UNIQUE WAVE

Tasmanian surfer Zebulon Critchlow says there’s little else on his mind except the upcoming Red Bull Cape Fear contest at Shipstern Bluff.

The date of the event will be determined by the weather and wave conditions, and set by a collective group that includes meteorologists and surfers.

“I’m losing sleep at the moment, wondering when it’s going to happen,” says 38-year-old Critchlow, who is one of 20 big wave surfers competing in the event.

“We are pretty excited about it. The forecast doesn’t look good for the next couple of weeks so we are on standby.”

There are 10 Tasmanians and 10 others including three-time world champion Mick Fanning competing in the event, which will be broadcast live for the first time on Red Bull TV to encourage spectators to watch the contest from their own homes.

“The aim is to lower the environmental impact on a place we love and respect so much,” says Critchlow, who is shown here at Little Howrah Beach with the boards he’ll potentially be riding at Shipstern.

“Hopefully I’ll be using the blue board, which was specifically designed for Shipstern and to tow.

“If I’m riding it, it means the waves will be bigger and more extreme.”

The construction business owner, who lives at Acton Park, has been surfing at Shipstern since 2007.

“I’ve been hooked and addicted ever since. It becomes a lifestyle choice, surfing at Shipstern,” he says. “The volume of the water in the wave, the proximity to the rocks and the national park coastline – it’s like no other wave in the world. The unpredictability of it makes it exciting.”