I was down at the contest the past weekend, with Twang packed with the Club, the locals, the families, the hanger-ons, the wannabe family, the Tourists, the photogs, the papparazzi [spelling] the moarellas and the potato heads. The valley kooks were relegated to the peripheral reefs such as hotdogs, Ellens, in-yo-face, south boomer, lobster lounge, et al, et al. And I watched these contest people, of which I am a part and parcel and scion of some of the young and restless Upstarts, and I was appalled at some of the lack of Style some of these young hotties display.

I know it is quite dignified to wear one's warts in public, to have one's skivvies draped from their ass cheek, to wear no bra and no pants, covered only by one's tatoo, but to flail around in the water with your arms grasping at air, to stick your butt out in the air with no fear of some voracious character jumping on it, to drop in on the loco local and then wonder why he stomped your board and head at the same time---to me this is incomprehensible and an affront to decent surfing.

Study the films from the past: view Phil Edwards, Gerry Lopez, Chris O'Rourke. Learn how to surf with style, with class. Make a difficult sport look easy, even when you wipe out or get trashed while pushing some set waves.

Don't make it look like you are dying out there.

Get air with some casual class, casual style, insouciance---look up the word.

Me? I already got the class, I'm a contender, was born one, lived one, still doing it. Join the club.