New-Wave Kids

Carissa Moore expresses shyness not often associated with athletes of her caliber. She buries her face in a towel during an interview, looks down while giving answers, some of which are barely audible.

She is, after all, only 12, a bright-eyed kid with braces who “gets nervous in my tummy” when confronted with daunting challenges.

But Moore is different on a surfboard, bold and dynamic. She won the prestigious Open Women’s Division last summer at the National Scholastic Surfing Assn. championships, and will defend her crown beginning June 23 at Lower Trestles in San Clemente.

The seventh-grader from Honolulu has defeated pro tour veterans in major contests. She routinely beats older rivals in amateur events.

Riding a parallel wave of success, though amid far less fanfare, is Courtney Conlogue of Santa Ana.

Separated in age by only two days, each is a winner in her division -- Hawaiian and Southwest -- and they appear headed for their first showdown at the nationals.

Experts say it will be the first of many showdowns, the beginning of a rivalry that will last into adulthood, shape their lives and define their character, even if they’re too young to realize it yet.

That’s where this gets tricky. There’s still so much growing up to do. The nurturing of their careers is a delicate matter neither the parents nor the managers wish to spoil.

These kids head a short list of surfers regarded as next-generation stars. They’re already performing razor-sharp cutbacks, board slides, even aerials and 360s.

And they’re openly being touted as future world champions.

Whether this is fair to them is debatable. Expectations from the companies that pay their high-five-figure salaries are sure to increase. There are parents to please, and there will be more scrutiny from media and fans.

Becoming a world champion, Moore said, is “something I’ve wanted since a long time ago.”

She was the toast of the beach when she won a first-round heat during the recent SG Lowers Pro, a four-star Assn. of Surfing Professionals’ World Qualifying Series event at Lower Trestles. Having been entered as a wild card based on her NSSA nationals triumph, she outpointed, among others, world champion Sofia Mulanovich, who afterward called Moore “an amazing surfer who can beat anybody.”

But Moore was in tears and sought the comfort of her father’s arms when she failed to advance beyond the second round.

Conlogue was just as upset at being denied a wild-card entry but managed a smiling face as a spectator. During the contest, someone pointed to Moore on a wave and told Conlogue, in essence, “There’s your rival for as long as you’ll be surfing.”

Conlogue, despite her longtime “dream” of becoming a champion, had never looked at Moore that way. The two aren’t close friends, but they like each other.

“The pressure is there from the media and the sponsors,” said Susan Izzo, founder and chief executive of Mosaic Management, an Encinitas agency that represents action-sports athletes, including Conlogue. “They’re not saying the surfers have to win a WQS event. They may hope it, but they’re not expressing that.

“But children pay attention to their surroundings. They wonder, ‘Why am I getting all this attention? Why does this person want to interview me? If I keep doing well, people will like me, and if I don’t people will not like me.’ ”

Tracey Conlogue says that her daughter, an A-student, is not fazed by the hype and, like Moore, is driven by the prospects of becoming a world champion. It’s her choice, not that of her parents.

Danielle Beck, a senior marketing manager for Roxy, says the company signed Moore when she was 7 and since has repeatedly assured her and her father, Chris, that she’s under no pressure to perform and that she’ll be allowed to develop at a comfortable pace. Letting young athletes compete in pro-level contests, such as the SG Lowers Pro, gives them valuable experience, Beck says. It’d be unrealistic to expect them to win.

“We’re here to push them but not too far. The last thing we want is for them to burn out,” said Beck, who added that Roxy went through the same thing with Mulanovich and Chelsea Georgeson, best friends who are ranked first and second in the world, respectively.

Besides, Beck says, Moore doesn’t need pushing. Surfing is her passion and all of her close friends are surfers. In 2003, she made her first big splash beyond amateur circles. She was awarded a sponsor wild-card entry for the four-star Roxy Pro Haleiwa on Oahu’s North Shore. It was stormy and big. Moore took a pounding but won a heat that included Serena Brooke, then ranked fourth in the world. Moore lost in the quarterfinals, but the experiment was deemed a success.

Conlogue, a former Roxy athlete who now rides for Billabong, has also enjoyed WQS success. She advanced to the semifinals of last year’s four-star Hello Kitty Boardfest at Huntington Beach and is eager to prove that she has vastly improved since losing in the semifinals of last year’s NSSA nationals.

“She’s taking it one contest at a time,” said her mother, Tracey.

That is Moore’s philosophy too. As for the nervousness in her tummy, it usually subsides once she has caught a wave or two.

“I try not to think about it,” she said, bashfully. “I just do my best and try to have fun.”