The Pan American Surf Association (PASA) was created in 1992 to provide better communication and cultural exchange between sister surfing federations and associations in the Americas and the Caribbean, as well as obtain recognition of surfing in the international sporting community. PASA’s Collegiate Championships — currently managed by Ailton Junior and officiated by President Maile Aguerre, Vice President Juca De Barros, and myself as Secretary — are designed to provide international competition opportunities and encourage secondary education while promoting international relationships amongst the countries and athletes of the Americas.

This September, Barros, who also serves as President of the Confederation de Brazilian Surfing, contacted me and said he wanted me to bring some American surfers to Brazil for what I originally thought would be an exchange program. In my role as Contest Director of the East Coast Surfing Championships in Virginia Beach, VA, we often invite athletes to the ECSC and assist with their transportation, entry fees, and hotel accommodations. This is a great opportunity for foreign athletes to come to the United States and experience a large pro-am contest. I’ve worked with Brazil, Venezuela, Jamaica, Barbados, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago, and Dominican Republic to bring internationally recognized athletes to the United States — think ASP World Tour #5 Adriano de Souza and 2010 ASP World Tour rookie Jadson Andre.

This kind of cultural exchange rises above surf industry politics and is really about the athletes. In my capacity as Secretary of PASA, we’ve tried for many years to get Surfing America to join; unfortunately, to my knowledge they’ve shown no interest. It’s discouraging on a personal level, as I know how important it is to support the programs of our South American brothers and sisters and have surfers from the U.S.A. present at these events. We respect Surfing America’s decision and support their efforts to promote the internationally competing PacSun U.S.A. Surf Team. PASA is a member of the ISA just like Surfing America and supports their programs and events 100%. But at the same time, PASA’s mission and purpose is to do the best they can to develop surfing programs in the Americas, and we are hopeful that everyone can rise above the politics and stay focused on the true intent of their mission. That way we can all hopefully work together.

I received a formal invitation from PASA to bring four full-time college students — two men and two women — and one judge to the Collegiate Championships in Fortaleza, Brazil, on December 5th-6th. I didn’t treat the trip as a United States Surfing Federation (USSF) or Florida Surfing Association (FSA) trip, but rather as a personal one, providing an opportunity for the surfers and supporting a worthwhile program. I put the word out immediately through the coconut telegraph searching for a few college students who were interested.

Meanwhile, other developments surfaced in the ever-changing world of amateur surfing: Surfing America was granted the permit formerly held by NSSA to run the U.S.A. Championships at Lower Trestles; Surfing America announced their new Prime Series qualifiers for the PacSun U.S.A. Surf Team; ESA withdrew from Surfing America, and on and on. I try to avoid the politics of the industry, because as a USSF President, ESA Competition Director, U.S. Team Manager, U.S. Championships Administrator, ISA Vice President, and FSA President, I’ve had my fill of board meetings and surf industry wheeling and dealing.

Instead, I like to think of myself as a beach guy. I love to work with the athletes, and I really enjoy creating new formats like December’s King O’ Jax Surf Challenge. I had a blast last summer doing several free Super Grom Surf Series events, and I continue to run the ECSC in Virginia Beach and the Easter Surfing Festival in Cocoa Beach, FL. I have many friends all over the world and consider myself blessed to have the opportunity to contribute. But as for the politics and maneuvering, no thanks!

PASA paid for the surfers’ expenses from Miami, but the event dates fell during most colleges’ final exams or graduation ceremonies. It was also difficult to find surfers who could afford to go, who would properly represent the United States, and who could get permission from their professors to either take their exams early or miss classes.

The real anchor of the team was Vero Beach, FL, native Eric Taylor. He’s the consummate professional athlete — smart, talented, eloquent, and focused. Eric graduates in May from Flagler College, but having been on the U.S.A. Team in the past, he was excited to go. He recommended I speak with Deerfield Beach’s Wesley DeSouza — not only a great surfer with years of WQS experience but also an experienced world traveler who’s fluent in Portuguese. From there, I compiled a large list of other potential candidates. New Smyrna Beach’s Amy Nicholl, who currently attends UCF and competes on the college’s Surf Team, was at the top of the list, as I watched her compete in the 2006 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championships in Mariessa, Brazil. I liked the way Amy charged big beachbreak, and knew she’d be familiar with the choppy, East Coast-like conditions that we were likely to see in Fortaleza — if we could get there.

