When I began surfing in 1962, it was the latest, all-encompassing fad.
We now had our own language, clothing styles: Ivy League, which seems stupid now (wingtips on the beach?) or the more practical white Levi’s, surf shop T-shirts, Madras plaid shirts, Converse or blue deck shoes.
My parents were glad for any departure from my punk prototype ripped jeans, Army surplus boots and jackets and streaked hair.
Surfer girls (weirdly, you didn’t have to surf to be a surfer girl) were generally casually dressed in cotton dresses or shorts and oversized T-shirts.
Most SoCal lineups were dominated by young males, where only a few girls paddled out with us boys. In my crew, girls were always welcomed into the lineup, and I believe the alleged mistreatment of female surfers to be exaggerated. If anything, it seems they got away with shoulder hopping and other offenses no guy ever could.
Oh, well. When I arrived on the scene, Linda Benson, Martha Sunn, the Calhouns and Joyce Hoffman were the dominant names in women’s surfing. By the late ’60s, Margo Godfrey Oberg dominated.
Since then, there has been a parade of females like Lisa Anderson and, more recently, Carissa Moore leading a list too long for this column.
One of them made surf history after she lost her arm to a tiger shark, fought past the terror and pain, and emerged as one of the best in her gender, especially when the waves were heaving over shallow reefs.
Anyone who’s seen the movie “Soul Surfer” or has followed Bethany Hamilton’s story for a while realizes what an amazing athlete and human being she is.
Bethany has been a top-level competitor for around 15 years, and while she only competes in a select few events, she is now considering retiring.
Not because her best years are behind her but because the World Surfing League (WSL) has adopted the International Surfing Association (ISA) policy on transgender participation.
Hamilton recently addressed her 2.1 million Instagram followers, saying that while she attempts to be loving to all people, she nonetheless has questions about the transgender inclusion guidelines.
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
For example, whether the pro surfers on tour had been asked their thoughts on the new rules prior to their announcement, whether hormone levels are an honest and accurate depiction that someone indeed is male or female, and whether this policy is good for the sport of surfing
“I personally think the best solution would be to create a separate division so all can have an opportunity to showcase passion and talent,” Hamilton said. “There’re glimpses of male-bodied dominance in sports such as running and swimming.”
In 2022, transgender surfer Sasha Jane Lowerson won the Western Australian longboarding championships in the women’s division. In 2019, while still identifying as a male, Lowerson, then known as Ryan Egan, won the WA longboarding title before transitioning.
Since surfing is now an Olympic sport, it seems the WSL announced its transgender policy to be compliant with the International Olympic Committee, which released its latest policy in November.
The IOC stated that it would issue a framework but that ultimately guidelines would be left up to the governing bodies of the sports to determine how an athlete may be at a disproportionate advantage against their peers.
Please hit the comments to let me know what you think of this ongoing story.
