Mavericks surf season is off to explosive start

“There was a lot of water in the waves. It wasn’t as big as we thought,” South Africa’s Grant Baker was quoted as saying by Marcus Sanders in a surfline.com report. “Unfortunately, though, there was a light south wind all day, which made it really bumpy and scary to commit to one. It was similar in size to the 2010 swell, but that one was a lot cleaner,” said Baker, a former Mavericks champion.

I can’t blame the World Surf League, which is the parent organization of the BWT. While the official stance of contest organizers was that the conditions were not quite optimal to hold the contest, there just were too many conflicts to give the Mavericks contest its just due. It just so happens this week’s swell — which was the among the largest of the last couple seasons — coincided with the Pipe Masters contest on Hawaii’s North Shore at the famed Pipeline break. That is the crown jewel of the pro surfing circuit and no way were organizers going to give that contest short shrift because Mavericks was firing.

But the lack of a Mavericks contest didn’t stop from the world’s best big-wave surfers from dropping in. Hawaii’s burgeoning legend Kai Lenny showed what the next progression could be at Mavericks as there is plenty of video evidence showing Lenny trying to execute massive aerials off the top of the lip during a tow-in session in the midst of the latest swell. Those kind of maneuvers on that size wave simply were not thought possible a generation ago.

But it was the locals who were really crushing it, according to Dom Padua, a cinemaphotographer whose passion is surf videos. Half Moon Bay natives Hunter Murison, Luca Padua and Michael Joshua were dominating the lineup.

“They were catching more waves than the guys that came over (from around the world),” Dom Padua said.

Does this week’s action bode well for the Mavericks Challenge in the near future? Who knows? But as I’ve always said, when Mavericks is firing, contest or not, those waves will be ridden.

“Monday was a perfect example of self drive for big-wave surfers,” said Dom Padua, who estimated the biggest waves that day were in the 30-foot range.

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When the Mavericks Challenge does get green-lighted by the BWT, there is one main thing to keep in mind for spectators: don’t expect to get anywhere near the break. Fans used to be allowed down on the beach — and along the bluffs next above the beach — until some rogue waves and erosion forced organizers and county authorities to ban fans from the beach. Just too darn dangerous.

So, if you do plan on making a trek into Half Moon Bay or Princeton-by-the-Sea, just know the only way you can watch the event is at local restaurants and bars.

If you don’t need the ambiance of watching a surf event with dozens of like-minded individuals, you should be able to watch the contest feed on the WSL’s Facebook page. I follow the World Surf League on the social media site and have watched several contests this season. I know people have complained of issues in the past, but as a long as you have a strong WiFi signal and a relatively fast computer, you shouldn’t have any issues watching the event from the comfort of your own couch — or office cubicle.

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About a year ago, I interviewed Luca Padua, who was an alternate for the 2017-18 Mavericks contest. He was 16 years old at the time.

An alternate again this season, Padua celebrated his birthday this week with several sessions at Mavericks, but he got an early birthday gift last month as he checked off one of his bucket-list items with a trip to Nazaré, Portugal — another big-wave Mecca.

As documented in a short movie by his older brother Dom Padua, a surf cinemaphotographer, Luca Padua was there to surf just prior to and right after the Nazaré Challenge. After a number of “fun” waves, Luca Padua air dropped into a massive Nazaré wave near the end of the trip.

“It was forecasted to be gigantic (in Nazaré). It was supposed to be 100 footer, legit,” Dom Padua said. While it didn’t get that large, the Paduas got a taste of the differences between Portugal and Mavericks.

“What we saw was crazy,” Dom Padua said. “Luca got to feel out a totally new lineup.”

As good a young surfer Luca Padua is, Dom Padua is just as good behind the camera and is certainly making his mark as a cinemaphotographer. You can check out Dom Padua’s footage at vimeo.com/dompadua.

Nathan Mollat can be reached by email: nathan@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: 344-5200 ext. 117.