Getting Good At Sports Takes Practice, Not Fashion
Ask any serious sportsman and he'll tell you the same thing - they hate posers. Yeah, sure, they like to wear the fashions that identify them as being into a particular sport, but they don't get obsessed about it. There's something really wrong with people who do.
Different niche sports have their own brands and styles they like to wear. A brown boot is just a brown colored boot unless it has a brand name and style that distinguishes it as a ski boot or a football boot. Savvy footwear companies make casual shoes as wear as footwear for athletes because they know that a snowboarder, for instance, will want to wear their brand on and off the slopes.
Ditto for watches. Surfers and sailors need to wear waterproof watches and they like ones that look good. They don't, however, wear the watch just because it looks good. What use would a leather watch be to a surfer when he's being hit over the head by a giant wave!
A surfer likes to wear a men's sport watch from a surf label, but real surfers don't buy the leather ones as well. Those are for the posers who don't actually get their feet wet. They judge posers very harshly, so if you want to be accepted by surfers, be sure you don't get labeled as a wannabe pretender!
While it seems like it's a bit harsh to make a judgment like that, there is a deeper aspect to the prejudice against too much fashion. Passionate surfing enthusiasts do what they do because they love it and they identify so strongly with their sport, they don't need to tell the world they love it. It shows in everything they do. Outsiders admire them and in an effort to be like them, they wear the same brands they do.
Just copying their brands is going to backfire on you, though. If you want to be accepted by the surfing subculture, you've got to get not just your feet but your whole body wet! If a surfer sees you wearing his gear, he's going to think less of you for it unless you can actually get in the water and surf. They won't hesitate to tell you their feelings, either!
Fashion is nice, but skill is all important. Go ahead and buy those trendy watches and shoes, but stay away from the slopes or the waves if you don't want to tackle them head-on!