Kieran Anderson fully committed at Mav’s.
Damien Hobgood is a great friend. Why? Because, in spite of being in the running for an alternate slot himself for the Nelscott Reef Big Wave Pro-Am, he’d rather people vote instead for his buddy and fellow big wave charger Kieran Anderson. Let me explain.
The wait period for the annual Nelscott Reef Big Wave Pro-Am in Oregon is currently underway. And this year, event organizers are shaking up the way they’re choosing alternates – giving the power to the people to select who they want to see compete.
“There was a higher-than-anticipated demand for competing in this year’s Nelscott Pro/Am”, said event organizer, Gabe Smith in a press release. “We were, and still are, getting calls daily from people that want in. So, we decided to bring the community in to help make the decision for us, which I think is a first for the Big Wave community.”
From October 15th to the 21st, organizers will be tallying votes online for the 40 athletes that are vying for entry into the contest. And at midnight on the 21st, the 15 with the highest number of votes will be given slots to compete.
Enter Kieran. If you’ve never heard of the guy, you’re forgiven. He’s a total underground charger. As I mentioned, Damien Hobgood also occupies the list of 40 who could potentially earn a slot at Nelscott. But he’s imploring anyone that might vote for him to instead vote for Kieran. Crazy huh?
I caught up with Damien briefly on this and here’s what he had to say:
How do you know Kieran?
I know Kieran from Josh Kerr actually. And I don’t know…over the past few years, we’ve just been surfing a lot together up and down the coast.
What makes you think he should get the position and not you?
Because he’s hungrier.
Do you think he deserves it…more than others?
Well, that’s really hard to say. Well, you know, I think everyone in their own right kind of deserves it. You know, but I just love watching his passion and how bad he wants it and it’s really refreshing and it’s cool. And I like seeing people getting opportunities and seeing what they can do.
Do you think he’s qualified?
For sure. Totally.
What are some qualities outside of surfing that make Kieran, Kieran?
As everyone knows, he’s super amped. He’s always down for an adventure and will just charge. And he’s got an act about getting really good waves and it’s cool.
What are some good qualities of Kieran? What kind of influence do you think he brings to the surfing community?
He’s really adaptable. He’s really there… He’s just like really really smart and just figuring things out, getting stuff done, just a great guy to have around, pretty much knows everything, which brings a lot to the table in that sense.
At time of publication, Kieran sat sixth with 811 votes, giving him a solid chance at earning one of the 15 slots.
According to event organizers, the voting page has blown up since its launch Saturday night, averaging 16 thousand views per day from over 144 countries.
To vote for Kieran or any of the alternates on the list check out the Nelscott Reef Pro/Am event page here.
