State of the Sport 2015

[lucabrasi]

As compared to what, Penthouse Forum letters?

I dunno, seems pretty tame to me.  Zoners have posted pictures of there gf's and wives.
Can anyone spot SeaMe in this picture?? 

No clue but you would never catch me in a solid beach hat with stripes on my suit.

[PonoBill]

I certainly understand why this "hot chicks" thing doesn't go both ways. I love to see a beautiful woman in a tiny bikini (though at 68 I feel like a dog thinking about chasing a car) but a guy in a budgie smuggler makes me gag. Even a fit one, though most guys wearing speedos are not.

[pdxmike]

Well, Admin, that 11% must have been nice while it lasted.  Or should we call you "Tom Leykus"?

[PonoBill]

That's one odd dude you got there PDX, he's got to be a charter member of the "never been laid" club. At least not without a professional arrangement.

[TallDude]

Well, Admin, that 11% must have been nice while it lasted.

But it's that 11% that we live for.

[pdxmike]

Tom Leykis was the only one I could think of that I knew would be solidly under 11% in the female audience category.

[Area 10]

The hotchicks thread is tasteful. 

As compared to what, Penthouse Forum letters?  If a bunch of grown men want to act like horndogs on a public forum, far be it from me to stop any of them, but I'm sure more than one woman has spent time lurking and decided it's not worth joining in because of what sometimes passes for 'humor'.

I agree with you, SeaMe. It is frankly a bit sad IMO - mostly a bunch of old men leering over girls young enough to be their granddaughter. It is out of keeping with the sophistication elsewhere on the forum. But we've had this argument before and nothing changed then, so I guess the smell of old men's balls will keep the pictures of granddaughters rolling in forever. There's a very nuanced argument to be had on the topic with arguments both ways, but we aren't gonna be having it here, if past experience is anything to go by.

[NEplay]

I saw another women this morning at Straws point in NH getting out the water. I was about to get in. This was interesting for several reasons. One it was pretty big and somewhat lumpy and gnarly. This was the only women I have ever seen at NH beaches tackling this type of surf. I have seen a total of two other women over three years SUP surfing in NH only on super mellow days. Two, no one else was out so she made the decision to go alone which was cool.

There is one young women who paddles out in pretty rugged surf at Long Sands in York, at least I saw her once but did not get a chance to say hello. 

There is pretty slow growth amongst women in the surf in New England it seems to me. As far as racing and performance flat water it seems to be the same old group every year for women and I mean old(ish). But New England is always slow to adapt.

I am of two minds about the hot chicks thread, boys will be boys I suppose. I have clicked on it and have seen beautiful photos and some seriously cheesy stuff. Not to call out Pono but if its true that men here gag if they are confronted with male genitals then the sport has bigger problems.

[SlatchJim]

A "Women and Sup" thread wouldn't completely miss the mark, especially one that takes time to appreciate women of all ages doing all things SUP. Do NOT...put the "hot chicks' thread in there, ... keep the salacious appropriately separated.

[SeaMe]

As compared to what, Penthouse Forum letters?

I dunno, seems pretty tame to me.  Zoners have posted pictures of there gf's and wives.
Can anyone spot SeaMe in this picture?? 

Me, a prude? My husband would tell you otherwise. 

I agree with you, SeaMe. It is frankly a bit sad IMO - mostly a bunch of old men leering over girls young enough to be their granddaughter. It is out of keeping with the sophistication elsewhere on the forum. But we've had this argument before and nothing changed then, so I guess the smell of old men's balls will keep the pictures of granddaughters rolling in forever. There's a very nuanced argument to be had on the topic with arguments both ways, but we aren't gonna be having it here, if past experience is anything to go by.

I don't expect change but the "guys just being guys" echo chamber has gotten old (no pun intended). I'm not interested in policing anyone (or being policed in turn) but I will throw out food for thought: Google a "SUP" topic and the Zone is almost universally the first result, meaning many non-members pass through here when looking for info. So when you post to the Zone, it's not like you're talking to a small group of friends at a table who know you as a person and get your sense of humor; it's like you're on stage in front of an open mic in a theater crowded with strangers who are judging you solely on what's coming out of your mouth in that moment.

