See Photos of the Big Wave Surfers at Mavericks Opening Ceremony

The 2013 Mavericks Invitational Opening Ceremony kicked off this year’s Mavericks Invitational on Friday, Oct. 25, bringing together the world’s best big wave surfers to Half Moon Bay. 

This year there was a bit of a swell in the water and the prayer circle was much larger since the Half Moon Bay High School surf team and a younger generation of local surfers were invited to paddle out with the competitors. 

Also different this year: Oracle Team USA — America's Cup Champs, Shannon Falcone and Skipper Jimmy Spithill — were in attendance with contest director and Mavericks pioneer Jeff Clark, introducing the competitors. 

It’s an annual tradition that Clark calls a “gathering of the tribe” to bring together the surfing community and show respect to fellow surfers and their safety, and pay tribute to those who have died.

"It's a more relaxed atmosphere than contest day and gives the fans, surfers and local kids a chance to meet the competitors and join them for the ceremonial paddle-out," Clark said.

There's always a bevy of photographers out there shooting the event, capturing portraits of the surfers, the line up, prayer circle and general local color this much anticipated event brings each year to the Coastside.

Here are links to websites where you can see some great photos of the day:

Elite surf and ocean photographer Seth Migdail, originally posted on The Intertia, an online surfing community featuring news, opinions, photography, videos and art. See his photos here.

Peter Adams, a Silicon Valley based photographer whose work ranges from portraiture to landscapes, shares two shots taken with a small Sony RX1. See the photos here.

Frank Quirarte, a born-and-raised Pacifican, who’s been surfing since the 1970s, is the co-founder of MavSurfer.com, a photographer and writer and a member of the Mavericks Rescue Team. See his photos here and his Facebook page here. 

Read more about Mavericks, now called Body Glove Mavericks Invitational, and the opening ceremony on Half Moon Bay Patch.

2013-14 Competitors

Ryan Augenstein (Santa Cruz, CA)
Grant Baker (South Africa)
Chris Bertish (South Africa)
Carlos Burle (Brazil)
Kohl Christensen (Hawaii)
Ken Collins (Santa Cruz, CA)
Shawn Dollar (Santa Cruz, CA)
Shane Dorian (Hawaii)
Colin Dwyer (Pacifica, CA)
Nathan Fletcher (San Clemente, CA)
Tyler Fox (Aptos, CA)
Mark Healey (Hawaii)
Nic Lamb (Santa Cruz, CA)
Greg Long (San Clemente, CA)
Rusty Long (San Clemente, CA)
Alex Martins (Brazil)
Peter Mel (Santa Cruz, CA)
Ryan Seelbach (San Francisco, CA)
Jamie Sterling (Hawaii)
Anthony Tashnick (Santa Cruz, CA)
Grant Washburn (San Francisco, CA)
Dave Wassell (Hawaii)
Ben Wilkinson (Australia)
Zach Wormhoudt (Santa Cruz, CA)

2013-14 Alternates

Shane Desmond (Santa Cruz, CA)
Danilo Couto (Brazil)
Derek Dunfee (San Diego, CA)
Kelly Slater (Cocoa Beach, FL)
Tyler Smith (Santa Cruz, CA)
Frank Solomon (South Africa)