MAMBO

Sorry I cant defend my title as the missus is due in early December. Was down there last week for a family holiday. One good NEaster and a big southerly. If anyone is after accomodation, I would recommend Merimbula beach holiday park at Short Point. We had a cliff top bungalow.(Last years Mambo prize) Awesome.
Cheers

Forgot to say last night that the observation deck at Ford oval is gone thanks to some dope who burnt it down. Think it would be safe to build it again? Wrong, it was burnt down for the second time so no more deck. The council has had enough.

think youll find donk to be one of the best competition sailors around, especially on the east coast ( which is where the majority of competitors hail from). Thats probably why he one last year, congrats donk.
Out of curiosity who do you rate as the top ten back in the "good old days". serious question so please no stupid answers. I could name 5ish but depends on how far back your good old days go.

I asked specifically for no stupid answers, qwerty should have been at the top of the list!! but seriously now, I also would have put in Andrew Thorton and Im sure doogs would have been in there as well.
When I said donk is a good competition sailor it wasnt to be taken in negative way. Some sailors can perform consistantly at comps and others cant, doesnt make anyone a better or worse sailor. I know of plenty of really good sailors who absolutely rip while freesailing but are the first to admit they cant put it together in a heat( well actually only one admits it, the rest consistently get robbed[}:)]). Doesnt matter at the end of the day as long as everone is having a good time I guess.
I was going to comps as a grom and Im still going now, to be honest I believe the average level of sailing now is better than it was back then ( over the whole fleet ). Just noticed that every one on your list still is competing, either in wavesailing of that other funny thing with the strings, so everyones still out there in one form or another

I suppose saying that the average level of sailing "over the whole fleet" is better now, means you agree the top guys aren't as good now?
This shouldn't be confused by the moves that have been invented since the old days, or the better equipment these days. In other words, although a lesser-talented current sailor with a time machine could go back and perhaps win, that wouldn't count as better.

You obviuosly like to read into things a little too much.
I would say the top sailors of today or the last 5 years are sailing at a level better than the guys of generations past, I think they call it progression. Talking about time machines is getting abit ridiculous. Its like comparing Mike Waltze in his heyday to Kauli, pointless. I think back in the day there were still magazines and some kind of hype in the sport so the top guys proflile would be elevated thru magazine covers and the like. Where as now there is nothing really, or al the least its a hell of a lot more low key.
At the end of the day I recon australia has turned out some pretty good wavesailors past present and future , so we should be proud of them. If your young enought to sail still get out there and go hard till the body cant do it no more, when you are too old and the body cant do it any more, then its a better time to sit back and talk about "the good old days"

Yes I imagine there are a few names we haven't thought of yet.
I don't know about me reading into things too much, but you are too defensive. If you think the time machine thing is ridiculous then you missed the point, which was simply to make it clearer what I meant by "better", perhaps I should have tried a third time to explain it!
But my intention wasn't to be rude, and it's kinda nice how you're sticking up for Donk (where are you Donk, you'd probably back me up). I certainly have nothing against him, you'd think I was blaming him for winning!
Anyhow to reiterate, unless Donk has suddenly improved heaps which I doubt, it seems the standard at the top, and I'm only talking about the east coast/Mambo competitors, has dropped considerably. I'm not blaming anyone, just making observations. In the meantime I will continue to both "go hard" and reflect appreciatively on the old days. I feel lucky and privileged to have been in the sport back then.

Realistically the top 5 guys have never been that far from 50% of the rest of the field, well at least not in the NSW comps. The major difference has always been consitency.

Donk for instance, I always thought of as a good sailor, even right back when I first met him in about 95 at a Mambo (remember the roof surfing Donk??) he was what I would have classed as one of the standouts, maybe not at the top but a standout none the less. The difference was consistent results, the likes of Rowan Cudmore and Stu Martin were always on thier game and as Dan pointed out, exposure. The top guys were seen as the top because they were all thoughout the magazines of the time, this may have even biased judging at different events. Now days the guys that are winning get very little coverage so you don't know or hear about them.

So I guess what I see these days, and it may be from improvement in gear, or just time. But everyone seems to be getting more consitent. And realistically we are not getting a huge amount of new blood in the sport on the east coast, and the guys that are winning have been around a while and know what it takes to win events.

If that don't make sence...**** it, it's windy, Im stuck at work and can't concentrate.

we're reliving the good old days mate, not the current crop.

and Ide put dean hendrie in there as well, since hes been up aroung the top for what must be close to 20yrs!! I say full respect to anyone who has stayed competitive for that long. And if i has taken him that long to win the mambo all the sweeter the beer must have been that night for him. congrats

andrew gibbons

merimbula, longest continuous running wavesailing event in the world, 28 years I think.

who is Jetsam to judge his peers, who are you jetsam or do you remain anon?

Donk rips

I know who you are and here is your picture, maybe you could use it as an avatar?

Which question was dumb?

Who are you to judge your peers? Or, Who are you?

Don't be a hater