They call it the last great surfing contest. I don’t know about that, but I do know that it was the first time the new “shortboards” were used in major competition. The competitors were a who-who’s-who of legendary proportions: Nat Young, Reno Abillera, Wayne Lynch, David Nuuhiwa, Midget Farrelly, Mike Doyle, Russell Hughes, etc. The contest was held from Nov 8-14th with the waves only really coming up for the finals which were held at the now infamous right breaking reef called Domes Beach.
Incense and Peppermints were in the air as the final was won by 21 year-old super square / surfer jock / future Senator from Hawaii Fred Hemmings. Short haired on a long board, Hemmings put on a bold display of traditional power surfing to beat out Farrelly. It was quite an upset. Hemmings accepted his trophy attired in a polyester blazer. The man did it his way. Margo Oberg won the women’s division – one of many in her storied career.
When the smoke cleared, 30 surfboards had been stolen and Rincon had been rightly placed on the map as a world-class surf destination.
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