How Kelly Slater Dominated Surfing for 40 Years
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- Опубликовано: 15 сен 2024
- GOAT's don't come much GOATier than Kelly Slater. With a career spanning over 40 years and 11 World Championships, Kelly isn’t just one of the oldest pros in the game-he’s also one of the most dominant athletes of any discipline, ever.
But Kelly's path to greatness wasn't easy. From a turbulent family life and bankruptcy to fierce competition, Slater faced countless challenges on his journey to the top.
This is the story of how Kelly Slater changed surfing forever.
Shout out to WSL, Quicksilver, and Taylor Steele for capturing many of the iconic moments in this legend's life.
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Lifelong sports fan of many different sports. It shouldn't even be a question that he is the greatest athlete of all time, in any sport. Surfing is one of the hardest sports to do, and this man dominated for over 30 years. He won the Eddie Aikau in 30 ft surf, he won many times at sloppy beach breaks like Huntington, he won at Pipe and Teahupoo on his backhand, J-Bay, you could go on and on. Youngest and oldest world champ, all in an individual sport, where you can't be bolstered by teammates. Long live the GOAT of all sports, Kelly Slater!
All Sports people do nothing more than be a little bit better at doing the same thing as everybody else...
Back in the 70s captain good vibes (cartoon) surfed upside down in the tube and I thought I would see it, I didn't think I'd be the one to do it🙃🙃😁
Great surfer... but never transcended the ordinary !!!
@@broderickwallis25 Funny; not really
i was flying to vietnam in 2004 and he was seated next to me and i had absolutely no idea who he was and he gave me a valium. nice guy.
Yo, that's crazy, how/when did you realize you were taking valis from the GOAT?
That sounds sketchy as hell. 🤣 No doubt he a nice guy but damn.
Edit: diazepam and oxycodone aka Val's and oxys went hand in hand... Doesn't matter if it's a dude on the street or a Dr. It can all be equally bad. It was common AF back then for Drs to write up those for injuries.
Flying to Vietnam? You better have more than a Valium... 😊❤
@@richevans609 you been there? It's actually a nice place.
Not true, at least Kelly giving you valium or the like,…. … on a plane to Vietnam.
Don’t follow surfing but obviously known who Kelly Slater for my whole life, following his story got me choked up to see him win again as a nearly 50 year old man. real superhero
It's the comeback that is motivational. 10 year gap, stay determined and do your best.
I'm 56 and grew up surfing both coast of Florida. Way back in the day me and some friends we t surfing at the North jetty in Ft. Pierce Florida the day before an ESA(I think?) contest at that same spot. Kelly and his brother Sean were both out practicing for the contest and I was in position for a set wave sitting right next to Kelly. He was just a little kid but was already well known as was his brother. I was deeper and in the perfect spot to catch one of the better waves of the day but instead of taking it....I told Kelly "GO" ! He did...and all I saw from the back was one big spray after another....all the way to the beach. I knew right then he was going to do well on tour....no idea I was witnessing history !
Surf in Florida that's a joke.... get real, with your 1 foot waves.... lol
@@matthewwestlake677 You must be from Cali. I've traveled the world surfing. I've surfed in three different oceans in 24 hours (Gulf of Mexico in the early AM... then the Atlantic that afternoon and was surfing Hermosa Beach the following morning. All 3 spots were head high plus. I know what a 1' wave is and granted Florida rarely gets over 3-5' by any surfers standards....it does absolutely go off under the right conditions. Some of the best waves I've ever caught were at a rivermouth in the SW Gulf coast of Florida 8-10 foot ground swell from a hurricane that parked In the middle of the Gulf for 3 days...solid double overhead board breaking barrels over a crushed shell and sand bottom with me a 5 friends. If this same quality of wave was in California there'd be 250 methed out tweekers fighting over every set ! Have fun with that...and I have surfed California back probably before you were born ...the waves were consistently rideable but most spots were soft...at best and everywhere was crowded ...you can have all that nonsense Barney !
