The Rip Curl Pro Search 2011 surfing contest started Tuesday at Ocean Beach in San Francisco.
Click on the photo to the right to see photos from the surf contest.
Sunny skies and an offshore breeze greeted the 36 professional surfers and the hundreds of spectators who flocked to the beach to watch the competition.
There was one incident in the morning when a contestant left the contest in the middle of a heat, saying he saw a shark. It was not confirmed immediately if it was a shark or a dolphin and the contest continued.
