Did you miss this year’s Queen of the Peak? Because we’re here to tell you it was awesome.
On October 1st and 2nd, Tofino once again crowned the Queen of the Peak in their 11th annual women’s-only surfing event.
Cox Bay truly delivered on the sun and some epic waves! The surf conditions were perfect. Eager surfers had the ideal chance to win a crown in different areas of the competition.
The turnout was huge. That’s a far cry from the competition’s humble roots. Krissy Montgomery owns Surf Sister and is a co-founder of the event. She is thrilled at how far its come.
“Thirteen years ago, when we started, we had 30 participants. It was pouring rain. We had to bribe all the participants to sign up,” she told surfers at a dinner before the event.
“And look at us now. This year the contest sold out in under five minutes. That is a true test of how alive and well competitive surfing is here in town. Be proud of yourselves, and thank you guys so much for being a part of it.”
The 11th Queen of the Peak featured 48 athletes in the shortboard division, 48 athletes in the longboard, and 16 athletes in the Princess of the Peak U16 division.
Everyone was going hard to come out on top.
It was a tough competition. In the end, the crowns were dutifully placed on the heads of some very deserving surfers.
Team Canada’s Mathea Olin was crowned the 2022 longboard queen. She also finished runner-up to Erin Brooks of Hawaii, who took the crown in the shortboard division.
Tofino surfer Ocea Green, 13, surfed her way to the top of the Princess of the Peak podium.
Shoutouts were also given to Tofino surfer Jasmine Turner, who was named the “Surf Sister People’s Champion.”
Another Surf Sister, Kate Prothero, earned the “Best Longboard Female over 40,” and Ucluelet surfer Nicole Gerbrandt came away with the “Best Shortboard Female over 40.”
Olin told the Westerly News how awesome it is to see surfing growing in Canada.
“I’m 20 and we are watching nine-year-olds paddle out and absolutely ripping. It’s really cool just to see how everyone is improving and how bright the future is here.”
Brooks lives in Hawaii but her dad is from Quebec. She recently won a gold medal for Team Canada at the World Junior Surf Championships. She echoed Olin’s sentiment to Westerly News.
“It’s been so beautiful and the waves are awesome. We’ve been scoring since we’ve been here…Thank you to God, thank you to my family and my sponsors and to all the girls ripping here today. I feel so blessed just to be able to surf here.”
Green, the youngest of the winner’s circle, gave a shout-out to all the other competitors and said how honoured she was to get up on the podium.
“All the girls were ripping so hard. I’m super excited to get the win,” said Green, who also pocketed a $500 cheque for “Wave of the Day.”
Overall, it’s great to see how far women’s surfing has come on VanIsle, and we can’t wait to see which wave it catches next.
