l do not understand why surfers dislike spongers in general. Is it because we can barreled on practically any day? Is it because we can air higher than you? Do we get in your way or cut you off any more than a surfer would? What is your deal?

l am with you! They are jealous of our ability to get barreled so often and air much higher.
But l also think some boogers are giving us a bad name by dropping in etc.

Guess we will never know aye. Haha

l always wonder about that!!!

l have no idea. surfers cut me off all the time, & l do not know why. l am not a kook- never cut any of the surfers off, wait my turn in the lineup just like everyone else, & yet they cuss me out, cut me off, try to run me over on purpose when l am paddling out.

on the other hand, many surfers l know do not hate spongers. in fact, they love them- it is just the surfers that get really aggro, that feel that only they can ride the waves. those r the ones who hate spongers.

I've actually noticed that the majority of surfers who r actually good (as in, they have a nice style, they r pro, they compete, they're sponsored) do not really hate spongers. it is the ones who r average to above average, trying to work their way up, or the ones who r really kooky, who feel the need to hate spongers because it gives them a feeling of self accomplishment thinking that they're better than someone out in the lineup. (when really, we can sponge better than the majority of the surfers out there could xD )

really, we're all just trying to ride the waves.
one of my brothers is a surfer, the other is a sponger. l am a sponger, l have friends who r surfers & a bunch of friends who r spongers, who have siblings, parents, friends who surf. Yet we all greet eachother with a shakka out in the water & smiles on our faces- regardless of what we're riding.

In my opinion, there r two types of bodyboarders. The little kids on the costco moreys & little wham-o foam boards from walmart, who get out in the lineup, cut off the surfers & generally piss off both spongers & surfers.
and then there is the spongers who r into it. who sponge for their life. everyday, at their local break. 360s, banks, rolls, ars's, backflips, barrels, airs, who ride well, & love their sport, who respect the rules of the lineup & just want to ride the waves because they love it, & they love sponging, & want to take the sport to the next level.

. l just with surfers could see the waves through a sponger is eyes for once. & that some of them could learn to see the difference between a person who sponges because they can not surf, & a person who sponges because they love it, & they choose to. & only cut off the kooky ones.

*EDIT- in response to Chris K
As a bodyboarder, l used to surf. l still can surf- in fact, l used to shortboard for my school team. Some of the guys l sponge with every day- they used to surf too, & they're just about as good as lots of the surfers out there. It is not fair to say that bodyboarders can not surf, because many of us can-- if l go out on a day when my local break is wedging up a bit, l sponge, but if it is lined up enough, then l will surf- same with the rest of the spongers. saying bodyboarding is not a sport is, no offense, ridiculous. Have u ever seen real bodyboarding. say, teahupoo, pipe? How can u say that is not a sport? As a bodyboarder, l do not think l am better than any other surfers, in fact, surfing is difficult, & l do respect it. but bodyboarders have challenged breaks around the world where surfing them was not even thought to be possible, & for that, u have to give spongers at least a little credit.

l do not hate spongers, but u can see why surfers hate u from the way u stated ur question. Being extremely arrogant/cocky at a sport that 2 year olds can become professional at.

I've also found that boogieboarders tend to snake a lot more, constantly paddling to the inside & hogging every wave. While u r able to take off deeper, surfers hate u because u have no appreciation for the skill & technique used for riding a surfboard. While it may sound egotistical for us, nothing sounds more frustrating than an ignorant booger saying ''wE beTTER ThaN yOu sTAnd UPs''.

Try riding a surfboard before u talk crap to a surfer. While we all can work on our respect values, all of ur ego needs to be treated first.


Edit:
Paddle T, how is it not cocky saying u think you're better than us? Standing up on a surfboard is an amazing amount harder than boogie boarding; Why can not boogie boarders understand that!

personally, l dont have a problem with u guys. l actually think its pretty cool. but the reason is sometimes, some (a few, not all) bodyboarders like to drop in. one time at my beach there was this one bodyboarder that used to always drop in on surfers & get in their way. it made me mad. but after that some of the surfers at my beach got it in their heads that all bodyboarders r like that. l know that a lot of bodyboarers r cool so im cool with them & thats the only thing that l can think of to why we would hate bodyboarers

this is a response to the guy above 2 spots above-
That is not being cocky to say we can air higher than you, it would be an obvious reason for u to hate us. As a sponger, l do not get why u think u r better than us cause u can stand up. Like one of the other posts said there r two kinds of body boarders. u can not just lump the both of them into two categories. l never cut surfers or spongers off for that matter, but l still get shit for being a sponger. If anyone is the kook, its the surfers who cut me off when the sets role in.

