As Cyclone Marcia made landfall on the Eastern Australian Coast last week, the issue of localism closely followed. The waves produced by the storm were unbelievable, but the unprecedented crowds put local rippers like Dingo Morrison under scrutiny. Dingo, who knows Kirra like the back of his hand, took to Instagram to express his thoughts:
Love surfing this place more than anything!! I grew up right there, went to primary school right there, when times were tough we had to stay at the refuge right there, so that’s why I get territorial right there.. To all those people that think it’s a free for all or if ya just moved here and think your (sic) a local FUCK YOU takes along time to pay ya dues and earn ya spot in a line up!!!!
In a followup interview, Dingo told Stab Magazine, “We live in the most crowded surf place in the world, so people just rock up and think it’s alright to not obey the rules, and don’t really know who those guys are, I think it’s just good etiquette. Guys who’ve surfed there as long as Rabs and Wayne, they should get their pick of the waves. I definitely saw Rabs and Wayne and those kinda guys getting frustrated out there. They come in and go ‘man, I just had some guy paddle around me and then call me off a wave, this is out of control, people just think it’s a free-for-all.’ And that frustrates me, too. It’s nice when you go to a place and the older guys have their spot in the lineup and they’ve been there forever. You see it at places with a good kind of localism. Burleigh has it, and they have that in Hawaii.”
Pretty accurate illustration of the Gold Coast last week. Photo: @SeanScottPhotography/@WorldSurfLoLs collab
Localism is no easy subject to discuss. On one side of the spectrum, surfers are stressing the importance of having a functional pecking order while others criticize guys like Dingo for being arrogant and in the wrong for what he did. Regardless of where you stand on Dingo’s tactics, his argument holds merit. That is, there is something so wrong about groms and tourists dropping in and back paddling guys like Rabs and Wayne. And the anarchic nature of most surf breaks these days can be simply dangerous. Dingo, however, suggests that he has a responsibility to maintain a sense of localism out there, a social structure that has seemed to fade within the last few decades.
“Yeah, I think everyone does at their local break,” Dingo told Stab Magazine. “And it’s for the generations of kids that come through, so they know that’s their spot and they can get their waves and have respect from other guys, but they know how to give respect for locals when they go to other places. It’s something all surfers should do, it’s good to respect a place when you rock up… it’s just like anything. The tour guys are all really good with it. They travel all year, and they know when they’re at home they get their waves, and when they’re away they don’t get the best waves in the sets.”
