Which Skater “Won” Surfing’s First Swatch Nines at Waco?

For his creativity, directness, fearlessness and downright enormous airs over two poolside halfpipes, Greyson was voted the men’s MVP. Coco Ho was voted MVP on the women’s front, but she claimed she only got it so her friends could get her to drink beer out of a shoe. She did, but she bestowed the MVP to 14-year Kiara Gold who landed several crisp air reverses. 

It's a testament to the crew at American Wave Machines and their PerfectSwell tech that the pros adore this place so much. Every invitee laudes the progression this wave gives to the groms, and that ethos came to fruition between Gold and the 13-year-old Tya Zebrowski. And wouldn’t you know it, Tya landed two superman airs in three days and was awarded best air in the female division by her peers. “These two are the future of our sport,” Coco said. “Hitting the air section with them kept me honest.”

For best air in the men’s division, the crowd went with Victor Bernardo’s immaculate indy alley-oop. Doesn’t get much cleaner. The Brazilian’s career resurgence on Album’s alternative vessels is nothing short of remarkable. He went from the average QS warrior to one of the smoothest and most powerful surfers you’ll see. And he’s barely an “air guy.” 

It must be stated that Jacob Szekely was more than an honorable mention after spending three days in the pool. With the possible exception of Noah Beschen, Zeke had more water time than anyone and produced a series of massive supermans and full rotations. He jumped off mats and attached flares to his surfboard à la Bruce Irons. The 28-year-old San Diego native also spent some time on the ramps with Greyson and the other skaters hyping up the crowd and amplifying the hybridization theme of the event. 

It was one of those events where if you glanced down at your phone or got a drink you could miss something good. Fortunately, there were cameras everywhere. Rather than set up a broadcast or ticket for a live audience, Swatch CEO Alain Villard and Nines Founder Nico Zacek spent serious coin on the production for the invitees (like a skate ramp on the edge of the pool). They banked on the founding idea of the Nines: Create an engaging, challenging environment for your talent, adjust when needed and wait for something cool to happen.

"It brings back the love of the sport," Noah Beschen said. "I feel like the people who attend the event feel that. And it's a different atmosphere than a tour event. It's way less serious and way more fun and creative."

Not every minute was filled with action. There were some afternoon naps and beers. But nothing went missed (except when a drone fell in the pool). The organizing bodies hired a staggering 40 editors, filmers and technicians on-site to produce a stellar highlight reel from this southern showdown. The full video is a jaw-dropping display of imagery, and it’ll premiere on the Swatch Nines YouTube on October 21. 

Some of the most engaging moments happened when the pool toys came out. Matt Meola backfliped over a huge inflatable mat (with straps), and Leon Glatzer eventually nailed a big straight air over it (but not before snapping his favorite board and going ass over tea kettle in the process). On the second day, some successfully dented the underside of their boards as they rode across a plastic pipe deployed by cherrypicker.

“The rail worked better than anyone thought it would, it was awesome,” said Balaram Stack, who got the nod from his peers on the single-best single-handed grab of the event. “Combining skating and surfing like this is what you dream about as a kid. In last night’s skate session, Grayson rode out of a massive nose grind and a crooked grind on the top part of the ramp. It took him a while, and everyone got so hyped when he finally stuck it. That’s the vibe here. Wanting to see everyone succeed and being inspired by each other.”

If anything, the Swatch Nines was an honest and playful endeavor to rethin what a surf event looks like in the 21st century. Will it be the model going forward? Hard to say. What's not hard to say is that it made people laugh.

“The hamster ball was the most hilarious thing,” Coco said. “I was in it on the first day and Mason did an air and landed on us. Staring up at him was the funniest moment.”