For the second year straight, Fat Tire brought the fun to Florida.
A refresher: in 2022, Fat Tire revived a two decades old surf contest concept called the Single Fin Hoe Down, wherein a bunch of talented surfers — men and women, shortboarders, longboarders, pros and local rippers alike — compete in a single division on boards of every shape and size, so long as they only have one fin. All for $10,000 in cash.
Held in Saint Augustine, Florida last Saturday, this invite-only event is an all day beach party where costumes are mandatory and style is the only word in the criteria. So while the prize purse is serious, the competition itself is not. Paddle out without a costume and it’s an immediate disqualification. Hassle a competitor and you’re kicked out of the event. Complain to the judges and good luck ever getting an invite back.
And the best part? You didn’t even have to be in the contest to get paid. Contest director Chris Ropero started the day with a backpack full of $50 and $100 bills, handing them out to competitors, non-competitors, and even random bystanders, for anything he deemed worthy: From having good style (on land or in the water) to packing trash to ripping (in or out of a heat), and basically everything in-between.
While the waves were only 1- to- 2 feet, the conditions didn’t really matter. In fact, the small surf meant the surfers got even more creative in the water this year, and by the end of the day 48 of the east coast’s finest were whittled down to 8: headlined by Asher Nolan, Cam Richards, Rasta Robbie McCormick, and last year’s champ Noah Schweizer.
In the end, it was a close one between Rasta and Richards. In fact, the judges had them nearly gridlocked on the (mental) scorecards, before Richards caught a wave with Schweizer, rode in on his knees, stole Schweizer’s Ken White shaped single fin right out from beneath him, and stomped a smooth-as-butter air to board transfer. All while wearing a Joe Dirt wig. It was everything the Hoe Down is about.
Click play below for the wave that made Richards $1500 richer.
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