The 1984 Country Feeling Surf Classic was an oasis in the longest, weirdest, most grueling world tour season on record. Twenty-four events over 11 months. A small-wave beachbreak opener in Japan, then, I kid you not, four straight contests in Florida, then up to Ocean City, Maryland, then off to Cape Town. 

Seven beachbreak contests in a row. $94,000 in prize money. For all seven contests combined. 

Then Jeffreys—which never should have happened at all, given that every self-respecting sporting organization in the world apart from surfing was giving South Africa a wide miss due to the nation's racist apartheid policies. 

 another 10 straight beachbreak events before Hawaii. Think about that for a moment. Now look up and give a word of thanks for the 20215 WCT. 

But back to J-Bay. The surf was double-overhead and pumping for the early rounds, small and clean for the finals, and look out, folks, here comes world tour manchild Mark Occhilupo on his battered little 6'0" Rusty tri-fin, thighs bursting the seams of his tight Peak short-arm fullsuit, that big hairless chin jutting prow-like as he sailed forth down the long Supertube walls. This was, as Sean Doherty said in a recent SURFER profile, Occy's "perfect point in time." Waves, board, mind, body and spirit—everything in the finest possible synch. Tom Carroll and Shaun Tomson were able challengers at Jeffreys, but they dropped off along the way; Hans Hedemann was out of his league, and Occ dusted him in the final without so much as a backward glance. 

A debut world tour win has rarely, maybe never, been so convincing. 

Three weeks later, in France, Occhilupo beat Curren in the semis and Carroll in the final to win the Lacanau Pro—and just like that he was top-ranked in the world. Seventeen years old. Voice like a choirboy. So young and raw and clueless, as one caretaker recalled, "that I had to remind him to brush his teeth."

The first speed wobble was upon Occy before he left Europe, however, and you know the rest. So let's stay with Jeffreys '84 for a moment. It's a short video. Watch it twice.

JEFFREYS BAY, 1984: OCCHILUPO RUNS THE FIELD

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