Surfer Dave Wassel v. Bodyboarder John Duval | EpicTV Surf Report, Ep. 76

www.epictv.com
Filling in for the Mailman this week, Ted Endo takes a look at the ongoing feud between John Duval and Dave Wassel, after their collision on a huge wave in Tahiti.
Ted looks at the arguments on both sides and comes up with his own conclusion. Wait a minute, Ted is a surfer, surely this will influence his opinion!
Whatever, its good to see that surfers and bodyboarders are about as good at politics as the current group in the US House of Representatives.
Who gets your vote?
Surfer Dave Wassel v. Bodyboarder John Duval | EpicTV Surf Report, Ep. 76
Photos courtesy of
philippelallut....
/ kellycestariphotography
Watch the Dave Wassel video here:
vimeo.com/7320...
The John Duval video has been taken down:(
-------------------------
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[@xyzct]

Imagine some kook out-of-towner hogging waves at Pipe by towing in, getting dropped in on by an annoyed local, and then passive-aggressively threatening the local.

[@troycote2724]

No to mention that he wasn't making it regardless.

[@granta3044]

Youre not towing in at pipe though. It wouldnt happen. Plus on waves that big anyone dropping in will get punched.

[@twmpuketa]

that thing gobbled waddel or wassel up like a greedy tow crew gobbles up all the best waves in situations like that. get that fuckin ski outtahere

[@jasonjackson5696]

First off, shit happens. It is very annoying when the pros come out & show no respect & take every juicy set wave. I can’t blame the guy for dropping in & the pro should have shown some real skill & blew past the guy while he was being sucked up the face. Not picking the guy up with the ski was a really douche move.

[@offshoreagain]

Ahhhhh sorry mate, thought you were going right.....

[@fugbabylon7229]

*BAHAHAHA....* Oh man i couldn't stop laughing TY!

[@josephking9109]

Never heard that one😂 or used it 🙀😹

[@arvdosal]

Hahahaha

[@heatley1]

He wasn’t gonna make it anyway. Closed out well before his exit

[@marcoolivares4412]

Never leave anyone to drown. Rule 1 safe lifes

[@MrTobinite]

"Worst day of his life" lol. All talk

[@LordFlashheart1]

wouldnt of made the barrel by the looks of it

[@danielzomerdyke563]

You don't know what the hell you're talking about

[@tyronelol]

@@danielzomerdyke563 hahahaha no chance he was making that wave...

[@luxuryhomes8889]

i dont think so either by the kooks of it

[@texasyankee3512]

Surfers paddling in have right of way over towing, end of story.

[@granta3044]

The guy wasnt paddling in, he was boogie boarding, hella late drop, massive wave, the surfer already bottom turned. It was the guys fault regardless of pre wave activities. Haha his crying after made me laugh so hard. He didnt even catch the wave, he was thrown to the bottom. Haha. Biggups to Wassel for not punching him in the water, it wouldve been considered a legit thing to do. The bodyboarder could have killed someone.

[@arvdosal]

Absolutely with you.

[@bi0008]

Was he actually going to come out of that one? Hard for me to tell.

[@VanHellsing12]

To me it looks like it's out of context because he happens to be sharpening a knife while he's filleting fish and it's plainly seen in front of him

[@troycote9447]

Wassel wasn't making that even with. Twin turbos on his board!!!

[@tortugabob]

Wassel wasn't going to make it. It was a total closeout even before the body border hit bottom. Forgive and forget.

[@billymiskimmin]

He had no chance in hell of making that section. Usually when someone gets caught behind a section, someone else can take the wave. I saw fair play

[@zoneoneable]

Well said!

[@johnnyutah6239]

Tow crews, SUP's... it's getting annoying in the water

[@backcountrysurf7895]

No lover or hater of sponges but if one can paddle or kick into a wave and they part of local crew seems like that always superseeds motorized or sup bullshit. Jskis wavejets and supussers should always be banned to the lesser wves when a competant person wishes to give er a try.

[@juliannebollinger8662]

Backcountry Surf The local guy is a Sup??

[@sanfranciscobay]

That was a nice wave and the conditions appear to be perfect.

