Date of Birth: January 5, 1985

Best Known For: Laybacks

Local Spot: H.B. Pier

My Crew: SWard, Guilmette, all the D.S.C. boys and HB boyz?

Board of Choice: 6'2" x 18.5" x 2.25" by Hamish Graham (Superstix)? 

Dream Wave: 4 to 6 feet, take-off barrels on reef with a long wall and the end section ramp on sand. Yewwww?

Hurley’s Brett Simpson goes for the repeat

Hurley team riders and Huntington Beach locals Brett Simpson, Brad Ettinger and Christian Saenz have been nominated for the Orange County Register’s 2010 OC Surfer of the Year. Brett looks to follow up on last year’s memorable summer, where he won the US Open of Surfing, OC Surfer of the Year and qualified for the ASP World Tour. Brad Ettinger joins Brett in the Male Surfer of the Year category while Christian Saenz looks to take home the OC Rising Star award. Make sure to vote for the Hurley guys before the contest ends July 30.

Judging by the vote count, Simpo might not even need you help. But by registering to vote Simpo, Ettinger and Christian for OC Surfer of the Year, you are automatically entered to win a new 2010 Subaru Outback – incentive doesn’t get much better than that.

Log on now to cast you vote for OC Surfer of the Year here.

Christian Saenz

Brad Ettinger

Brett Simpson advances into Round 3 of the Jeffreys Bay Billabong Pro. Ace Buchan, already through to Round 4.

Fresh off a Round 2 victory over Jeremy Flores, Brett sets his sights on a solid finish at JBay. We were able to catch up with Brett to find out how things are going down in South Africa and to see what the ASP rookie thinks of the 2010 World Tour thus far. Simpo walks us through his year and explains how it can only get better from here. - Phil Bannan

HURLEY.COM: HOW HAS YOUR EXPERIENCE BEEN AS A ROOKIE ON THE ASP WORLD TOUR SO FAR?
BRETT SIMPSON: It’s been good. I missed some opportunities in the last few contests. I feel like I should have been doing better. I think I’ve been over thinking it and can definitely surf better than I have been. I’m still learning and trying to find my groove within the tour. Hopefully I can keep this streak going at JBay and get back in rhythm. I was surfing some great waves during the break the past two months. I’m excited to get back into it.

THAT’S GOOD YOU CAN TAKE OUT A POSTITIVE FROM THE FIRST FEW CONTESTS, KNOWING THAT YOU HAVEN’T BEEN SURFING YOUR BEST AND CAN PERFORM BETTER IN THESE NEXT FEW EVENTS.
Yeah, for sure. I have two 17ths and a 33rd. In a way, my goal is to get at least a 9th place finish here at JBay, because that would help my situation a lot. You definitely still want to look beyond that and finish higher, but for now I’m looking to set a different standard and hopefully stay consistent through an event.

HOW DID THE BREAK FROM TOUR TREAT YOU?
It was great. I had almost two months off to travel and turn off the competitive engines. I went on a boat trip for ten days with Pat and Tanner Gudauskas, Nate Yeomans, Mike Losness, Eric Geiselman and Alex Gray. It was amazing. Everyone got along and we scored some perfect waves. From there, I went to the Hurley house in Bali and stayed for about two weeks over there. We scored some good Padang Padang the first day and had fun waves the rest of the trip. It was nice to relax. But now, it’s all about JBay.

HAVE YOU BEEN TO JBAY BEFORE THIS CONTEST? HOW HAS THE EXPERIENCE BEEN SO FAR?
Yeah, I’ve been here before with the Huntington Beach High surf team. We didn’t get amazing waves, but it was definitely fun. JBay is a tricky wave. You can easily see if someone makes a mistake and it can also bring out the flaws in your surfing. It’s a long right hand point break and I feel like it suits my surfing well. I was able to get some good warm-up sessions in by coming a week early, so hopefully I can keep making it through my heats.

WHAT ABOUT THE FOLLOWING CONTEST AT TEAHUPOO? HAVE YOU SURFED THERE BEFORE?
I’ve never surfed there. It’s one of the spots I’m a little more anxious about. It’s definitely a wave with consequence. In Indo, we surfed a few solid left-handers so I’m feeling somewhat comfortable going into it. Hopefully the waves are good for the contest. I’m excited to surf with only two guys out there in some heavier conditions. We’re going to get barreled, so I’m pretty stoked.

WITH THE TOUR DROPPING FROM 45 TO 32 AT THE HALFWAY POINT AFTER TEAHUPOO, WHAT IS IT LIKE BEING ONE OF THE SURFERS ON THE BUBBLE WITH A CHANCE OF BEING KNOCKED OFF?
The last contest in Brazil, I never got going with any good waves and it felt like I chose the wrong equipment. That was frustrating to let that opportunity to slip by, but it’s past me now and I’m looking forward to making some heats these next two contests. I will need some good results to stay on the tour after the halfway cut.

After Teahupoo there’s going to be a line drawn to see who gets to stay on tour. Everyone will be going for it and pushing the limits out there. There will be some pretty heavy wipeouts with guys trying to make it through their heats (laughs). So that will be a good one.

WELL WE LOOK FORWARD TO WATCHING YOU IN YOUR NEXT FEW HEATS AND AT THE NEXT CONTEST IN TEAHUPOO. GOOD LUCK BRETT.
Thanks. I appreciate it.

