Australian brand Rip Curl has revived its global virtual surfing competition for 2024, open to all Rip Curl GPS watch owners.
It comes more than a year since the inaugural launch of the Virtual Pro competition, which was then held retrospectively, with the winning surfer only finding out their participation after the fact.
This year, surfers globally can actively take part in the competition by logging their surfing sessions using the Rip Curl SearchGPS Surf Watch and the SearchGPS app between May 25 and May 30.
Rip Curl will then analyse the data, with surfers being scored on three key criteria: wave length, wave speed, and number of waves surfed.
The winner will be awarded a trip for four to the Margaret River Region in Western Australia, thanks to a partnership between Rip Curl and Tourism WA.
“We are excited to bring back the Rip Curl Virtual Pro, a competition that celebrates our community of surfers and the innovative technology of our SearchGPS watch,” Rip Curl head of brand and marketing James Taylor said.
“This year, we’re inviting surfers to actively participate and track their progress for the chance to win this dream prize to Western Australia’s indulgent Margaret River Region.”
The Rip Curl SearchGPS watch was launched in 2014 and has since recorded more than 50,000 surfers across 76 countries, recording 25 million waves at 2,400 beaches.
Last year’s winner Nick Cashin scored a trip to Fiji with three of his mates.
“It has been almost a year and I still don't have words to describe the surrealness of that whole experience,” Cashin said. “How do you describe your childhood dream becoming a reality?
“I actually got the call, out of the blue, Rip Curl took me on The Search.”
Rip Curl is managed under KMD Brands, which also manages Kathmandu and Oboz Footwear. As of September 2023, the surfing brand owns 169 retail stores, as well as 232 licensed stores and over 6,000 wholesale doors.