Things not so swell for Red Bull Cape Fear organisers in 2021

The organisers of the Bull Cape Fear event at Shipstern Bluff have made a tough call on this year’s competition.

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POOR swell conditions and Covid-19 border restrictions have prompted organisers of the Red Bull Cape Fear event at Shipstern Bluff to cancel this year’s extreme surfing competition.

Red Bull said that due to the current long-range swell forecast, the window to stage the event closed Saturday instead of August 15 as first planned.

The surf forecast shows Shipstern Bluff will only see swells of between just three feet and eight feet during the next week.

Mark Mathews in action at Red Bull Cape Fear in Tasmania, Australia on May 13, 2019 Picture: Andrew Chisholm

Waves of 15 to 20-foot and above are what organisers were looking for – and for travel restrictions to ease so surfers from all over Australia could compete.

Red Bull prides itself on delivering best-in-class events and up until this point unfortunately we have not seen swell conditions suitable to run the event,” organiser said on their web page.

“Further to this, and most importantly, we have to place the safety of the competitors, our staff and wider community at the forefront, and due to the current Covid-19 situation, we feel we are unable to run the event without compromising this.

“While Red Bull Cape Fear will not go ahead this year, we will continue to bring our consumers world-class events and content across our channels and across Australia in 2021.” Organisers said surf fans could still tune into Red Bull TV and watch past Red Bull Cape Fear action.

Local’s the Hollmer-Cross brothers were invited to compete at Redbull Cape Fear big wave surfing event at Shipsterns Bluff. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Shipstern Bluff is one of the most iconic waves in surfing.

It’s hidden deep in the cracks and crevices of Tasmania, buried at the foot of the towering cliffs from which it is named.

When the right conditions hit and the event was called “on", 23 of Australia’s best slab surfers put up their hands to take on one of the most difficult breaks LIVE on Red Bull TV.