Not exactly blasting into the flats like Shapiro. That era of competitive wakeboarding is dead. Still though, Harley in this video would have destroyed Shapiro at his peak. A Vulcan worth more than a Melon TF7? Gimme a break
It's pretty ignorant of you to make this a hypothetical competition between Harley and Darin. Darin was the best at what wakeboarding was during his era. Harley's the best at what wakeboarding is today. If Darin had been born in the early 90s like Harley, he'd be out there right now doing 9s and whirly dicks. If Harley had been born in the early 70s like Darin, he would've been out there blasting huge raley tricks back in the mid 90s.
Both of these guys have such overwhelming natural ability and relentless dedication to progressing the sport that they'd almost certainly be at the top no matter what era they happened to compete in. Harley still has a long way to go to match Darin's decade of dominance, but he's on his way.
id watch shapiro over harley any day.
i dont care for the tazmanian devil huck spin fest that competitive wake boarding has become.
while i definatly appreciate and awe at the talent it takes to do a 7,9,10,12. but as far as WATCHING. i prefer to watch a huge grabed BS 180 to blind any day. Greenwood etc.
The "this trick is harder than that trick" discussion is a silly one (every person is different). That is why wakeboarding did away with the points for tricks format in 1998 or so. This event is ran by the International Water Ski Federation--they don't know what they are doing, so they use a points system.
Oh, and Vulcans are easy. I landed one on my first try and learned switch the next week (in 1999). It took me about 3 years of trying to land a 7, but everyone is different.
people and their BS 180s!! don't get me wrong, I love big tweaked BS 180s... but everytime a new trick is landed, or everytime the discussion about trick difficulty comes up, there is always someone who has to mention the BS 180! we've seen a million of them! honestly i'd like to see tricks that aren't done very often. i'd personally like to see a fruit loop, or a Heel Front to Backside 3... or even something that has just been landed for the first time (no matter how ugly). i cant see why people would rather witness a Backside 180 than a 1260. Sure, a backside 180 might be more stylish and controlled, but why choose to watch something that you've seen so many times over something you haven't. makes no sense! sorry.. it'd had to be said! i'm probably goin to get some backlash for this but... i just get tried of seeing that cliched post.
for the record..... yes i'd rather see a big BS 180 than a pete rose.
The "this trick is harder than that trick" discussion is a silly one (every person is different). That is why wakeboarding did away with the points for tricks format in 1998 or so. This event is ran by the International Water Ski Federation--they don't know what they are doing, so they use a points system.
IWSF Does not use a points for tricks system so it actually turns out that skiboarder doesn't know what he is doing
I'm not sure if IWSF have ever used a points for trick system, as long as I have been a judge (7-8 years) it has been Execution, Intensity and Composition. The system is not perfect especially with pro level riders but it is pretty good for beginner to advanced level riding, its biggest problem is the scoring of sliders and integrating that to the overall score in a consistent way.
It's like the age old annoying discussion about "Michael Jordan vs", let's not go down that aimless trail. Harley and Shaprio are greats in our sport.
The amazing thing about Shapiro was his board/rope/handle control in the era he rode in. He rode like a guy that lived behind the cable, but learned his style primarily behind a boat-truly incredible. I personally have always liked the snow/skate influenced style more (Horrell, Nelson, Greenwood,etc), but a guy like shapiro doing HUGE fronts to blind in the flats has to make your jaw drop.
Sure, many aren't liking the tazmanian spinners of today (Although, I would contend Harley does it as stylishly as possible with the amount of solid grabs he gets in), and many weren't fans of the raley era of contests. I think Wakeboarding is doing just fine working itself out....
All that said, it's going to be awesome to see boat riding in the years to come as more and more younger rippers ride both the cable and boat-benefitting from all that both environments can aid in the progression of our sport.
I agree, and it's tough to compare riders with two completely different styles. Thank god everyone is different.
I ride with a guy that doesn't spin passed a 360, but he stomps vulcans and s-bends. My limit is 5s both ways, but I can't do a raley.
Everyone is different. You can't say that one trick is harder than the other.
You cannont say one trick is harder than another at all (especailly if you cannot do either of them). It all comes dow to the rider doing the trick if you want my opinion a Vulcan is way harder than a 7. But then again I can to a 7 and cannot do a Vulcan (i dont think I even have the balls to try one), so the only frame of reference I have is that fact I can do one and not the other. The MJ comp is perfect. Different riders, different times, different body types, differnt wakes, the list goes on and on.
people and their BS 180s!! don't get me wrong, I love big tweaked BS 180s... but everytime a new trick is landed, or everytime the discussion about trick difficulty comes up, there is always someone who has to mention the BS 180! we've seen a million of them! honestly i'd like to see tricks that aren't done very often. i'd personally like to see a fruit loop, or a Heel Front to Backside 3... or even something that has just been landed for the first time (no matter how ugly). i cant see why people would rather witness a Backside 180 than a 1260. Sure, a backside 180 might be more stylish and controlled, but why choose to watch something that you've seen so many times over something you haven't. makes no sense! sorry.. it'd had to be said! i'm probably goin to get some backlash for this but... i just get tried of seeing that cliched post.
for the record..... yes i'd rather see a big BS 180 than a pete rose.
Dude i know exactly what you are saying, i want to see Slurpees (**** and balls, if you know the story) make a comeback,i loved that trick and alot of people today dont even know what it is lol
LOL at the guy at 0:56. That's who I want watching ME compete!
if you could have been seeing him chewing "bing lang" (assuming if he does) you might change your mind.
bing lang = think chewing tobacco but blood red. looks like been socked in the mouth spitting blood on the ground. GROSS stuff.
other than the bing lang wish i could return to Taiwan or check out China sooo bad. Love the Chinese people
i dont think the comparison between harley and darin is quite fair considering the equipment they are using is 100 percent different
watch this video
rubber boots with no strings or straps, just look at how thin the nose and tail of his board is... also notice that the boat is a direct drive nautique and the double up isnt even half the size of harleys everyday wake....
i dont know if you have ever watched 12 honkeys but darin busts like the hugest s to blind ever on an old obrien with just a center fin on each side, not to mention the wake was tiny!
just imagine if darin and parks had a harley size wake everyday back then.... you would be seeing doubleflips wake2wake all day
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