[video=vimeo;85793134]http://vimeo.com/85793134[/video] hopefully part 2 is better. this was interesting, but i know mr. slater has more interesting things to say.
Good interview - even duh Homo Sapiens Slateris has problems like everyone else - fights with Andy and a business venture that's sapping his pocketbook. He's a fun guy to watch and listen to. He almost got his 12th - Mick beat Yadin Nicol by .13 before getting solidly beaten by John-John in the semis. Good to see Kelly win at Ehukai over Parko. The Slateris can still do it if he wants to.
nah, i don't think you're wrong. he's always come across as a pretty down to earth, humble guy. except for his freakish talent on a board.
i'd say he's gotten better since rejoining the tour in 2003. he's definitely an inspiration to those older folks among us!
He rode a 6'3" a good size Pipe at age 41. Ho was riding a 7'6" which makes more sense for the average human. Freakishly great surfer. But funny that people see him ride tiny thin boards and think that will work for them.
i hesitate to say it, but i think a lot of the reason KS is so well-spoken is b/c he actually finished school. most top pros now seem to have been home-"schooled" in pursuit of their surfing careers. w/ few exceptions, most older pros were/are pretty well-spoken people. pro surfers now seem coached to down play everything. you read an interview or watch a clip of a guy getting a massive wave or nailing a killer end section & the interviewer asks the inevitable question-"how'd that feel?" or "what were you thinking during xxx?" & the surfer replies w/ a weak, "oh yea, that was killer," or "oh, i was sooo stoked to make that," or "yea, it was a close heat & i was really happy to get that score." well, no ****! you're not on the tour b/c you dislike competition. maybe it's partly a lack of creativity on the part of the people asking the questions, but there are a lot of inarticulate pros out there today. it was one thing when tom curren couldn't put 2 sentences together, b/c you at least still got the impression that there was some intelligence there under that mop of hair. & i agree...i'd like to hear some of these AI stories that keep being hinted at by people who knew him like KS. there's a guy who, while maybe not real well-spoken, was at least genuine.
I watched the heat replays (on mute, no announcer bias) and the waves he outscored everyone on weren't any better than some of the other's waves. But, he was hitting the lip and cranking cutbacks after what probbaly would have been evenly scored tube rides while everyone else was just pulling out. Good board choice by him.
