RVCA to host the Unsound Pro

With hurricane season in full swing, RVCA, the popular surfing brand, will host the annual Unsound Surf Pro competition in Long Beach next week, an elite contest where 48 of the world’s best surfers will vie for a $10,000 prize purse.

It is one of the largest events on the East Coast, and includes the Surfing America North East Prime Surf Contest and Open Pro Surf Contest.

The event runs from Sept. 14 to 18 at Lincoln Boulevard beach, and will feature local professional surfers such as Balaram Stack, TJ Gumiela and Leif Engstrom, as well as a number of RVCA team riders.

There will also be an amateur event and expression session, and with surfing now a part of the 2020 Olympics, Unsound co-owner Mike Nelson said that the contest could be an opportunity for those looking to qualify for a spot on the U.S. National Team.

With RVCA (pronounced rukah), a California-based clothing company associated with surfing, skateboard, graffiti and art culture, the event will not only feature professional surfing but also music, art and other events, as well as activity booths, retail tents and more.

“We’ve been trying to find someone who is very in line with our whole store personality,” said Nelson. “RVCA is not just surfing — it’s art and music as well. We pitched the event to their rep and it just fit. They have a lot of things and artists in New York but they never had any outlets for them. They get that it’s a big media market here.”

Other sponsors include Stance, VZ Sunglasses, Pura Vida Bracelets, CLIF Bar, Swingbellys, and Unsound surf shop. An RVCA skate team signing is set for Friday, Sept. 16, from 2 to 4 p.m. with pros such as Greyson Fletcher and Curren Caples. Additionally, RVCA and Unsound will hold a team signing on Sept. 17 from 6 to 8 p.m. with Bruce Irons, Stack, Luke Davis, Zack Noyle, Gumiela and others.

The pro contest will run on a waiting period and, following the eight- to 10-foot swells generated by Tropical Storm Hermine earlier this week, Nelson said he’s confident that Mother Nature would continue to deliver during the competition.

“The waves have been unreal,” Nelson said, adding that surfers from all over the East Coast have been coming to Long Beach this week.

Nelson and co-owner Dave Juan were instrumental in attracting the Quiksilver Pro New York contest to Long Beach five years ago — the shop sponsored the Quiksilver Pro New York Trials — an event that was part of the Association of Surfing Professionals World Tour and the largest competition ever held on the East Coast.

“Five years later, there have been a lot of ups and downs but, overall, ever since the Quiksilver event, surfing in general here has been on a little bit of a high,” Nelson said. “It’s undeniable what that event did for the surfing culture around here.”

Since the shop opened in 1997, Unsound has been fostering a surfing boom in New York by organizing local competitions with big sponsors such as Nike. Though Quiksilver ultimately opted not to bring its event back to Long Beach, Unsound has since attracted major sponsors to host its Unsound Surf Pro, now in its 19th year and described by Surfline as one of the most unique professional surfing contests on the East Coast.

Unsound held its Right Coast Cup event in 2012, presented by Quiksilver, and in 2014, Volcom, the popular surfing brand, sponsored the Unsound Pro. The latter event was also something of a comeback for Unsound after Hurricane Sandy — the shop sustained major damage — which made organizing the contest the previous year a challenge.

“[RVCA] were familiar with [the Quiksilver Pro New York],” Nelson said, “and it showed them the potential for an event in the future. Obviously, it will be nowhere near the scale of Quiksilver, but we want to do some small music events, art shows, and other satellite events. We’re psyched — it’s going to be awesome.”

Editor’s note: an earlier version of this story appeared in the July 2016 issue of Long Beach Magazine.