If you want to chase a dream, sometimes you have to take a backroad. And If you're a surfer, you'd think all roads lead to the ocean. But for the 14 competitors on ABC's "The Ultimate Surfer," it's a man-made, mechanical wave in the heart of central California's fertile farmland where they have a chance to make it happen.
Each of these contestants is fighting to make something come true they've longed for since they were children, or come true again -- a chance to travel the world, ride the best waves and compete on the World Surf League's Championship Tour.
They all want it badly. But only one man and one woman will leave the Surf Ranch with three Wildcard spots into the CT and a cool $100,000 to help fund the dream.
Winning "The Ultimate Surfer" is akin to a high school basketball prodigy getting to skip college and going straight to the NBA, and cashing a giant check along the way.
Spin To Win: Message In A Bottle
First it's a case of letting reality set in as the 14 surfers arrive at the Surf Ranch but there isn't much time to kick back and relax by the water. Things get real shortly after a bottle washes up on the shoreline with a message inside. A look of collective concern washes over the group as contestants learn that a game of spin the bottle has been called, which gets some on edge.
"If I wanted to kiss someone, I would have signed up for the Bachelor," says Brianna Cope.
Luckily though, it's all fun and games as spinning the bottle is just a way to pick the teams -- each team consisting of one male and one female surfer -- that will compete in a Beach Battle and Wave Challenge each week.
"The Ultimate Surfer" is all about competition, and these teams will set the stage.
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'If I wanted to kiss someone, I would have signed up for the Bachelor!' - Brianna Cope. - WSL / ABC
Each Beach Battle will test fundamental ocean skills, while the Wave Challenge will assess specific elements of competitive surfing.
But the competition doesn't end there as each week surfers will find themselves in an elimination Surf Off as well. The Surf Off isn't a team event. It's surfer versus surfer, where the winners stay on to surf another week, and the losers pack their bags and hit the road.
The Wrap: Roomies, Not Besties
But before we can even get to the first wave, there's drama brewing.
At The Ranch, contestants sleep in kitted out Airstream trailers; lux, but tight quarters. And you know when roommates are assigned, not everyone is going to be happy. Though no one is unhappier than Malia Ward and Brianna Cope.
"I'm a little mad," Cope says, as she's paired with roommate Mallia Ward in an understatement so powerful it could generate its own waves.
The feeling is mutual, with Ward not a fan of Cope's "energy". But rather than allowing each other's chakras to clash, Cope promptly moves out, leaving Ward all alone with her own Airstream.
This might be for the best -- Ward grew up the daughter of who some consider surfing royalty, the famous (or infamous) Chris Ward, a former Championship Tour surfer known for many things, including his aggressive style, and impeccable barrel-riding ability in some of the world's gnarliest waves.
"I'm very similar to my dad," she says, which is something Cope might have figured out for herself.
But before the Wave Challenge kicks off the surfers get a crash course from the inventor of the wave, the greatest competitive surfer of all time, 11-time world champion Kelly Slater.
He dials in via "Kelly Vision'' to let them know the wave at the Ranch moves a lot faster than ocean waves, and then can't resist ribbing the squad. Slater seemingly delights in the fact that whoever wins the competition will be fresh meat for him next year on the Championship Tour.
Wave Challenge: Combo Turns
Then it all heats up quickly. They've barely had a chance to love or hate their roommates before everyone is competing to stay on the show.
The first Wave Challenge is all about combination turns. Put simply, that means moving a surfboard across the wave in a variety of maneuvers which demonstrate mastery and versatility.
The idea is to link several maneuvers which all look different -- it's about flexing your range.
'I never felt like I gave it 100% when I competed on the WSL Qualifying Series, so now is kind of my chance to come back and give it my all and try to win.' - Luke Davis. - WSL / ABC
The challenge is the first time everyone has competed on the Surf Ranch wave, and while it's perfect, it's not easy. Almost everyone falls, with the notable exception of experienced surfers like Zeke Lau, a former full-time CT surfer. In the end, it's Anastaia Ashley and Luke Davis who show the most variety and flair to take the win.
"I never felt like I gave it 100% when I competed on the WSL Qualifying Series, so now is kind of my chance to come back and give it my all and try to win," Davis says.
Now we get our first glimpse of the tactics which will become key to success on the show.
By winning the wave challenge, Anastasia and Luke are safe from elimination, and have the strategic edge of choosing the first team to be sent to the Surf Off. This is where the politics really ramp up between best friends Anastasia and Ward as they plot against rival Brianna Cope, while Davis lounges in the shade, not knowing or caring about elimination strategy.
Ashley reads the tea leaves and realizes her young friend Ward -- who possesses one of the lowest scores from the Wave Challenge -- is likely to end up in the Surf Off herself, and instead of pursuing Cope, chooses a team featuring Kayla Durden, a surfer Ward believes she can beat.
And in a stroke of misguided advantage, choosing Durden also activates her partner Hawaiian powerhouse Zeke Lau. A former full-time CT competitor, he makes it known right out of the gate that he's not here to make friends. Lau has competed with the best in the world -- in fact, he's perhaps most famous for ruthlessly hassling two-time World Champion John John Florence during a major competition.
Surf Off: First Two Contestants Exit
And what do you know? The prediction proved correct. Lau and Durden as the first team then got to choose who they competed against in the Surf Off, and they chose to surf against Ward and her teammate -- and former love interest -- Austin Clouse.
As predicted, Ward beats Durden in a nighttime Surf Off under the lights, but Lau -- who had earlier said he couldn't wait to let the "lion out of the cage" -- made short work of Clouse.
That meant the dream was over for Durden and Clouse, the two defeated surfers. They had to leave the Ranch before they'd even had a chance to personalize their Airstream trailers. Lau and Ward winning also presents serious consequences -- that fateful early decision by Davis and Ashley have inadvertently created a super team. Lau and Ward are now the ones to beat.
