Body Glove Mavericks Invitational 2013-2014 presented by Go-Pro
The gathering before the paddle out.
Photos
Pulling into Half Moon Bay after a cannonball midnight run down the I-5, including a wrong turn into Bakersfield in probably the most suspicious surf insignia-stamped van on the planet, the prevailing attitude of surf localism at some of LA County’s big wave spots might make some stop and think, “Am I really doing this?”
Cruising down Capistrano Boulevard at Pillar Point Harbor, there was no such stink eye. It was just a tranquil village with local businesses tied into its roots as a historic fishing community. The juxtaposition is that this little village also serves the surfing needs of San Francisco 25 miles north, while the break outside the harbor has put Northern California on the big wave map of the world.
The only indication of the break called “Mavericks” is Mavericks Surf Shop, owned by the man who pioneered the big wave Mecca. Jeff Clark, the legend, was walking around the showroom, with a face still covered in white zinc, helping out customers. A few of the patrons fingering through the “Mavericks” t-shirt rack had no idea that the man playing showroom host was The Dude. In my gullibility, I inquired if he surfed today (white zinc on face, duh). Of course he did. But with Mavericks not breaking, my perception of Clark, high on the pedestal, was that he only surfed mammoth mythical big waves, right? “Cold Sweat,” a 1992 Surfer magazine cover story given to me in an old surf mag grab bag much later in the decade, still resonates in my mind. Shoot, his interview in Stacy Peralta’s “Riding Giants” (2004) says it all. Was I wrapped up in co-writer Sam George’s rightful enthusiasm? 
Legendary big wave rider Jeff Clark in front of his Mavericks Surf Shop, Half Moon Bay, CA
“I knew early on that Mavericks was going to be a special place,” Clark said.
Clark who soloed the break since 1975 invited Santa Cruz’s Dave Schmidt and Tom Powers to surf with him in 1990. With each swell, more surfers gradually showed up.
“I could see the magnetism of the big waves,” he said, “as tales of the surf started spreading like wildfires.”
In the mid ‘90s, a set of timely circumstances thrust Mavericks into popular culture as similar to the surf culture born in Malibu in the late ‘50s. Malibu — with its proximity to a major city, a wave that corresponded perfectly to the advancement of the equipment of the era, and Hollywood just inland — was the perfect catalyst for surf culture exploding.
Mavericks was a culmination of that explosion for a certain type of surfer.
“It’s not difficult for the world’s best big wave surfers to just jump on an airplane into San Francisco,” Clark said. “With Silicon Valley just around the corner, reports via the web are readily available.”
The South Bay’s Nic Vaughn and Scotty Bredesen with Peter Mel.
The outcome of contemporary culture makes it possible for the Maverick Invitational to be held whenever “the call” is made on the biggest day during a five month wave period starting November 1 — although whenever swells march down from the Aleutians to hit the reef, it’s still a spectacle.
“In the local community, all things stop to watch the surfers risk their lives to surf Mavericks,” Clark said. “The news teams from San Francisco cover it; it’s streaming live on the internet.”
In the years since the inaugural event in 1998, the Mavericks Invitational has become a premier contest for the big wave community. For Clark, this is what he’d always envisioned
“My goal is to make the caliber of the Mavericks Invitational to be on par with The Eddie in Hawaii,” he said, “I’m honored that Hawaii’s surfers like Brock Little, Noah Johnson, and Ross Clarke Jones have done the event in the past.” 
Without a major title sponsor for the last few years, Body Glove stepped in to fill the void and looks to build on the event in the future.
“With the 60th year history of Body Glove, it’s great that they bring this experience to the table,” Clark said.
The get into the Mavericks Invitational is no garden party. This year’s list of nominees was determined by committee of five comprised of Clark, Big Wave World Tour founder Gary Linden, three-time Mavericks champion Darryl Virostko, and respected big wave surfers Greg Long and Shawn Dollar. The list of nominees was sent to last year’s competitors and alternates, who then voted for their top picks. The competition is an open affair and the international cast adapts.
“The locals may recognize the different characteristics of the break, the different ways the swell directions hit the reef,” Clark said. “In due time you began to understand the caliber of the swell, you look and read the water and in awhile you gain an intuition and your confidence is transparent.”
The riders who are selected are there for a reason.
“Those who ride those waves are cut from a different cloth,” he said. “We’re talking about the biggest waves on the planet. You have to have the push within, a confidence and a little ego.”
At this point I had to pinch myself to think…I was interviewing Jeff Clark. He carries with him the aura of Mavericks itself. The way Clark described riding Mavericks made it seem like a religious experience.
“If you believe in yourself, the sky is the limit and you will get the wave of your life,” Clark said, “There is a mystic about Mavericks. People from all over the world, Japan, Norway, Argentina come to watch it break. It’s like seeing the Grand Canyon.” 
After the interview finished, I jammed down to beach to shoot the opening ceremony. I walked down the democratized path that the spectator, photographer, journalist, and big wave surfer all take to get to Mavericks. I pondered what goes through a person’s head while they descend to the edge right before parking up to adjust their gear and soon paddle out. Do they think, “Wow this could be the last time I walk this trail?” While a portion of the invitees prepared for the opening ceremony paddle out, I started to really grasp a statement Clark told me.
“The wave only breaks 10-15 times a winter, but if you get to see it,” he said. “It will change your life. There are very few places in the world that break with that much power.”
I sat on the beach. Although Mavericks wasn’t breaking, the set-up, the rocks where you’ve seen footage of surfers clinging on for their life, and the idea that “the ultimate price” has been paid for the “ultimate feeling” to catch a massive wave is a bit overwhelming. It’s chilling. The thought of my joke to Clark earlier in the day about a LA County Big Wave Contest, the 2020 Lunada Bay Open, where he responded, “You mean a MMA contest?” scotched out my nerves with a giggle to myself.
The surfers paddled out into the docile line-up and formed the circle position to honor those before and spread good faith to those to come. With the few surfers who live to tackle the heavies splashing in unison signifying the ceremony is commencing, Clark’s respect and love for Mavericks came to my mind.
“Our stretch of coast is California’s version of the North Shore,” he said. “Mavericks is the top paddle-in. And most dangerous wave in the world.”