Well, we all want to cheat. In climbing, there are so many ways to cheat. You can do a route thatâs been done 50 times and all youâve got to do is follow the chalk marks that tell you exactly where to put your hands and feet. I canât stand to do a route like that because I canât stand to have people tell me what to do. I want to figure it out myself. I look at people climbing Everestâthereâs a guy back in Austria that gives them a weather report every day that basically tells them to go or not go. Itâs hundreds of ladders in place, thousands of feet of fixed ropes, Sherpas in front pulling and another one behind pushing. In surfing there are very few ways to cheat. Tow-in surfing was one way to cheat, but thatâs passĂ© now. So I think itâs the purest sport there is, and the most difficult too. I donât know of any other sport thatâs more difficult than surfing.
This is one of the many reasons I love surfing. Itâs just you, your board, and your determination to ride a wave. Wetsuits get stretchier, boards get faster, but no one else can catch that wave for you.
Solid read.
Don of the Dirtbags: An Interview with Yvon Chouinard // The Usual Montauk //Â http://theusualmontauk.com/don-of-the-dirtbags-an-interview-with-yvon-chouinard/
