Ramon surfs way to 1st place in Guam’s Ripper Classic

Veteran surfer Frank Ramon surfed his way to first place in the masters division of the Guahan Bodyboarder’s Inc. Ripper Classic last weekend at the Boat Basin in Hagåtña, Guam.

The 49-year-old also won the Best Maneuver award. He was awarded the masters title with the highest score of 8.23 from the judges. Second was Carlo Dela Cruz who whipped up 7.77, while third went to Roman Dela Cruz at 7.26. Fourth was James Song with a score of 6.36.

In the semis, he collected 6.34 points, which was enough to earn him a spot in the finals.

He also joined the men’s open division, but fell short in Round 1.

The operations manager at Skydive Saipan LLC said of his win, “Winning the masters category was overwhelmingly great to bring home something. I feel excited and grateful for the opportunity to compete in Guam.”

He said, throughout his competitions, the conditions weren’t very good. The waves, he said, were a “bit choppy, crumbling, not barreling, and not so clean. We had a bit of rain at the start but then the weather cleared up.”

As for the competition, the Inaugural Boogie Down at Obyan 2022 champion said, “was spectacular. The GBI organizers know how to throw a great event—live streams, big TV screens to show spectators a close-up view of the action. Cool stuff.”

The highlights for him in the tourney was the “warmth, hospitality, and good vibes from the surfing community in Guam. Great people.”

With over 20 years of experience boogie boarding, he said he didn’t prepare much for this competition. He said it was “mostly a regular routine throughout the years by going bodyboarding after work on weekends whenever I can.”

He then gave a big shout out to the Marianas Surf Skate League crew, the Guahan Bodyboarding Inc. guys. “They all know who they are. My teammates [Vicente] Te’ Villagomez, Herman Mau Guerrero, Ed Manibusan, and Dave Cabrera, and especially to our families and friends back in Saipan for all their love and support for making this old guy keep doing what I love doing in the ocean.”

With Ramon in the competition was 2023 Boogie Down at Obyan champion Vicente “Te” Villagomez and Herman “Mä” Guerrero.

They competed in the men’s open division. Guerrero rode the waves into the quarterfinals, but fell short of advancing with a score of 6.17. Meanwhile, Villagomez didn’t make it past round 1 after he scored a 3.67.

The Ripper Classic also had a women’s open division and a drop knee category where the surfers must keep one knee on the bodyboard while surfing.