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< March April 2006
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Surf School Americans clean up at World Surf Kayak Champs

busting beach breaks couldn’t dampen spirits of kayak surfers at this fall’s World Surf Kayak Championships in Jaco, Costa Rica.

More than 150 boaters from 14 countries—the largest field yet—showed up to rip green in the eighth running of the event. “There were lots of people throwing incredible moves,” says World Surf Kayak Association President Rick Starr. “It shows the sport has continued to grow.”

The United States upheld its ocean surf dominance with the USA West team taking first and the East squad finishing third. American surfers finished first in six of the 10 divisions. “Everybody would have liked bigger surf, so wave selection was really important,” says Idaho’s Devon Barker, who won the Women’s International Class and—along with several other competitors—broke her boat while training in the steep waves (“It probably had to do with my lack of experience,” she says).

Florence, S.C.’s Ross Fulcher battled through debilitating flu to win two divisions, taking the Grand Master’s Open and International Class. “If I wasn’t in the water I was in bed,” he says. “Luckily, it was a beach break, which was easy to get used to coming from the East Coast.”

Enthusiasm for the sport is at an apex, with a new World Cup competition announced for 2006. The six-stop tour will visit Spain, Brazil, the United States, and Britain, crowning overall champions in October.

The 2007 World Championships will be held in the Basque country of Mundaka, Spain, which Barker expects to be a family reunion of sorts, thanks to her Basque heritage and nearby relatives. “I’ll have plenty of support on the beach,” she says. Info: www.wska.org/2005contest.htm; puravidaworlds.blogspot.com. —jc