Spongers r not all the same, just as surfers r not all the same: two facts often forgotten.

l do not hate spongers, but l do despise them a little bit, to be honest. l started boogie boarding (yeah, thats what its called) as a kid, & progressed to surfing when l started standing up on my boogie board. l think that there is not a ton of skill nor effort involved in it. Basically, bodyboarders r wimps, who need to grow a pair. Its not a sport, & should not have its own organizations. l am not going to be openly hostile to a sponger for them just being a sponger, that is just not cool at all, but l will if they do something stupid and/or dangerous (which they often do).

Make the move & learn to stand up on a board. l know, its hard, but u will get it, eventually. Bodyboarding is something for kids, not full grown men who r not athletic enough to stand on a surfboard. Come on, even longboarding is attainable to u people.

Also, l am pretty sure u don't/can not get as much air. Maybe u get more air than some people, maybe people who just started surfing yesterday, but l challenge u to try & best me & many of the people l know any day with good waves.

Now there is something to be said for the ancient Hawaiians who first laid down on wood planks, but that was much different than the bodyboarding which has developed today. They at least progressed to surfing at some point in their lives, so l do give them thanks for the creation of surfing.

When l am out surfing, l regard bodyboarders the same way l do Stand Up Paddlers: they're kooks & deserve no waves unless l know or see that they r very good at what they do. Very, very, very good.



*This will probably cause some aggravation, as the spongers know l am right yet cannot face the truth. These words were not written in hate, but in sadness & candor. Stand up, my people, & learn to surf!

When l was a little boy, many, many years ago, l learned the ways of the ocean. l swam, l body surfed, & l 'body boarded'. Granted this was a good five years or more before Tom Morey invented the 'boogie board', & spongers came into being.

In 1966, l started surfing, it was something that u sort of 'grew up' into, after years of other water activities. l also learned to sail & snorkel & scuba dive.

There have always been body boarders, the Hawaiians & polynesians bodyboarded. The Hawaiians called it a ''paipo''. In my day, a surfing genius, George Greenough, practically gave up stand up surfing for knee riding a hollowed out chunk of fiberglass.

Now, with that said, lots of spongers today tend to still be young adolescents, lots like it was fifty years ago. And, like it or not, lots of young adolescents r obnoxuious in the water. NOT ALL! l am not that stupid to generalize. And, to some surfers, it seems as if adult spongers r suffering from some type of arrested development (still riding on their bellies, when they could be standing up). And some adult spongers still act like obnoxious adolescents, getting in surfers ways. l admit, there have been days when l have contemplated eviscerating a sponger or two who cut me off.

But, George Greenough realized forty years ago, that it sometimes is cooler to make radical manuevers in really critical parts of the wave, rather than just stand up & zig zag across the face of a wave. So, l guess overall, standing up, is not the most imporatnt part of riding waves.

Yes, some surfers hate spongers. But, if all surfers (and all spongers) treated everybody in the water with respect & if everybody realized that u do not have to get every wave, we would all be better off. l have been surfing for 42 years, & l surely do not hate body boarders. But l do tend to hate arrogant, rude, assholes, whether they r riding a Boogie Board or an Al Merrick Flyer. We all 'kook out' every now & then, & do something stupid or inconsiderate. So we should apologize profusely, get out of the way, & try to learn from our mistakes. And real surfers do not hate anybody (at least not in the water). ''nuf said.

Chris
What if l choose not to surf? Perhaps someone like u can not imagine someone not wanting to surf but that can be the case. You have an elitis attitude, & l would guess for no reason l doubt u r anything special. But since u r making assumptions that we all want to surf, l am going to make & assumption that u r a racist, because anyone not like u whether body boarders & stand up paddlers all want to be like u (boy that makes me laugh), so l can only think u must be like that with everything in ur life, u think people should be like u or they or beneath you. You should be ashamed of yourself. Maybe u need a hug or a good role model, l know some good people who sponge that u can look up to. Maybe even some female ones so u can see what it is like to hug one.

l think your way over reacting when you say that you can air higher than us. and you cut us off way more than a surfer would.