The third annual Red Bull Riders Cup, formally known as the Red Bull High School Cup, kicks off its first game at Hermosa Beach, California on April 1st and then comes to Santa Cruz April 7-10 at Pleasure Point. Presented by The National Surf League, The Red Bull Riders Cup bills itself as the USA’s “premiere high school surfing tournament, bringing together the best young surfers in each region.”
Thirty two schools from eight regions will battle it out in games sanctioned by the National Surf League until a champion is crowned. The winner of each region will be invited to San Onofre for the national finals on June 13th-15th for the chance to be crowned the best high school surf team in the country.
Surf teams from five local high schools—Aptos, Soquel, Santa Cruz, Harbor and Scotts Valley–will vie for the Santa Cruz regional title and the opportunity to compete at the national finals in San Onofre.
The Red Bull Riders Cup will use “The Game” format for its tournament. The format is modeled after traditional team sports like basketball and football. The Red Bull Riders is the first step to bringing a new outlook to the sport of surfing through the community and a structure people are familiar with.
“The Game creates an easier understanding of surfing as a sport. The entire game spans less than two hours, with three periods, coaches and time outs. Family and friends are encouraged to come out and show support,” said NSL founder Brad Gerlach in a statement.
The Red Bull Riders Cup will feature professional surfers coaching each high school team during their competition. Some of the pros on hand for next week’s Santa Cruz game will include Hawaiian chargers Jamie Sterling and Ian Walsh, as well as local legends Omar Etcheverry, Ratboy, Peter Mel, and more.
Look for daily coverage and results from the Santa Cruz regional game in the Santa Cruz Sentinel and The Green Room.
Following is the full list of participating high school surf teams as well as the full season schedule:
Participating High Schools:West Coast:South Bay
- Mira Costa High
- Redondo Union High
- South Torrance High
- Palos Verdes High
Santa Cruz
- Aptos High
- Soquel High
- Santa Cruz High
- Harbor High
- Scotts Valley High
Orange County
- San Clemente High
- Huntington Beach High
- Edison High
- Newport Harbor High
San Diego
- Carlsbad High
- San Dieguito Academy
- Torrey Pines High
- Point Loma High
Golden State
- Carpenteria High
- Ventura High
- Malibu High
- Palisades High
East Coast:
Central Florida
- Cocoa Beach High School
- Satellite High
- Melbourne High
- Sebastian River High School
South Florida
- Cardinal Gibbon High School
- Calvary High School
- Martin County High School
- Jupiter High School
New Jersey
- Ocean City High
- Atlantic City High
- Manasquan High
- Middletownship High
Competition Schedule:
April 1-3 CA-South Bay-Hermosa Beach
April 7-10 CA-Santa Cruz-Pleasure Point
April 15-17 South Florida-Carlin Park, Jupiter
April 22-24 Central Florida-Pelican Beach Park, Satellite Beach
May 6-8 CA-Golden State- C-Street, Ventura
May 13-15 New Jersey- Ocean City 3rd Street
May 20-22 CA-Orange County- Huntington Beach Pier-South Side
May 27-29 CA-San Diego-Seaside Reef
*June 13-15 CA-San Clemente -San Onofre Trail 6
0 responses so far ↓
There are no comments yet...Kick things off by filling out the form below.
Leave a Comment
The Sentinel reserves the right to delete any inappropriate posts. Using your real name increases the credibility of your words.