Our Moose In A Box: Surfing the North Shore

While the intense waves of the North Shore of Oahu in the winter months are not ideal for snorkeling they are perfect for surfing. The Triple Crown Surfing Competition is in full throttle during our time here. The Triple Crown is made up of three surfing events--The Pipe Masters, The World Cup of Surfing, and the Hawaiian Pro. The Hawaiian Pro finished before we arrived, and the Pipe Masters didn't start until after we left. But, we were able to see some of the Vans World Cup of Surfing.

Each of the three parts of the Triple Crown seem to last for about a week and a half. However, the competition doesn't run everyday, because it depends on the waves. So, the hope is that in the week and a half scheduled for the competition there enough good wave days to complete it all.

Brandon called a surfing hotline each morning to see if the Vans World Cup of Surfing was on, so we could see it. On Wednesday morning it was on, so we headed to Sunset Beach. The trick is to find parking around the beach area. There is minimal parking lot space, so cars line up and down the street. We went earlier in the morning on a rainier day, so we didn't have too much trouble. After you find parking, you just walk right onto the beach and watch the competition. Yup. No entry fees. No tickets. No security. Just find a spot to plop down on the beach, preferably not in front of a cameraman with his fancy, professional camera. Pretty laid back. But, I suppose that suits the surfing scene.

It's surprising how much you can see from the beach even with the surfers fairly far out in the ocean. If you want close ups of the action, you can watch a big screen on one side of the beach with close camera views and replays. Watching the competition on television is going to get you the best views, but seeing it in person was exciting.

We do not know all the surfing rules. But, from what we could tell, there were four competitors per heat. A heat lasted 20 minutes and each surfer's top two scores were averaged to determine their final score for the heat. The top two surfers moved on to the next competition bracket/level. While we were watching, Jack Freestone managed to surf a perfect 10.0 score on a wave. Pretty awesome. Obviously he was the top surfer of that heat. Though we're not quite sure what makes a perfect 10.0 score.

While the surfers could catch as many waves as they wanted in 20 minutes there seemed to be a priority system, so that a surfer who had not caught as many waves was given first chance to take the next good wave. Announcers told the surfers how much time was left in the heat and what score was needed for each surfer to move up in the rankings to move on to the next level. Two wave runners were out near the surfers relaying information, watching for sharks, taking close up pictures, and ready to provide rescue or first aid if needed.

In an exciting coincidence, we saw the final heat on television while eating dinner Thursday at North Shore Tacos. Mick Fanning of Australia won the heat and became the Vans World Cup Winner.

The day after the World Cup Winner was named, we saw the bandstands being torn down and moved from Sunset Beach to Banzai Pipeline Beach. Banzai Pipeline is just down the road from Sunset Beach and is where The Pipe Masters is held. We'll miss the competition, but we did get a look at the beach with its pipeline waves.

Sunset Beach with professional sports photographers and surf set up

Big screen with close ups and replays

Spectators just sitting on the beach near the big screen

A surfer heading in for the next heat

A man doing a traditional Hawaiian dance to bless the surf

Two wave runners on the left watching the surfer surf the white water (you can see the surfer near the center of the picture)

Banzai Pipeline where the Pipe Masters will be held

With inspiration from the pros, we decided to take surfing into our own hands. Our campground had surfboard rentals, so we did a half day rental since we figured that was all our bodies could take. We had tried surfing for the first time over a year ago in California. So, while we had some idea of what to do we were not expecting great things. After some trial and error we improved and did better than we had in California. Brandon even got up and stood for a full 10 second run into shore. It was impressive. I was pleased to get up and stand two times, but then promptly fell off.

We had so much fun that we wanted to surf another day before leaving. Disappointingly the campground could not find a key to the surfboard locker, and we were afraid we would have to forgo our last surf day in Hawaii. But, I scanned the beach and found a guy who had been out for awhile with a beginner board and was taking a break for a few hours. After a little conversation he generously let us borrow the board for free for a few hours. Yay! Apparently when he comes to Hawaii for a week he goes straight from the airport to Costco and picks up a board for $100. He then sells or gives away the board when he heads home. Pretty savvy.

The second day we surfed the waves were not as good, but I managed to get up two times and Brandon had a few good runs. We are definitely improving, but it is clear that good wave conditions makes for better surfing. We are definitely looking forward to trying again in California.