Caitlin Simmers will join many of the world’s top pros in her hometown this weekend for the Super Girl Surf Festival at Oceanside Pier.
The festival is highlighted by the Super Girl Surf Pro, a World Surf League competition and the largest all-women’s surfing event in the world.
Few surfers have a higher profile than Simmers, an Oceanside native and Coastal Academy graduate who won last year’s World Surf League championship at Lower Trestles. The 19-year-old Simmers has already competed in one Olympics and is considered one of the young stars in the sport.
Here’s what you need to know:
What: The Super Girl Surf Pro consists of eight rounds of competition held over three days. Rounds 1 and 2 are scheduled for 8 a.m. and 10:40 a.m. Friday, with Rounds 3 and 4 scheduled for Saturday at 8 a.m. and 1:20 p.m., respectively. The fifth round starts at 9 a.m. Sunday, with the quarterfinals set for 12:20 p.m., the semifinals at 2 p.m. and the finals at 3:20 p.m.
Admission: Free
The field: The Super Girl Surf Pro features 160 surfers, including Simmers, Alyssa Spencer, Kirra Pinkerton, Sawyer Lindblad, Sage Erickson, Eden Walla, Samantha Sibley, Keala Tomoda-Bannert Moana Jones Wong.
Local ties: Simmers is from Oceanside, while Spencer is from Encinitas. Lindblad, Walla and Sibley all hail from San Clemente.
More than just surfing: The Super Girl Surf Festival event also features competition in beach volleyball, cheer and dance, flag football, longboarding, skateboarding, inline skating, quad skating and BMX. This year’s event includes an open roller rink for free skating and BMX clinics led by Olympian Perris Benega. There will be 17 live concerts spread over three days, headlined by Lupe Fiasco and Plain White T’s.
About Super Girl: The first Super Girl Pro Series, then called the S3 Supergirl Jam, was held in 2007 at Mission Beach. The event expanded to Jacksonville Beach, Fla., in 2021 and will include a stop in Virginia Beach, Va., next September.
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