarders when its pumping. Not all modern mal surfers are "flapping around" Steve.
No hater either.
Some of the most fluid and pleasing surfing I've ever seen was Joel Tudor riding a log at cross-country, join the dots peelers at Wategoes.
Nat Young had a famous quote about surfing being sport/art, suggesting taking the sport path was perhaps the wrong way...
Have you seen JT surf in the flesh VJ?
It's definitely artistic- not in a showy way either.
Just impeccable trim lines and functional moves.
Nope & I would love to. Closest was when at Crescent with friends, apparently some of the young longboard guns had come down after the Noosa contest - some absolutely beautiful lines and trim, confidence. Overheard a couple of them taking positive note of my son going through racetrack on a single I'd shaped, was quite chuffed as he was flying...
So let me get this correct.....Longboard event at Bells, however on the CT' they've taken away G-Land and put the wave pool back on the calendar????? Makes sense
In August/September to boot! That's got to be about the coldest water temps of the year, will be great as an advert for wettie sponsors. You're a long way off shore and if the wind is strong and not perfectly aligned, it is quite challenging.
It will be interesting to see how they perform if its pumping 6-8 foot Bells . Some of the WSL longboarding comps I've seen over the years has been ..... well underwhelming is probably generous for the standard displayed for what is meant to be the worlds best ... ?
Are there other sports with separate tours for those choosing to use antiquated equipment?
A Tour de France on Penny-farthings? AFL using a stuffed wallaby? F1 with anything built 3 weeks before the race...
Penny Farthing Championships: https://evandalevillagefair.com/the-races/
"Since 1983 the Evandale Village Fair and National Penny Farthing Championships has built up a reputation for holding the most competitive Penny Farthing races in the world."
Does the RedBull Soapbox Derby count as "choosing to use antiquated equipment" for "F1 with anything built 3 weeks before the race"?
https://www.redbull.com/se-en/tags/soap-box-race
Classic racing at Goodwood, events using the old Group C rules here in Australia, formula HQ racing, J Boat yacht racing (magnificent! They are huge)
Anything using sheepdogs to round up sheep :)
Antique gaming championships
Telemarking
So yes, but not a separate tour. Maybe the J Boats are a separate tour.
The worlds select proffessional surfers trying to ride a shortboard for Olympic gold points in1-5ft onshore mush ...
hopefully may be seen as antiquated gymnastic tricks in the future.
Since Gland and Cloud Break is off the world tour,send them there. That would make great viewing
2004 Aussie Titles were held at Bells.
Josh Constable, Grant Thomas, Wayne Deane & Jackson Close all ripping on overhead waves
2004 Aussie Titles were held at Bells.
Josh Constable, Grant Thomas, Wayne Deane & Jackson Close all ripping on overhead waves
That’s what I thought of too when they announced this but couldn’t remember the year. It was an unreal day and the sets kept building. The surfing was outstanding. This is good for longboarding, it needs a kick back in the high performance direction, maybe not right back to where it was but a more balanced mix between the two. It will definitely be more entertaining than Manly this year, and hopefully a Vicco or two can get a spot and ruffle some feathers
Thanks Dazzler, was trying to remember the year. Yes it pumped. Perfect Bells bowl on a longboard! Surfing was of the highest standard.
Let Greg brown enter
He surfs a long board so well
Show these young crew how to put it on rail and go vert
And he’s double there age!!
Yeah Beggsie - and Will Cuzzo
Bella can pump that time of year but it’s absolutely freezing - not “spring” as most people would understand it.
It’s usually super windy and colder than the depths of winter!!
Part of the fun.
Do long boarders only go right!
Longboard shape for Bells - Phil Myers 9'1'' channel bottom ,2x1 fin setup, moderate (sensible) rocker. Had one , great board.
The Shaun Brooks 50 year storm invitational had some photos probably on Swellnet of Shayma Buttonshaw(?) noseriding a monster.I am sure there would be many who could offer something.I endorse one of the previous comments re Greg Brown. Seems a good fit to me.
The Shaun Brooks 50 year storm invitational had some photos probably on Swellnet of Shayma Buttonshaw(?) noseriding a monster.I am sure there would be many who could offer something.I endorse one of the previous comments re Greg Brown. Seems a good fit to me.
There's a bit of Bells in this footage:
But where is the long boarding?
in the technique. Its the evolution board tho, <9ft
Here’s Shyama at Bells. Chuck him a wildcard https://nobodysurf.com/shyama-gliding/amp/
Time
For
A
Soft top
Finless
Tour
I'm with you Beggsie
Don't know much about joel T other than what crew mention on here. Heres a few different shapes he talks about for those interested.
Don't mind watching the finless funk either, if the mood suits for something different.
Yes It's not traditional mal riding but funky fun gone wild.
