Play Stupid Games, Win Cool Prizes

Stab High is presented by Monster Energy with support from Vans, YETI, Quiksilver, Kona Big Wave, and Sun Bum. Buy tickets here.

“When a good surfer is struggling to get good results, it’s almost always a wave selection problem,” supercoach and general serpent Jake Patterson once told me. 

Accurately predicting the ocean’s behavior is unequal parts science and art. Whether you’re trying to make the most out of a good day of waves at home or trying not to crumble under the weight of a potential world title in a 40-minute overlapping heat at a North Shore reef that has abruptly ended several people’s lives, it is perhaps the most important skill in surfing. ​

And it means fuck all at Stab High x Monster Energy. 

On its own, a level playing field isn’t an incredibly compelling premise for a surf event. But what if you tilt said playing field such that surfers must try something uncomfortably difficult every 90 seconds? Yes, now we cook with gas. 

This Stab High will be our sixth pool edition, and will see 56 surfers collide with 440 air sections together at Atlantic Park Surf in Virginia Beach. 

The past suggests that it’ll unfold in curious ways. 

Case in point: Shortly after taking off on the first wave of the men’s final at the last event, Joel Vaughan awkwardly got caught near the lip and missed the air section entirely. Forty-nine minutes later, on his very last wave, he landed the 48-point lien flip that won. 

Pardon the cliche, but the availability of such fate makes it hard to look away. 

And now, thanks to a very clever member of the Atlantic Park Surf team, our Stab Premium get to have some skin in the game too.

How To Play our Stab High x Monster Fantasy Game

Want to win a free Stab Premium membership for a year, plus cool gear from our Stab High partners? Here are the rules of engagement.

First, check the graphic above — created by Atlantic Park Surf employee Hunter Skolnick (nice one, Hunter) — this has all the competitors in their respective categories. Note: Shaun Manner is OUT and Jake Kelley will surf in his place.

Then choose:
– 3 Men
– 1 Vans Pro Woman
– 1 Vans Ladybird
– 1 Bottle Rocket presented by Yeti
– the Monster Air Winner

Finally, choose one of those six surfers as your double whammy — this surfer’s points will count 2x.

At the end of the event, we’ll count each surfer’s top single score from the event. It doesn’t matter how they finish or what round they record their top score in.

If you pick the Monster Air winner, you get an additional 50 points. If you don’t, you get 0 for that section.

Your double whammy surfer can be in any division, but remember the Men can surf up to four total rounds, which means if they keep advancing they have more opportunities to get a big score.

To enter, simply comment your picks below in this format:
[Men’s surfer] – Double Whammy
[Men’s surfer]
[Men’s surfer]
[Women’s surfer]
[Ladybird]
[Bottle Rocket]
[Monster Air winner]

The overall winner (based on most total points) will get a free year of Premium plus plenty of Stab High related goodies — and we may offer additional prizes for 2nd and 3rd depending on participation.

Picks must be submitted as a comment beneath this site post before 7 am EST on Friday, May 15 — edited comments will NOT be eligible to win.

Stab High by the numbers

If history really predicts the future, this info might be relevant to your Fantasy cause.

-The cut-off line for both Men’s Round 1 and Semis tends to linger around 37 points. 
-In the Men’s final, since we switched to a one-score-counts format, winning waves have been between 44 and 48 points.
-The winning wave in the Women’s final has been between a 43 and a 48 — both were compliments of Sierra Kerr.
-The cut-off line to make the Bottle Rockets final is normally around 35, with the winning wave falling between 45 – 49 points.
-The cut-off line to make the Ladybirds final is also normally around 35, with the winning wave falling between a 42 – 48 points.

How To Watch Stab High 

You’ve got two options: Either get to Virginia May 15-16 (tickets here), or watch it on Stab Premium. 

Subscribe here. Tell your loved ones. And your friends. If participating in a commercial transaction at a place of retail today, push a subscription on the cashier and any salespeople or management staff you might encounter. Engage in a loud, grotesque outburst if they resist. 

The schedule 

Friday, May 15
8:00 AM — Open Practice
9:00 AM — Ladybird Semis – Rights
9:40 AM — Ladybird Semis – Lefts
10:20 AM — Bottle Rocket Semis – Lefts
11:00 AM — Bottle Rocket Semis – Rights
11:40 AM — Pool Break
12:40 PM — Pro Men Qualifiers – Rights
2:40 PM — Pool Break
3:00 PM — Pro Men Qualifiers – Lefts
5:00 PM — Pool Break
5:10 PM — Pro Men Sudden Death – Lefts
5:35 PM — Pro Men Sudden Death – Rights
6:00 PM — Competition Done

Saturday, May 16
10:00 AM — Open Practice
11:00 AM — Pro Men Semifinals – Rights
12:00 PM — Pro Men Semifinals – Lefts
1:00 PM — Pool Break
1:30 PM — Ladybirds Final
2:15 PM — Bottle Rockets Final
3:00 PM — Pro Women Final
4:00 PM — Pro Men Final
5:00 PM — Competition Done

And here’s how that’ll translate to a broadcast in other parts of the world. 

Friday, May 15
Honolulu: 3:00AM – 1:00PM
Los Angeles: 6:00AM – 4:00PM
New York: 9:00AM – 7:00PM
Paris: 3:00PM – 1:00AM
Sydney: 11:00PM – 9:00AM (Saturday)

Saturday, May 16
Honolulu: 5:00AM – 11:00AM
Los Angeles: 8:00AM – 2:00PM
New York: 11:00AM – 5:00PM
Paris: 5:00PM – 11:00PM
Sydney: 1:00AM – 7:00AM (Sunday)

The format 

Qualifying Round: Pro Men’s
– 6-man heats
– Two rights, two lefts each
– Top single air counts
– Top 10 surfers go directly to semifinals (leaderboard style)
– Remaining 26 surfers go to Sudden Death round

Sudden Death: Pro Men’s
– One wave in direction of choice
– Top 2 airs advance to semis (leaderboard style)

Semifinals: Pro Men’s, Bottle Rockets, Ladybirds
– Three rights, three lefts each
– Best single air counts, top 5 advance to final
– Leaderboard format: surfers against entire field

Semifinals: Bottle Rockets, Ladybirds
– Three rights, three lefts each
– Best single air counts, top 4 advance to final
– Leaderboard format: surfers against entire field

Finals: Pro Men’s, Pro Women’s, Bottle Rockets, Ladybirds
– Three rights, three lefts each
– Best single air wins

Stab High is presented by Monster Energy with support from Vans, YETI, Quiksilver, Kona Big Wave, and Sun Bum. Buy tickets here.