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Spinning The Globe: Entry One

Posted on August 20, 2008 @ 12:06 PM

“This is crunch time, it really is make or break, when the surfers will either crumble, or step up and make it count.” Red Bull Rising coach Andy King, was squinting into the sun, watching a heat late in the afternoon, as the sun sets, this time, into a swell ridden Atlantic Ocean. It was the first day of the six star prime rated Rip Curl Pro, held in the heaving beachbreaks and packed streets of Europe’s surfing capital, Hossegor, France.

“Kingy is right,” agreed Michel Bourez, “this is the time and the place to make it count. Since Huntington and the US Open, we have gone to back-to-back to events in Japan, Newquay, England and Lacanau further north in France. As soon as this event is finished we drive immediately to Portugal, then back up for two events in Spain.”

It’s the surfing equivalent of spinning the globe, stopping it with your finger and hoping to hit the jackpot - the big prize being the money and, probably more importantly, the big points on offer, in the search for ultimate prize of qualification for the elite surfing level, the World ASP Tour in 2009.

Mind you, as a surfer spinning the globe, there is not much better place to put a finger on then this special part of the Basque coast, located about 100 clicks north of the Spanish border. Consistent swells march over the deep trench that is the Bay of Biscay, arriving unmolested and powerful on the sandbanks of Hossegor. In this they were aided by the least likely of surfing’s benefactors - Napoleon Bonaparte. You see it was in the late 18th century that the then French ruler was responsible for the re-routing of the River Ardour, from its natural entry point into the ocean at Hossegor to Bayonne, about 30 miles further south. If it wasn’t for that rather radical piece of geographical re-engineering, instead of the current mix of huge lumbering outside peaks, shore slapping barrels and the myriad of continually disappearing and reappearing rip bowls, there’d be a giant wave devouring hole, where the Ardour would be pouring into the Bay of Biscay. For example yesterday, gigantic waves were unleashing on these same banks, causing a postponement of the competition. “It’s was massive out there,” said Clint Kimmins. “Like massive, real Hawaii style.” Clipper had been up since first light, with a jet ski primed, ready tackle the huge waves, as their size had made paddling into them impossible. Eventually, just after lunch when the wind backed off he was able to take on the massive waves. “It’s just good to get in the water, and feel some power. Just staying fit and focussed, in big and small waves, is what its all about,” said Kimmins, after dropping down a few waves the size of three story buildings.

And that’s what this week is about for these Red Bull Rising athletes. Staying fit, staying focussed, enjoying the waves and France, but with all eyes on the big prize. With the swell dropping, excellent waves predicted for the rest of the week and the Rip Curl Pro in full swing, right now, right here, is where the surfing world has stopped.

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