Small but rippable waves graced the 31st annual "Vic" contest during day one of competition.  Today the event was moved to West St beach about 300 yards south of Aliso due to water contamination at the scheduled event site (Aliso).  The waves were best during low tide which was early in the morning.  Set waves were waist to shoulder high with barrel sections to be had on the good ones.  Overall pretty decent, everything considered.

Pro heats ran most of the day today, with a few rounds of amateurs sprinkled in here an there.  Round 2 of the pros finished up at around two o'clock just in time for the amateurs to tackle the challenging high tide surges.

This year a new wave limit rule was enacted to the surprise and dismay of many competitors.  Riders were given either 10 waves (amateur) or 12 waves (pro) to get their five wave score (riders still had to go in each direction 2/3).  Unfortunately, the consensus on beach was almost unanimously negative when discussion about the rule came up.  Some competitors were particularly frustrated that a wave was deducted at the beginning of the heat when they were just getting wet, which many competitors do before their heat begins.  Others found it silly that a single rider was often left all alone with several minutes left in the heat, due to the other riders having used up all their waves.

Despite all of this, everyone seemed to be having a good time.  The vibe on the beach was positive and the turnout was strong.

Pro results so far have been posted on Skimboarder Magazine's Myspace Page, which will be updated throughout the day tomorrow as well.

Stay tuned.

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