The Mavericks Surf Contest, held in the treacherous and icy waters north of Half Moon Bay, is the world's greatest big wave surfing contest. The on-again, off-again contest founded by Half Moon Bay surf legend Jeff Clark in 1999, in on again for tomorrow, February 7, 2006.

Forget the four-foot rollers at Ocean Beach, the stylish left-break splendor of Fort Point, or even the creepy minefield of Potato Patch, when it comes to surfing, there is one place in the Bay Area that gets the entire world's attention: Mavericks.

Mavericks break is undeniably one of the most incredible surf spots on the planet, as described by Swell.com: "One of the seven natural wonders of the world, a phenomenon somewhere between Tommy Lee's manhood and Angel Falls, Mavericks is that rarest of things: not just a perfect wave and not just a giant wave but a perfect, giant wave. It's rare when a person or place lives up to the hype, but Mavericks really does. To surf it or see it from the channel or the cliffs on a perfect, giant day is to be held in awe of one of the most amazing waves on Earth."

Majestic, powerful, terrifying, and deadly. In 1994, big-wave icon Mark Foo died while surfing Mavericks.

Because Clark and the other event organizers want only the biggest waves, the contest is scheduled on just 24 hours notice. Between January 1 and March 31 each year, the world's best big-wave riders must be willing to drop everything and rush to the Bay Area as soon as they get the word that the contest is on. We picture each of the contestants receiving a terse, mysterious phone call in the dead of night, like the racers in The Gumball Rally.

Selected by Clark and a poll of Surfer Magazine readers, the 24 balls-out contestants include locals Brock Little, Grant Washburn, Matt Ambrose, Shawn Rhodes, Darryl Virostko (Flea), and Zack Wormhoudt, as well as last year's champ, 20-year old Anthony Tashnick.

The first of the four preliminary heats goes off at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, with the finals tentatively scheduled for 1:30 p.m. For his effort, the winner takes home a chilly $30,000.

Last March, 30,000 incredulous spectators crammed the cliffs around Pillar Point to catch a glimpse of the fearless ones, and Clark and his event organizers are expecting even bigger crowds this year. In keeping with the outdoor spirit, event organizers are working closely with the Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST), the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary (GFNMS), and Clif Bar & Company to ensure a low-impact, "climate-neutral" event. NBC will be there to televise the event for the second year in a row, and local surf-music icons The Mermen (who also get only 24 hours notice for this event) will be on hand to rip some truly shredding tunes. Now if they could only get the Ventures and the Butthole Surfers to show up.