Kook@@matthewwestlake677
Let’s just remember that he is a human being. A very talented one but he went down the path to using his surfing skills to make millions of dollars as he said and he was still in debt. What’s wrong with this picture? I have been a professional level surfer and I used to surf at Lowers and Churches and 54th St in Newport Beach CA and I didn’t kiss up to the photographers at either break. So I was never in a magazine or anything like that. I tried to compete in one WSA contest at Cotton’s Beach near Uppers and came in second. please do not get mad at me for my opinion and my lifestyle. I’ve always wanted to be the best person I could be and to be honest with myself. I’m gay and I got AIDS for choosing to make love with another man. Now I’m 65 and I’m HIV free and I’m ready to go out surfing again in the place where I belong and love. I can’t wait to get back out in the Ocean with a great board and being healthy once again! I’ve had the same partner who loves me and I owe him my life and we’ve been together for 35 years now and no one is going to tell me that I’m less of a person who doesn’t deserve to have unconditional love and respect. My philosophy on my life is treating others as I want to be treated. I never wanted to make money from surfing because I’ve loved the Ocean for my 65 years on this planet! I know that there are many other gay surfers out there who are less worried about their sexual orientation. In my life it was not a choice or preference cuz I was born this way and I’m very happy and proud of myself for overcoming the stigma of being gay and I hope that younger surfers are more open minded about this situation. My first BF was a self made millionaire who wanted me to live with him in Dana Point, CA but I had fallen in love with Hawai’i because of the culture here as well as all of the beauty here. And the community has been welcoming and supportive of me and my health care team took excellent care of me as I dealt with AIDS since I was 40 and I’m happy to report that I’m now HIV free and I’m going to start surfing again as soon as my feet heal from unrelated wounds. And I expect to be able to get the same respect in the water as I did before because I treat people like I want to be treated! Easy words to say but not so easy of a concept to live by! Please treat others as you want to be treated as a person who deserves respect and unconditional love. And please do not get love and sex mixed up. Aloha Kevin ❤🎉😊
I have never told this to anyone else before but I’m getting older (and not really older because I keep my thoughts to looking at age as just a number and the amount of times I’ve been around the Sun on our beautiful Earth and Gaia for those who don’t know what I’m talking about). But when I used to surf at Churches and Lowers it was so crowded that I decided one day to come up with a plan to get the best and most waves regardless of who was out enjoying the surf. I am not bragging but the crowd usually followed me around cuz they wanted to get the same waves. So what I did was to paddle into the channel and then check if the other surfers had followed me. Sure enough they did and my strategy worked perfectly and I would wait until the next set came in and I would watch it for the second or third set waves and choose which one I wanted to take. I would let the first one go by for a couple of reasons. And then I’d paddle as hard as I could to catch the best wave of the set. And then the other surfers would paddle by me and compliment me on how both of my fins would come out of the water! I’m not joking this is my solid truth! Sometimes 6-10 other people who I had never seen before still complimented me and it totally blew me away cuz they didn’t know that I wanted them to get caught inside by the first set wave! Oh I have to laugh about it now and I certainly felt on top of the world when strangers were telling me this! My ego was never going to allow anyone else to judge my surfing except for myself and my friends! And then I got a bonus from the other ones! I love surfing because it makes me feel like I’m on top of the World and I always have used my head to make my own income and not “rape” my waves and have to rely on surfing for money. It just didn’t add up to me being an accounting controller to make myself more stressed out if I missed a wave and all of this time I was gay and I still am happy to say that I have a great partner who I’ve been with for over 35 but he doesn’t surf. Oh well… Life is great for me and I have nothing to complain about! Aloha Kevin 🎉❤🏄♂️
Space Coast 80's kid here. My middle school friends and I would sometimes hang out at the beach to see if Kelly or his brothers were out surfing that day; he was a year behind us in school, just up the road in Cocoa Beach, though he lived in my hometown of Indialantic for a while as well. Some of my friends even stopped saying "later" when parting ways with each other and instead began saying "S'later." Dude wasn't even 13 yet and he was practically a god around town.
Without a doubt the GOAT!.. Grew up as a kid as a Curren fanboy.. Posters and all and then was later floored by Slater's mastery.. Thanks for the video! Brings back long ago memories
Love Kelly ! He changed my life and made me appreciate life and especially surfing. Full on legend 🙌🏾
2011 Quicksilver Pro Long Beach, NY - I missed my opportunity to meet Kelly Slater. It was the day before the contest and it was just the two of us in the water. I was further out on my longboard but my struggles from both (93’,01’) World Trade Center attacks kept me from paddling over to say hey bro, you’re a legend and I have the deepest respect for you as a surfer and human being. And I would have said dude, I think you’re the best of the best in our lifetime. But, I lost that opportunity. I lost it. Life lesson learned: When opportunity knocks, answer. Your troubles will come and go. Experience knowledge, wisdom. I do have “To meet Kelly Slater” up on our vision board. Close out a karma contract in some way. It’s up to the universe. Peace on earth ❤️
WOW!!
