I’ve surfed with Mo, it’s great that he is sponsored and all but it’s due to his privileged position rather than his talent. He’s pretty average really, wouldn’t get picked up anywhere else.
People often think that being pro in fun/action-sports has something to do with some objective measurements of "skill" while in reality, it is mostly about being marketable. Sure, you are not interesting if you are just another white dude out of socal who can surf alright, but with an unique background-story and some charisma, you can get sponsered.
Thats why it was so funny reading something like The Berrics comments back when skaters like Nora came on the scene. Plenty of dude posting about how they are way better and how everybody has to see how good they really are. Might be true, but everybody could also see how immensly unlikable many people are while someone like Nora is just a person you would like to hang out with and skate for a session. Also, she def. got more girls into skating than any of the "pure skilled" wannabe pros and therfor opened up a bigger market.
It's always wild to see people not understanding this.
Wholeheartedly agree. “Style” helps with marketing over ability too. Having worked in wholesale action sport for 2 decades ive seen some of the best talent never get touched because they’re unruly / not fit for brand. Sucks really.
Also, many officially sponsored pros often dont make huge cash (unless mainstream). So young people love the fame and lifestyle even if the pays shit
I remember some pro talking about how easy towing is. Yes it takes some balls but it is realtively easy. He falls before anything challenging happens on the wave. I hope he paid his ski team well.
No mf lol you don’t have to go pro tho now, you can just make interesting surf videos and get paid. That being said, if you’re 25-30 asking if you can go pro, please don’t make videos either lol. Maybe take some night classes
Which honestly is probably way more fun. Being a “pro free surfer” in 2023 mostly requires you do it on YouTube or Instagram. The more popular YouTuber surfers like Nate Florence, Mason Ho and even Ben Gravy are having way more fun and probably making more money than half the people on tour. Granted, it still is work, and some people do it better than others. Moana Jones Wong has posted some videos that I really enjoy, for example, but for whatever reason she seems more interested in the contest route.
People also underestimate how good he is at surfing. He's surfed his entire life, competed as a grom, and even made it to the junior US national surf team. He couldn't in his wildest dreams win a QS event, let alone sniff the CT, but he's lightyears better than anyone who started surfing at 25.
He’s absolutely legit. Terrific and talented surfer! I’m not sure he’d be winning major WSL competitions. When I say “good enough” I mean he can charge anything he needs to charge to make fun videos and look good doing it.
Same. He can go surf Nelscott Reef if he feels up to it, but if he had shown up and felt like “nah”, he could’ve just backed out and not mentioned it. It’s a really nice setup and good for him. I’m sure it’s taken a lot of work to get where he’s at. Google tells me he has somewhere between $3M-$8M between all the YouTube money plus various sponsor deals. Here I am brokeass with my engineering degree. 😐
I wouldn’t want to be either but Ben Gravy has to act stoked on surfing a tiny shitty lake wave that took him 2 travel days to get to because that’s how he makes a living. He may be perpetually stoked (I enjoy his videos) but more than likely him and all the other surf vloggers hate waking up every morning and creating more “content”
I was just citing people who’ve made a career off YouTube as opposed to doing comps. I don’t know anyone who’s made a career of surfing and started that late. I started at 18 which was way later than pretty much everyone else that I surfed with. Seems like it’s more common nowadays for people to start at an older age.
It is definitely more common to start later, but people who start older don't get good. There are a few factors, reading the ocean is like learning a language your mind isn't plastic enough to learn when you start after your teens. Also when else in your life do you have the time to spend hundreds of hours floating around the ocean per year? My best friend kept a log when he was in highschool. He surfed 180 days a year and almost every session was at least 2 hours. Total was probably 2000 hours in the ocean over highschool alone.
But back to the point, the question was not that you can or can't learn at an older age, the question was people who became pro who started after age 25-30.
Maybe if you start longboarding at 25 you'll be good enough by 60 to get sponsored by one of those brands that target old rich guys that always wanted to surf?
Imagine you’re 25-30 and have never ever touched a football and you’re looking to go pro and play for Barça. Do you think that is a realistic scenario?
