And Koa Smith, Hawaiian-born free-surfer extraordinaire, recently had one of his own Newton-esque epiphanies when it comes to surfboard design, and particularly, the way boards cut through water.

Luckily, finals day was the latter. And Koa Rothman, North Shore native and perennial Pipeline standout, won the individual division with a perfect score. The wave, alone, bagged him $5k ...