Internationally famous in the surfing community, Bells Beach is
located 100 km south-west of Melbourne, on the Great Ocean Road near
the towns of Torquay and Jan Juc.
Bells Beach is the home of the world’s longest-running surfing
competition – the Rip Curl Pro Surf & Music Festival. The
event was formerly known as the Bells Beach Surf Classic. The
competition was first held in January 1961 and then at Easter every
year since although occasionally, when conditions at Bells aren’t
suitable, the competition has been transferred to other breaks such as
Johanna.
As early as 1939 surfers from Torquay made their way to Bells but
access was a considerable problem until 1960 when Torquay surfers and
Olympic wrestler Joe Sweeney hired a bulldozer and cleared a road along
the Bells cliff from the Cobb & Co Road, where the concrete wave
now stands, down to the beach. He charged one pound per surfer to
recover his expenses. This is now part of the Torquay to Anglesea
walking track.
The beach was ‘featured’ in the final scene of the film
Point Break, however the scene was not filmed there. Bells Beach is a
straight stretch and the beach in the film is a cove with pine trees
atop a hill. The actual location used in the film was Indian Beach, in
Ecola State Park, located in Cannon Beach, Oregon, USA.
Nearby surf breaks include “Southside”,
“Centreside”, “Rincon”, “Winki
Pop”, (Uppers and Lowers), Boobs and Steps. Although Bells is
known internationally as one of the best breaks in Victoria,
“Winki Pop” often works better under more diverse
conditions than the other nearby breaks.
