Red Bull 2009 - Trestles

2008 Red Bull Team Photo

Satellite High Repeats as Central Florida Champs

Satellite High School emerged victorious for the second year in a row as The Red Bull Riders Cup Central Florida Regional Champs.

Satellite High’s depth, experience and use of modern technology contributed to their win over Cocoa Beach High in the final. Head coach George Seguna debuted their new radio helmets that allows the head coach to communicate directly with each player from the beach, similar to the quarter-back in football receiving plays from the coach on the sideline.

Red Bull Riders Cup 2009

Red Bull Surf Challenge 2008

Scorpions take back the beach

Satellite beats defending champ Cocoa Beach in Red Bull event

BY JOHN CALKINS • FLORIDA TODAY • April 25, 2008

And call Satellite Beach's high school surfing team the best in Brevard.

The Scorpions won the Red Bull High School Surf Challenge on Thursday, defeating defending champion Cocoa Beach in a high-scoring match at Pelican Park Beach.

"We're ecstatic," said Satellite Beach coach George Segunda, who got an icy bath from the cooler after his team won. "Our guys deserve this, they've worked so hard."

Surfing at their backyard beach, the Scorpions performed almost flawlessly, racking up big wave after big wave and high score after high score and beat the Minutemen 71.8-65 in the X Games-style scoring system, a team format that is divided into three timed periods.

The Scorpions said it helped surfing at their home beach.

"We practice here, and we know the breaks, and we know what waves to take and which ones not to," said sophomore Peter Polanski, who was named the MVP of the match. "So we had an advantage for sure."

Polanski was easily the best surfer on Thursday and had the two highest scores of the day, including a monster score of 9.3 in the first period.

"It was a right," Polanski said. "I just made a couple of nice turns and got some good air and landed it."

When the Scorpions clinched their victory, Segunda and another Satellite Beach surfer carried Polanski back to him team as the large, pro-Satellite Beach crowd applauded.

"Peter was unstoppable today," Segunda said. "He surfed solid all day long."

Satellite Beach led after all three periods and Cocoa Beach, which scored high in every period, just couldn't keep up.

"We had a big boost of confidence surfing here," said Chris Tucker, a freshman on the Satellite Beach team. "And we took advantage of that and just had fun and surfed well."

Going into the final period, the Scorpions led by 10 points and needed just 14 points to win the match.

And it didn't take long.

About two minutes into the 12-minute period, Tucker scored a 6.5 on a wave that clinched the victory.

"Before they went out in the final period, I just told them to stay focused, pick out the best waves and make sure you finish your maneuvers," Segunda said. "And they listened, apparently."

With the win, Satellite Beach earned itself a trip to San Clemente, California to compete in the national Red Bull High School Surf Challenge event competition, which is scheduled for June 13-15.

The Scorpions are confident they can contend out West, and they'll do so against seven other schools from Florida, eight from New Jersey and dozens from California.

"We will definitely compete, no doubt about that," Segunda said. "And I'm going to train them really hard over the next month to make sure."

The surfers said they can't wait to surf the California waves.

"We are all so psyched," Tucker said. "Just knowing we're going to Cali with all our buddies, it's just awesome."

Sebastian Inlet Contest April 19, 2008

Waves of success

Scorpions dominate high school surfing competition

BY JOHN CALKINS • FOR FLORIDA TODAY • April 20, 2008

Surfing is not recognized as an official high school sport in the state of Florida.

But don't tell that to the nearly 60 high school surfers who participated in Saturday's high school surfing competition at Sebastian Inlet. Fifty-five surfers from five high schools -- Satellite, Melbourne, Cocoa Beach, Jupiter and Martin County -- entered into the event, which held competitions for varsity boys, junior varsity boys and one combined girls category.

"Surfing may not be a recognized sport in high school, but that doesn't stop us," said George Seguna, Satellite's surf coach, who also helped organize Saturday's event. "But hopefully we'll change that -- that's our goal."

Seguna's Satellite team dominated the event, claiming the boys varsity and girls titles.

Peter Polanski, a sophomore, won the boys varsity title, beating out favorites like Tommy Orsini of Satellite. But that doesn't mean Polanski was surprised to win.

"I came to win, it was my goal," he said. "I'm stoked."

Fellow Scorpion surfer Anne Snyder, however, said she was surprised to place first.

"I definitely didn't expect it," said Snyder, a senior.

She said one wave stuck out in the final heat.

"I remember this huge wave, and usually I don't go when they're that big, and I kept debating whether I should go or not and then I just decided, 'I'll just go,' " she said. "And I actually stuck it."

Zack Snow, a freshman at Melbourne High, won the boys junior varsity event. The inlet cooperated beautifully, producing huge swells that created consistent five-foot waves.

"These are really fun conditions," Seguna said. "Couldn't ask for better. The surfers were actually getting some tube rides."

Seguna said his ultimate goal is for surfing to be recognized as a high school sport. As it is now, he receives no financial help from the school or the state and relies on outside sponsors to financially support events like Saturday's.

Given the area's surfing history, Seguna is optimistic his goal will be realized soon.

"Obviously, we have a huge surfing community here," he said. "And with surfers like Kelly Slater and C.J. Hobgood, there's like nine world titles just from this area. It just makes sense for this area for surfing to be recognized."

Seguna pointed to California, where students receive physical education credits for surfing, as an example of what he would like to see here.

"The east coast is 10 years behind California right now," he said. "We want to be recognized, we want the principals of schools to come out and cheer for surfing like they do for football and basketball and baseball. Most of these surfers out here today don't play those other sports. They surf."

See all of the Pictures by Erin Smith:

Sebastian 4-19-08

Satellite High claims Red Bull Riders Cup Central Florida













Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 25 April, 2008 : - - Santa Monica, Ca -- The Red Bull Riders Cup hit Central Florida this week as Satellite High took the win becoming the Central Florida Red Bull Riders Cup regional champions. The eight regional finalists travel to California where they will compete at the Red Bull Riders Cup National Championships June 13-15 at San Onofre State Beach in San Clemente.

The third annual Red Bull Riders Cup, formally known as Red Bull High School Cup, will take the games Los Angeles from May 6-7. Invited high schools are Carpenteria High, Ventura High, Malibu High School and Palisades High.

To follow Red Bull Riders Cup go to redbullsurfing/riderscup.com

Games Scores

Central Florida Game #1 P1 P2 P3 Final
Satellite High 22.5 23.5 19.5 65.5^
Melbourne High 21.5 17.1 19.5 58.1

Central Florida Game #2 P1 P2 P3 Final
Sebastian River High School 12.7 18.8 16.2 47.7
Cocoa Beach High School 17.7 24.5 18.5 60.6^

Central Florida Game #3Regional Finals P1 P2 P3 Final
Cocoa Beach High School 21 20 24 65
Satellite High 24.7 26.6 20.5 71.8^
Most Valuable Player – Pete Polanski, Satellite High
Most Radical Maneuver – Chris Tucker, Satellite High

First AAU Surfing Contest 13 Oct

The First High School AAU Surfing contest will be held October 13th at Pelican Beach Park in Satellite Beach, FL