2026 Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico, Episode 02
Our first 100-point ride goes down at wedgy Oceanside Pier.
Welcome back to Episode 02 of the Surf100 Challenge Series Presented by Pacifico, the second of our eight-part $100,000 surf match.
After eliminating Kyuss King at Blacks Beach in Episode 01, seven surfers remain in contention: Zeke Lau, Jackson Bunch, Finn McGill, Ryan Huckabee, Benji Brand, Dakoda Walters, and Dimitri Poulos.
Of these seven, only two surfers will survive into our classic Surf100 finale*, where they’ll face off against two mystery invitees for a chance at the six-figure prize purse.
Our second challenge? King Of The Hill.
The second episode’s format is a riff on the popular schoolyard game. It’s structured as follows:
- Seven 15-minute heats.
- Unlimited waves.
- The surfer with the best single wave in each heat is safe and advances to the next challenge.
- Everyone else? Still vulnerable. Still surfing.
- This continues until only one surfer remains… and is eliminated.
In our head judge Yadin Nicol’s words, “They should just treat this as a video part and try to get a clip, I’m not giving out QS scores.”
Across last year and this year, all of our Surf100 surfers agree this is the most emotionally and physically taxing challenge of the series.
Courtesy of Oceanside Pier, the waves for this season’s King Of The Hill were far better than last year’s Huntington affair.
“The swell was a super random one,” said Surf100 producer Garrett James. “When we woke up, it was one-foot and messy. There was a light drizzle, but nothing crazy in terms of a storm or energy. Then this super short period swell kicked in for about four hours and the wind turned offshore. All of a sudden it was chest high with sick looking waves all over the place. It was a full test in patience, trust in forecast, and holding out for the right time and moment.”
As you’ll see, the head-high wedges provide the launch-ramp for a handful of tuberides, headgames, and our first 100-point ride of the season.
“There’s a bit of a mental game going on in this challenge,” says Garrett James. “Most of these guys compete or have competed at a high level so they’re really toeing the line on how compy they wanna get with each other.
“Altogether, the guys are getting along very well,” continues Garrett. “Almost too well. It’s like they’ve forgotten that $100k is on the line. The next episode sees a change of scenery, cooler temperatures, and a challenge that takes a bit of control away from the surfers.
A few more notes from the episode:
- So far the meal of choice across the board has been In-N-Out.
- Dakoda consumes a lot of candy. Dimitri enjoys his caffeine in the form of energy drinks. Finn likes his coffee black. Zeke likes a latte with an energy drink on top.
- Benji rode three boards during this challenge. He hopped on a twin fin at one point. He had a Red Tiger, a Tiger Twin, and a Ghost.
- All the filmers thought Zeke’s barrel was underscored. They had a solid chirp on the comms.
Release Schedule
The second season of Surf100 Challenge Series Presented by Pacifico goes live June 17 on YouTube, but Premium members get to watch each episode two days early (watch your email).
Here’s the full YouTube release schedule:
Ep 1: Wednesday, June 3
Ep 2: Wednesday, June 17
Ep 3: Wednesday, July 1
Ep 4: Wednesday, July 14
Ep 5: Wednesday, July 29
Ep 6: Wednesday, August 12
Ep 7: Wednesday, August 26
Live Finale: Wednesday, September 9*
*Watch the finale online exclusively on Stab Premium, or join us in person for the big song and dance (all comers welcome, details TBA) on September 9.