[@robhuntacousticmusic7291]

WHATS THE DEALIO DAVE? YOU WOULDNT HAVE MADE IT ANY WAY? ME NO UNDERSTAAAAAAAAAND!

[@danielzomerdyke563]

Stick to your music bro he would have made it

[@fugbabylon7229]

Dave Wassel is hawaiian now? Just like Eddie Rothman? *SMH*

[@yodamday3745]

He wasn't going make the wave anyway. Me I SUP and bodyboard. I do what is hated. And I do it good

[@aaronneff3928]

Bottom line, don’t drop in no matter what!

[@boogieheads]

how bout fuck tow in people

[@reetabass1540]

You dont drop in on fools at chopes and dont make it

[@geoffswan2847]

its not chopes

[@conspiraciesarejustgreatst2059]

I honestly think wassill wouldn't have made that wave anyway... he was super deep on a sort of burner

[@boogieheads]

Does anyone think he was going to make it ?

[@sanfranciscobay]

Too much drama. That's why there should be a set of policies/rules/etiquette to follow and people should follow them. 1. The paddle in surfers should have yelled at the tow ins to stop or allow a couple of tow ins. For the Boogie Boarder to drop in on somebody towed in was an aggressive and dangerous move. Two wrongs don't make it better so now you have two people acting in disregard for etiquette. 2. Wassel was cleaning a fish with a knife when you interviewed him so he had a knife in his hand. Imagine if Wassel had been cutting the throat of a pig for food when you interviewed him. Would you say he was acting in a threatening manner? Maybe the interviewers should focus on what he's saying rather than what he's doing while he's being interviewed. If he had been cutting down a tree with a chainsaw would you say he's acting in a threatening manner?

[@virtue696]

"The paddle in surfers should have yelled at the tow ins to stop or allow a couple of tow ins." LOL!! I can think of 20 reasons why that is insane and could not possibly work....

[@kondo658]

your obviously full in favor of wassel and i agree it was wrong of the sponger to drop in your support of your opinion is flawed in many ways. for one guys with a tow in are gonna go on every wave they get, especially on surf of that size where theres no way in hell a paddle in with those boards is possible without scraping half your face on the reef. He could have just had a simple explanation, there was no need for a knife at all or any activity, all he had to do was say what happened and pau.

[@scottgoodman8389]

sometimes the only way to improve is to be aggressive. hopefully not at the exspence of hurting ones board or pride. remember it's our dangerous fun!

[@jacobkeene9135]

I love Wassel but he was a blow in but he’s also a lifeguard not a child and should fkn know better.

[@abezuckerman0201]

Wheres dave?

[@brendonjohnson6595]

hey narrator, tone it down with the "sword" reference. Wassel was using a knife for cutting fish. please.

[@79pejeperro]

Brendon Johnson no. Wassel was acting like he can sharpen a knife and filet a fish, but it's obvious he knows shit

[@brendonjohnson6595]

B. B. dude, I'm not a kid. I'm a 6 month old infant. you were way off.

[@brendonjohnson6595]

B. B. no, I deleted it because it would be too hard for you to realize that someone might actually know what they are talking about, and it would cause you to run your mouth like you have been doing. I guess it happened regardless.

[@brendonjohnson6595]

B. B. I know I have such a problem with my brain. but give me some slack, I'm only 6 months old.

[@jan8742]

not only did he drop in, he didn't even make it lol

[@repsilia]

Well said

[@troycote4503]

He was one second from total annihilation. He wasn't even close to making it! Tow bully got worked, and was going to get smoked anyway.

[@overtalk6972]

So wouldn't that be terroristic threats...

[@MrJohanOne]

Well said man. i love sapinus everyday

[@hughlawson5399]

ted endo is very inertia.