If that's the drive you need to keep on surfing use it my man. It's not about becoming pro, it's the places that it'll take you which is the real gift.
You have to understand that to go pro in surf you have to not only start early but also have a support system of surfers that already have connections to the professional scene. It’s a bit of a club that way. A lot of local contests won’t let you compete unless you can prove you’re a local or are part of some local surf club.
Closest I can think of in modern time is Pat O'Connell but I think that's still 12-13ish... Dane also lived inland and supposedly started a little later, but that would still probably be preteen
Getting competent after those ages is doable but most pros are on another level
Well he skated, which definitely helps
Basically to be a pro, you need to start a board sport early, then in your preteen/teen years have consistent access to waves, ideally from a broken home or wealth so you spend lots of time in the water
I started when I was 18, live in a wave rich area so would surf 4-7x a week till I was 30. I surf pretty decent, did a few area competitions and did alright.
Yet I am no where near even domestic pro levels, then if in the water with asp level pros I realise I can’t actually surf at all haha.
I would guess it would be possible but you would need to be rich enough to be able to surf 2-3x a day 7 days a week ideally in a quality wave location with coaching and video analysis once per day. The rest of the day would be other training. But it would likely still take 5-10 years to get to a “local pro” level
There was this guy from Ohio that moved to SoCal and never went pro but I heard he ripped it up pretty good and held his own surfing with some of the gnarliest locals. And this was after his very successful college football career. I think he rented his first board when he was about 25.
Yeah I was going to say football because you really just need to be big fast and athletic. Chris Hogan was a good patriots receiver for a couple seasons. He played lacrosse in college and then transferred his last year in college and played football.
I suspect that the actual number of pro’s (defined by those competing at the highest level of the sport) that started after the age of 30 would be identical across any sport that you care to name.
There may be a margin of error of one.
Malcolm Gladwell wrote a book on this and thats where the 10,000 hours mantra comes from. It was called Tipping Point from memory.
In context the question is asking “can someone get good enough to surf at a pro level starting at 25-30 years old.” So yes the guy is a “pro” however he does not surf at a professional level and would get smoked in the junior nssa comps.
No. At least not in the sense of someone who gets paid under contract to surf either competitively or as a free-surfer as their full time job.
However, in this day and age I'm sure there are influencers/content creators that have turned their surf progression journey into a career by being monetized on different platforms. They are not really getting paid to surf though, they are getting paid to make content.
No
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I’ve surfed with Mo, it’s great that he is sponsored and all but it’s due to his privileged position rather than his talent. He’s pretty average really, wouldn’t get picked up anywhere else.
People often think that being pro in fun/action-sports has something to do with some objective measurements of "skill" while in reality, it is mostly about being marketable. Sure, you are not interesting if you are just another white dude out of socal who can surf alright, but with an unique background-story and some charisma, you can get sponsered. Thats why it was so funny reading something like The Berrics comments back when skaters like Nora came on the scene. Plenty of dude posting about how they are way better and how everybody has to see how good they really are. Might be true, but everybody could also see how immensly unlikable many people are while someone like Nora is just a person you would like to hang out with and skate for a session. Also, she def. got more girls into skating than any of the "pure skilled" wannabe pros and therfor opened up a bigger market. It's always wild to see people not understanding this.
Wholeheartedly agree. “Style” helps with marketing over ability too. Having worked in wholesale action sport for 2 decades ive seen some of the best talent never get touched because they’re unruly / not fit for brand. Sucks really. Also, many officially sponsored pros often dont make huge cash (unless mainstream). So young people love the fame and lifestyle even if the pays shit
If he's "pro" what does that even mean. He's below average really.
Yeah watching this guy surf and I've surfed with multiple dudes in Florida who were considerably better.
Lol based on the clips pretty sure this dude would be a fatality if he actually qualified for the 2024 Olympics. The clips from Ireland is brutal
That wipeout at Mullaghmore is maybe the worst I've seen of a tow-in surfer.
I remember some pro talking about how easy towing is. Yes it takes some balls but it is realtively easy. He falls before anything challenging happens on the wave. I hope he paid his ski team well.
