Energizer

You can feel the energy when you’re near Pat O’Connell.

On this particular day, O’Connell, from Laguna Beach, was trying to harness that power as he prepared for his third-round heat during the U.S. Open of Surfing.

Sometimes, he’s plugged in--he advanced to the quarterfinals last week. Other times, he’s unplugged--he failed to advance to the semifinals.

“It’s been an odd year for me,” O’Connell said. “I started off the year really hot, but after a couple of contests, I started to lose it. Right now, I’m trying to regain what I had at the beginning of the season.

“But that’s been the story of my career: On, off. On, off. On, off. . . . “

O’Connell begins competition today at Huntington Beach in the first round of the Op Pro, the seventh stop of the Assn. of Surfing Professionals’ World Championship Tour.

While O’Connell, 26, has always been a solid surfer, he has never been able to crack the world tour’s top 10. On the tour for six years, his highest ranking came last year, when he was 17th. He’s currently ranked 36th.

In a sport that’s often ruled by youth, O’Connell is aware his window of opportunity is limited.

“Yeah, I think about that and it scares me,” he said. “I know I have a few good years left. But these young kids coming up, they’re doing stuff that’s unbelievable. But I like my career, and I can’t imagine not doing this. But I’m not stupid either, and I know this can’t last forever.”

O’Connell said he would love to get back the feeling he had when he first started surfing. A feeling, he said, that makes him believe he’s 10 years old again.

“Don’t you remember when you were a kid?” he said. “All the things you imagined yourself doing. . . . trying things that you never did before. When you’re a kid, you’re always looking at ways to improve. You’re looking to make that next big step.”

O’Connell is a native of Chicago, where he lived until he was 12. “I knew what surfing was,” he said, “but like most Easterners, the perception of California is that everybody surfs. Of course, I found out that wasn’t true when I moved out here with my family.”

His family moved to Newport Beach, where they lived for eight months, then to Laguna Niguel. “I lived close to Salt Creek,” O’Connell said, “and I remember racing home and racing my friend, Vince, to see who could get their wetsuit on, get their board and get to the beach first.”

O’Connell had been an avid soccer player, but it became apparent surfing was his newfound love.

“I was really into soccer when I was younger. I was pretty good at it,” he said. “In Chicago I played on a traveling club team. But there came the day when I started to skip soccer practice so I could go surfing. And that’s when I knew what I wanted to do.”

Though surfing consumed his life, O’Connell says he is grateful for the sport.

“I had good friends in surfing,” he said. “It kept me out of trouble and it helped me keep afocus in my life. It saved me in a lot of ways.”

A few years on the world tour can change anybody--some develop huge egos, others become jaded or even cynical, while still others give up on their dreams--but O’Connell has managed to stay upbeat.

“He’s probably the most well-liked guy on the tour,” said Ian Cairns, tournament director for U.S. Surfing. “There’s not one person I can think of who would have a bad thing to say about Pat. He’s always up. He’s always there with a smile.”

Even after his loss last week, O’Connell mingled with friends, talked with fans and signed autographs.

“I know some guys might [complain] and moan about the contest they have to do, the traveling and the never-ending hassles with the sponsors. But look at this,” said O’Connell, taking in the beach scene with a sweep of his arm. “It’s a great way to make a living, which is one of the big reasons I don’t want it to end.”

O’Connell has no illusions about where he stands in surfing’s pecking order. In fact, he’ll be the first to tell you he’s not on the same level as world champion and friend Kelly Slater.

But like Slater, who starred in “Baywatch” for one season, O’Connell, too, has been in front of the cameras. He starred in “The Endless Summer II,” a 1994 film that was a sequel to Bruce Brown’s popular “Endless Summer” movie of 1966.

The sequel, which starred O’Connell and longboard surfer Robert (Wingnut) Weaver of Santa Cruz chronicled their two-year, seven-country quest for the perfect wave.

“I guess they were thinking of using Kelly Slater for my role,” O’Connell said. “That’s when I said to myself, ‘No way, man, you can forget being in this movie.’ But after I met the people who were making it, they liked me and they offered me the role.

“It was early in my career and there were concerns the film might take too long and have an impact on my then-new professional career,” he said. “But it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had.

“I’ve now considered doing more acting, maybe even take some acting lessons.”

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Surfing Contest

* What: Op Pro

* When: Today-Sunday

* Where: South side of the Huntington Beach Pier, Pacific Coast Highway and Main Street

* Basics: The 17th annual contest is the only U.S. stop on the Assn. of Surfing Professionals World Championship Tour. Competition will feature the highest-ranking 44 men and 11 women in a series of elimination heats that eventually will earn the Op Pro men’s champion $15,000 and the Women’s Classic champion $8,000. One of today’s heats includes three-time world champion Tom Curren, 34, of Laguna Hills and Florida’s Kelly Slater, 29, who is a five-time world champion and the top all-time money winner in professional surfing.

* Today’s schedule: 7-8:40 a.m.--women’s surfing Round 1, heats 1-4; 8:40 a.m.-3:20 p.m.--men’s surfing Round 1, heats 1-16.

* Admission: Free

* Parking: Paid parking in lots by the pier and in the downtown area.

* Information: (888) 672-6737, Ext. 224

* Web site: https://www.surflink.com