Oakley/ASL Big Wave Awards announced for 2002/03

Oakley/ASL Big Wave Awards announced

Winter in Australia is Big Surf Time. Giant Indian Ocean storms throwing huge waves against the southwest coast. Tasman Sea gales smashing the rock reefs and headlands of NSW. Massive groundswells rolling in off Bells Beach and Port Campbell in western Victoria.

Tremendous waves -- comparable to Hawaii, Tahiti, or anywhere else. And they´re ridden by a special breed of surfer. Now these surfers are finally getting what they deserve.

Oakley, in conjunction with Morrison Media, publishers of Australia´s Surfing Life, have created an Australasian first: The Oakley/ASL Big Wave Awards.

The Oakley/ASL Big Wave Awards offers a prize of $20,000 to the surfer who rides the biggest single wave of the Australia and New Zealand big-surf season. The waiting period extends over eight months, starting this coming weekend with the winter solstice - June 22.

On that day, Australia´s best big-surf riders will go into action with an extra glint in their eyes. Award entrants already include some of the world´s greatest names in big wave riding.

Check ´em out:

Ross Clarke-Jones: Winner of the 2001 Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau at Waimea Bay, Hawaii, perhaps the world´s ultimate big-wave competition. Ross is without doubt one of the world´s top five big surf experts. He´s highly skilled in all aspects of the sport, including "tow-in" surfing, in which riders team up to use jet-skis to ride waves over 10 metres in height.

Tony Ray: Runner-up to Kelly Slater in this year´s Quiksilver Eddie event, Tony is Clarke-Jones´s longtime tow partner. The pair will work from their base in Torquay, Victoria to tackle the huge coldwater surf of western Victoria and Tasmania.

Cheyne Horan: Master surfer and runner-up in the Awards´ Northern Hemisphere counterpart, the Surfline/XXL Big Wave Challenge. Cheyne just missed that event´s first prize with a massive 14-metre-plus ride at Hawaii´s terrifying "Jaws" break. Now a Gold Coast resident, Cheyne regularly rides the largest waves of Queensland´s cyclone season.

Layne Beachley and partner Ken Bradshaw: Layne and Ken have been charging giant surf together off Hawaii and Mexico for years, both tow-surfing and paddling. Now Layne, a four-time world women´s pro champion, figures it´s time to take on Australia´s biggest waves -- she and Ken will be heading to West Australia in July to do just that.

Andrew Campbell: The underground legend who´s one of very few surfers to tame Shipstern Bluff, Tasmania´s - and maybe the world´s - most dangerous surf location.

They´ll be joined by at least a dozen hardbitten, lesser-known Aussie and New Zealand surfers, who´ve chosen to try to outdo the champions. "This Award could easily be won by a surfer without a reputation - someone who´s got a good board and a lot of ocean knowledge," says Nick Carroll, the Oakley/ASL Big Wave Awards´ co-ordinator. "It´ll be about what you know, not who you know."

Carroll confirmed that surfers vying for Awards entry will only be accepted if they´re able to prove their worth in the big stuff. "There´s no room for people without the necessary skills," he claims. "Big surf has a way of dealing with that."

The Oakley/ASL Big Wave Awards will commence at dawn on June 22 and finish at dusk on February 22, 2003. At that time, a team of superqualified judges, including former world professional surfing champions Mark Richards and Wayne "Rabbit" Bartholomew, will assess the entries and select a winner. An extra $2,000 will go to the photographer who captures the winning ride.

For more information, contact:

Nick Carroll,
event co-ordinator:
02 9979 9561
ncsurf@ozemail.com.au

Cameron Baranski,
Oakley: 03 52205100
cbaranski@oakley.com

Check the progress of the Awards at www.surfinglife.net

Morrisonm Media is Australia´s premier independent youth active lifestyle publisher. Titles include: Australia´s Surfing Life, Chick, FreeriderMX, Riptide, Slam, Powderhound, Australian Snowboarder, Australian Longboarding, Kiwi Surf, Deep, and the Visions series of coffee-table books. Head office: 07 55761388

Oakley a world brand, driven to ignite the imagination through the fusion of art and science. Building on its legacy of innovative, market-leading, premium sunglasses, Oakley is now redefining consumer expectations with a performance boardshort and surf apparel line, footwear, travel accessories, watches and prescription eyewear. Find Opportunity. Solve With Technology. Wrap In Art.

Big Wave Events - Surfersvillage