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Peter Mel |
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Written by rsholin
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Peter Mel, 36, Santa Cruz
Stature: 6-2, 200
Maverick’s results: Third in 2004, has finished in the top five three times.
Occupation: Pro surfer, shapes boards and helps run Freeline surf shop on 41st Avenue with his father, John Mel. The Mel family has run Freeline for over 30 years.
Sponsors: Quiksilver, JC surfboards, Future fins, Freeline surf shop, Reef.
Maverick’s experience: Mel grew up idolizing legendary Santa Cruz waterman Richard Schmidt and followed in his footsteps, taking extended trips to Hawaii in the wintertime and cultivating a taste for heavy water. In the 1990s, Mel’s notoriety rose throughout the surf world along with the publicity of the wave at Maverick’s. These days he is considered by many as California’s premiere big-wave rider, comfortable in 20- foot plus conditions at Waimea, Maverick’s, Todos, or Dungeons.
Notable: With his tow-in partner Ken Collins, Mel helped pioneer the sport of tow-in surfing in Northern California. Mel’s rise to big-wave stardom took a dramatic spike during the epic El Nino winter of ’97/’98. The Condor, as he is often called for his extreme wingspan, was the favorite to win the $50,000 K2 Big-Wave Challenge for paddling into the winter’s biggest wave, but in a cruel twist of fate it was given to Southern California’s Taylor Knox for a freak wave caught off Todos Santos. Many Santa Cruz surfers claimed it was a robbery, however Mel was gracious and his popularity soared. His results the following winter -- fourth in the Quiksilver events at both Waimea and Maverick’s -- further solidified his place at the top of the big wave game. Mel has been a regular invitee to the Quiksilver in memory of Eddie Aikau event since 1999, consistently finishing in the top tier including a tie for third place in 1999 and a fifth place finish at the 2004-05 event.
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