“Thanks for showing people this, now we know who to
drop in on before they paddle out.”
It was the most innocuous of Instagram posts and in a
normal sorta world a brother would stroll right on by with
only the slightest raise of an eyebrow.
Kiel Russ is a surf coach from Alberta, Canada, who has
collected almost half-a-million Instagram followers drawn by his
easy-to-understand reels. In short catchy numbers, Russ explaining
how to repair a faulty duck dive, the correct technique for the
turtle roll, secret techniques that only pro’s know, the ubiquitous
pop-up tutorials and, recently, the dangers of coiling your leash
around your fins.
And it is here where the deep schism that is roiling surf
culture, or what might roughly be called a culture, has been laid
bare.
leash around the fins, an innocuous enough post except it squares
core lords, sea dogs, whatever you wanna call lifetime surfers,
against the modern VAL.
A quick aside: When did the obsession with pop-ups begin? When
the over-forties bankers starting getting into surf? Did The
Inertia birth the obsession?
Russ then recommends and demonstrates a method popular in the
nineteen-seventies where the leash is stretched and tied around the
nose and then hoiked up until it’s tight like a recalcitrant pair
of pants.
And it’s this that drew the ol sea
dogs into a shootout with the modern VAL.
Old school:
From the Greenroom Times, Thanks for showing people this,
now we know who to drop in on before they paddle out
40 plus years and always wrapped the leash around the board,
never took it off, and never had a problem
Best of luck to you buddy but leave advice/ surf content to
real surfers
VAL:
This puts a kink in it as well. The best thing is to just
take it off every time you surf and put it in a bin with the rest
of your leashes when you get home. Make sure to rinse them off.
Carry it in your hand until you get to the water edge, put it on
the board and your leash will last a long time.
That’s how I tie my leash so I can carry my longboard over
my shoulder using it. Short arms and all.
Just remove it and rinse out the swivels too, leash will
last much longer.
Been surfing for 3 years and I didnt know this, now I
understand why Im not taking waves. Hope I start taking waves after
changing the fins!
There’s a whole thread on reddit about Kiel Russ, master surf
coach, although very expensive to employ!
I booked a consultation with him (I’m a beginner and trying
to progress as much as possible).
I had to fill in a form when booking my initial call, the last
question stated “are you willing to invest $500 – $1000 in your
surfing at the end of the call?”. Naturally, I answered “no”, as I
wanted to have the initial meeting first so I could decide whether
or not the fee was justified. I received several emails since
submitting the form stating my consultation was confirmed etc. only
to receive an email one day in advance cancelling it, due to the
fact that I wasn’t willing to commit to an investment at the end of
the call. Strange business strategy on their behalf. Plenty of
other surf/conditioning coaches online that I’m sure will be happy
to take my money.
I wasn’t able to find any videos of Kiel Russ, the founder
of Hydromind, surfing on Youtube. I followed up with his support
team and they stated “The prices of the programs vary depending on
your needs. We’ll determine your goals and what program suits you
best. It ranges from $500 to $1000, with Free Bands sent to your
delivery address.”
I read the knocks on him not being a great surfer, I ignored
that because I think the best players dont always make the best
coaches, and with a month-by-month membership on offer I didnt have
too much to lose. The program is more about surfing fitness which
is where I’m lacking at the moment. Having not really surfed for
about 15 years but looking to get back into it my surf fitness is
down, and having two kids, running a business etc I dont have the
time to surf multiple times a week. I know the only way you are
going to get good at surfing is by surfing, so this program is
defintely aimed at people like him (Kiel) who seem to have
irregular access to surf and want to maintain fitness/flexibility
when not in the water. If you can surf multiple times a week you
wouldn’t need his program. Early red flags, I did sign up
to a month-by-month membership with some free bands (he uses for
his paddle exercises and have made an improvement in my paddle
endurance and effectiveness so far) but there is no way I can see
where it shows how to cancel the membership. It’s easy enough to
block a credit card from future payments which is always the
failsafe but making it hard for people to cancel is always a bad
sign. From seeing comments I think I have to DM him somehow, and I
dont know what roadblocks they will put in my way to
cancel.
Have you ever considered shelling over cash so a man from
Instagram can make you shred?
And with the legrope tying matter, who ties? And if you do, are
you a surf-hat and poncho wearer?
