Mavericks Surf Contest

I had a very hard time finding a way of viewing it live. I was able to stop at a local brewery and watch the live streaming. The weekend was also President’s weekend so it was very busy.
It is a sight to see. You can also see the waves (not the competition from close by). All and all still worth it and reccomended.

Sorry to say that Mavericks is no longer able to be seen first hand. I have attended several of the contests and it was a great thrill to pack a breakfast and some refreshments and walk out on the beach and find a comfortable place on the bluff to watch from. I was there when the wave came up on shore. it was only a few feet of water and it washed into the booths and knocked over a few people. So now to «protect» us Mavericks it is now made into a video circus. When did «public» beaches become off limits? Answer; when someone can find a way to profit from it. Goodbye, Mavericks observers.

I am angry. Unilocalers, I wish I read your reviews before I drove down to Half Moon Bay for the event.
I knew beach access was closed so I opted for Gold VIP tickets for the festival thinking it might buy me a little extra comfort. Perhaps the VIP asphalt that I sat on was more comfortable than the pavement for which others paid $ 15?
Check in was confused. I was sent to different entryways because I had a VIP ticket. Walked the perimeter more than a few times. «Where would I pick up my official T-​shirt?», I asked again and again. There wasn’t one staffer that had a clue. But I expected that.
What I didn’t expect was the VIP Tent would be running out of gummy, flavorless rice sitting over sterno for hours by noon. Only Sierra Nevada beer was served (I can’t drink beer) and they provided practically nothing for seating. Other VIPers just laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. A bite of crap rice and having your butt ache from sitting on concrete for $ 200? How the hell do they get away with that?
I asked VIP staff and attendees, «Where do we pick up our commemorative t-​shirts?» No one had a clue. No t-​shirt to be had for $ 200. My money bought absolutely nothing. Please tell me that at least the local economy benefited from my naiveté.
Shame. Shame on BodyGlove and organizers. If you’re going to charge that amount of money, then you better deliver SOMETHING. There should be more than dishonor for charging that amount and hand over nothing of value. Sorry to say, I’m compelled to take this as far as I can.

Sucks. Big time.
Access to the beach & cliffs is closed for public. So nooone can actually see the event live. You come to the event site and all you can see is tents with food and some hotels selling tickets to see event on the big screens. What an awesome experience!
Ah no, there was on cool thing to see, a guy hulahooping on the beach. That guy made our day.

I’m so mad at this event I’ve created a Unilocal account to comment!
First up: in the interests of fairness here’s a few things that were ok. 1) the walk from the car park at the airport was fine. It took us ten minutes in all; far from a long trek. 2) I expected to be gouged big style for beers but five bucks a pint is well below average in my experience. 3) I have considerable experience of festival restrooms and these were excellent. Plentiful and clean. I never queued once. 4) It was only $ 10 bucks.
Now the grumbles:
The screen sucked; the feed was in widescreen and the screen wasn’t.
The audio sucked; you could not hear anything further away than about 20ft.
The food trucks were woefully underprovisioned; they ran out of food very early.
The ticket checking was a total cluster***k; there were staff taking digital photos of folks’ cellphone screens for those who hadn’t printed out the paper tickets. This meant the line was ridiculous and no one was walking it to let paper ticket holders know they could skip round.
Why the parking lot of the hotel?! Why not actually have the damn thing on the grass at the airport? There’d be more room and it would be more comfortable.
The saddest thing was, my wife spoke to some of the security and they couldn’t understand why everything was so crappy either.
So, to whoever is responsible for this absolute shambles. Get a grip, have some humility, admit you don’t know jack about putting on an event like this and get the professionals in.

Sucked. Jumbotron… Really? Was this screen from 1984? Total letdown. Traffic sucked — would have been no big deal if the event rocked, food lines and availability sucked, weather great, rent a cops sucked — was told no parking they oversold by 1000’s (I had pre-​paid) parked street side to find out there was parking. Band — pretty good, but I could have just stayed home in Santa Cruz and had more fun and spent less money. I mean you had like 3 years to prepare? Tisk, Tisk, Tisk.
5 stars??? Were you high…

Mavericks 2013 was the worst «live» sporting event I have ever «seen».
No beach access… okay… but no access to the hills or anywhere that the waves are visible? This was my first time at Mavericks, and I know there were injuries last time, but come on. Give me a waiver to sign and I’ll absolve the organizers, landowners, and government agencies of any blame if I’m injured. Limit the cliffs to 50 people and a five-​minute time limit per person, so we could at least say we saw the huge waves, even if we didn’t see someone riding them. Anything, please. This was such a pointless experience, it wasn’t an experience at all.
They said there would be a jumbotron. I suppose the screen was big by living-​room standards, but not by thousands-​of-​people-​paid-​to-​see-​this-​and-​sat-​in-​traffic-​for-​an-​hour standards. And the image quality was terrible, with a big green splotch in the middle.
They said there would be a second screen for the 49ers game. Nope — the only update I got was from a motorcycle parked by the sidewalk with the radio on. (Whoever you are, motorcycle owner, we all thank you!)
After leaving, we went to Fitzgerald Marine Reserve down the road — 100% free, and the seals and tide pools evoked more excitement in people than I saw at the festival site. I’ll catch the Mavericks highlights on YouTube, and next time I’ll watch online instead of being ripped off.