A "Women and Sup" thread wouldn't completely miss the mark, especially one that takes time to appreciate women of all ages doing all things SUP. Do NOT...put the "hot chicks' thread in there, ... keep the salacious appropriately separated.

I'll skip the debate over whether "salacious" content belongs on any SUP forum, but something to remember is that a thread of that sort is going to show up in the "recent" feed whenever someone posts, and it's common for the mentality to leak into other threads. Keeping it separate might not be as simple as saying, "don't click."

[feet]

Im a 33 yo guy. I lurked for 2-3 years and joined in 2013 perhaps. I stayed around because I appreciate the intelligent discussion of SUP related and other more general topics.  The voices here are unique (in spite of the stat that it is ~80% male and mostly 50+) and very knowledgeable.

If the Zone actually cared about being welcoming to women, the HC thread would have been killed long ago. I think SUP  and the Zone can do without the objectification of women in this fashion.  I never understood the  pin-up snap-on tool calendars my mechanic uncle hung up around the garage, and the HC thread oozes the same creepy, unwelcoming vibe.  An old boys club, if you will...

The sport in general is still full of exciting developments. I think the BOP style races are a lot of fun to watch and the sport could easily capitalize on that aspect.  The fact that I've been drooling over TOMO styled boards all winter is a testament to the new and exciting shapes still being developed. 

[esskay1000]

Im a 33 yo guy. I lurked for 2-3 years and joined in 2013 perhaps. I stayed around because I appreciate the intelligent discussion of SUP related and other more general topics.  The voices here are unique (in spite of the stat that it is ~80% male and mostly 50+) and very knowledgeable.

If the Zone actually cared about being welcoming to women, the HC thread would have been killed long ago. I think SUP  and the Zone can do without the objectification of women in this fashion.  I never understood the  pin-up snap-on tool calendars my mechanic uncle hung up around the garage, and the HC thread oozes the same creepy, unwelcoming vibe.  An old boys club, if you will...

The sport in general is still full of exciting developments. I think the BOP style races are a lot of fun to watch and the sport could easily capitalize on that aspect.  The fact that I've been drooling over TOMO styled boards all winter is a testament to the new and exciting shapes still being developed.

While I agree with you on the objectifying women thing and wouldn't care if the HC thread stopped, we have to remember that women push the objectification of women in media just as much - or arguably more - than men, so it frustrates me when they cry about it because they're a big part of the problem.  All those magazines in the grocery store checkout line with half naked women on the cover and inside - most are women's magazines and purchased almost solely by women.  Some issues of Cosmo are practically porn, but it's women buying it and looking at scantily clad women in the magazine.  As this article points out, men like looking at hot, half-naked women, and women do too.  Let's face it, women are beautiful and fun to look at, and men smell.

http://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/03/womens-magazines-objectify-women-just-as-much-as-mens-magazines-do/274330/

[TallDude]

I think there is room for improvement 

[SlatchJim]

I think there is room for improvement 

That's who you remind me of! 

[spookini]

One of the things I like about the 'Zone is... it's pretty well-behaved.  (Look at the recent "and then the pros".)  Most ppl here seem to self-regulate, self-congratulate, self-flagellate (and perhaps, self-fornicate  ).

The HC thread?  Yes, it's fit female figures, attired for sun exposure  .  A few recent posts are out of place -- nothing to do w/ SUP.. no paddle, no board, no nada.  At the same time, google-image Alana Blanchard and tell me what's going on there??  Starboard doesn't post videos of Ms. Baxter wearing ski pants. Reef is selling more than sandals.  And a female Zoner self-posted a vid recently -- she was ripping it up, in small swim attire.  I was not offended. 
(I am concerned about TallDude's new avatar )

I'm not concerned whether the HC thread gets re-bumped every few weeks.
Am too busy worrying about flying fish who DW on inflatables, and the retirement of seals who attack sharks who attack us.

it was pretty big and somewhat lumpy and gnarly.

NEPlay, between the BananaBunker and Pono's self-professed fear of genitalia, the imagery you've just conjured up is WAY out of line.