TRULY excellent mini doco
I had no idea how successful he was at a young age ...
Obviously I was impressed with his various championships but I had no idea of the challenges he faced in between
Thanks again
Top shelf quality yet again! There is no way you don't grow leaps and bounds over the next year with this kind of quality output, well done! I didn't really know much about Slater as I don't follow surfing but I do know the name which is a testament to how good the guy is.
Thanks man, I really appreciate the good vibes 🤜🤛
Kelly is the greatest athlete of all time, in ANY sport. No one can really compare with his legacy. After those losses to Andy on his comeback most thought it looked like the twilight of his career but instead it just catapulted him to legendary status. The second half of his career was way more impressive than the first.
I know that surfers in general don't like brazil much, but we love him. I grow up with his storys... A friend of mine still use internet nickname as Slater
Aussie surfer here, the Brazilians shred!
los brasileros son buenas personas. Los surfistas brasileros son muchos y a veces muy agresivos. saludos de ecuador 🇪🇨.
@diegojuridico I don't think that's a correct perception. Sure, there are idiots that put all Brazilians in a box they can manage but, there are many of us that are fascinated with Brazil and would love to live there.
Actually the hawains dont like brazilians
If he had no world titles, but won Pipe 8 times, that's enough to make him the best surfer ever. And all the Pipe contests were in big waves not small ones like other Pipe Masters.
Twenty Minutes and Thirty Four Seconds of epicness - Kelly Slater is not just the best surfer of all time, but he is testament to what human determination can achieve. Hard work, drive, not making excuses and yes, natural talent of course. However, natural talent alone is never enough. To go 40 years at the top level of anything is simply superlative!
For 3-4 years I shot all of Kelly’s photos for his company K-Grip back in the day. He’s always been a chill guy and did his own thing. The WSL is terrible so good timing to retire as well. By the way, Kelly can surf all the Pipeline events (there are 3 per season) for the next 10 years and he will probably win 5-7 in that time. Of course he needs an invite and stay healthy but he’s truly a freak of nature, one of the greatest athletes of all time.
@@bonniebob2802 i has ķ grip
another banger, you refuse to miss
Thanks bro, glad that one hit the spot. Slater's definitely one of the harder stories ive done so far, the dudes done a lot of rad shit
Great video, Kelly is the GOAT of surfing!
Superb documentary about the greatest surfer. Well done...wish it was longer...
KELYY SLATER. I never comment but KELLY SLATER. True Waterman
As an Aussie and a surfer thank you kelly your contribution to our sport will never be matched and you've our yardstick for so long that no one will be able to match what you actually done to bring the level to what it is today enjoy your retirement and family and don't work yourself into the ground again thank you kelly you are the best ever old mate 😊😊
Best underrated channel on youtube
FLORIDA boy!!! Slates is 🐐
I'm waiting for somebody to do a full length video on Slater's career like we saw for Tom Brady. It'd be great to relive the glory years when he was dominant and also the rivalry with Andy Irons. Except for Pipe in '22, it's been a while since he was at the top of his game.
I watched his whole career being a little older. We were all jaded about Baywatch (especially since it was filmed in our little town). But he deserves all the positive recognition he has gotten. At that time, his surfing was different than anybody else. One thing though, he was surfing these super narrow boards that average surfers couldn't surf, but they all wanted to surf like him. LOL. What an impressive career. RIP Andy Irons, the Legend.
Late 80's early early 90's we all knew who he was. We all surfed in South/Central/North Florida. We watched him at Sebastian Inlet, Cocoa Beach and New Smyrna. Hated how good he was back then but we were all proud as hell when a Florida boy was dominating the pro circuit.
Nice KellyMentary
It was great to follow Kelly during his career, a great inspiration.
Thanks Kelly🙏
He dropped in on me at my local break in Northland, New Zealand in 2020.
