aAs you traverse the boundless world of surfing, there is no beach break as infamous as the Banzai Pipeline on the north shore of Oahu, Hawaii, the ultimate proving ground for surfers. Among many of its temptations, Pipeline promotes surfing’s purest brand: the art of barreling.
The waves are so large that when they begin to crash into the ocean, a tunnel often forms within them. Surfers spend years perfecting the technique of barreling; entering those tunnels, choosing the right line once inside and racing towards the exit at breakneck speed before the wave crashes into it.
Last weekend the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour opened its season at Pipeline and the women’s spectacular performances clearly marked a defining moment in the sport’s recent history.
From the beginning of the semi-finals of Pipe Pro between Australian 21-year-old Molly Picklum and Bettylou Sakura Johnson, an 18-year-old Hawaiian, both competitors fearlessly and without hesitation attacked the huge waves. Every time one ripped through a spectacular barrel, the other responded with a brilliant tube of its own. It was a breathtaking sight. It culminated in Picklum scoring the first perfect 10 from the season before a brilliant drive from Johnson in the final 30 seconds almost won.
Later that day, Caitlin Simmers, a charismatic 18-year-old Californian, triumphed over Picklum after another brilliant match. As she digested the biggest success of her young career while still sitting on her plank in the ocean, Simmers didn’t hesitate to express her thoughts: “Pipeline is for the damn girls,” she said.
Pipeline simply didn’t exist for professional female surfers for that long. Although the top male professionals have competed there since the first competition in 1971, there had never been an elite professional event for women for 49 years. Most recently, the women competed across the Hawaiian Islands at Honolua Bay in Maui, while the men tackled Pipeline.
Change only came by chance, in the wake of tragedy. In December 2020, a recreational surfer, Rob Warren, was killed by a shark in Honolua Bay. After deliberating on what to do with the rest of the women’s Maui Pro, the WSL opted to close the event with the men at Pipeline. Since then, the best women’s tour has never gone away.
The growth of women’s surfing is undeniable. Each year the field grew deeper, with the younger surfers demonstrating the continued advancement of the sport. In 2019, the WSL recognized the progress of the sport by offering women equal prize money at every Championship Tour event.
Still, debates raged about the absence of women at Pipeline; those who pushed for women’s competitions there were told the waves were also too difficult ugly for the women. Some surfers also wanted to make sure they were ready when they competed at Pipeline.
Mastering a wave as difficult as Pipe usually takes many years, so female surfers were stuck in a dilemma. There were no comparable conditions on the WSL Championship Tour, so there was little reason for many of the top women to focus their training on such big waves.
“When I’m trying to learn to surf waves like Pipeline and Sunset and those crazy, scary waves that have been dominated by men for so many years, it’s hard to take a break and it’s hard to get a wave on it to feel comfortable in these places, to be able to perform,” says Isabella Nichols, an Australian professional surfer, in an interview with Fox Sports Australia.
For those who want to prove themselves at Pipeline and just catch a single wave, this is a huge challenge in itself. Outside of professional competition, where the ocean has been cleared of all surfers aside from competitors, a wave as historic and prominent as Pipeline can attract upwards of 100 surfers on any given day. Surfers must earn their respect in the lineup before others allow them to ride a good wave, and in a male-dominated sport, disrespect is common for female surfers.
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Unsurprisingly, the women’s performance on Pipe has improved significantly over the past three years with each new opportunity to tackle the wave: ‘It’s been phenomenal because I’ve never put so much pressure on myself before. a lot in my life,” Nichols said.
The ad hoc decision to move the women to Pipe in 2020 has proven to be a sliding door moment for the entire sport and it is no coincidence that this year’s standard was set by three competitors aged 21 and under.
Five-time WSL champion Carissa Moore and Moana Jones Wong, both Hawaiians, remain two of the outstanding surfers at Pipe, but a fearless new generation has emerged who have tackled the wave without fear or favor and showcased their immense skills. Their triumphs this year have ensured that no one can ever doubt or undermine their presence on the world’s most famous wave.
‘This wave is terrifying. I respect anyone who wants to be a part of it, and I respect anyone who doesn’t want to be a part of it. Because it’s fucking weird,†Simmers said. Then she smiled: “Really grateful for this wave.”
Ultimately, their achievements have also underlined what has always been clear about women’s sports. Give female athletes enough investment, equal opportunities and appropriate stages, and they will progress quickly, even if they have to navigate the most treacherous waves and find the perfect route to the other side.