Today, 11-time World Champ Kelly Slater announced his retirement from the World Tour on Instagram. In the caption, Slater wrote:
“Big decisions in life don’t come easy and it’s taken a lot of quiet time and personal introspection to come to this conclusion…The #RipCurlPro was the first event I surfed on tour and it’s fitting that this will be my last. There are too many people to thank and memories to go over but here’s to hoping I can pull a rabbit out of the hat and win one last event this week.”
On one hand, the timing makes sense if rumors are true that Slater is indeed the new majority owner of the surfboard brand Firewire, in addition to launching his yet-to-be-seen clothing brand, OuterKnown, developing a documentary on surfers smuggling drugs, and creating a purple energy drink. On the other hand, it is April Fool’s Day, so all bets are off. But it wouldn’t be the first time Slater made a big announcement under dubious circumstances. April 1, 2014, was the day that he announced his split from longtime sponsor Quiksilver.
He did add this:
“My board feels great (thank you @cisurfboards and @travlee) and I’m as psyched as ever to just surf and enjoy. Hope to see everyone down there at #BellsBeach this week. Not the best forecast but I’m channeling my #FloridaRoots! #HappyApril1stEveryoneBackHome #ThisIsSoConfusing #CantWaitToGolfAndChaseSwells”
So what do you think? Does today mark the end of an era, or does Kelly Slater have a terrible sense of humor?
