SLSA Director Reflects on Recent Disciplinary Actions

By Rhett McMahn, Business Columnist and Special Correspondent

The last couple of weeks have been a trying time for the SL Surfers Association (SLSA). Their Directors were forced to instruct their Head Event Judge to form a disciplinary board against two of its more prominent members. SurfWatch caught up with SLSA Director (one of five) Abel Halderman by e-mail and asked him for his opinions on the process.


SW: Abel, for the first time in history, the SLSA has had to discipline some of its members. It proved to be tough for everyone. SW had an independent study done of the SLSA Constitution, Rules, Codes, and found the DB had the authority to hand down broad rulings and DQ was their correct option of action. Do you feel that even though unpopular, the processes put in place worked correctly?

AH: It was a dark moment for everyone. It was hard for the two people that were DQ’d, it was hard for all other surfers, and I can’t imagine how hard it must have been for the Committee members. However, what had been done about the two cases of Code of Conduct (CoC) violations was necessary. I’m not sure if it was unpopular.

I know that a few people didn’t see it as a right thing to do. Right now, besides those who were directly involved and accused, I can think of maybe 5 or 6 of those who were unhappy about the result. But you know what? I trust the committee. I know how hard they worked on the cases and how much stress it cost them. As you know, the definition of unsportsmanlike conduct is broad and in my opinion it should be so. The commission acted according to rules that we ALL accepted. They investigated all the facts, spoke to many witnesses, and finally made the decision, maybe the hardest one in the SLSA history. What kills me is that those people, that accepted the hardest job in the SLSA history, are now sometimes disrespected.

Let’s not forget, while in an election SLSA members vote for their representatives, when it comes to executing legal rules we, as a community, gave that right to the representatives. On the other hand, any of us is allowed to submit a proposal on changing those rules, too, so I encourage everyone to read the rules again and share their doubts and ideas like some of us did on the SLSA forum.


SW: The rulings came against the SLSA 2009 Season 1 reputed 'Bad Boy' SexyBoy Oh (SB) and SLSA Co-founder Kimmy Fitzgerald-Jigsaw. Do you feel that this process shows the ability of the SLSA to govern itself and its competitions fairly? Make decisions based on facts and not who is involved?

AH: The whole thing caused a lot of stress and negative emotions. I think SLSA is able to act against anyone if rules are broken and harm to the community is made. I can’t say “It’s too bad that it happened to Kimmy as one of the SLSA founders, and SB – one of the best surfers this season”. It should and will happen against anyone who breaks the CoC.

Of course there are always at least two sides of a case. So, I’m sure Kimmy had her reasons to act like she did, and SB had his. Personally, I’d say Kimmy cared so much about her baby – the SLSA – that she made a mistake and acted in a disrespectful way. Her intentions were not bad, but at the same time intentions are not something to judge. Actions are. As for SB, like I said in one of my posts on the SLSA forum, I think we disappointed him, as a community. I can understand his reasons to leave the group, I can understand more or less how he felt. At the same time, even that I understand that, it’s not intentions that are judged, but actions.

I had doubts before the whole process started. Not that I had anything to say about it. It is the Event Committee who executes sanctions, but I felt like sharing my thoughts with other directors. I thought it was a serious and important step that SLSA had to do. On one hand maybe it will never be the same. Maybe, as a group, we just lost some kind of innocence, if you know what I mean. By having that process we crossed some line. Since now there will be no excuse for unsportsmanship-like behavior which means no one will be able to act according to the “no see evil, no hear evil” saying, which for many of us was a nice thing to do. We rather wanted to forget and move on than face some facts. I’m not saying it was right. I just think that it was easier.

On the other hand, we have reached a point where violation of the CoC rules is becoming much more common than in past seasons, and that is a bad thing. Therefore, that process, even that it was so hard, even that it was painful, should have happened. Violation of the SLSA basic rules, our foundation, is not, and will be not tolerated.


SW: A lot of discussion was made both publicly and privately about the SLSA rules being currently edited; the infamous missing 'rule 2'; the FAQ being the only place that clearly states you must be a member to compete. What steps are being put in place to correct this before next season?

AH: In my opinion, Rule 2 is complete. The FAQ says something that is obvious. Want to be treated with event rules, win or lose, earn points? You need to be in the group = having accepted its rules. However, I do agree that one or two clauses may need be added to it, and I know that at lease some of other directors think the same way. The off season IS to correct things that didn’t work or didn’t work the way we expected them to. There are a couple of projects on modifying rules coming, and I think one of them will be about specifying the CoC rule 2, although personally, I would say it should stay broad because it is impossible to predict all kinds of general sportsmanship violation behavior.


SW: Looking forward... What's next for the SLSA, what should its members be excited about going into 2009 Season 2?

AH: Before the next season starts, we will have a surprise for our surfers. I shouldn’t talk about it yet, though. It will be announced soon.

As for the next season, we can expect a lot of excitement. SLSA will be still growing and hopefully the Board will be ready to handle large competitions even better than this past season. My hope is that if we organize the responsibilities within SLSA a little better, we’ll be able to get involved in different kinds of activities. We are discussing possible ways of cooperation with other surfing associations. Just imagine how much of excitement that can bring! I am also sure that a lot about the excitement can be done by small simple changes, just like drastically modifying or removing the “no tie for second place” rule, as suggested by SLSA members on the forum. What I, as a surfer, expect from the organization is fun! Give me fun and I’m happy! “Fun” is not a simple thing though. It is consisted of positive vibes, good ruling and exciting events. That’s what the Board’s only interest and a general plan for the next season.

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