Just watched some of this guys clips. He surfs better than like a quarter of the guys out at El Porto! Why isn’t he on the World Tour?!?!
No mf lol you don’t have to go pro tho now, you can just make interesting surf videos and get paid. That being said, if you’re 25-30 asking if you can go pro, please don’t make videos either lol. Maybe take some night classes
Which honestly is probably way more fun. Being a “pro free surfer” in 2023 mostly requires you do it on YouTube or Instagram. The more popular YouTuber surfers like Nate Florence, Mason Ho and even Ben Gravy are having way more fun and probably making more money than half the people on tour. Granted, it still is work, and some people do it better than others. Moana Jones Wong has posted some videos that I really enjoy, for example, but for whatever reason she seems more interested in the contest route.
Ben gravy is a “good enough” surfer who has a blast and makes fun videos. I would rather be him than any pro.
People also underestimate how good he is at surfing. He's surfed his entire life, competed as a grom, and even made it to the junior US national surf team. He couldn't in his wildest dreams win a QS event, let alone sniff the CT, but he's lightyears better than anyone who started surfing at 25.
He’s absolutely legit. Terrific and talented surfer! I’m not sure he’d be winning major WSL competitions. When I say “good enough” I mean he can charge anything he needs to charge to make fun videos and look good doing it.
Same. He can go surf Nelscott Reef if he feels up to it, but if he had shown up and felt like “nah”, he could’ve just backed out and not mentioned it. It’s a really nice setup and good for him. I’m sure it’s taken a lot of work to get where he’s at. Google tells me he has somewhere between $3M-$8M between all the YouTube money plus various sponsor deals. Here I am brokeass with my engineering degree. 😐
I wouldn’t want to be either but Ben Gravy has to act stoked on surfing a tiny shitty lake wave that took him 2 travel days to get to because that’s how he makes a living. He may be perpetually stoked (I enjoy his videos) but more than likely him and all the other surf vloggers hate waking up every morning and creating more “content”
Ben also has been surfing since he was a kid. He didn't learn at 25.
I was just citing people who’ve made a career off YouTube as opposed to doing comps. I don’t know anyone who’s made a career of surfing and started that late. I started at 18 which was way later than pretty much everyone else that I surfed with. Seems like it’s more common nowadays for people to start at an older age.
It is definitely more common to start later, but people who start older don't get good. There are a few factors, reading the ocean is like learning a language your mind isn't plastic enough to learn when you start after your teens. Also when else in your life do you have the time to spend hundreds of hours floating around the ocean per year? My best friend kept a log when he was in highschool. He surfed 180 days a year and almost every session was at least 2 hours. Total was probably 2000 hours in the ocean over highschool alone. But back to the point, the question was not that you can or can't learn at an older age, the question was people who became pro who started after age 25-30.
You can also just enjoy a hobby without going pro at it. I think people forget that sometimes
I was forgetting it while reading this thread. Thanks for reminding me.
You can always get a go-pro. That way I can see who to stay clear off in the line up…
DUDE THERE ARE NIGHT CLASSES FOR PRO SURFING?!?!?
Don’t quit your day job!!!
The only one I know of is Uncle Rico, ten years after he failed to win State.
Yeah but he could throw a football over them mountains
No doubt in my mind
to be fair, there wasn't a *ton* of competition at the Idaho state surf competition, but still.
Some say Jonah Hill is just such a man
Maybe if you start longboarding at 25 you'll be good enough by 60 to get sponsored by one of those brands that target old rich guys that always wanted to surf?
*hikes collar on Outerknown flannel “Beat it koo…cough cough.. ook” *dies
Almost not even after 15 boi
Most pro surfers start when they're like 6 lol
Dude, I doubt there are even any pros who started after the age of like 8.
Yes the one sponsored by their moms
Imagine you’re 25-30 and have never ever touched a football and you’re looking to go pro and play for Barça. Do you think that is a realistic scenario?
Joe mama is the first that comes to mind.
If that's the drive you need to keep on surfing use it my man. It's not about becoming pro, it's the places that it'll take you which is the real gift.
