ARRIVALS

It’s still pretty mind-blowing when you think about it; 45 athletes meeting in a tiny village on the equator each May, and pretty much all arriving on the same day.

Like most tour destinations, everyone wants to wash away the film of muck one acquires on a plane flight, and accustomise to the time-zone and the break as soon as possible.

But Teahupoo’s different, after surfing the last event in blustery Victoria and with many of the pros surfing in wetsuits at home during the break, it’s now time to check in to (umm, a staunchly hetero) Club Tropicana and cut loose in boardies, tan the stilts, and blow the back out of any coral peeler that comes your way.