Surfing champ Kelly Slater returns to Maverick's

Kelly Slater wasn't able to attend Monday's opening ceremony for the Maverick's surf contest, but he was a presence all the same. There was talk of Slater as the greatest surfer in history, a notion that no longer seems in doubt. Then came the more pressing topic: Can he even be a top-10 finisher in the Maverick's arena?

Once you've witnessed this open-ocean break off the coast of Half Moon Bay, you know it's a whole new world. Accolades and pro-tour championships mean nothing out there; most of the true standouts are known strictly for their big-wave exploits. This is a highly distinctive breed of athlete, and nobody realizes that more than Slater, one of 24 invitees to the annual contest scheduled for the best available day between now and the end of February.

Understand, first, what Slater has accomplished. He just polished off his 10th title on tour, easily a record, but it's his longevity that is truly astounding. Slater won the first of those titles in 1992, and he has been the sport's most commanding figure - its Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods or Tony Hawk - to this day. A number of storied athletes have known the feeling of utter domination over a long period of time, but for nearly 20 years in the heat of competition? Slater just might stand alone in that category.

At 38, he remains progressive, innovative and influential, routinely outperforming the hottest young kids on tour. He's also a big-wave rider of considerable note, having won the prestigious Eddie Aikau contest (Waimea Bay, Oahu) in 2002 and finished in the top 10 four other times.

He has yet to conquer Maverick's - and there was a day when it nearly conquered him.

Powerful introduction

The first time he ever surfed it, in November 1999, the swell was in the 12- to 15-foot range, downright small for Maverick's. It was sort of an experimental session, but in the process, Slater took a spill and was held underwater so long, a jet-ski operator raced into the churning whitewater to rescue him. He still wasn't coming up, raising the possibility of the world's most famous surfer being slammed - or worse - by the circling craft.

"That wave just beat me down," Slater told the Half Moon Bay Review this week. "What astounded me was that it wasn't a very big wave, but it just had so much power. It had its way with me."

Later that winter, Slater entered the Maverick's contest on a huge, nasty day. He got to the semifinals, where most observers felt he didn't surf well enough to advance. He took a cautious approach, out toward the shoulder of the wave, while more experienced Maverick's riders - particularly Jay Moriarity - were making more worthy commitments.

Most everyone assumed that Slater's day was finished, and that was fine with Kelly. He was "beat," as he admitted later. He didn't even want to go back out there again, and when he learned he'd made the final, he was several minutes late reaching the lineup. He wound up finishing second to Flea Virostko, a tremendous accomplishment, but there was a lot of grumbling within the Maverick's crew about Slater advancing at Moriarity's expense.

It was a dark, mournful day in surfing when the cheerful, ebullient Moriarity passed away during a free-diving expedition in the Maldives, off the coast of India, in June 2001. Over the past few months, the Maverick's contest has ridden out a tumultuous ownership transition from Maverick's Surf Ventures, previously in charge of the event, and a group spearheaded by Grant Washburn, Katherine Kelly Clark and the event's chief sponsor, Barracuda. The political waters have calmed, and in Moriarity's memory, the contest is officially known as "The Jay at Maverick's Big-Wave Invitational."

Back for another try

In the wake of the 2000 event, Slater said he was in awe of Flea, Washburn, Matt Ambrose, Peter Mel, Kenny "Skindog" Collins and the rest of Maverick's hard-core regulars. The experience left an indelible impression on Slater's psyche, and he hasn't been back - until now. He'll be in the first heat when the contest goes off, along with Washburn, 2005 contest winner Anthony Tashnick, living-legend Hawaiian charger Mark Healey, and area standouts Ryan Seelbach and Shane Desmond.

It looks like a pretty stacked heat, but they're all that way. Maverick's has assembled its best-ever field, including big-wave superstars Shane Dorian, Greg Long, Grant "Twiggy" Baker, Jamie Sterling and Carlos Burle, along with last year's winner, South Africa's Chris Bertish.

"Any of the 24 guys could win it," said Washburn, "and I mean that literally."

Healey probably put it best during a private party following the opening ceremony: "Maverick's is where you find the state of big-wave surfing in any given winter. Every time an epic day comes along, the bar of performance is raised. It has become the place where you really prove yourself, and if you don't have game at Maverick's, you've got some work to do."

More on Maverick's

For a full rundown on the Maverick's surf contest, including the heats, see the 3-Dot Blog at sfgate.com/sports.

E-mail Bruce Jenkins at bjenkins@sfchronicle.com.

This article appeared on page B - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle