KL:
Is the prize money getting better for the women?
HB: It is, the ASP, based on an IWS suggestion,
raised the minimum prize money for a WCT to $100,000,
which is still not enough compared to other professional
athletes, but it's something, and it's better,
and we'll try to keep raising it.
KL:
Can anyone join the IWS?
HB: Yes, anyone can join the IWS. Go to www.womenssurfing.net
and click on the store icon and buy a t-shirt
or a membership. What do you get for a membership?
A sticker and a t-shirt and you get to feel good
that you're helping women's surfing, because the
money really does go back into professional surfing.
So if you can't be a part of it yourself, but
you want to support, that's what you do.
KL:
What needs to happen for the sport of women's
surfing to improve?
HB: In my opinion it's a problem of our culture.
Surf companies are marketing a product and are
gonna use athletes to help market that product.
Boys and girls are totally different, you know,
Andy Irons wins a comp wearing his signature board
short and all the boys go out and buy that short
'cause they want to be like Andy, but I think
girls shop differently. If you make a Layne Beachley
signature whatever, maybe a couple people would
buy it, but most girls are gonna buy what fits
or looks best, not what logo they like the most.
I mean, some girls see Chanel and they'll pay
$300 for a pair of sunglasses, but in surf clothes
most girls buy a Roxy bathing suit, and Billabong
boardshorts because they like them. How does that
relate to the state of the industry? Companies
are only going to put so much into their team
riders because they know that most girls don't
really care. How that could change is if the sport
got huge, if way more girls started getting into
it. Or if it was on television. Look at women's
tennis, they're almost as entertaining to watch
as the guys, not because they hit the ball harder,
but because the guys want to see Maria Sharapova
in her little skirt hitting the ball. If we had
contests where we were all wearing bikinis, cruising
on the beach, I think we'd get the same kinda
thing.
KM:
Think someone will pick up on that soon?
HB: No I don't, because no one has already. I
hate to be pessimistic, but if anything I think
it was better in the 80's, and when Jericho Poppler
was sponsored by Coke. Where is Coke now? The
whole business of the ASP, with their TV rights,
is not conducive to that.
KL:
What do you do when you're not surfing?
HB: It seems like a lot revolving around surfing.
I do the dishes a lot, seems like I'm always doing
dishes, and you know grocery shopping, I'm kinda
domestic almost, I do a lot of laundry, it's fun,
almost like I'm playing house, I cook dinner,
I love it.
