It’s 6:30am on the 11th of September when I tune into Day 1 of the Hurley Pro at Trestles. Being super excited to watch some action packed heats I made myself some vegemite on toast, accompanied by hot cup of Earl Grey‘s finest tea and locked onto Fuel TV like a thirsty leech.
As I said in my previous blog, Trestles is one of the top high performance waves in the world. This mechanical wave begs for physical abuse by a surfboard. Combine that with the best 34 surfers in the world and your pupils go into sensory overload. It is here you’ll find some of the most innovative surfing you have ever witnessed.
This event was jam packed with so many amazing moments that it is hard to pinpoint what to talk about. With so much talent amongst the field, it can be hard to pick the best from the best. From a competitor’s point of view, here are the highlights that stood out to me.
Jordy Smith
It would be rude for me not to start with the champ. Finally the biggest unit on Tour nailed his first World Tour victory for 2014. I wouldn’t say Jordy blitzed the field; he actually looked quite nervous and shaky throughout the event. He did however construct smart, calculated heats for the first time this year and before he knew it he found himself sitting next to John John Florence in the final.
Like most heats, the final was pretty slow but Jordy drew first blood opening up with a 9.33. The next 25 minutes he sat there and watched the World go by. Meanwhile JJF went to work, hunting around like a dirty Ibis looking for some half eaten hot chips. The young Hawaiian collected some solid scores putting him in the lead with only a few minutes left on the clock. It as Jordy’s nerves of steel that paid off in the end. Although looking a little hesitant he put his gigantic rear end to work and tore his last wave to bits to collect his first win for 2014.
I feel we are only seeing glimpses of Jordy’s brilliance. He is by far one of the most talented athletes on tour but I feel the dialogue between his head and his heart has been holding him back. Hopefully this win puts the wind back in his sails and we see him heading for a world title.
John John Florence
Safe to say this kid is the most progressive surfer on the planet. From round 1 John John had a target on his back, breezing through heats like a hot fart in a 30knot Southerly buster.
His round 4 heat was a pivotal moment for professional surfing, scoring 9+ points on pretty much 5 consecutive waves. He pulled every trick out of the book, mixing up speed and power with innovation. The scores were a clear indication on where our sport is heading in the future. Old school power surfing will always be recognized and appreciated, but if we fast-‐forward 10 years from now, it simply won’t be enough to win a World Title.
Filipe Toledo
Although bowing out in round 3, this Novak Djokovich look-alike pulled off one of the best backside aerials ever in competition against Adam Melling. Looking forward, if Toledo can find his figs in big waves I feel that he has all the tools to be a title contender.
The Matriarchs
OMG (Oh my God) I tuned into a few of the ladies heats and I was absolutely gobsmacked on how incredible they were surfing. From Nose picks to giant arcs, girls surfing is progressing faster than the Ebola Virus. Lakey Peterson pulled off a crazy air reverse and got a standing ovation from many of the male competitors.
Stephanie Gilmore’s surfing is aging like wine. Just when you think she might be falling off the perch and has nothing left in the tank, she produces one of the most dominant surfing performances in female surfing history. Ms Gilmore schooled an inform Sally Fitzgibbon in the final, scoring the only perfect 10 of the entire event. Sally however is sitting in 1st place on the Women’s World rankings thus insuring an exciting grand finale to the Women’s Tour.
Controversies (Call me the devils Advocate)
The Judging
Just like every other event, there were people sulking about the judging; “Kelly didn’t deserve this, Kelly didn’t deserve that” “John John should have won” blah blah blah. The fact of the matter is, that most people are biased towards their favourite surfers. When the judges don’t side with their favourite surfers on a close call, all of a sudden “The judging is shit”. No the judging is not shit, surfing is a subjective sport and opinions will vary on the judging panel so suck it up.
The commentary Team
As I sit there twiddling my freckly fingers in between sets the commentators are trying their best to keep the audience interested by repeating the same old athlete profiles, board dimensions, statistics etcetera. I must admit, it can get a little monotonous at times hearing the same voices repeating themselves event after event. However, when the ocean goes flat for ten minutes at a time, you have to try your best to keep the fans interested. It’s a pretty tough gig. Sitting out in the water all day, Pete Mel’s testicles must retract to the size of Tic Tacs but at least he’s still doing a good job dissecting lineups, tides, winds and performances. After sitting through Trestles I now have more compassion for the crew behind the mic.
World Surf League
Sound weird to you? Well get used to it because by the end of 2014 the ASP (Association of Surfing Professionals) will be officially extinct. So what does the name change mean in the whole scheme of things? To be honest I don’t think it will change a thing, all internet traffic will be redirected to a new homepage which fans will again have to learn how navigate. To me it’s a positive change. It will be sad to say goodbye to the old ASP logo, but lets face it the Association of Surfing Professionals is a bit of a tongue twister. Although World Surf League sounds quite Americanised it makes a lot more sense.
Next up, we are off to the land of baguette’s and cheese (France). The European leg has an abundance of unpredictable beach breaks, so anything can happen. Kelly gained some valuable points after Adrian Buchan methodically took down the current world number one Gabriel Medina in the quarters. Finally the World Title race is starting to heat up. So get ready ladies and gents the next couple of events are going to be as exciting as your first day at school.
Until next time, peace, love and mungbeans.
– Bottle xoxo