Bummer. I thought this would be so cool, maybe even the highlight of living in Half Moon Bay. Forget it– they’ve totally changed how the contest is set up and who is allowed to see it in person. No one is allowed to view the contest from the bluffs or go anywhere near the beach anymore so forget about seeing it unless you purchase a crazy expensive ticket to ride on the boat and watch from there. I think that option is $ 1000. If you are in the press maybe you’ll see something too but that’s about it.
For $ 10 we were hoarded into a parking lot/​paved area crowded with way too many people (can you say ‘fire hazard’?) to sit on the ground and try to see a tiny, blurry screen from afar. A broken screen that had green stuff all over the middle of it! The 3 people I was with agreed that it was impossible to see or hear anything. There were crazy long lines for anything involving food and tons of creepy guys bothering my friend before we arrived. Also, taking people’s beverages at the gate so they have to buy your overpriced drinks– that sucks man! They definitely sold way too many tickets to this event but because people kept getting frustrated and leaving it never got out of control completely.
This day would’ve been a total fail except that we were having amazing 68 degree weather + the sun was out– HMB was experiencing a Summer we never have. We walked out of that crappy parking lot, grabbed some food at the Poppy’s Crab Truck, reasonably priced drinks at the American Legion, and had a picnic by the boats in the marina.
I would NOT attend this ever again unless they go back to the way it used to be– FREE and where people can watch live. Don’t trick people into coming to your event and then charge them $ 10 to sit on pavement, pay $ 15 parking in a far away lot (thank goodness we just walked), and think they’ll return.
We saw people walking towards the HMB airport where they were parked, sad faces all around. Kids crying, etc. By the way– it took 1.5 hours for our friend to get down the 1 from Montara. We were coming from Downtown HMB which took approx 45 minutes. Seriously, skip this one. The Pumpkin Festival is better and that is really saying something.
**Yelp hid more of the REAL one star reviews in their filter. Perhaps the business that runs Maverick’s surf contest had something to do with that? Anyway, I’m sure you get the idea– skip this. Trust me.

Cant wait to go c another competition… Its impressive to watch surfers risk their lives surfing here! Its far so bring binoculars but so worth watching.

This year was my first time seeing it, and it was definitely a cool experience! My husband and I woke up super early to make the drive from San Jose out to HMB and be one of the first groups shuttled from the airport to the coast. I definitely recommend utilizing the shuttle service they have set up, it was really convenient and organized well.
Once we were dropped off at the coast, we decided to sit up top on the cliff rather than down on the beach (a decision that spared us the rogue wave encounters that others had the misfortune of dealing with!). Other than it being a tad foggy in the beginning, it was perfect weather. The waves were as big as they get, and very impressive!!! We brought along 2 pairs of binoculars so we could really keep up with the action. I highly recommend doing that, otherwise it can seem a little dull trying to rely on your eyesight only — there isn’t much of a show when you are that far away.
The atmosphere was the best part of going. Most of the people we ran into or spoke to were nice, and almost all of them were experiencing it for the first time, just like us. We stayed from 7am to noon and got to see plenty of great surfing. Got right back on the shuttle, dropped us off at the lot where we parked, and went on our way. Smooth.
I imagine if you are wanting to really see the surfers and action up close, it may be best to watch it online or streaming at one of the locations hosting it, but actually being there was a pretty awesome experience in itself.

Awesome day. 74 degrees sunny and surfers hitting 50 foot waves. The Waves were biggest in the morning before 10 a.m. and in the afternoon. We arrived around 10 a.m. and had to park about a mile from the nearest viewing point. So be prepared to walk unless you arrive early.
In any event, walking is a must no matter what time you arrive. Checking out the central viewing location, walking town, and exploring the hills of Pillar Point are all essential to getting the whole experience. There are bathrooms (Port-​o-​Lets) at the location, but they are pretty disgusting. 50,000 people. The competition goes from 8:00 a.m. and for about 8 or 9 hours following that.
I have wanted to go to this event since I was 13, but something or another always got in the way. This competition was truly amazing. The waves are so huge. Check out my experience:
I would love to go again. Tips: Bring snacks and drinks, wear walking shoes, wear light clothing (even in the winter month of February it is sunny on the day of Mavericks), bring a backpack and a jacket, get there early watch some of the big morning waves — go to lunch at Half Moon Bay Brewery or the Fish Trap — come back around 2:30 and watch the final heat — BRING BINOCULARS or a 70x zoom camera.
Out

