Surf's up in Oregon.

Byline: Winston Ross The Register-Guard

PACIFIC CITY - They circle in the water like a shark that's waiting for a fat black sea lion to pop its head up.

Only these hunters are surfers, and their bounty is the fat black peak of a cresting wave, rising up in that surefire way that indicates it will curl at the top and shoot them beachward - or, better yet, propel them to shore in a tunnel, staying just ahead of where the swell turns to messy white water.

This weekend, about 175 surfers will compete in the sixth annual Cape Kiwanda Longboard Classic. The event has been expanded this year to meet demand, but it won't nearly satisfy all the surfers who'd like to compete.

That's because surfing is most certainly up on the Oregon Coast.

Steady swells of southern California refugees are donning high-end, seam-sealed neoprene wet suits and plunging into 52-degree water. The droves include many women, whose interest in the sport has skyrocketed in recent years. And, with the children -and grandchildren - of the Beach Boys generation learning from their elders, surfing has become huge again.

Calling it the third big boom of surfing popularity, Surfer Magazine senior editor Chris Mauro says there are more riders catching the world's waves than ever before.

Depending on whom you ask and how you define surfing (does a boogie

board count?), there are 2 million to 10 million surfers worldwide.

"We've gone from a $1 billion industry 10 years ago to almost a $10 billion industry now," Mauro says.

The boom holds true in Oregon as well, though the state's chilly waters and wind-whacked summertime waves have kept the coast free of overcrowding so far.

But it gets bigger every day, says Michelle Ledbetter, who owns South County Surf in Pacific City with her husband, Bob. The two are putting on this weekend's competition.

In each of the previous five years, the competition has been full - at around 150 people, Ledbetter says. This year organizers added two dozen entry slots and a "vintage" invitational, requiring boards born no later than the 1970s. In all, 174 surfers are signed up, ranging in age from 5 to 63.

There's ample interest for plenty more, Ledbetter says. But there's just not enough time in the day.

"It's exploding," she said of Pacific City's surf scene. "When we came here eight years ago, you were lucky to see one surfer in the water. Now, on a weekend, even through the week in the summer, we'll see 50 to 100 of them.

"It's just crazy. They come from everywhere."

To keep pace, another competition is starting next month, the Rogue First Annual Longboard Classic on Sept. 13 and 14. It's expected to draw about 150 people.

At Friday's vintage invitational, Steve Mikkelson came out of the water and set his 9 foot, 6-inch long Hobie wax side down on the sand. The board is a Corky Carroll model, named for an old-school hot-dogger from the 1960s, world famous in surfing circles. The board is one of about 5,000 left, Mikkelson said. If it were in good condition, he could sell it for $3,000, he figures.

But it's not easy to surf on.

"This thing turns like a '56 Oldsmobile with power steering," Mikkelson says, complaining about the board's agility in the water. But he's here more for camaraderie than victory. Old friends from around the Northwest gather here each year to swap surf tales and ride waves. Winning just means bragging rights.

Some of these old-timers found Oregon's coast 30 years ago. Every day, new people arrive. Surfing first became popular in the 1960s, with icons like Gidget and the Beach Boys, Mauro said. During Vietnam, however, the sport went underground and became a counterculture haven.

The 1980s saw the birth of professional surfing - the sport's second big boom. Then, as grunge took hold of American youth during the early 1990s, surf interest waned.

Now it's back and Mauro credits women for the rise in popularity. He said research shows it's the fastest-growing sport among teen-age girls in America. Part of that can be attributed to movies such as "Blue Crush," and to an increased interest in all kinds of sports, Mauro said.

Technological improvements may also be driving the latest surfing boom: There's finally a comfortable suit to wear in the ocean.

"One of the funny things we attribute this to is the Roxy surf short. Bikinis ride up, but the surf short allows girls to go out, be athletic and be cute and sexy," Mauro said.

And where cute and sexy women go, men are sure to follow. Plus, says Tom McNamara, co-owner of Ocean Pulse Surfboards in Lincoln City, the surf fashion industry has marketed the sport well. Kids think it's cool to look like a surfer, so they'll often actually try to become one.

McNamara's shop, which crafts surfboards and skateboards and also sells skating gear, has seen an increase in board sales of 10 percent to 15 percent in the past year, despite the gloomy economy.

"It means people who are surfing here are getting more serious about it," McNamara said. "It's not just rent a board a couple weekends, and leave it at that. People are deciding they want to invest, to acquire the hard goods."

On Friday, that investment didn't pay huge dividends. With a 7- to 8-foot swell in the forecast, there were rideable waves in the morning, but by afternoon, the surf died down and the surfers bailed out.

Spectators didn't get nearly the show they'd expect in Hawaii, where a tube can wrap itself all the way around a person's body and board.

"It's pretty weak, actually," said Judson Tolman, on vacation from Concord, Calif. He parked himself on the beach Friday to watch. "I haven't seen anything spectacular.

"Of course, what can you do with those waves?"

Locals on the coast aren't discouraged by wimpy waves. They know the surf is at its worst in the summer because a fierce north wind flattens the waves.

It's much better in the fall, but by winter huge storms create gigantic waves that are too dangerous to take on.

Ledbetter takes the fickle waves in stride.

"We're really tickled if we have nice waves if the swell is a good size," she says.

"But even if it isn't, we make the best of it."

SURFIN' FOR SLANG

Still think surfers kick around phrases like "hang ten," "tubular" or "searching for the perfect wave"? Get with the times, dude. Here's a glossary of modern surf-talk:

Take off, take the drop, also drop in: To catch a wave. Requires positioning oneself in the optimum location, split-second timing and powerful strokes to match the speed of the wave as it begins to break. Advanced surfers position themselves to "drop in deep," requiring them to negotiate steep, critical sections to make the wave.

Kick out, pull out: Exiting a wave before it breaks because you know you can't make it, losing your nerve in the face of obstacles such as rocks or other surfers.

Bail out: Like above, only you jump off your board. Inelegant, but sometimes necessary.

Grab the rail: Crouching and holding onto the side of one's board for balance.

Swell: Swell is what causes waves, resulting from distant storms or local "wind swell." The best waves are often the result of a swell that has traveled thousands of miles from a big storm at sea.

Charging: When a surfer rides challenging waves aggressively.

Ripping: Like charging, but with emphasis on high-speed turns and difficult maneuvers.

Stoked: An overused term for excited or enthusiastic.

Killer: Great conditions, waves are firing/peeling.

Peak: A wave, or the part of the wave that rises up (peaks) and breaks in a particular spot rather than in long lines.

Stall: Slowing the board to allow the wave to steepen. A steeper wave allows greater speed and more maneuvers.

Barrel, pit, tube or shack: The inner part of the wave formed when the lip or crest surges horizontally as the wave breaks. Riding in the barrel is something to get "stoked" about.

CAPTION(S):

INSIDE Religion: For some surfers, riding the waves is a spiritual experience / B5