Ride what and how you want.
funky burps or as someone said this year on here, jazz hands on ritalin
0.40min and 1;28min
couldn't find a short clip of the seated wizard position;)
Here we go, Surfing Vic has announced there'll be two wildcards - one mens, one womens - to the Bells comp and they'll go to the winners of a two-event state titles:
"Surfing Victoria is excited to announce the 2023 Victorian Longboard Titles event dates with the addition of the 2-event series becoming the pathway for Victorian’s to gain a wildcard into the Bells Beach Longboard Classic World Longboard Tour event.
"The Bells Beach Longboard Classic is set for August 30 to September 2, 2023 and will see 48 of the world’s best Longboarders do battle including two local and two national wildcards. The event is one of four events on the World Longboard Tour in 2023.
"Victorian Wildcards will be allocated to the Men’s and Women’s State Longboard Champions at the conclusion of the Victorian Longboard Titles giving them a shot against the world’s best longboarders.
"Round 1 of the Victorian Longboard Titles will be held at Phillip Island on February 18 and 19, 2023 before concluding at Point Impossible on the Surf Coast on April 29 and 30, 2023.
“This is an incredible opportunity for Victorian Longboarders and strengthens our pathway from clubs, to state rounds, and ultimately the World Longboard Tour” said Surfing Victoria CEO Adam Robertson.
“Victoria has a rich history of longboarding which includes many nationally successful longboard surfers. It’s fantastic that there is now another world class surfing event here in Victoria, showcasing the best longboarders on the planet.”
Ben Considine should also have to be in the conversation. 3 time Aussie Champ - for logging which I know is different - but surely his skills are transferable. Competitively he has the chops.
https://portapp.com.au/news-sport/news-sport/longboard-and-logger-champi...
https://timesnewsgroup.com.au/bellarinetimes/news/australian-surf-champs...
Let's Wipe the White Board to Accommodate a Warm Water Rip Curl Bells...
But why we gotta do that shit tbb...c'mon...surely WSL are all above board...(Cough)
No need to ask Why!
(1) Coz Stu already penciled in the Original 2020 CS Nov Comp at Phillip Island (Tremble!)
https://www.swellnet.com/news/swellnet-dispatch/2019/09/10/wsl-introduce...
(2) Rip Curl sponsored last years random Manly Oz Long Board Leg...(For the very first time...Huh?)
(3) Manly Rip Curl Pro "Long Board / CS were run as one Event. (Oh! Now ya see...very fishy!)
Meaning > Manly lose Long Board & or CS > ( Note original Oz CS leg was also Springtime Vic)
2023 Oz CS Tour has not been Gazetted until Rip Curl hooks CS (Qld vs NSW vs Vic)
If any Premiers could be fucking bothered...Reckon Dan could lock it into the Spring Racing Carnival!
Real sophisticated! Snob like VIP extravaganza!
(So now the crew can see why some one needs to walk the plank)
Don't all hurry...leave it to the basher...bloody hell! Ok..here's wot we got!
The co/ed Long Board Tour kicked off in 2011 (Just doin' the Oz Leg Only...not a real job!)
2011 March Noosa / Kingy + July Cottesloe
2012 March Kingy + July Cottesloe
2013 March Kingy
2014-17 March Kingy + July Cottesloe
2018 Feb Newcastle + March Kingy + July Cottesloe
2019 Feb Noosa (Saved by Festival Organizer Ben) + July Cottesloe
2020 Feb Noosa + July Cottesloe
2021 Covid
2022 May Manly Long Board / CS ( Dual Event / Podium) sponsored by (Rip Curl)
https://www.boardriding.com/news/gwm-sydney-surf-pro-victors
2023 Aug/Sept Bells (Q : Ripcurl Spring Carnival CS / Long Board Combo?)
Is this another Interstate Grand Theft Indy thingy?
Note that WSL did trim 2022 CS Tour & are real slow at posting 2023 CS Tour?
Are we seeing > { 2023 Victorian Easter Ripcurl CT + (Original) CS Spring Carnival Long Board }
Will Surf City Bullies steal Qld / NSW Royal Easter WSL Show Bags? Seriously...this is not funny!
tbb did try & make it sound all sinister...not much to work with...still...
Reckon NSW might try & steal our rain sodden unloved rough as guts Cooly CS...Grrr...Border Wars!
Possibly tbb's bipolar is kickin in...but it does read this way & it won't end pretty for some!
Challenger of Origin Tag Series...fuck yeah! Loser has to run ELO's Oz CT leg.
Geeze I am real dinosaur Kneeboarder who rides a long board (pintail) and Telemark skier....have heaps of fun but.
Most of those Longboard pros rip on shorties too but yes the whole Hipster, Van Life Look at Me and my cool friends and please don't stare at my arse while you paddle behind me crew while we totally passively aggressively take over this break have become the Elephant in the room in surfing.
10 years ago I sort of thought it was a breath of fresh air into surfing but now its a really bad smelly fart