Even though I thought he looked like Slater, I didn't think it was actually him, because why would the goat be at my average little break in the middle of nowhere? So I called him off the wave 😅
It was only the day after that I realised it was him. Would've been great to actually chat to him, rather than yelling at him to get off my wave 🤣
Thank Kelly for all the great moments. U r a beautiful human being
GOAT surfer....as a Dad not so much, which IMHO is a man's true calling once you bring a child into this world.
Damn right sir ! I will change my opinion of him if he can 'step up' to that challenge . Having come from a broken home I'm patently aware of the importance of having a steady family unit . So far he has clearly failed .
How the F would you know?
From what the media tells you about him? Great remote analysis...
A person cannot travel the world continuously and be a present parent, it's not possible nor does it take an advanced degree to figure that out.
Bringer of Super Status to Surfing. Machado is one too
7:00 “A French stalker of psychotic proportions…” slipping in a little humor on this documentary 🤣 👏🏽
I've never stepped on a surf board, but have been a fan for a long time - and man, that PS2 game was a favorite - wish I still had a system to play it, pretty sure I still have the game in a box somewhere. As for the video, I knew little about Slater other than his professional record, so thanks for this, I really enjoyed it - Cheers!
He's a great bloke and best ever surfer
He is ridiculously good looking
Set the bar, one of the best ever. Incredible talent.
During thec 2016 Eddie Waimea bay contest watching Kelly drop in on a 25 foot beast-getting tubed & coming our was next level guts & glory.
I have his game on PS2
IT'S SO NICE!!!
Great video as always! You’re gonna blow up soon
I reckon this would make a good series "the greatest athletes of all time"
First one here with Kelly Slater. Follow it up with Don Bradman, Wayne Gretzky, Michael Phelps, Nolan Ryan, Hubert Opperman, Walter Lindrum, Bo Jackson, Tiger Woods and Jim Thorpe etc.
Would especially love a video on Don Bradman and of course special mention for Shane Warne if you can manage to make an interesting video of it. I don't think it'd be much trouble at all and would be an awesome little series.
Love the channel mate one of my favourites and only new to it. Can't wait for future videos!
Thanks bro, super stoked you're enjoying the channel. Some awesome suggestions too, I'll definitely have a look into them
I travelled to Oz and found myself next to Slater at Kirra...super nice guy smiled and wished me a "g'day" and took off on a bomb!
Man, this channel is so well done and covers so much stuff that has been huge to me, as a dude who just turned 40 this year.
If you want any suggestions for other profiles in sporting history from this era: Ben Spies, the guy who ROCKETED through the AMA rankings and classes to be the first American in years to have a competitive run in MotoGP. It even comes complete with drama, with lingering questions about Yamaha sandbagging him to prop up Lorenzo and, even without malice from Yamaha, him having some HORRIBLE equipment malfunctions that cost him from acheiving what he could have.
Thanks for stopping by and throwing out the awesome suggestion mate. I don't know much about MotoGP but I'll definitely have a look at Spies' story!
I was at that Trestles contest. It was so awesome to see in person. I am old, ha.
Do you remember that Indian Summer day? Foggy in the AM, then sunny, glassy, and 6’-8’ perfect left and rights. Llamas did great that day also.
Very well made video!
Look up Kelly Slater and one word keeps cropping up. LEGEND
Hey honey, Realm Of Rad has uploaded, grab me a beer and let's go!!!
The goat, the king of surfing, the legend... Before, there was the others. Caroll, Curren, Richards... And then, him ! After, there is the others, but nobody will be like him !
Makes me cry.
His legacy will live on whether he surfs on tour or not. He has put his stamp on surfing that will last for generations in the future.
Andy is a legend.
A great to walk the Earth and swim the seas.
At least you met Pam on Bay Watch. That is also priceless.
He was banging Pam A!!!
Great video, thank you
Good work, thanks 🎉
Really enjoying the rad content :)
What an amazing docco! 👌🏼 insta subbed! 👍🏼
In hind sight, Kelly should have been representing USA in TAHITI, Paris Olympics. He's a competitor.
Very misleading title, Kelly Slater is IMMORTAL.
I use to see him at Foodland a lot . He always seemed like a decent dude . Never had an attitude with me. His gf super petite and great as well.
remarkable guy! amazing life and humble also! respect! KE11Y
His cousin AC Slater was a hell of a wrestler at Bayside High.
Great vid 👍 ty
Utter legend of all sports and games ❤️🙌
🇦🇺❤️u
Great video!
Great film!
