Crosby Colapinto. Photo: Courtesy.
By Jake Howard
Grom of the Week props go out to 15-year-old Crosby Colapinto. A beacon of stoke to the young and frothing in San Clemente, last weekend Crosby rallied the troops at the 2016 Rip Curl GromSearch National Championships. As much a motivator as he was a competitor, he ended up finishing third in the Boys Under 14 division (he was 14 when he qualified for the GromSearch final). In the closest final of the event, he slipped in less than two points behind runner-up and fellow San Clemente ripper Kade Matson and Hawaii’s Malakai Martinez.
Surfing well above his age group, Colapinto picked up a third place finish earlier in the month in the Under 18 division of the Surfing America Prime contest at San Onofre. Coming off of his national title performance in the Under 16s last summer, he’s currently sitting eighth in the Surfing America West Coast ratings.
To say performance surfing runs deep in the Colapinto family is an understatement. The family runs a surf camp and private surf school in town, and older brother Griffin, already a national champion, is on track to become one of America’s brightest world tour prospects in the years to come. No doubt Crosby won’t be far behind him.
If you know a grom in Dana Point, San Clemente or San Juan Capistrano that we should feature in our Grom of the Week section, send a name and parent’s contact info to editorial@danapointtimes.com.