Mavericks will leave a lasting impression on you, even if you are not ever likely to come close to feeling the suffocating might of its waves. Then again, as was the case this year, some spectators who ventured too near the action were treated to a frightening example of what a rouge wave can do: broken bones, smashed broadcasting equipment, drenched clothing, mangled bicycles, lost cameras, and just a little bit more of the Pacific’s quiet fury than they had been expecting.
Maybe that is the problem: expectations. Too often, we are easily encouraged by reading too much about a place ahead of time (including on Unilocal) and then assuming that we will see, feel, or taste things the same way that others have done. This will NOT happen. Sometimes you must suspend belief, discard any preconceived notions, and live a little. You will be surprised what happens next!
Mavericks is a place where wind-​driven waves rise up to massive heights of 20 – 50 feet and then turn over in great walls of water about a mile off the coast of Pillar Point near Half Moon Bay. On a regular day. when the winter swells reveal the shallow shoals below the surface, there are crowds and surfers, but nothing like the day of the Mavericks surf contest. Then, the place swarms with more people than you are ever likely to see in the area — even more than the weekend crowds at Barbara’s Fish Trap!
I respect the Pacific and its rocky, rugged coastline. I admire (I think) those who venture out on surfboards and jetskis to cascade down the watery conveyances that escort them back to the shore at incredible speeds, leaving a roiling rage of white water in their wake. From the relative comfort of the sunny cliffs, you can watch the spectacle unfold from a deck chair with binoculars or a zoom lens camera. The live Internet feed and TV viewing locations are also attractive options.
But we came for the experience, walking the line with the other big wave onlookers to see what makes Mavericks, well, Mavericks.
Here’s the rub: it’s not just the mega-​waves and the guys who get dumped off their boards for every time that they come away unscathed. In between the sets, the water calms down, the surfers bob up and down in the water, gently riding over swells and easing out into the wave break zone, lulling you into a false sense of security. Then, like magic, the next cycle begins: waves rise and fall, almost in slow motion. They crash down upon themselves and little black dots with multicolored neoprene wetsuits speed down their precipitous inclines. The camera shutters click, the crowds gasp as one, they applaud, they groan, they shake their collective heads in disbelief.
And then, just like that, Mavericks works its magic like it has been doing for centuries, even before things like live video streaming were invented.
There is, in the end, nothing that can prepare you for Mavericks. It’s a great name for an unforgettable place. To give it anything other than five stars would be a travesty of justice. And the waves would remember. Next time, if you fail to show them the respect that is their due, they will teach you to fear them. The surfers know what to expect each time they venture into this sacred space.
Expect nothing to ever be the same.
Believe everything is possible.
Live like there is no tomorrow.
And ride the big waves as long as you can.

i am NEVER going to miss this again!
i was there early this morning just before the people on the beach got hurt so i missed that
we were up on the cliff anyway so we were safe
THIS IS AMAZING!!!
you have to see it
it so amazing that people actually go out and surf on these totaly monster waves
if you think you know what a big wave is you have to think again i mean these are as big as BUILDINGS!
next year you have to watch its on live on the web just go to

No 2009, but it’s back in 2010! If you’ve never seen big waves and you live in the Bay Area, now’s your chance. Hopefully they’ll have it at AT&T park again as an option, but if not, I can feel a saturday drive up to Half Moon Bay coming on.
They just announced it will more than likely go down this week people!

For the last few years I have anticipated this event. I figured one of the best surfing competitions in the country was not to be missed. I was amped to head down the 1 to catch the sight of big wave riders on Saturday. I was surprised by how little traffic there was on the way down and how easy parking was (granted we did leave SF at 6:45 am). It felt somewhat tropical to be under such strong sun, when the city weather has been crap, watching surfers. When we hit the beach, it was hard to see any of the action up close, but it was amazing to see how large the waves really were for the first rides in the morning. I can say I have not seen anything quite like this, I saved money by not heading to AT&T for the big screen coverage, but I will probably not head back down to Mavericks on competition day.

It was a lovely day for a surf contest. And surf they did. Well, so I heard.
The Mavericks Surf Contest was great. But it was extremely difficult to see anything. I tried from the beach, from the cliffs and when it came down to it, the big screen was the best view. If I was to do it again I would either take binoculars or go to AT&T Park where they showed the event on the big screen. Plus by staying in SF you save the coastline some stress. Regardless of the view, I felt cool and poser-​ish just being there.
And now, most importantly, the results! 24 year old, OC resident, Greg Long was named the winner of the contest. But in the spirit of sportsmanship he split the $ 30,000 with all the finalists. Aw, what a guy.