[@user-ps3rb9yc8x]

Guessing Dave towed into this wave? Lot's of pro's and cons here, so if you look at both sides of argument, there's really no clear cut answer to who's right and wrong. I totally get the thing about if your a local that lives where the spot is. But, I believe you get more rights if you're born and raised, in this case Tahiti. Or, you at least have lived there and hopefully surfed the spot for many years. But definitely local guys, provided they can surf really well, and I mean exceptionally well, have Trump card on visitors, but that doesn't mean you can freely drop in whenever you like. And I totally get when, pro, or we'll known surfers/famous ones that get media exposure etc. come out to your home and surf and are towing, thus catching waves early and deep, when you're just paddling in, and if they are hogging too many waves, I get it, you are going to get pretty bummed and sick of just watching them and not being able to go on one because it's considered dropping in of course!!! That said, if you get towedI in to a really good wave deep and pull in and set a good line, but probably won't make it through you have good travel time in the barrel and someone drops in, it causes the tube to chandelier and fill wih foam ruining the vision experience!!! I also want to note, that if you do drop in, but free fall and eat it, it's just not cool and frowned upon! I get it though, you get frustrated and sick of watching and just end up Saying I'm going cause there's no way the guy's making this!!! Yeah, but if you do and for sure the guys not making the wave, it's really important that you make the drop and pull in and don't wipe out!!! Not sure how old the guy on the boogie board was, but looks like a pretty big age difference between them. Unfortunately , often the older surfer takes a stance of "I'm older and have been surfing a lot longer than the younger guy. It's just difficult. I know Dave, I'm born and raised on the North Shore of Oahu, born in 1960, I lived in a beach house right at Ehukai Beach and grew up surfing country since I was 5 years old. By 1973 I started surfing Pipeline and really devoted my life for years and years to surfing pipe and other really good waves in the Hawaiian islands!! I'm very blessed to have grown up surfing the winter swells in Hawaii long before it got crowded, and before leashes and you had to be an incredible waterman to be able to do it well and be in the top 10% of surfers out there. Dave's a North Shore lifeguard and, hopefully the boogie boarder was OK and not hurt if he was not offered help or assistance by the ski??!! It's just too bad how competition for waves often leads to frustration and negative vibes out in the lineup, especially these days with the crowds! Not sure if it was even crowded out there in Tahiti that day? But, it's just ridiculous how pipe on days that are OK to good will have 70-100 guys out now a days!!! Just sad! Like I said I'm truly blessed because I was surfing it with just like 10 good pipe surfers out and a few lesser guys back in the 70's and sometimes actually all by myself!!!! No one will ever be able to do that again I'm afraid now!! This is what has happened with the increased amount of surfers, many who surf really well now out in the lineups!! Bottom line, just need to share the waves and be respectful especially of the locals! Hawaii is famous for never disrespecting the local surfers and definitely NEVER DROP IN ON ONE OF THE LOCAL GUYS WHO ARE SOME OF THE BEST SURFERS OUT!!!!! So, especially if you're towing, don't hog the waves or all the best ones from the local guys!!! Share and let some go, but if it's a day where paddling is like you might make 1 out of 10 or even less waves, it's tough to really say if you just eat it on most drops!!?? In Hawaii it got quickly to a point where the state stepped in due to complaints and towing is not allowed at many breaks like Pipeline and Waimea! You can get your equipment confiscated and fined a lot of money for breaking the laws!! Just too many surfers now, but so many really good surfers out in the lineups these days!!!!! It was always just a small handful of us back in the day that just were really great surfers and 10 of us pretty much could get most every good wave in each set out at pipe for instance!! These days there's so many really good surfers out it's just too much and so Lot's of guys get nothing or scraps!!! Hate to see what's happened to surfing because of the crowds now. Aloha from Hawaii!! Happy holidays everyone!

[@danielzomerdyke563]

All you kooks that are saying he would have made it anyway, don't know shit ! Get up stand up don't give up the fight. Boogie boards are for quitters. Dont be a quitter. No short cuts in the lineup. If you can't handle it play frisbee on the beach

[@MrCow-bk8jp]

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No it’s a fucking sponge ruining ur wave lol.

[@billyhobilly]

Agreed on the skis and SUP's but at the end of the day, you just don't burn people. Especially on big surf. Dangerous!

[@mitchellpanes6363]

Right why is he vouching it ???

[@luxuryhomes8889]

wowo my KING!!!! My local King!!