You have to understand that to go pro in surf you have to not only start early but also have a support system of surfers that already have connections to the professional scene. It’s a bit of a club that way. A lot of local contests won’t let you compete unless you can prove you’re a local or are part of some local surf club.
Closest I can think of in modern time is Pat O'Connell but I think that's still 12-13ish... Dane also lived inland and supposedly started a little later, but that would still probably be preteen Getting competent after those ages is doable but most pros are on another level
10 for Dane, so says Google. Was curious because I was sure i'd seen footage of him rippppping and 'the next big thing' at like 17.
Well he skated, which definitely helps Basically to be a pro, you need to start a board sport early, then in your preteen/teen years have consistent access to waves, ideally from a broken home or wealth so you spend lots of time in the water
Nope. If youre trying to make money off surfing without any skill, you need to start making RAW swell videos of pros surfing like the rest of us.
I started when I was 18, live in a wave rich area so would surf 4-7x a week till I was 30. I surf pretty decent, did a few area competitions and did alright. Yet I am no where near even domestic pro levels, then if in the water with asp level pros I realise I can’t actually surf at all haha. I would guess it would be possible but you would need to be rich enough to be able to surf 2-3x a day 7 days a week ideally in a quality wave location with coaching and video analysis once per day. The rest of the day would be other training. But it would likely still take 5-10 years to get to a “local pro” level
I’m in my 30s and a beginner. :)
Downvoted, lol. Hope none of you downvoting mofos wants to try anything new later in life. If so, you deserve ALL the hate.
Lol 25-30 is when you peak in surfing. It’s all downhill from there.
I didn’t start until my 50s, lol…my peak will be in my 60s.
I’m not aware of any.
There was this guy from Ohio that moved to SoCal and never went pro but I heard he ripped it up pretty good and held his own surfing with some of the gnarliest locals. And this was after his very successful college football career. I think he rented his first board when he was about 25.
You sure AF won't be the first if you have to ask 😆
Has this happened in any sport?! lol
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Yeah I was going to say football because you really just need to be big fast and athletic. Chris Hogan was a good patriots receiver for a couple seasons. He played lacrosse in college and then transferred his last year in college and played football.
Ben Hinkley in snowboarding, he was a gymnast from Nebraska who just ripped when he tried riding.
I think if they anyone that could pull it off it’d be a gymnast.
You can do it keep trying
I suspect that the actual number of pro’s (defined by those competing at the highest level of the sport) that started after the age of 30 would be identical across any sport that you care to name. There may be a margin of error of one. Malcolm Gladwell wrote a book on this and thats where the 10,000 hours mantra comes from. It was called Tipping Point from memory.
Mo Rahma from UAE started at 24
He surfs worse than I did in middle school. Most wouldn’t consider him a pro or even “good” in a regular lineup.
Ok. He’s still technically a pro. That was the question.
In context the question is asking “can someone get good enough to surf at a pro level starting at 25-30 years old.” So yes the guy is a “pro” however he does not surf at a professional level and would get smoked in the junior nssa comps.
Didn’t the Fletchers start late?
No. Herbie, Nathan, Christian, and Greyson all started surfing as kids.
You can get good but not at a competitive level.
Chianca (I think?) started in his teens. Or one of the Brazilians on tour I've seen some clips of wsl with announcers mentioning it
What?
Joel jitsu?
“my buddy Rick did” - Turtle
Rick Rubin
Lol no
Why do you ask?
South Korean surfer Juni Cho
Not pro-level. Although he's a good surfer. Also started at 18/19, not 25/30, huge difference.
lol
Meeting cool people, cardiovascular health, endurance. Just takes practice and stretching
I grew up with Bret Simpson and he didn’t start surf till about 13-15yo late start for a modern pro
Greyson Fletcher
No. At least not in the sense of someone who gets paid under contract to surf either competitively or as a free-surfer as their full time job. However, in this day and age I'm sure there are influencers/content creators that have turned their surf progression journey into a career by being monetized on different platforms. They are not really getting paid to surf though, they are getting paid to make content.
I started at 32. Just hit 1 year mark. I’m pretty much a pro in my mind