This just in from Steve Gates, one of the Gorge's Big Winds owners and renowned waterman:

Sydney, Australia - Strive Surfboards newest team rider, Jamie Mitchell, earns "Biggest Paddle In" award at the 2011/2012 Surfing Life's Oakley Big Wave Awards. 

After three contests this year, Tahiti's 2011 Surf and SUP champion was crowned in December of 2011 at the Pink Coconut restaurant in the Marina of Punaauia. Naish Tahiti Junior team rider, Raioha Poenaiki took top honors in the Junior division after winning all three contests ahead of O'Neil Massin and Wong Teihotu in third.

New trend is stand-up paddleboarding, in which participants stand on a large board and use a long, oar-like paddle to navigate seas, lakes and rivers.

Vote for Adam Bennetts on Innersection

Andrew Doheny clinched the Oakley Pro Junior, his first ASP Pro Junior victory, over a stacked final field including reigning ASP North America Pro Junior Series Champion Nat Young (Santa Cruz, CA), 18, Dylan Goodale (Kauai, HI), 19, and Tyler Newton (Kauai, HI), 19.

The shop opened in 1993 as a hardware specialist and is now the biggest board/hardware store in the UK, stocking over 500 boards.

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Nat Young Innersection Video

Every trip has it's grom — Nat Young is ours. So of course we had to haze him a bit by not telling him 'til the very last minute that he'd qualified

Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 22, reigning three-time ASP Women's World Champion, has claimed the 2010 Rip Curl Women's Pro presented by Ford Fiesta over opponent Sofia Mulanovich (PER), 26, in a hard-fought Final.

History was made in 1962 when Bill Richards and his three sons, Mark, Kurt, and Eric opened a shop in the San Fernando Valley that was to be the very first inland surf and skateboard shop of the time.