We had planned this trip before we realized the dates might coincide with the World Surf League Championship competition in Margaret River. I had actually already booked the best possible house in terms of view and proximity, so Matt was thrilled to see his first pro surf meet. We were mostly lucky in terms of the timing, because the surfers are usually in place for two weeks or so and they pick the best days of swell for the competition. It could have all finished before we arrived, but the men had only competed in the first two rounds of heats and there was a lot of competition left. The women were mostly finished and we were unlikely to see any of them.
Even better, on the days when they didn't compete, there was no crowd and many of the surfers were still out there for several hours having a great time and we could watch, talk to them, and take pictures. It was a really unique experience.
The first day we saw was chilly and rainy but the waves were great and the surfers were excited.
The people watching was probably just as entertaining to me. The bowl cut mullet was a pretty popular hair style for the local crowd.
I really had no idea what to expect for a pro surf meet but it wasn't a huge setup and didn't get terribly crowded while we were there. No tickets or admission, just come find a spot to watch and enjoy among the tents and coffee carts.
We could go down the stairs and watch from the beach as well. The loud speakers didn't reach down there, so I didn't always know what was going on, but it was a different perspective.
Pretty cool to be able to talk to our favorite surfer, Kelly Slater, who sadly lost a really tough heat and was out at this point.
Lots of kids were getting autographs. I sent Ben to get Callum Robson's autograph, because he was an Aussie. Ben came back with someone else's signature and not Callum's. He said everyone else was asking that guy so he must be famous, right? Turns out it was Taj Burrow, a pretty legendary Aussie surfer who retired a few years ago. So once he went back for Callum's autograph, I got a pretty cool hat!
The actual surfing was really amazing. These guys are incredibly talented and they surfed some pretty scary waves. There were locals surfing the next break one morning and the difference between the hobbyists and the pros was huge.
These two had a great time taking photos...
The favorite shot of the trip! Kelly was ripping, as the announcers would have said.
We had to leave before the finals to get to Perth and our anniversary dinner, but we did get to see the local boy Jack Robinson (Jack Robbo if you're speaking Australian) win his way into the quarterfinals and we were so happy for him to win the whole thing in front of his home crowd. It was so much fun getting to be a part of the experience!
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