Long Beach Magazine

The next level of surfing

Five years after Quiksilver, RVCA to sponsor the Unsound Pro

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Five years ago, Bob McKnight, the chief executive officer of Quiksilver at the time, stood in the center of a huge skateboard ramp in Times Square and announced to the world that Long Beach would host the Quiksilver Pro New York surfing competition that September.

The fact that McKnight formally announced the contest at a New York City press conference in June 2011 — and not in Long Beach — was telling. Quiksilver had selected the barrier island city in part because of its close proximity to Manhattan, the media capital of the world, and the competition would be the largest Association of Surfing Professionals event ever held on the East Coast, with 34 of the world’s best professional surfers, including Kelly Slater, competing for a $1 million prize purse.

The televised event, McKnight said, would be nothing less than a sports, music, art and fashion festival featuring 48 bands, BMX, skateboard and Motocross exhibitions as well as fashion and cultural events.


Indeed, if all went well, the Quik Pro New York, part of the ASP World Tour, was poised to put Long Beach surfing on the map.

There were skeptics, of course, who questioned the quality of the surf or were unaware that Long Beach waves could reach between eight and 10 feet that time of year, and many believed that such an elite event in New York would flop. Others were simply unaware that Long Beach was already home to a vibrant surfing community with a rich history.

A few months before the contest, Slater appeared on “Chelsea Lately,” where the host asked him about the event.

“You’re going to surf ... in New York?” Handler said, sarcastically. “Where? On the Hudson?”

Times — and attitudes — have certainly changed. Many say that Long Beach has become synonymous with New York surfing since the contest — nearly canceled in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene — which delivered four consecutive days of thrilling shredding and aerials that drew nearly 100,000 fans and embarrassed the naysayers.

“Five years later, there have been a lot of ups and downs but, overall, ever since the Quiksilver event, surfing in general here has been on a little bit of a high,” said Mike Nelson, co-owner of Unsound surf shop, which sponsored the Quiksilver Pro New York Trials. “It’s undeniable what that event did for the surfing culture around here.”

Nelson and co-owner Dave Juan were instrumental in attracting the Quiksilver Pro to Long Beach, not to mention their fight to save the contest after Irene, if not the festival. Since the shop opened in 1997, Unsound was already fostering a surfing boom in New York by organizing local competitions with the occasional big sponsor such as Nike, but never on the level of the Quik Pro.

Though Quiksilver ultimately opted not to bring its event back to Long Beach – reportedly over costs, local politics, or a combination of both — Unsound has since attracted major sponsors to host its Unsound Surf Pro, now in its 19th year and described by Surfline as one of the most unique professional surfing contests on the East Coast.

Unsound held its Right Coast Cup event in 2012, presented by Quiksilver, and in 2014, Volcom, the popular surfing brand, sponsored the Unsound Pro. Though not part of an ASP World Tour, it’s considered the most important competition to come to Long Beach since Quiksilver. The event was also something of a comeback for Unsound after Hurricane Sandy — the shop sustained major damage — which made organizing the contest the previous year a challenge.

This year, RVCA, the respected surf brand, will host the competition, and it will feature numerous side events in and around Long Beach.

“[RVCA] were familiar with [the Quiksilver Pro New York],” Nelson said, “and it showed them the potential for an event in the future. Obviously, it will be nowhere near the scale of Quiksilver, but we want to do some small music events, art shows, and other satellite events. We’re psyched — it’s going to be awesome.”

The event is set for Sept. 14-18 at Lincoln Boulevard beach and will see the return of professional surfers such as Balaram Stack, TJ Gumiela and Leif Engstrom, as well as a number of RVCA team riders. There will also be an amateur event, and with surfing likely to be a part of the 2020 Olympics, Nelson said that the contest could be an opportunity for those looking to qualify for a spot on the U.S. National Team.

With RVCA (pronounced rukah), a California-based clothing company associated with surfing, skateboard, graffiti and art culture, the event will not only feature professional surfing but also music, art and other events, as well as activity booths, retail tents and more.

“We’ve been trying to find someone who is very in line with our whole store personality,” said Nelson. “RVCA is not just surfing — it’s art and music as well. We pitched the event to their rep and it just fit. They have a lot of things and artists in New York but they never had any outlets for them. They get that it’s a big media market here.”

Editor's note: This story originally appeared in the July issue of Long Beach Magazine.