Women’s professional big wave surfing is stepping up this season. With the recent Pe’ahi Challenge competition in Maui, and a women’s heat scheduled for the Titans of Mavericks event in Half Moon Bay, professional female surfers are taking things to the next level.
On November 11, 2016 Paige Alms won the Pe’ahi Challenge in solid surf, sharing a spot in surf history with eleven other hard charging women who competed for the first time in a Big Wave Tour (BWT) event put on by the World Surf League (WSL). The competition went down in solid wind marred waves with critical drops and heavy wipeouts.
The Titans of Mavericks event, set to run sometime between November 1, 2016 and March 31, 2017 pending ideal conditions, has also been upgraded to include a women’s heat. This evolution only came about as the result of a hard fought battle behind the scenes. By requesting that the California Coastal Commission require the inclusion of women in the Titans of Mavericks event in order to secure a permit to run it, advocates were successful in pushing Cartel Management to make the change.
Although the seas have not been perfectly smooth for the advancement of women’s professional big wave surfing, progression is under way. What remains to be seen now is just how far it can go. What new events can be added? What limits can be broken? What will the future of this awe inspiring surge look like?
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Yes, loving the positive. Can’t wait to see the footage of the ladies charging!