I am very talented at many things. I can not only write my name in the snow, but I can change the font as well. Comic sans is my favorite. Like I said, I am very talented, just not at surfing.
Which is why I like it so much, I think. When I go surfing with my buddies, nobody keeps score, and it doesn’t really matter how good anyone is. In some sports the element of competition is integral, like football or soccer, but surfing isn’t one of those activities. I have tremendous respect for the abilities of professional surfers, but I don’t make a habit of following it.
Which is why I like it so much, I think. When I go surfing with my buddies, nobody keeps score, and it doesn’t really matter how good anyone is. In some sports the element of competition is integral, like football or soccer, but surfing isn’t one of those activities. I have tremendous respect for the abilities of professional surfers, but I don’t make a habit of following it.
In the Joseph Heller novel Catch 22 the novel’s protagonist Yossarian states, “Like Olympics medals and tennis trophies, all they signified was that the owner had done something of no benefit to anyone more capably than everyone else.”
With a bicycle race, there is a clear winner, and a clear loser. First one across the line takes the checkered flag. Grow the biggest turnip, win the blue ribbon. When you inject competitive aspects into an activity based on aesthetics, you end up with an arbitrary verdict based on somebody's opinion. In competitive ballet dancing, beauty contests, car show competitions or the United States Knitting Cup, it all depends on the biased views of the judges.
In the long run, it isn’t really fun to play golf without keeping track of score. You can screw around for a bit, taking shots at the ball cart as it scoots around on driving range, but eventually you’ll want to get serious. Surfing is different. I could go the rest of my life without somebody scoring me on my technique. Which is good, because I’m rather awful.
With a bicycle race, there is a clear winner, and a clear loser. First one across the line takes the checkered flag. Grow the biggest turnip, win the blue ribbon. When you inject competitive aspects into an activity based on aesthetics, you end up with an arbitrary verdict based on somebody's opinion. In competitive ballet dancing, beauty contests, car show competitions or the United States Knitting Cup, it all depends on the biased views of the judges.
In the long run, it isn’t really fun to play golf without keeping track of score. You can screw around for a bit, taking shots at the ball cart as it scoots around on driving range, but eventually you’ll want to get serious. Surfing is different. I could go the rest of my life without somebody scoring me on my technique. Which is good, because I’m rather awful.