Living legend ❤
Cool video i like his humility sounds like a good person who would have thought the best surfer in the world would be from Florida or Stanley Cup winners God i love my state
Love your content! Could you possibly do a documentary on Billy Mitchel? I know others have done it but your approach would be better. He was definitely the Rad-est Video Gamer in this era
Amazing human KS ✊🏽❤ AI Forever
Slater the best athlete ever.
predicting viewership of WSL will go down now Kelly is gone. Massive loss
its sad what happened to Andy
GOAT.
Kelly fooled us all again, he'll never retire, he is just taking a baby parental break. Stemcelling huge amounts of injuries, and preparing his next master move : fuckin the WSL by creating his own alternative tour and format, get rid of mid-season cut bullshit , or incompleted manoevers criterias when surfers land their ass on the board and impossible recoveries will be rewarded instead, dreamy refreshing destinations with long extended waiting periods and Onchains proof of views broadcasts, which will eventually cause the WSL to sink. He will win a few stops of his own tour, will mix world title contenders with free surfer and retired, will mix man vs women heats and will score perfect 10's points rides barrels till 90 years old 🐬💯
I thought he would've just walked off into the sunset after his 2022 Pipe win...
the cat, buttons, gerry lopez....kelly slater...you re part of the row kelly....
When the tour was gnarly
Just here to feed the algorithm 🍽
Great surfer, just don't let him tell you who to vote for, or really anything else for that matter
All hail the king
If Andy lived longer, he would have kept Kelly sharper, motivated and driven longer imo. Maverick without Goose syndrome kind of. My fav rider of all time but i also enjoyed Kalani Robb. Goofy ftw!!
Please explain how the 90s to the 2020s is 40 years of domination?
Andy irons absolutely could not stand Kelly Slater, but a lot of it isn’t Kelly’s fault the machine behind him , they used to print victory hats and T-shirts before the contest even started and I know because I was there
Antoine Albeau retired from the PWA after a 30-year career and 25 world titles.
So much for the overinflated praises dished out in this otherwise interesting clip 😂😂😂
18:18 it was the first event of the season, not the last 😂
I was wondering when someone was going to call me out on that 😂
He did dominate but not for 40 years…
What happened to the Dean Potter video you all made?
Reel Rock hit it with a copyright claim bro
@@RealmOfRad well shit, I was kindve excited to finish it : /
I appreciate you nonetheless
I wouldn't say dominated for 40 years! That's a bit rich. Perhaps two decades is more realistic and not a blatant lie.
Es el que mejor ha sobrevivido..
at 19:11 what is this NTR Shirt he is wearing ?
8:12 WT...? Brazzai Pipeline!!? 😂
Waiting for the Brazilian to say Medina is a better surfer. 😂
Those trophies would be priceless now.😂
No wonder he can surf 1 ft slop. 😮 It's what he grew up on. Then to start charging pipe!!! With that family dynamic. Wow. I hae no idea. 👌🤙 Dude can surf anything.
I am amazed he is as switched on as he is with the background he had. Mind the anti drug thing really would have helped him. The number of guys i know who have dropped out of life from drugs or just aren't alive in the surfing and skateboarding scenes...
Why do so many women try to kill the golden goose.
WSL gonna hit different without Slater
500 bucks a week back then is a good salary wtf
Really? Before taxes, raising three kids and making $24,000 a year?
What a stupid title. No, Kelly Slater didn't dominate the surfing world for 40 years. He's only 52. He was not dominating the surfing world as a 12 year old, nor has he dominated the surfing world for the past few years. It's safe to say his last major contest win was the Pipeline Maters/Billabong Pipe Pro in 2022 and it will stay that way. That's it. 56 tour victories is amazing for sure. His first win at Pipeline came in 1992. That was a 30 (THIRTY) year span of surfing at the highest level of the sport. Thirty years where he was absolutely relevant but not always dominating. Andy Irons beat him fair and square in Pipe Masters finals two of those years, and Kelly didn't even compete between 1999 and 2001. Still, he was able to win nearly three times as many world championships than any other man in surfing history. That's how dominant he actually was.
Kelly Slater died?!?!! How?
Okay, I watched to the end. So... not gone. I hate clickbait. Still a good vid though
realm of clickbait
Slats is not the best.
He's the best competition surfer.
I reckon the best surfer is the one who has the most fun.