No Contest explores San Francisco's gritty and committed surf scene

Izzi Gomez: That was my first No Contest trip and it was great. I've always watched the series and hoped to go on one of the trips, and it ended up working out which was cool. I've always loved northern California and we had a great crew with Jamie and Ian, and Ashton was such a great host that it was really fun. I hadn't been there before with anyone local, or someone who really knows the area, so it was nice to be fully immersed in the surf culture and get to know a few people.

For sure. I feel like I know the Santa Cruz region better because I've hung there more in the past, or just stayed at Half Moon Bay. I've been to San Francisco a little, but I'd love to spend more time there now and revisit a few of the spots we looked at during No Contest. There are so many fun waves around there.

We got the full spectrum of conditions too, a couple of days that were pretty cruisy and soft, a few sessions where the current was ripping down the beach and difficult and a couple of waves Ashton took us to that were really fun.

Bianca's really cool. We've known each other for a long time and I've always looked up to her and thought, 'Wow, she really knows how to get barrelled'. Her style backside is insane and there aren't too many women who've done strike missions to Fiji to score massive Cloudbreak before, so I'm stoked to have her in my group of friends. Then to come and spend time in her local zone and hang out with the crew was super fun.

Ian's such a character, he's got such a funny personality. When I transitioned from paddle boarding to big waves I started spending more time on Maui and Ian was one of the people I would be around a lot because we were training in the same places. I was stoked when I heard he was gonna be on the trip, he's such a nice guy and someone I really admire as a surfer and as a human. Ian's awesome.

I remember watching his movie, Distance Between Dreams, for the first time. There's this one scene where he's like hooked up to the VO2 Max machine, then he's paddling as hard as he can in a pool and they're doing all this lung capacity stuff. I was like, if this is what big wave surfing takes, then I don't know, because this is crazy! Ian's been on of my biggest inspirations ever since.

I have this conversation with people around big wave surfing a lot, where I'd say a good percentage, like 70 to 85 percent, are not normal, there's something going on upstairs. And then there's people like Ian and Greg Long, who are very intelligent and calm, and stoic in a way. They're like geniuses, you know? Ian's one of the most methodical people that I know, he's really dialled in when it comes to equipment, and everything really.

Oh, absolutely. There are so many angles you can take as a professional surfer now, and I definitely draw inspiration from guys like Jamie and Kai (Lenny). Personally, Kai was a bit of a catalyst for me realising I could go from SUP to shortboarding, the way he went from windsurfing to big wave. I love seeing people take a path that is a little different, not the norm. That's cool. It's so important to follow your passion and do what you want to do.

It was cool to hang out with Jamie in San Fran. I've known him for a while and have always thought how easy it would be for him to be this cool guy and not give you the time of day, but he's always been so humble and nice and fun to be around.

That's a tough one. I think my trip highlight was the people. Getting to hang out with Bianca was great, and Zoe Chait coming and hanging was awesome too, 'cos there are not many girls surfing Mavericks. And the fact that she was born and raised in Half Moon Bay just makes it even better.

Matty Lopez was there with us, he's a local guy and was really nice. I'd seen him around before so it was really cool to meet him and hang out. And then one of the guys Ashton interviewed on the beach one day might have been a lifeguard back in the day, or an old surfer, and it was awesome to hear his stories from back in the day, like pre-wetsuit and pre-big wave gear. We had some really cool conversations the whole time.

Oh yeah. The food insane. Look, if eating was a sport and I lived in San Francisco, I might just quit surfing!