Zach Plopper Wins King of the Reef
Here’s a first hand account of the event from Matuse Family Member, Zach Plopper.
Home turf isn’t always an advantage. I have had many more shockers at Seaside Reef than I have had victories. Competitors usually take for granted “home field advantage”. We tend to show up only a few minutes before comp time, doughnut in hand, paying little attention to the days conditions. We surf there every day, right?
When I caught word about the Rob Machado Surf Experience and the King of the Reef division scheduled for September 26th and 27th at my beloved Seaside, I wasn’t going to let the fact that I have surfed there more than anywhere else on earth comfort me into thinking I already had it won. Seaside is home to many talented surfers and I knew the competition would be tough. Fearing another home turf loss, I knew I needed to get psyched.
The King of the Reef was a triathlon of a short board contest, a longboard contest and a brutal paddle race to close it all out. Competitors’ final placing in each event were to be added up and the surfer with the lowest total was to be deemed King of the Reef, $500 richer and the recipient of a smorgasbord of prizes.
I am not the owner of a proper longboard but I am housing my friend’s 10 foot floro-green foam board. My friend Turtle is a paddle guru and lent me her 10’6″ paddle board as well as a few training sessions. And my 5’6″ Xanadu quad has never felt better, especially in cute little Palisade’s bowls; which was how conditions were looking in the days coming up to the event. After a few warm up surfs at Seaside on each piece of my artillery I was ready for battle.
I wasn’t too worried about the short board event. That I know how to do. My longboarding skills are…interesting. I haven’t paddled in a race since pre-puberty. I advanced through the shortboard event and had a good final. After a glorious first round longboard heat, in which I created a spectacle of reverse take-offs, helicopters and ephemeral nose rides I got knocked in the semis to a few proper longboarders. Albeit the subject of ridicule for my longboard choice, I wouldn’t swap that thing out for the most high performance of logs. If only I had pulled off my initial reef bomb glory helicopter in the semis I would have made that final as well. My loss there made things tight. Without knowing how I placed in the shortboard final I knew the overall points were close and it was coming down to the paddle race.
My chest was pumping with adrenalin when they announced the course of two trips out and around two buoys on either side of the reef. Two trips out and in through the shorey and 15 other competitors scratching for a win made it the most anticipated event of the comp. I got out in front right off the bat but was soon passed by a paddler on a 12′ board. It was like trying to chase a catamaran in a row boat. But I actually preferred someone to chase rather than listening to 15 grizzly men grunt and grind a few feet behind me, nipping at my heels. On the final lap my friend Brett Jones and I were neck and neck for second. We pushed each other to the limit. I caught a little bump (you can catch the wake of fallen sea gull pooh on these things) and barely inched ahead of Brett on the inside. I had a good grab on the handle and ran it in for a close second place.
As it turned out, that was all I needed. With a win in the shortboard event, a 5th in the longboard and a 2nd place finish in the paddle I had the lowest placing total of all entries and won King of the Reef. That paddle was one of the hardest things I have ever done. The event was one of the most fun things I have ever done.
Now I know where to improve for next year. I may need to paddle the foamy out on some big days so I can pull off those drop in helicopters and retain my crown.
Special thanks to Rob Machado, Hurley and the Cardiff Chamber of Commerce for putting the Machado back on the event schedule and to all of the vendors, participants and competitors for making it exciting.
Z to the P
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