Natural talent in the water and hard work on land earned 15-year-old Bo Raynor a chance to compete for a national surfing championship in California, and June 28, he became the first local surfer since Ben Bourgeois in 1994 to bring the title back to Wrightsville Beach.
Raynor secured his spot in the National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) national championships with his performance in the East Coast Championships April 9-12 in New Smyrna Beach, Fla. Raynor placed second in the boys’ division to Newport, N.C., surfer Stevie Pittman.
While surfing ability earned him a chance to take on the country’s best, he was still faced with traveling across the country — a trip only partly covered by his sponsors, his father Scooter Raynor said. So Bo Raynor started washing cars.
Over two and one-half months, he raised $3,000, his dad said.
In late June, Raynor and his friend and fellow East Coast competitor Gabe Morvil arrived in Huntington Beach, Calif., for the contest. Raynor advanced through heat after heat of the Explorer Boys 14-and-under division, making it to the six-man final the afternoon of June 28. As in regionals, Raynor found himself up against Pittman. Two Californians and two Hawaiians joined the North Carolina surfers in the final.
The boys spread out on the south side of Huntington Beach pier, trying to pick off decent waves in the choppy, head-high surf. The competitors’ two highest wave scores counted toward their total in the 25-minute heat.
“I got my two best waves right off the start,” Raynor said, “and then I kind of waited and kept my position for the rest of the heat. I caught a left going toward the pier and that was how I got my scores. … It was kind of windy and out of control, but it was fun.”
Raynor finished first with a 14.83 total and Pittman grabbed fourth place with an 11.27. Later in the week, Raynor also took on older competitors, making the quarterfinals of the 15-and-under Open division and the semifinals of the 17-and-under Explorer Juniors division.
At only 15 years old, Raynor said he still has goals for his junior career, including another national title. But then he hopes to follow in Bourgeois’ legendary footsteps to a professional career. After accumulating national results as an amateur, Bourgeois went on to qualify for the World Championship Tour, representing the East Coast along with Kelly Slater and C.J. Hobgood in contests at the world’s best waves for hundreds of thousands in prize money.
Raynor said he watches the live webcast of every championship tour event, drawing inspiration from surfers like South African Jordy Smith and Brazilian Felipe Toledo. He finds motivation in the rich talent pool closer to home, too.
“Gabe [Morvil] definitely pushes me,” he said, also naming his older brother Jesse Raynor as someone whose surfing he admires. “We actually have a lot of good surfers here.”
While those surfers are often starved for waves at their local breaks, Raynor said rather than holding them back, the hunger for surf motivates the East Coasters when they get the chance to perform and compete in a solid West Coast swell.
“When you get to surf good waves, you surf that much better,” he explained.
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