Natural Selection contest heads to South Africa in September - Tracks Magazine
Last year's winner Milla Coco Brown is set to return. Surfing's elite will face off during a ten day mission across remote South Africa. News•09. 07. 2026• BYJake StolteReading Time:< 1minuteOne of surfing’s. . .
Last year's winner Milla Coco Brown is set to return. Surfing's elite will face off during a ten day mission across remote South Africa. News•09. 07. 2026• BYJake StolteReading Time:< 1minuteOne of surfing’s most innovative contests is heading back into the wilderness. After a hugely successful debut last year, Natural Selection will return this September for a 10-day strike mission through the remote coastlines of South Africa, where a handpicked field of elite surfers will face off at a variety of setups. Natural Selection made an immediate impression in surfing with its inaugural event in Micronesia, where a remote, ruler-edged right-hander delivered sketchy, overhead barrels with ribbed faces, chandeliers and pinching sections. It was a contest that felt less like a traditional event and more like a strike mission in a jersey, rewarding commitment, creativity and the ability to perform under pressure in an unforgiving environment. The concept is the brainchild of snowboarding icon, Travis Rice, who decided to go a little more ‘off-piste’ with an event in 2021. Originally, Rice took some of the world’s gnarliest snowboarders dropped them in the middle of nowhere and invited them to prove their worth by essentially dodging death. He then plugged that format into surfing last year and hit play. Rather than returning to a single wave, this year’s competitors will spend a week chasing a variety of setups across South Africa. As with previous Natural Selection events, surfers will be judged using the tour’s CREDO scoring system, which rewards creativity, risk, execution, difficulty and overall impression over conventional heat tactics. Defending champions Milla Coco Brown and Soli Bailey return to defend their crowns, joined by 2025 finalists Kirra Pinkerton, Noah Beschen and Eithan Osborne, who’ll all be looking to go one better this time around. The remaining invitees and wildcard selections will be announced next month ahead of the September waiting period. SUBSCRIBE TO TRACKSA bi-monthly eclectic tome of tangible surfing goodness that celebrates all things surfing, delivered to your door!SUBSCRIBE NOWSUBSCRIBE TO TRACKSAn eclectic tome of tangible surfing goodness that celebrates all things surfing, delivered to your door!SUBSCRIBE NOWLATESTNews•Jake Stolte•09. 07. 2026Surfing's elite will face off during a ten day mission across remote South Africa. Film•Jake Stolte•08. 07. 2026A small time capsule of XL caverns, death-defying slabs and big waves most surfers don't want a part of. News•Jake Stolte•07. 07. 2026A four day mechanical tube marathon at an undiscovered sandbar. A Morocco trip where nothing clicked. News•Jake Stolte•07. 07. 2026Round one wildcard match ups don't get any harder than this. Load MorePREMIUM FEATURESThis category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasingANNUAL DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION,MONTHLY PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION,Annual Premium Subscription Offer,Annual Premium Subscription,Annual Premium Subscription,Annual Premium Subscription – 2 Years, No,Annual Premium Subscription – 1 Year, No,Annual Premium Subscription Offer – 1 Year (5 Issues),,Annual Premium Subscription Offer – 2 Years (10 Issues),,Annual Premium Subscription – 1 Year, Yes,Annual Premium Subscription – 2 Years, YesorMONTHLY DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION. BY Luke Kennedy. Photographed by Andrew Shield. Soli Bailey and Sheldon Simkus on the hunt for unmarked treasure. 606 •BY Luke Kennedy. Photographed by Andrew Quilty. Sydney surfer, Andrew Quilty, went to war-torn Afghanistan to photograph a cricket team. Eight years later he was still there. BY Shane Fletcher. Photographed by Hayden O'Neill. Soli Bailey, Dakoda Walters, Harley Walters & Zac Skyring chase hollow dreams. 