During the past month the invitational specialty surf contest concept has once again been thrust into the surfing limelight following glowing feedback from the Natural Selection event in Micronesia. This was topped off with the Capitulo Perfeito at Carcavelos which reminded us that these types of events are some of the most exciting spectacles in surfing.
Surf contests that hold no affiliation to a governing body or any type of tour is nothing new. For example, the Capitulo Perfeito, which sees some of the world’s best tube hounds duke it out in a one day barrel fest, has been running for more than a decade. Many of us also have fond memories of Jack McCoy’s Billabong Challenge events from the 90s, which saw world-class surfers competing at remote locations under unique formats. However, in recent years the invitational idea has become a more common and permanent fixture in the surfing calendar, with various people or groups having a stab at creating their own unique concept.
In addition to the Capitulo Perfeito and Natural Selection, you also have the Four Seasons Maldives Trophy, Single Fin Classic at Uluwatu, the Rip Curl Padang Padang Cup, the Tudor Nazare Big Wave Challenge, the Safi Invitational and the El Quemao Classic to name a few.
During the recent Capitulo comp, eventual winner Cam Richards told me that he’d had his eye on the event for a while and as we sat in the competitors’ area watching on as eight foot slabbing tubes detonated across the beach, he said that his idea of a ‘dream tour’ would be to earn invites to a number of different invitational events which feature ‘the best waves in the best locations’.
Cam gave up competing on the WSL’s Challenger Series and the quest to qualify for the CT, a couple of years ago. At one point, the CT was labelled as the ‘dream tour’ and seen as the pinnacle of competitive surfing. While it undoubtedly still showcases a number of the best surfers in the world and a host of idyllic locations, the WSL comes in for criticism for a variety of reasons. It poses the question as to whether these one off events can overtake the WSL as the most desired outfit in our sport. It’s also reasonable to assume that the two can coexist, but in this article I’ll aim to outline some factors which make contests like Natural Selection and the Capitulo Perfeito so inviting and why they could be the future of surfing.
One of the most common critiques the WSL faces is the quality of waves on tour. I’ve lost count at how many times the CT has been skunked in recent years. It’s difficult when you have seven plus rounds of heats to run for both men and women and you’ve only got a ten day window to do so. Even if there’s a swell during the window, it’s unlikely it lasts the full ten days and so you’re almost guaranteed that some rounds will run in lesser conditions. On the contrary, invitational contests are often afforded longer waiting periods. The events feature fewer surfers and so they only need a day or two to run. They also have the advantage of being stand-alone events that aren’t crammed into a tight schedule to make a full tour. For example, the Capitulo Perfeito has a three month waiting period throughout the Portuguese winter and will only run when the Atlantic serves up A+ conditions and the banks at Carcavelos are primed and ready for tubes.
This guarantees surfers are put in the best waves possible. Invitational events are often held at specifically chosen locations because of their wave quality or X-factor. Once upon a time the wind-blown, slabby, Micronesian reef- point-break chosen for the Natural Selection comp might have been deemed far from ideal for a contest. However, the big barreling caverns, below sea drainers and gnarly air sections guarantee entertainment value in comparison to something like a two foot Brazilian beach break.
Organisers of these specialty events also have the luxury of curating the line-up of competitors specifically to their requirements, which is usually based around talent and entertainment value, rather than it being down to whoever can grind out enough quarter-final finishes in mediocre waves on the Challenger.
The recent Natural Selection contest included Soli Bailey, Al Cleland Jr, Harry Bryant, Eithan Osborne, Noah Beschen, Kauli Vaast, Victor Bernardo, Mikey February, Coco Ho, Milla Brown, Kirra Pinkerton and Anne Dos Santos.
The Capitulo event featured names such as Joel Parkinson, Craig Anderson, Noah Beschen, Balaram Stack, Cam Richards, Victor Bernardo and Nic Von Rupp.
Last year’s Single Fin Classic at Uluwatu featured Mark Occhilupo, Joel Parkinson, Mikey February, Made Lana, Joel Tudor, Tosh Tudor, Jay Davies, Bruno Santos, Noah Collins, Jared Mell, Luke Cederman, Alex Knost, Harrison Roach, Ryuki Waida, Alejandro Moreda, Rizal Tandjung, Oscar Langburne, Ozzie Wright, Koby Abberton, Mega Artana, Adi Bol Putra, Mason Ho, Tai Buddha, Westen Hirst, Varun Tandjung, Koa Rothman, Eli Olson, Balaram Stack, William Aliotti, Othmane Choufani and more.
That is possibly the most stacked field of surfers for a contest ever put together.
The point I’m making here is that invitational events feature a unique concoction of surfing abilities and personalities that wouldn’t ever normally line-up together. The melting-pot of personalities creates a distinctive mystique around an event and each heat becomes a standalone storyline in itself. During my time in Portugal reporting on the Capitulo event, I was so intrigued to see how the timeless style of Craig Ando would fare against the World Title pedigree of Parko and the go for broke attitude of Balaram.
In addition to the unique selection of invitees, each event has the flexibility of creating its own format and organisers are always coming up with ways to make each contest as exciting as possible.
The FS Maldives comp sees each surfer compete in three division; a single fin, twin fin and thruster category. Getting to watch people like Taj Burrow and Jeremy Flores, household former CT names who have spent most of their life on high performance short boards, ride single fins and twin fins in pumping surf makes for unique and exciting viewing.
Natural Selection chose to adopt a CREDO criteria when scoring waves – Creativity, Risk, Execution, Difficulty, and Overall impression. It had been borrowed from the other Natural Selection events (Skiiing, snowboarding, bikes) but would it work for surfing as a one size fits all? It certainly functioned as a welcome alternative.
Each event also gets creative with how they deliver themselves to the public. For example, the Rip Curl Padang Padang Cup had the Swellians, Vaughan Blakey and Jed Smith, run the commentary booth. The pair are unique characters and added an extra flavour to the broadcast which is important when a lot of the time viewers are forced to watch surfers sitting and waiting for waves.
Natural Selection had Ian Crane, Brad Gerlach and Pam Burddige as judges. They were put in front of the camera, commenting and discussing with full transparency and then came to a clear consensus on who won a heat.
The overall vibe during these one off events also seems a lot more laidback than the WSL. Invitees are often more than happy to stop and chat, pose for photos and are usually seen drinking a few beers in the contest area at the end of the day. This may be due to the fact there is a lot less on the line during these one off contests and so there’s less pressure, which translates into a more laidback atmosphere. This is also makes the viewing more digestible for viewers, especially when people like Parko and Ando are happy to get in the commentary booth for a few heats and share stories or jokes.
If these types of contests continue there will be debate as to what the future of competitive surfing could look like. Will there be a breakaway tour featuring invite events only? Will surfers shy away from the usual WSL route and turn their attention to specifically chosen contests? Can they all coexist? It will be interesting to see how the competitive landscape plays out in the coming years. One constraint with specialty events is ensuring they have the financial backing to continue. It’s no easy feat flying surfers from across the globe at the last minute to surf in a contest. One can only imagine the money the Natural Selection crew spent getting the invitees, judges and camera crew to Micronesia. However, I’m sure we will continue to see more unique concepts in different locations in the near future.