[@jahkgdm]

Wassel had no chance even with the $ki

[@jerryatrik9493]

Thats the difference between getting as deep as possible and shoulder hopping. One shows the person has balls, the other shows a pussy

[@bobh1208]

@@jerryatrik9493 That would apply if both were paddling. It's bad enough that Medina dodges the west peak drop at Teahupoo by very unspectacularly backdooring it on a high volume board, and gets lauded for it... but Wassel skirting the drop by towing into a wave that HE has zero chance of making, and then complaining about a self-powered local ruining his VIEW, doesn't take balls... just a complete lack of sense. You're only as Haole as you act, Dave.

[@vitabricksnailslime8273]

Well said Epic.

[@hbviceroy7274]

Dude you need to go work for CNN you would be perfect!

[@Thurston.Howell.the.3rd]

Boogie boarder mad that tow guys are taking all the waves. Booger throws a tantrum and blatantly drops in on tow guy putting them both in danger. Then boogie cries that tow guy wouldn't give him a lift back out to the lineup. That was the funniest part to me... hey, I burned you on purpose, now can you take me back out to the lineup so I can do it again? Nope, start kicking

[@hippolytelures31]

@angeloeastblanco nah mate you should do this kzbin.info/www/bejne/pqGzdWBvodacZq8 2:03 much better example!

[@boognation7028]

Yeah right, Wassel didn't want to get his ass beat after getting dropped in on. He probably wouldn't even look in the boogies direction

[@RA-lu9zg]

Could of made it Davey boy...

[@dunningkruger3774]

No way he made it through that dense "foam WALL". 20ft too deep. Classic sky booger drop to fail. Booger "cries" over it? Ewwwww....

[@andrewbradley6033]

would a tow in person ever win wave of the year ?get a grip nobbers!

[@samowens6403]

i think both are in the wrong in their own way. but the worst thing about this story is that dave didn't help john when he needed help and dave is a lifeguard on the north shore.

[@SS-ql4xz]

He wasn’t gonna make that anyway

[@John-tg5vn]

"If I cant have fun no one can" -Spongerkook

[@timanctil8225]

If you're gonna burn somebody make the drop at least...

[@markjackson2960]

He was cleaning a fish

[@McMarty93]

He's filleting a fish.

[@A-FrameWedge]

The booger rider proved that paddling into that wave was futile and if the booger almost drowned that was his fault.

[@CYBRCDZEN]

Let's get dis shit right. You live in California you one Californian. You moved to Hawaiian or you not blooded you not one Hawaiian. Don't confuse the shit. The beef is their deal but remember he lives on Hawaii and not Hawaiian. Nuff said Aloha and auuuuryte....

[@freestyledavid47]

Also none of this happened anywhere near hawaii, its Sapinas in Tahiti

[@freestyledavid47]

Also john duval is a native tahitian name in the same way dave wassel is Hawaiian

[@jeffrickerson2671]

Hawaiians seem racist to me

[@Yosepa420]

braddah Dave was just cutting up dat omilu

[@79pejeperro]

joseph licayan he didn't know what he was doing

[@MrEastaG]

This spot is really not for begginers its like tchops when its that big

[@outriggerunderground]

he wouldn't have made it anyways.

[@jefftucker4422]

I think they're both pot Liquors

[@wecanwatersports1290]

😀

[@belindadavidson2562]

i reckon dave had a near perfect line on that wave he was way back thou, he was hooting i think he would have made it. to paddle into large fast moving waves would be nightmarish! especially on a surfboard. tow ins have made big wave surfing awesome! DON'T drop in!! doesn't matter where you were born or what type of board you ride. especially surfing waves of consequence.

[@808bboarder]

Belinda Davidson Tow In is for pussies and that’s why real men just paddle

[@jackschreuder5657]

808bboarder I would love to see you even attempt to surf a heaving 6 foot day let alone 12 foot plus

[@mauart.7893]

No one made it!

[@hertzkot]

John is right, and Dave is NOT Hawaiian -please!

[@sanfranciscobay]

Hawaii is also a state in the United States. Calling Wassel a Hawaiian is like calling a person from California a "Californian." Wassel may or may not be Hawaiian ancestry, but if he lives in Hawaii, he's a Hawaiian, just like I'm a Californian because I live in California. The use of words and their meanings or misuse is sematics.

