Mental Skills on the World Surf Championship Tour

Visualization, Present Moment Focus, Routines, and Finding the Zone

Surfing is a consequential sport. Yet, the challenge of competing on the Championship Tour goes beyond the power of the ocean and shallow reefs that lurk below. The Apple TV series Make or Break, which follows the globe’s top surfers throughout the season, showcases the physical and mental challenges that these athletes face. Of note is the variety of mental skills these athletes exhibit to handle the pressure competition, stay in the present moment, and manage their energy.

Teahupoo, French Polynesia. Credit: Surfline.

Pressure is real on the Championship Tour (CT). For context, there are only 32 spots on the Men’s CT. A mid season cut line brings it down to 22, who automatically qualify for next season, while the bottom 10 have to re-qualify in a challenger series, in addition to 2 wild card spots. Those that don’t make it fall off the tour, somewhat like relegation in European soccer leagues. The Women’s CT tour, on the other hand, has only 18 spots, with the top 10 automatically qualifying for following year after the mid-season cut.

Competing on the CT also impacts sponsorship. Making the tour typically brings more deal opportunities and bigger paychecks, while falling off comes with both financial and competitive burdens. Therefore, it’s not just about making the tour, but sustaining a high level of performance that combine to create incredibly high stakes—oh, and let’s not forget about the unpredictable nature of massive slabs of water they have to navigate as well.

If this doesn’t already underscores the need for strong mental skills, several interviews throughout the series show how top competitors, including Kelly Slater, Tatiana Weston-Webb, and Matt McGillivray, use specific strategies to help them gain an edge.

Kelly Slater on Visualization

“Before my heat, I’ll go to bed imagining how to ride the wave. I can close my eyes and see and feel it. I’ll feel the flow and feel the whole thing to where I’ll make a mistake and I’ll go back and re-ride the wave and do it right, so that when the situations come up, I already know how to react without thinking. So it’s really just practice without physically doing it…I do that a lot.”

This is a mental performance coach’s dream description of how an athlete successfully uses visualization. Vivid, highly sensory images of proper execution contribute to the realness of visualization. Not only is Slater giving himself a chance to mentally rehearse how he would handle different situations, but he also helps create a physiological imprint as well. That’s because the act of visualizing a particular movement or sequence sends signals to the nervous system that activate the same muscle groups that would be used if the movement were actually taking place. It doesn’t send quite as strong of signal as if the movement were being executed in real time, but think if like a priming exercise for the muscles you would need to bomb waves at Pipeline.

Kelly Slater on Staying in the Present Moment

“When that pressure gets in your head, you almost forget the moment. Your thinking about the big thing and not those little details. And that can hold you back. For me, it’s telling me to just come back and focus on what’s simple and what’s right here in front of you in the moment.”

Outcomes matter in surfing, and not just in terms of winning and losing; mistakes can be life threatening. Slater alludes to this, noting how easily pressure can take away his focus, and cause him to lose sight of the little details. The key, he says, is recognizing what he has in front of him and shifting his focus to the present. This might seem easier said than done. The truth is that a well trained mind takes practice and effort, but it is a skill that can be trained like any other. This is where mindfulness starts to come into play and learning to recognize thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations without giving them total control of the situation. It takes time and discipline, but a well trained mind is a necessity at the highest level. And Slater is no exception: attention is foundational to mentally strong competitors.

Tatiana Weston-Webb on Using Routines

“I’m not very superstitious when it comes to warming up for a heat. I just try to calm my nerves and focus on my game plan. Portugal is such a cold place that you have to be warmed up and ready to go 100% of the time. If not, you’re going to be in that cold tired state of mind.”

Warm up’s are common, but Weston-Webb’s statement points to an often overlooked mental skill: performance routines. While “warm up” can be taken literally in this instance, having a regular performance routine can help you feel mentally prepared to compete as well. Performance environments are variable. Portuguese waters can induce a “tired and cold state of mind,”perhaps hot and humid climates produce a feeling of sluggishness or tiredness. The benefit of performance routines is that they can be carried out no matter the environment or conditions, readying you physically and mentally to compete. Although Weston Webb doesn’t elaborate on the specifics of her routine, she notes that she’s not very superstitious. Superstitions are often viewed as routines, but there is an important distinction. To put it simply, superstitions are acts people carry out that don’t have a direct impact on impact performance. That’s not to say they are inherently bad—feeling calm, confident, and comfortable are important when it comes to competing. The difference is that routines are designed to create a specific set of physical and mental states that help you perform at your best. Putting on your lucky socks or keeping your playoff beard, though it may feel good, don’t necessarily help you run faster, jump higher, or stay more focused on the task at hand. If this feels nit picky, that’s probably because it is, but the take home message is this: don’t put your attention and energy into a superstition. Focus your efforts on developing an effective routine instead.

Matthew McGillivray on “The Zone”

“It can mess with your head if you’re putting too much pressure on yourself just thinking about placings and points. [I’m] just trying to get into a good zone and then switching off from the world.”

McGillivray’s comment is like a combination of Slater’s and Weston-Webb’s, hitting on strategies to handle pressure and preparing himself by getting “into a good zone.”

“The zone” is a common term in the performance world but it’s meaning is not universal. Different individuals, and different situations, require different levels of physical, mental, and emotional activation. How one gets to their preferred level of activation may vary too. McGillivray is seen throughout the series partaking in yoga, sauna sessions, and breathing exercises, which suggests his ideal zone might be more relaxed and even keel. Italo Ferreira, however, is like a firework, sprinting from the tent down to the water and as if he’s getting ready to attack. (If you end up watching you’ll find his style of surfing matches that sentiment.) It’s not a one size fits all approach, and I think there’s some beauty in that because it’s what allows competitors’ personalities to shine through.

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This goes without saying, but these are just a handful of mental skills in action. Surfing is a dynamic, physically demanding, powerful, and highly artistic realm of performance. The demands are highly variable too, which ultimately speaks to the impressive amount of adaptability that these athletes posses. To compete again and again in a constantly changing environment is a little mind boggling when you really think about it, so it’s fascinating to see how the best in the world approach their craft.

If you want to check out these episodes on your own, the clips and time stamps are below. Highly recommend!

Kelly Slater - Visualization S2:E1 23:49

Kelly Slater - Pressure and Present Moment Focus — S2:E1 31:35

Tatiana Weston-Webb - Routines/Superstitions S2:E2 32:07

Matthew McGillivray - The Zone - S2:E4 - 30:22