A bright pink, Vestal Brig Tide and Train watch is the artifact that immediately comes to mind when contemplating an item that represents me as a person. This watch is not just a source of time, or a representation of tide and wave height at a specific surf break. No, this watch is much more than that to me because it represents my individuality in a way that battles against the natural conformity of what a female is supposed to act and look like. Yes, pink is often represented as a color associated with girls and Barbie’s and other stereotypes that are stapled to women as soon as they come out of the womb. However, pink to me advertises my outgoing nature, bright and exciting adventures I love to pursue, and most importantly symbolizes my passion for the waves and surfing despite the blatant disrespect from males within the surfing community. Although, I wear a pink watch every day, my individual aesthetic does not fit perfectly to the group aesthetic because of the underlying ties to the surfing community that the watch truly represents.
Colors are a vital way of communication within society. It is a way for companies, social groups, activists, and even businesses to advertise and symbolize their motive and or agenda. As a girl, typically pink is associated with my gender and supposed to represent being feminine, sensitivity, and a gentle maternal nature. Stores use pink as an essential marketing tool to appeal to young girls and convince them that they are supposed to associate this color with their gender and various activities they decide to partake in such as sports, clothing, and other accessories. However, this is not the case for my specific personality, as I am a proud girl who loves to surf, play sports, and participate in exhilarating adventures that are typically categorized as “boy activities”. The watch represents me not being ashamed of adoring pink, but at the same time embracing the “boy watch” with a color that is supposed to represent a “girly girl”. Furthermore, my pink watch may be mistaken for a girly accessory, when it is actually a sporty symbol that allows me to partake in a sport that is dominated by the male community.
Surfing was invented and first created as a part of Polynesian culture. Men used to carve long wooden planks and dive into the water fearless of the strong riptide and overwhelming currents. Surfing became a staple within the Polynesian and European community amongst men, but women were neglected to be included as it was “too dangerous”. Gradually over time, women began to ignore the stigma and dove into the surfing environment and began to make a name for themselves. Women such as Bethany Hamilton, defied all odds even when losing a vital part of herself and essential tool in the water. Although, other women such as Alana Blanchard played the sex appeal game within the marketing industry and abandoned the individuality and respect a woman deserves by advertising her body sexually to make money. Along with these views of Alana, she displays her aesthetic to the world on social media through endless bikini photos and constantly selling what she is wearing. Despite having incredible talents in the water, Alana has to choose the sex appeal in order to be remembered in the community. The surfing community may seem “chill”, but it is extremely controversial and sexist when it comes to allowing women the same rights and respect within the sport of surfing.
Therefore, the watch is not just a sporty accessory. It is a statement to the surfing community that women are just as capable of surfing and accomplished athletic fleets as men. Within my home town, a very famous surf spot known as the “Lunada Bay Cove” is known for being extremely territorial and even dangerous for boys not members of the famous “Bay Boys”. Boys that dare to enter this arena usually get their tires slashed, cars vandalized, or even physically harmed by the older men that guard this precious surf area with their life. Although, if a girl like myself were to attempt to go near the waves, no harm would be done to me because they do not think I can surf their waves anyways, so they disregard my presence as whole.
This blatant form of sexism is obviously portrayed in many sports in our country, which makes the watch even more powerful in my opinion. It is fascinating how important clothing and accessories are within the athletic industry, but what is even more insane is the fact that these accessories have a very secretive, underlying meaning. For example, a male watch typically advertises his ability to surf, but when a girl wears this watch it can be seen an “posing” because it is crazy to think a female could be capable at doing such a complicated sport. This watch is found on almost every young boy’s wrist in my surfer-prominent high school. However, me, being an 21-year-old girl wearing this watch represents me defending and partaking in a very small community of girls within the surfing community. Unfortunately, this watch does not always represent just a determined surfer. In Palos Verdes, surfers were typically deemed “stoners” or inferior to the rest of society due to the laid-back attitude most surfers had in common.
This false judgement happened extremely often to both boys and girls within the surfing community. Although, I am a straight-edge D1 athlete and I admittingly never faced this discrimination, making me an outlier from my group aesthetic because I do not face the same judgement as the rest of my community. However, I strongly believe that just because I do not face this judgement, does not mean that I cannot represent my own personal individuality within this broad community. Outliers within the surfing community are often referred to as “kooks”, meaning they differ from the stereotypical image of a surfer and disobey the “surf etiquette”. This bright pink watch I believe is very abstract and different because pink is a very bright and intoxicating color within a community that tends to pride itself in wearing dark black wetsuits. As an article in GQ states in regards on how to “Not be a Kook” it says, “if you’re going to wear neon pink, you’d better be a hell of a surfer” (Sobel). Bright pink in a surfing community is depicted as being “beginner” and “clueless” and quite frankly, I am proud to be depicted as an individual that does not desire to conform to the typical surfing standards.
This watch does not just carry significant color meaning and symbolic ties to the surfing community, but also represents a powerful social issue within the group aesthetic. For example, in the New York Times article entitled, “A Place for Us to Skate” it discusses the hostility that the skate community used to shed onto the LGBTQ community and how they humiliated and slurred these individuals from skating in their territory. A group named Unity was formed because a man named Jeffery Cheung believed that he needed to create a safe space for skaters to be themselves without the harm and brutality that the former skating community fostered. In the past the skating community was extremely exclusive and hateful towards people they believed to be “abnormal”, but over time the skating community has expanded to become more accepting because of brave people such as Mr. Cheung. This greatly relates to the surfing issues because it symbolizes hope for such a close-minded community such as the male surfers who do not regard women as athletes, but rather sex symbols who are only capable of modeling pink clothing.
My bright pink watch is not just a watch capable of determining the tide or telling time, but a symbol that silently protests the oppression and sexism within the surfing community. My watch can advertise equality and objecting the color stereotypes placed unto young girls up until they are adults. As a girl in the surfing community, I am neglected and considered inferior by fellow male competitors, however, by wearing a watch that represents my bravery and push for social change, I am slowly making progress towards equality within the athletic industry. I am not a “kook” but if classified as one, I understand that it will not be long until women are accepted and acknowledged because within individuality and bravery, comes social change.
my thoughts & some mumbo jumbo 