606 •BY & photographed by Laura Wilson & Ben HerrgottAn 8,000km bike ride through Europe and Africa with surfboards in tow. TRACKS PREMIUMGet full access to every feature from our print issues, read classic Tracks issues from the 70s, 80s and 90’s, watch all of our classic films & more …TRACKS PREMIUMGet full access to every feature from our print issues, read classic Tracks issues from the 70s, 80s and 90’s, watch all of our classic films & more …CLASSIC ISSUESThis category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasingANNUAL DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION,MONTHLY PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION,Annual Premium Subscription Offer,Annual Premium Subscription,Annual Premium Subscription,Annual Premium Subscription – 2 Years, No,Annual Premium Subscription – 1 Year, No,Annual Premium Subscription Offer – 1 Year (5 Issues),,Annual Premium Subscription Offer – 2 Years (10 Issues),,Annual Premium Subscription – 1 Year, Yes,Annual Premium Subscription – 2 Years, YesorMONTHLY DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION. PREMIUM FILMThis category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasingANNUAL DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION,MONTHLY PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION,Annual Premium Subscription Offer,Annual Premium Subscription,Annual Premium Subscription,Annual Premium Subscription – 2 Years, No,Annual Premium Subscription – 1 Year, No,Annual Premium Subscription Offer – 1 Year (5 Issues),,Annual Premium Subscription Offer – 2 Years (10 Issues),,Annual Premium Subscription – 1 Year, Yes,Annual Premium Subscription – 2 Years, YesorMONTHLY DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION. YEAR: 2008STARRING: JOEL PARKINSON, MICK FANNING AND DEAN MORRISONThis is the last time the original cooly kids were captured together and features some of their best surfing. Their rivalry helped push each of them onto the world stage but their friendship endured. This is the last time the original cooly kids were captured together and features some of their best surfing. A film by Shaggadelic ProductionsYEAR: 2011STARRING: DAVID RASTOVICH, OZZIE WRIGHT, CRAIG ANDERSON, RY CRAIKE, DEAN MORRISON & MORESeven free surfers embark on a voyage to boldly go where no man had gone before. Seven free surfers embarked on a voyage to boldly go where no man had gone before. Not that long ago, in an island chain far, far away, seven free surfers embarked on a voyage to boldly go where no man had gone before. Equipped with an array of surfboards, a packet of crayons and two ukuleles, their chances of success were slim. In pursuit of perfection, they were forced to navigate under the radar of a fleet of imperial boat charters. Despite numerous obstacles, the rebel alliance of wave-riding beatniks continued to make GalactikTracksinto a new surfing cosmos; their search for a Nirvana reaching its climax when they arrived at… The Island of Nowhere. A film by Tom JenningsYEAR: 2014STARRING: DAVE RASTOVICHThe film features the enigmatic and free-thinking Dave Rastovich at home on the Far North Coast of NSW. Gathering is a short film from independent filmmaker Nathan Oldfield, the creator of the award-winning left of centre surf films Lines From a Poem, Seaworthy and The Heart & The Sea. The film features the enigmatic and free-thinking Dave Rastovich at home in the sacred playgrounds of the Far North Coast of New South Wales. The film explores Rastovich’s ideas around how the tension between the industrial and the natural in the surfing world unfolds in that place. Ultimately, Gathering celebrates how diversity and difference in ecosystems, relationships and surfing contribute to the preciousness of life. Gathering is easy on the eyes and ears and Tracks Magazine is proud to present it to you. Nathan Oldfield is a maverick, a filmmaker who wants a surf movie to say something important, to move us and make us grateful for the sea around us and the life within us. His films are quiet, beautiful and brimming with sacred purpose. Tim Winton, Acclaimed Australian NovelistYEAR: 2015STARRING: MIKEY WRIGHT, LOUIE HYND, OWEN WRIGHT, CREED MCTAGGART & CAST OF THOUSANDSIn this quintessentially Australian film, the two friends ride waves with the nation’s best surfers. From dreamy, north coast points to nights beneath starlit desert skies follow Luke Hynd and Mikey Wright as they embark on a surfing odyssey. In this quintessentially Australian film, the two friends ride waves with the nation’s best surfers, down beers with cantankerous locals and visit some of the more innocuous nooks of the continent’s rugged fringes. Wanderlust lets you rediscover the country and the coastline you love. Be careful, you might even be inspired to toss it all in and embark on your own journey around The Great Southern Land. PRINT STOREUnmistakable and iconic, the Tracks covers from the 70s & 80s are now ready for your walls. STAY IN THE LOOPSign up to our newsletter & get social