Entering Brazil these days isn’t easy. Not only did Eric, Wesley, and Amy have to get permission from their professors, they also had to either apply for a visa or renew their existing one. To do that In the U.S., you need an actual plane ticket. We received our e-tickets on November 18th and the scramble began. Our departure date was December 3rd, and as of December 1st, Eric, our fourth team member Christa Alves, and judge Nathan Evans all didn’t have their passports back. I contacted two more surfers on December 1st, and the first to get back to me was Orange Park’s Mallory Turner, who attends UNF. Mallory was motivated, and with her mom’s support she jumped on a plane early Wednesday morning and went to the Brazilian consulate in Miami. Miraculously, she was befriended by someone in line and got her visa in one day.

When Nathan came home from school at 2:30 p.m. on December 2nd, his passport was in his mailbox — and we were set to start driving to Miami at 6:00 p.m. But Eric Taylor was still without his passport and visa, and the mail had already arrived. We called Mallory at the Brazilian consulate and asked if she could find out whether Eric’s passport was still at the Embassy. Sure enough, it was buried in a back room and Mallory convinced her newfound friend to process it, stamp a visa, and hand it to over, while we drove through the night from Jacksonville picking up Eric, Amy, and Wesley along the way for our 4:00 a.m. check-in at Miami International Airport.

After staying up all night and departing at 6:00 a.m., we arrived in Fortaleza and endured three hours of blazing sun and heat during the opening ceremony, which was a test of everyone’s fortitude. Immediately afterwards, the women’s opening heats hit the water in junky two to four-foot onshore surf. The talent level of our U.S. Team was obvious, and everyone advanced into the qualifying rounds. Eric Taylor’s strategy was simple: “I just want to beat Brazilians!” Amy Nicholl comboed her competition in the first rounds, cracking powerful backside hits that consistently threw buckets. Her surfing was so consistent that we even considered making her the “power surfer” for the grueling 40-minute Tag Team event, since she never falls. And Wesley DeSouza’s experience showed in his power surfing, his cool demeanor, and his ability to rack up scores on medium-sized waves.

Several rounds went by, with all the American surfers advancing before Mallory Turner slipped to the double-elimination repercharge rounds at the end of the day. In her final heat, she only needed a 2.77 to advance, but the deteriorating conditions and combination of travel, heat, and lack of energy took their toll. But we were quick to remind Mallory that without her giant effort in obtaining her and Eric’s visa at the 11th hour, we wouldn’t have had a chance at a medal. Mallory is a true competitor and took her loss hard, but she never left the beach and remained for the duration of the event supporting her team.

The next United States surfer to go down was Wesley DeSouza. A horrific outgoing riptide engulfed him during his last heat, and he went nearly 10 minutes without seeing a rideable wave. That left Eric and Amy. Amy hadn’t lost a heat the entire event, and was surfing incredibly, stringing together combinations of speed-generating maneuvers. Eric sat in the tent before each heat studying the ever-shifting lineup, and always seemed to know where to sit during his heats. In the first man-on-man match-up with Gutembergue Silva, a local favorite from Croco Beach, Eric had to win to make the championship, and he blew up. I honestly think Eric psyched Silva right out of the water, blasting upside-down lip smashes with such power that the locals on the beach even started cheering for him.

Amy and Eric both placed 2nd in their respective championship heats, and that was enough to solidify a silver medal for the U.S. Team. Eric, Amy, Wesley, and Mallory all did everyone proud, both on the beach and in the water. Our gracious Brazilian hosts even swarmed the U.S. surfers after they exited the water, complete with pats on the back, cameras, tons of smiles, and plenty of interviews. It was good to not see politics there on the beach in Brazil — just good people surfing hard and promoting the sport in a strong and positive way. My first involvement with the U.S.A. Surf Team came in 1996, when an East Coast-heavy squad won an ISA gold medal in Huntington Beach. And it felt good to “win” again — placing 2nd to Brazil on their home turf felt like a victory to us all.

The Collegiate Championships were so well organized that I couldn’t help but smile, thinking that PASA was achieving many of its goals. Surfing in the Americas had grown, more countries were training judges and producing skilled athletes, and the future looked bright indeed. Everyone had come together for the good of the sport and the benefit of its athletes. Eric, Amy, Wesley, Mallory, Nathan, and I learned so much and made friends and developed relationships that will last a lifetime. The good vibes were never more evident than when I watched a dozen or so surfers play a game. The first player spoke in English, the next in Portuguese, the next in French, the next in Spanish, and then all mixed together — no attitude and no agendas, just a bunch of surfers having the time of their lives. The way everything came together, I couldn’t help but feel a little help from above. And once again I feel blessed simply to be involved.