Pipe Bodysurf Championships
On February 2, 1998, Mike Stewart defended his title at the Pipeline Bodysurfing Classic hosted by the North Shore Bodysurfing Club with support from the Honolulu Bodysurfing Club, the North Shore Lifeguard Association, the Point Panic Bodysurfing Club, Bud Light and Viper.
With all those names, and since it's one of the oldest contests on the North Shore, you'd think it was a huge event, but it was surprisingly small. The waves were big though, with second reefers peeling all the way through. Event Director Alan Lennard said, "It's not everyday bodysurfers get to ride Pipeline with nobody else out."
Yet, Mike wasn't the only one catching sick pits. Barry Holt was second; Mark Cunningham, third; Masurei Laurent, fourth; Chris Robinson, fifth; and in sixth place was Chris Baker.
After the event Alan added, "Bodysurfing is the purest form of wave riding, getting inside the wave and really feeling it. It's a primal thing... like being a spinner dolphin. Plus, all good surfers bodysurf."
Back to Surf Home