Surfing
Surfing
Caroline Marks's Raw edit signals the Rookie of the Year's 2019 intentions
From Africa to Orange County, Coolangatta to Rio de Janeiro, and all points in between, ever-smiling Caroline Marks sure put the surfing world on notice last year.
3 min
Caroline Marks Raw
Caroline Marks is your new Rookie Of The Year. Rate her ripping here!
If there was one thing certain about Caroline Marks's stunning debut season on surfing's Championship Tour in 2018, it was that the 16-year-old Floridian deserved to be there.
One of the youngest surfers to ever make the grade, Marks silenced any doubts about her age and competitive mindset when she came out in her first event on the Gold Coast and surfed into the quarter-finals. She left no one in any doubt of her talents when she then went one better in the next contest at Bells, to finish with a third place to her name.
It wasn't just Marks's results that earned respect. Her devastating arsenal in the water put the world on notice, while her laid back and hilarious form on land easily won over the surfing population.
As Jacob Vanderwork's latest edit above shows, the youngster – who's already been labelled Baby Occy in tribute to 1999 Men's world champion Mark Occhilupo – is far from resting on her laurels, and now she's turned 17 is ready to keep turning up the volume in her sophomore season.
Press play on the video, and then pick Marks's brain below to leave armed with info on the Championship Tour standout. Enjoy.
Caroline Marks, Rookie of the Year. That sounds pretty good doesn't it?
Yeah. It's been the best year of my life. I've had so much fun, with tons of good waves and great experiences, so I'm really stoked.
Was ROTY your goal coming in to 2018?
For sure, but, to be honest, I didn't expect to make the tour so young. When I did, I changed my goals a little to just try and surf my best, improve, and be a sponge. I really wanted to absorb everything, take it all in, and learn a ton. I think that's a large part of why I did so well. I wasn’t worried about my results, I just wanted to surf my best and enjoy myself, and it all worked out.
You made the quarter-finals in the year’s opening event at Snapper, then the semis at the next one at Bells. Were you pinching yourself at how fast your first tastes of success came?
A little bit. I knew how well I could surf, but I also knew I'd be coming up against the high seeds, so I didn't put too much pressure on myself, and didn't have too many expectations. Then I started winning heats, and it was like, "I like this feeling'. Then I started getting more confident. It was a good time.
Mike Parsons, my coach, always told me I'd enjoy Bells, because it suited my surfing. There's so much history behind the contest, and Mick Fanning was retiring there, which was amazing, so I actually think that was my favourite event of the year.
Hacking her way to seventh in the world, Caroline Marks did 2018 in style
© Trevor Moran
Caroline Marks, chucking buckets and making heats
© Trevor Moran
Athough young, Caroline Marks quickly proved she belongs in the big leagues
© Trevor Moran
Caroline Marks backhand blasting en route to Rookie of the Year honours
© Trevor Moran
How did you feel when everyone started calling you Baby Occy?
It's pretty sick, and a huge honour. Occy (1999 world champion Mark Occhilupo) is such an incredible surfer that I take it as a compliment. It's sweet, I like it.
Were there any events that surprised you?
I hadn't been to half of the tour stops on tour, so there were a lot of surprises and new experiences. J-Bay was incredible. I was so curious to see how good that wave is, and it was amazing. I've wanted to surf there forever, and then finding out how cool South Africa on top of it all made it one of my favourite places in the world. I'd been to Bali before, but had only ever surfed Keramas once, and we got it so good during the contest, it was insane.
The wave pool was interesting, wondering how the event would play out and how everyone would handle it. I got a good result there, though, so that all worked out. I was curious about every event, even Snapper, where I've been a bunch over the years.
Snapper with one other person out is a whole new ballgame anyway. It must be confusing having your pick of the waves, as opposed to catching whatever you can with thousands out.
It's so different. Normally, when you paddle out, you don't even check the waves, because what's the point? It's so hard to get waves out there, maybe the hardest place in the world, that you're happy to get the scraps. Then, in a heat, you’re like, 'Wait a minute, I’ve got to think about things here'. My first heat, I wanted to catch everything. I had to remind myself that I was in a heat I wanted to win, and to play it a little smarter.
Obviously you're focused on your own performances, but were there times where you sat back as a fan and watched the show?
Absolutely. I have the same coach as Lakey Peterson, so to see how much work you have to put in to chase a title was really cool. I'm such a fan of her and Steph Gilmore, every girl on tour really, that's it's pretty crazy now I'm trying to beat them all. It was cool to see them go head-to-head all year. The showdown in Maui was rad, and it made for an exciting race. It was awesome to be around that, and I had a good time watching.
You finished seventh last year, which is incredible. What's the goal for 2019?
My end goal is obviously to win a world title, but I'm not worried about this year, next year, or whatever. I know my time will come. I'm just focused on working harder than anyone, and having more fun than anyone. This year, I'd be stoked to make the top five and win a Championship Tour event, but I'm going to keep the same mindset: no pressure, surf well, make good decisions, and enjoy my time. At the same time, I'm going to try and win as many heats as possible, try to be relentless, surf good in every heat, and smash it.
This year, I'd be stoked to make the top five and win a Championship Tour event
Lakey Peterson has been at the forefront of pushing performance levels lately, doing aerials in her heats. Is that something you want to add to your repertoire?
100 percent. Doing airs is one of the things that's really on my mind at the moment. I did some air awareness stuff on the trampoline lately and it’s cool, it’s something I’m focussing on. I've been watching lots of footage of guys like Kolohe Andino, Yago Dora, Gabriel Medina, John John Florence, and Julian Wilson. I could name a ton. I feel like I'm close to the point where I'm confident enough to do them in heats, which is exciting, and a big goal of mine.
You've got a really positive energy that surf fans seem to love. Were you feeling the support last year?
That's so good to hear. I think I'm such a surf-stoked grom that maybe everyone senses it, and enjoys it. I'm just trying to be myself, so I'm really happy if people like that.
