Half Moon Bay, California, USA - After a historic day of big wave surfing, Cape Town surfer Chris Bertish emerged victorious at the 2009/2010 Mavericks Surf Contest. Held in wild waves that many were calling 40-foot and more, Chris put his head down and paddled into a series of giant waves to take the win from a bunch of dedicated international big wave surfers.

The total prize pool for the event was a staggering US$150,000, which was the largest in big wave surfing to date, and Chris took home a sweet US$50,000 for his first place prize. Chris flew 36 hours to get to the event on time, gambling that the event would run and that the waves and conditions would be good enough for the contest director to give the go ahead.

Bertish is part of the O’Neill South Africa surf team, and also works as the Western Cape sales agent for O’Neill South Africa. He has been with the brand for 5 years and has played an active role in marketing initiatives, as well as representing in big wave events around the world. Chris is a former finalist in the Red Bull Big Wave Africa, and his most recent results was a third place at the Nelscott Reef Paddle In Event.

Paul Canning (PC) from O’Neill South Africa was really pleased on hearing the news. “We at O’Neill South Africa are really stoked for Chris,” said a proud PC. “I know that this has been a dream of his for a long time, and he has put a lot of hard work and effort into his big wave surfing over the year. Chris is really passionate about big-wave surfing and the brand, and he really stands for what O’Neill is all about.”

The waves for the event were big, unruly monsters, some of them up to 40-foot. There were mentions of 60-foot waves rolling through but with no one able to catch them. Mavericks is a heavy big wave spot, and competitors all agreed that these were some of the biggest paddle-in waves that they had ever surfed. Some heavy wipe-outs, scary sitiuations and blood pouring from the mouth of competitor Zach Wormhoudt after one nasty fall added to the excitement. Even winner Bertish took his fair share of the knocks out there, getting caught by one monster set. “I took the worst beating of my life out there,” said Chris in a post-event interview.

The inimitable Bertish had a wild ride this year just getting to the event, which included some self-generated fund-raising, and a few broken ribs, all of which he overcame en route to this amazing victory and the massive first prize cheque of US$50,000 (R385,000).
“It was an honour just to be here today and paddle out with these guys,” said an emotional Bertish on his win. “I flew 36 hours to be here, and this has been a dream come true.”
There were an estimated 50,000 spectators lining the cliffs at Half Moon Bay to witness this unique event and his memorable victory.

Issued on behalf of:
Paul Canning
O’Neill South Africa Marketing and Sales Manager
paul.c@oneill.co.za