Stay tuned as Brett Simpson looks to make it through his Round 3 match up against Michel Bourez once competition resumes. Brett would join fellow Hurley team rider, Ace Buchan, in Round 4 of the Jeffreys Bay Billabong Pro.

Ace Buchan en route to a Round 3 heat win

Rob, Ace, Brett, Conner and Mitch Crews have a free-for-all. Video: Tom Aiello

Rob, Ace, Yadin and Brett do some RandD on the Bukit Peninsula. Video: Tom Aiello

Check the first in our Champs series leading up to this year's US Open of Surfing. For more, go to www.usopenofsurfing.com. Video: PK

A few images from the annual gathering in Cabo. Photos: Kevin Voegtlin

SIMA's annual Surf Summit is many things to many people. For some, it's an excuse to surf for four straight days. For others, it's an excuse to tie on the bandana and take advantage of the all-you-can-drink bar. And for many, it's an opportunity to connect with others and learn something about our ever-evolving industry. But for the majority, it's most likely a little bit of all of these. Here are just a few Hurley photographic highlights from this past week in Cabo. Stay tuned for more as they arrive in our Inbox. 

Rob Machado closes out the event with a chat with 1989 world champ Martin Potter. 

Pottz, Fernando Aguerre and Rob. 

Yadin, Brett and Jim, Tracy and Brittany Heritage. 

Ace, ASG President Norb Garrett, our boy Saxon and Fisher King Paul Gomez. 

Right to left: Pat O, Web, Jenna, Yadin and some guy called Bootleg. 

The King of Surf City weighs in on his submission for Taylor Steele's next movie

Looking at your section now and stacking it up against the competition, are you satisfied with it?
I beileve so! There's definitely some great sections and cool manuvers but i think in the whole scheme of things ours turned out well. Magnificent editing with amping music with some good surfing. I'm confident in our part.

What was the hardest thing about making this part for Innersection?
Well, in our case it was a bit last minute but it turned out to be alot of fun. i just made a goal out of it and did my best and get it as complete as i could with the time we had. Variety for me and i think in anyone's case dealing with only about a month to put it together would be the main struggle. Even though we went throughout Australia and made it happen.

How long did it take and how involved were you in the edit?
Well, we were in Australia for about a month and did as much as we could. We did a bit on the Goldcoast, West Aus and the Victoria area. I wasn't too much involved in the editing side with Tom Aiello but i trust him and his work 100%. It turned out even better than i was expecting. He has done an awesome job. I did pick and choose some waves i did and didn't like but when it came down to it, I let the brains do the job.

Is dance/electronica the new go-to track for surf vids?
I'm not really sure. The music side definitely goes in phases. I really think it all depends on how you surf and what fits your style the best. Our pick was a La Roux remix that was a bit more electronica but i felt it fit well and got ya excited to go for a surf!. That's what i think it all comes down to.

What's your favorite clip in your part?
I can't really pick just one. It's a package deal.

Who helped make your part possible?
I'd have to say Hurley for letting Tom Aiello come over to Aus and getting to work with him was great. And thanks Tom for dedicating his time and effort in filming and editing every little bit.

If you had a campaign slogan, what would it be?
 I'm a great white you's a flounder!

Go here to vote for Brett.

Four Hurley riders gunning for the Top 5 on Innersection.tv

Taylor Steele's new video concept, Innersection, currently has its second round of submissions posted and Hurley guys are all over it. Here's how Innersection works: over the course of the year, dozens of top surfers — both known and unknown — post their two-minute "parts" to Innersection.tv. Those parts are then praised, bashed and voted on, to be considered for the "Final Cut." At the end of the two-week voting period, a Top Five will go on to be a part of Taylor's next big film. It's a great idea that's already capturing the imaginations of forward-thinking surfers and filmmakers the world over.

Four of those surfers are Hurley family members, and they've been deep in the woodshed the past couple of months making the best video possible. All that hard work is now live on the site, and they need your help. Here's the lineup and links for each video. Also, stay tuned for interviews from each guy on the making of their part.

1. Pete Devries: an all-coldwater shredfest in and around the rugged Vancouver Island. Pete's video stands out big time and is the current leader. Go here to watch and vote.

2. Brett Simpson: Brett and Hurley's Tom Aiello spent two months in Oz putting his part together and the results are amazing. Slick-edited with World Tour-caliber surfing, Brett needs your vote to push it into the Top 5. Go here to vote.

3. Evan Geiselman: EG goes for it both in and out of the water, with a classic skit and some huge, signature air reverses. Evan also shows that he's not afraid to pull in. Go here to vote.

4. Conner Coffin: At only 16 years of age, Coffin is one of the younger Innersection candidates. But his rail surfing is well beyond his years, as his is choice in music. Coffin has the best song of the entire bunch. Go here and let the world know he belongs in the Top 5.

This is rally time. Forward this to your friends. Lean on your social networks. Tell your Internet-savvy grandma. The more votes, the better and you can vote for all of 'em. In our eyes, they all deserve 10 stars.

Video highlights from Saturday's Phantom party at Irvine Spectrum. Video: PK

Simpo, Guilmette and The Hurley Sliders discover "The Combo Swell." Photos: Michael Lallande