DEEP March/April 2014 Green Issue | Page 14

Pro division champion Kellen Ellison. PHOTO: DUBOCK.COM 2014 RINCON CLASSIC RESULTS The Blessed Queen Kellen Ellison Crowned Rincon Classic 2014 Champ Demi Boelsterli Wins 10th Straight Women’s Title BY GLENN DUBOCK T he muffled sound of wax being hastily rubbed onto the deck of a surfboard in the Rincon parking lot greeted me as I swung open the door to my car in the pre-dawn hours on Saturday, Jan. 18. It was the first possible date for the 2014 Channel Islands Rincon Classic presented by Hurley to be called on by veteran director Chris Keet. Stumbling up the cobblestone point to the competition area in the first rays of daylight, I didn’t see a contestable wave the whole way—but I had faith in Keet and his string of undeniable luck when it comes to pulling off this time-honored gathering of the local surf tribe. Right on cue, the Gremlins division hit the water for their first heat and the surf started to build, while the sun started to bake the spectators. Brighter than the beam of sunshine drawing a direct golden line to the announcer’s podium, I could see a smile on Keet’s face that wouldn’t stop until the last award was handed out on Sunday night. “We are blessed, we are SO blessed”, said Keet as he surveyed the wavescape that was unfolding before the flock of wave riders that were about to live the dream that only the emerald Rincon wall