[@hertzkot]

SanFranciscoBay Ok, I'll agree with you. We are all citizens of the world. However, when Dave goes around implying things with his videos, maybe we can agree that it is not very Aloha of him. Especially as the paddle ins have to paddle in, jets can go anywhere anytime repeatedly - easy. And anyway, is that a reason to leave John to have to swim ashore after the tumble overs? To conclude, what matters is peace, even for the Hawaiians who lost their sovereign nation to the US, which in all reality is better than the other outcome, being taken over by the Russians. Even so, - peace

[@bi0008]

SanFranciscoBay It is kind of semantics, kind of not. Many actual Hawaiians prefer the term "kama'aina" for referring to people born in Hawaii who are not actually Hawaiian/Polynesian.

[@jahkgdm]

+bi0008 that's right!! Once you live there a long time you are no longer a "hoale" but never Hawaiian. Got to be born there. Just coz you live in the state does not mean your native

[@bi0008]

jahkgdm But that's also the point, just because you were born in Hawaii doesn't make you Hawaiian. You're local, but unless your people were here before contact, you're not Hawaiian.

[@jimb3787]

Dave is you da biggest walker in da history of wankers? Me finks so

[@pbaylis1]

Yeah, good summary. I initially thought Duval was a complete wad, but I can see both sides now.

[@bonbondesel]

pbaylis1 it's not a question of who wasted the wave or not. The point is: Wassel was not home, intentionnaly let a local in a dangerous situation and disrespected him once again with his video. It is a question of respect and Wassel was all wrong about this.

[@claytonbrown994]

Boogie boarders crying? Ok

[@mitchellpanes6363]

😆

[@moeabouteau92]

haole

[@freestyledavid47]

none of this happened anywhere near hawaii, its Sapinas in Tahiti, so talking about weather or not wassel is Hawaiian seems irrelevant. Also it doesnt matter whose riding on what, if someone is on the wave they have the right of way and anyone dropping in on them is making the situation dangerous. Who cares if Duval is from Tahiti? I'm from california and we get good surfers from all over the world who come to our beaches... I would never drop in on any of them for any reason.

[@PoseidonMalibuCA]

no like tow in no like sponger!!!!

[@boognation7028]

If it was the other way around Wassel would have done the exact same thing.

[@thebensman9786]

Spongers 🧽 should NEVER get priority. Be a man, learn to stand. Unless you’re Mike Stewart maybe

[@tehauaitamai3309]

shut up boy .. you can't even surf a 8ft or higher haha so don't talk about "Bodyboarders" ;)

[@thebensman9786]

Tehau Aitamai no belly sliders por favor

[@tyronelol]

@@thebensman9786 You're an absolute blow in hahaha only kooks talk shit about bodyboarders..

[@anarchistangler]

Ha ha so true. Don't they call it erectile dysfunction?

[@scostam]

Bodyboarder is a kook

[@sitieneshambrecome]

ban tow inns and body boarders. tow in is to surfing what body boarding is to body-surfing.

[@johnjohnson-hs4ub]

Dave would have never made it anywAyz🤣😂plus biggie boarder was 25 years younger let him swim good training 🤙cheers

[@gmaynia8677]

The boogie didn't even make the drop in, and he snaked. No contest, Wassel wins.

[@surfingwithsnakes]

Surfers piss me off they take all your waves but you drop in on one wave that they wouldn't have made anyway and your the kook

[@claytonbrown994]

Thomas Brummel You're

[@jackschreuder5657]

Thomas Brummel honestly I have no problem with body boarders and then I get to thinking chuck your average intermediate to advanced surfer on a body board with fins etc and they will do just fine now put a body boarder on a surf board and they won't have a chance in hell ( assuming no previous experience on both ends) unless dabbling as a kid

[@eddiemcknight3808]

This is so lame hhaa, weasel would whoop that dude

[@SDBARTENDER1]

Deepest guy wins. Anybody else is a kook.

[@genewest7690]

another drop in by a kook sponger...by the way,Wassel is a lifeguard at Pipeline, and a real surfer...